Zerzan lecture leftquestions open

After Monday’s lecture and discussion with John Zerzan, many of the questions dealt with answers and solutions to the institutions of domination, exploitation and destruction, which fall under the umbrella term “civilization,” marked by the domestication of plants, animals and humans which subsequently created the current unsustainable paradigm that has pretty much destroyed the world.

There will never be one solution because the problem is so pervasive that it cannot be addressed by just one answer. Likewise, we cannot wait for others to come up with the solution. That’s the same as voting and other reformist nonsense that places the power to shape our own realities in the hands of others.

I, too, don’t have the answers, at least for others, but I’ve begun my journey of becoming uncivilized and have some insight.

Whatever our solution, it must address the fundamental problems inherent in any civilization: hierarchy, domination of nature, technology, industrialism and its implicit exploiting and alienating consequences and power.

Green anarchy (or anarcho-primitivism) opposes critically how humans lived before and after domestication. We’re not advocating for a return, but there are important lessons to learn as the modes of existence in a society lacking the institutions of civilization were catalysts for organic and mutual relationships, freedom, nature and equality.

Probe any anthropologist long enough and she’ll admit that 10,000 years ago we were all anarchists.

The resistance to civilization must happen physically, spiritually and mentally. There are many experiments going on, looking at how to create alternatives to civilization (human potential to create anything but civilization was destroyed with the creation of civilization).

A really good example is the Wildroots radical homestead in North Carolina ( www.wildroots.org ). They serve only as an example not a model. It’s up to us to create our own lives and not forfeit our desires to a society riding so high on domination that it will soon fall over.

Anthony Schmidt is a senior majoring inanthropology and was one of the organizersof the lecture for Green Anarchy.

Green-friendly architecture would benefit USF, students

In the coming years, the Phyllis P. Marshall Center is to undergo major changes that aim to create a hot spot for students to gather, study, relax and host events. This type of facelift for the USF student center is meant to recruit new students to our campus. However, after the initial novelty of the building, such a superficial change will die out in popularity.

A green-friendly building will be able to supply the beauty that the university is looking for and have other great benefits for its students and the university as a whole. This type of architecture can act as a working example of a type of solution to issues students address in their majors, such as environmental degradation, resource depletion and ecology. Students will not only be drawn to USF because of looks, but also because of the great opportunity to learn, and they will enjoy having lower tuition because the university will have lower utility costs.

The Adam Joseph Lewis Center at Oberlin College in Ohio stands as one of the greatest examples of green-friendly architecture. It conserves water and energy, is made from recycled building materials and has very little waste that cannot be recycled. It uses geothermal wells in the ground and photovoltaic cells on the roof to collect most of their energy. On very sunny days like we have in Tampa, enough energy is made to sell back to the power grid. Triple-paned windows help regulate temperature and let light in. Water from sinks and toilets is recycled through an organic filtration process, eliminating harmful substances. Parts of the building are made from agricultural straw waste, old bowling alleys, sustainable harvested wood and recycled steel and carpet. The surrounding landscape was designed into an ecosystem where students can experience nature and also includes gardens with edible fruits.

Olympia Evergreen State College in Washington has sustainable features on campus. Yale has menus that include food from local farmers, seasonal foods and organic meals. Colorado State uses wind as a source of energy.

With the present-day strain on resources and the economy, there is no plausible reason to not provide a green-friendly student center. This can be a great opportunity for the university to bring students together from all over the world and allow for students to reconnect with nature instead of perpetuate a way of life that disconnects humans from the natural world.

Arysteja Szymanski is a junior majoring in anthropology.

Patriot Act mustnot be renewed

The USA Patriot Act stands within two main labyrinths that either criticize and denounce it as an insult to American ideals and international human rights, or praise it as a patriotic perseverance to life and liberty against future terrorist attacks. Distant from the dissimilarities and at the heart of these radically conflicting perceptions, stands the concern about the American people. At the Special Events Center, an event sponsored by the ACLU in conjunction with Amnesty International featured former member of Congress Bob Barr.

This conservative Republican, since leaving Congress, ardently advocates a position in contradiction with his previous support and vote in favor of the USA Patriot Act. Barr passionately criticized the Patriot Act and emphasized 2005 as a vital year for the future of our civil liberties in regards to the Sunset Provisions due to terminate at the end of 2005.

The USA Patriot Act contradicts rights protected within the US Constitution and several international documents, some of which the U.S. led in creating. Most disturbingly, this act sets the tone for a vague and seemingly always-expanding definition of “domestic terrorism.” As designated by the law, these are acts committed that are “dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws” found to be intended to “influence the policy of a government.” It is of significant value that, in efforts to safeguard our civil liberties as individuals, students, Americans and, above all, human beings, we mobilize to urge our legislators to enforce the Sunset Provisions currently in place. Of the same importance is the emphasis on extending sunset provisions to the sections of the Patriot Act allowing sneak-and-peek warrants and national security letters, as well as revising the present broad definition of terrorism.

Edita Pojani is a senior majoring inpolitical science and international studies.