CHIMP.....CHUMP......CHAMP

Are you a chimp? A chump? or a Champ?

Actually, all of us consist of bits of all three at any time. Chimps are those people who are fated or choose to live most of their lives in what the Sufi's call our lower nature, or "Nafs" They are mostly clueless fucks. You don't realize how stupid they are until they open their mouths.

Chumps are those people who understand their lower nature, and are no longer satisfied with a newer car, a bigger T.V., a hotter boyfriend, more shoes, monthly shopping binges, etc. Unfortunately, they don't know how Not to be a Chimp, and their vague sense of dissatisfaction just makes them cranky, judgemental and a pain in the ass to be around. They have a vague inkling that they don't know what's going on around them, but it rarely impacts on their behaviour.

Champs are just like us. Ha Ha Ha...Actually, a fully realized Champ is someone who understands his/her peak experiences, and has actualized his/her higher nature. From my experience, this is usually accomplished in the presence of a REAL TEACHER in a GROUP SETTING. They maintain a healthy skepticism , EVEN ABOUT THEIR OWN BELIEFS. They seek wisdom over wealth, but are often treated like 'painted birds' by chimps and chumps. In other words, they are seen as dangerously different, and are suitable only for pecking to death by all of the 'normal' birds.

What the hell does all of this have to do with PIRATES?

I'll be happy to tell you.

Over the past dozen or so years, there have been a number of intriguing academic treatments of the so-called "pirate democracies", which flourished during the 1600-1700's.

(the following is excerpted from Raiders and Rebels: The Golden Age of Piracy, by Frank Sherry, pp. 122-125)
In the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries, there was only one true democracy on earth: the pirate brotherhood forged in Madagascar.

Incongruous as it might appear, the cutthroats, who brutalized captives and who scoffed at the rules of society, were passionately democratic. They had a high regard for individual rights--and a burning hatred for the tyranny that had oppressed them in their days of "honest service."

Unlike privateer crews, who were still only hired hands despite the fact that they received fair shares of their ship's plunder, pirates regarded themselves as self-employed, collective owners of their own ships. They believed that since the crew of a pirate ship had acquired their vessel by their common effort, all should participate equally in decisions aboard her. For this reason, pirates evolved a system that called for virtually all matters regarding life aboard their ship--whether to fight, where and when to anchor, division of spoils, even courses to be followed--to be subjected to a referendum, with each man, regardless of his rank, race, religion, or previous employment, entitled to an equal vote in the decision, as well as an equal right to voice his opinion. Only during battle did the pirates abandon this referendum system.

So pervasive was this insistence on individual rights--and so fearful were pirates of placing too much authority in the hands of any one man--that they even elected their captains and other high-ranking officers, retaining the right to depose them by vote whenever they wished. Occasionally, if the vote of a ship's crew was too close to allow a clear-cut choice for captain, the crew would split into two different crews, and each go its own way....

Another popular view of 'PIRATE DEMOCRACY' ties it closely to revolutionary democracy, or anarchism. The pirate caucus of Rutgers University is a good example of immature leftist political thinking. Attempting to change the world is stupid. The world is FULL of chimps and chumps, and you should avoid them as much as possible. I used to want to change the world. Now I just want to protect my family, friends and relatives from the chimps and chumps.

But...here's the rub. I know now that I can't do it alone.

What I am proposing is a tightly knit, cooperative association of free individuals operating in their own self interest. Combining strength of thought, courage and wisdom in order to move beyond the stupid miasma of our shattered status quo, these groups of free individuals would have the potential to leave a lasting legacy of innovation, efficiency and excellence to future generations. And SLACK. DON'T FORGET ABOUT SLACK.

There will be lots of battles to be fought, against the chimps and chumps who can ONLY think about administrative and institutional self-preservation...against the fundamentalist liberals who can't seem to pass enough (unenforceable) laws against
just about everything...against the fundamentalist conservatives who want to steal our precious SLACK. WARNING: YOU CAN'T CHANGE INSTITUTIONS!!YOU CAN ONLY BOARD THEM, GUT THEM, AND COMANDEER THEM. Actualy, you replace them, but the other stuff sounds better.

Here's the most interesting dichotomy: If you still harbour thoughts of changing the world (Debby wants to become a dental hygenist, cop, whatever, so she can 'help' people)...there is only one way. That's by changing yourself. Imagine yourself in a room full of chimps and chumps. Intelligence is represented in this example by light. Well, matey, guess what...the room is pitch FUCKING black. The only thing you can do to help them is to LIGHT YOUR OWN CANDLE!

next post: PIRATE ECONOMICS