Rainbow Gathering

[wokofshame]

eeeeehhhh..... i don't think i'm ever goin' to a rainbow now.... met a buttload of A-Camp kids here in SD last night and they were just such a bunch of sorry losers... picking fights and calling each other "mama" and "brother" "give me a schwill, c'mon".
this one douchebag louis tried to pick a fight with me and i just walked away....
A-Camp is all about fighting plus the enormous amount of mooching from anyone dumb enough to give another douche stuff, lots of retards on acid, all the women using that the fact that they're women to their advantage though any person in their right mind would be like GROSS! i'm not touching any of these women with a 10-foot pole. mad std's and butt-ugly hippieness to boot. (the same goes for guys i'm sure)
and they call each other family......
Lurch you bring the shotgun and I'll bring the 2-ton cannon.

 

[Poking Victim]

hmmmm, no reason to get defensive there buddy. i cooked a lot at lovin ovens last year in arkansas and after two days just couldnt take it anymore....all drumming...all hippie....all the time....maybe it was different this year, i dont know. a bunch of meat and pissed off people doesnt sound that great either tho....

maybe you were hearing drums from Montana Mud. Drumming upsets baking, drumming is banned at the ovens for the most part. I don't know what you describe as hippie, but to me it's spirituality, veganism, beating on a drum; none of which will be found there
I don't get called 'brother' that often, so I figure I'm staying away from hippies well enough

 

[Mouse]

I've never been to a rainbow. my lil selection of hippy friends is all I really need. I don't need to go hang out with a forest full of them.

i got a small taste of the rainbow stuff when I was in AZ. went out to a group of buses camping the the national forest. in the end they all really annoyed me. one of them tried to molest me in my sleep. it was just a bunch of shit.

 

[maus]

ive met some really cool people who went to rainbow things but it wasnt like 'their thing.' the people ive met who were super into being rainbow kids were all some of the dumbest and/or most fucked up people ive ever met.

 

[Dameon]

I like how the feds called it a "riot" where they were attacked by 400 hippies wielding sticks and stones. Yet all the injuries were among the hippies. I think that if 400 people attack 20 cops (let's just say it was 20 for the sake of argument, I don't know how many there were exactly), the cops are going to lose, even if they have pepper bullets.

But really, I wouldn't let the feds deter me with their bullying ways and overreaction. If I don't go again, it'll be because of the attendees, not the cops.

 

[Dameon]

Yeah, I can't blame you for not wanting to take a kid somewhere where the feds are going to put her in danger. I'm not sure I'd want to bring children to a rainbow gathering even if the feds weren't there, with all the hippies running around on shrooms and acid.

 

[nobo]

i think i agree with arrow. well, i mean in the part where its only regionals, not the national gathering. i was thinking about it, i do a lot in my everyday life to avoid confrontation with cops. so why would i travel half way across the country only to be greeted by hundreds of them?! i think regionals are the best bet. from what i hear, theyre a little bit more manageable and more community oriented. we'll see.

 

[Staralar]

I actuily attended the 2008 Rainbow Gathering... & despite the police opening fire on Kiddie Village; I had an amazing time. I've never met so many diverse people in one area [in a national forest no less]. Not to mention I really dig the whole idea behind it, & the celebration our "freedom" & the people as a whole... but yeah, I'd never take my children there either. There're just some things that if I did ever become pregnant, I'd never want my young introduced to... but then again I suppose that goes for every mother/parent.

 

[dVEC]

Gatherings are what you make of them. They can be just about anything to anyone, depending what you do and who you hang out with, at least at the ones big enough to have more than one kitchen.

There's a lot of shitty folks in rainbow land, and a lot of really amazing, awesome folks. It's easy enough to not be bothered by the ones you don't like. Just like, oh, I dunno, the rest of the universe?

There is definitely a certain amount of tolerance involved, though, and I don't just mean the drugs. Don't go to rainbow if you're counting on not being offended on a daily basis by SOMEthing or SOMEone. But part of the rainbow philosophy is about appreciating all people (and life), whether or not you actually LIKE them or AGREE with them. Personally, I consider myself a militant feminist and anti-racist - but there's a lot of folks I really love in rainbow land who say "bitch" and "nigger" on a pretty regular basis, or even act in ways the are somewhat oppressive to others. I may not like that they do those things, but I'm able to take the good with the bad and not write them off completely.

Equally, sometimes a drunk A-Camper might try to fight me, or a good friend, but I'll sure as shit still fill their bliss with some food the next day if they come by the kitchen.

Frankly, I think the whole idea that's so prevalent in the A//E community of "this person fucked up in this one way, therefore I hate them and want nothing to do with them and it invalidates anything they might ever contribute" is pretty ridiculous, counter-productive, and honestly, not in line with what those ideals mean (to me).

Tolerance. It's something a lot of people have fought and died for, and I think it's important that we don't forget its value just because we've managed to homogenize ourselves so much that it seems out of the ordinary.

I'm yet to go to a National gathering, but I've been to many regionals big and small over the last few years. You can usually find me at Fat Kids Kitchen if there is one. Those are some really great kids. Shut Up and Eat It are good folks, too, not to mention Tea Time, Iris, On Your Way, Montana Mud, 138, and many many other camps full of fuckin' phenomenal folks of all kinds.

Just please don't ever write anyone or anything off completely, ever, or we'll be stuck in a dogma pit so deep we won't even know how to get out of it.

 

[macks]

Frankly, I think the whole idea that's so prevalent in the A//E community of "this person fucked up in this one way, therefore I hate them and want nothing to do with them and it invalidates anything they might ever contribute" is pretty ridiculous, counter-productive, and honestly, not in line with what those ideals mean (to me).

Tolerance. It's something a lot of people have fought and died for, and I think it's important that we don't forget its value just because we've managed to homogenize ourselves so much that it seems out of the ordinary.

...

Just please don't ever write anyone or anything off completely, ever, or we'll be stuck in a dogma pit so deep we won't even know how to get out of it.

cheers! well said.

I've said/done my fair share of stupid shit! everybody makes mistakes and hopefully learns from them.

 

[Staralar]

Yeah, I'm with you on that one. I think the world could use a little more tolerance & understanding. More or less though; "it is what you make it" than can ring true for damn near any instance you get yourself into.

Go to nationals this year! It's in New Mexico- & my big plan for the summer.

 

[Ravie]

after reading all of these replies i'm not sure if I want to never go to rainbow or if I want to go more than ever to see how it is. I don't like hippies, but i can tolerate them. Eh, whateva. I'll go to the 2009 rainbow.

 

[Benny]

NO thanks....I would rather go to a STP party any day.

 

[finn]

One of my friends is threatening to drag me to that one, so we'll see what happens...

 

[Ravie]

awww i wanna go to the next stp party! when is it?

 

[dirtyfacedan]

I went to a drainbow gathering in BC about 10 years ago. It generally sucked. There was no good water supply...just a tiny dribble of water for several hundred people. Everyone got sick. Later, everyone had to move a half mile, when the local First Nations elders had voiced a few concerns...and some idiots flew off the handle, yelling "NIMBY" to them. All they wanted was assurances of respect to the land we were using, their land. CSIS (Canadian CIA) was there writing down plates from cars. I asked them what the hell they were doing (they had suits, and drove an intrepid), and they sad that some kids were crossing the border into Canada with guns...and said they were coming to this said gathering to party. BWWAAHAHAHAHA.... i just laughed at them, thinking they were prob to dumb do some real work, get some real criminals, and they should leave the dead-beat hippies alone.

I also went to the Canadian "nationals" in northern Onterrible (Ontario) the same year. It was a bit rough....i didn't think they thought it out at first. I did learn some tolerance though...for the worst bug infestations I have ever endured. It was so bad...only a few dozen people stayed for the whole event. Maybe the organizers HAD thought it out, and wanted only dedicated people to stay. No matter to me...bugs or not. The area was nice...but again, water was a problem. (wild tangent here folks) I did meet some good American friends though, one couple i even met the following summer way out west, at a good squatting spot on the Kootenay river off of Highway 3 near Nelson BC, where i was living at the time...we were all on the way to a big party (a few thousand people). We were all broke, but got in anyways. A group of people leaving gave us their ticket bracelets (we re-melted the broken ones on with lighters), and a flat of beer! It was good to see them again, and they seemed to love Canada. The party was way more fun than the gathering where we had all met. We helped clean up after, and got tons of free shit that the fucked up people had left! stoves..tent's, bags, drugs even!!

All in all....i don't mind these rainbow folks. Some poor planning it seems and a but flakey, but the good intent is there, and i can't figure out why the fuck the cops hate these folks..they seem to be pretty harmless.

 

[Ravie]

why else would cops harrass hippies? they smell, dont wear shoes, eat everything, and think they can talk to a goat named rainflower.

 

[Wind]

i don't see why everyone's hating on the hippies!
they have an equal amount of flaws as punk kids.

plus, i love to meditate and drum!

 

[dirtyfacedan]

I don't hate hippies.....unless they leave my kitchen dirty, i fucking hate that. The only good thing, is all the empties are MINE!!! We have a good recycling program here in BC...worth 10 cents each!! Just kidding...i have hippie roommates, and hippie father. the only thing i know is Slayer seems to weaken them.

Test yourself to see if you are a hippie.... http://slayersiren.ytmnd.com/

 

[Ravie]

I dont mind hippies until they eat all my food, loose my dog, or forget they're cooking something and somehow catch soup on fire.