Recipes for Disaster: an anarchist cookbook

626 Pages·2009·32.26 MB·English

by  Crimethinc. Workers' Collective

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Disaster?
Yes, disaster.
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and explorethe unknown Me w^Ta^":;" """^''
fora
reprievef„„.,ourown
Hfe, neverknow,ng?h:roTffj^;^^^^^^
you that we are in the Jd ofle^osM "n 'T''"^ ^"^^"^^"^"""^ '^
' slow-motion
as the natural environmentL.« 1^ . disaster in histo-ry,
perienceis stea^rd" heTo ' V" T' '"' ^"^-^^^'^^"^l"™-
can.cookoutofthe r;^™^^^^^^^^ ^"-*>^'"-'er.you
Whether disaster is sometM '' ^°'""""P^^^^^ti^^es.
^^C
e-pe, one thin, ilTr ^^n-L^Ze ''^-'^'^'^ '^^ '"
recipes for disaster. Here theyare. fuffi^^ anymore. We need

Recipes
for Disaster
in anarchist cookbook
a moveable feast
E T H I N C . W ORKERS' C»-OOLLLLFErCrTiIvVcE // oOlYMPIA / 200 4-
%
officialWinter200^
Selectionoftlie
Departmentof
HomelandSecurity
DangerousBooksClub®
"...describes in lurid
detail howsensible, Additionalcopiesofthistreatisecanbeobtainedfor$12posWtApaidfrom
law-abidingcitizenscan Crimethlnc. FarEast/P.O. Box1963 /Olympia, 98507.
betransformed into Avastarray ofrelatedmaterialisalsoavailablefromthataddress, mostofitfor
mayhem-makingmobs." thecostofpostagealone. Forfiirtherinformation,consultwww.crimethinccom.
-TomRidge, Department
ofHomelandSecLirity N©!200^
Thepublishers,thenotorious Crimethlnc.ex-Workers' Collective,humbly
putthisbookandallitscontents atthedisposalofthosewho,ingood
faith,mightread, circulate, plagiarize, revise, andotherwisemakeuse
oftheminthecourseofmakingtheworldabetterplace. Possession,
reproduction,transmission, excerpting,introductionasevidenceincourt,
andaUotherapplicationsbyanycorporation, governmentbody, security
organization,orsimilarpartyofevilintentare strictlyprohibitedand
punishableundernaturallaw.
The Crimethlnc.ex-Workers'Collectiveisamemberlessundergroundpledgedto
thetotaltransformationofWesterncivilizationandlifeitself.
PrintedonrecycledpaperwithsoyinkinCanadabytheworkersatHignellBookPrinting.
Disclaimer for
Our
Enemies
Aenugtahgoenumesatnaykeonfotteh:eNdoummebmabnedrsdaonfgtehreouCsrimethlnc. ex-Workers' CoUectivmeeMndeorseor
beneficianes ofcapitaHst iniquity, we haveancotiviintcieesntdievsecrtoibceodntheesrteitnh.eAsstt^w,tU!stI
p":^SerenT:7a:L^rLr^^^^^^^^
Yourpotentialinconvenience,
the Crimethlnc.AaionFaction
Disclaimer for
"Plans are worthless, butplanning is everything—keep yourselfsteeped in
Our Friends thecharacteroftheproblemyou arecalledontosolve."
-PresidentDwightD. Eisenhower, 1957
Theseareindeedrecipesfordisaster.AnyonewiththesUghtestexperienceinthefieldknows
that nothing ever goes as planned, especially not the first time. Inevitably, at that tense,
tremblingmomentyoucallinthebombthreat,thereceptionistwillhanguponyoubefore
>~-*A::r yourrecordingdeviceplaysit—andyou'llrealizeyouonlybroughtonecleanquarter.
This book can serve as a source ofinformation, butit is meant atleastas much as a
sourceofinspiration—itisanattempttobroadenthepubUctoolbox,toencourageothers
-e^^eA/ Vi^ totryoutwildideas oftheirown. Itisindeedimportantthatbeginners aroundtheworld
(jtV^M bearmedwithspecificskillsthatareubiquitousinsomecontextsbuthaveneverbeenap-
pliedinothers,buttheprocessofdiscoveryandexperimentationisalwaysmorevaluable
thantheproductsthereof Don'tabidebyanyformulainhere—improvise,improvise.
Many ofthe recipes we composed for this volume were test-driven in small towns
We
selected suchlocations forourrigorous process ofexperimentation andanalysis on
the grounds thattheywere utterlyunremarkable. Perhaps the importance ofSan Fran-
msctiarstacetodeg;ainendsotBwaehrvicecerhlyooannraeeicnnaotnhwoerismstprhouosgusglildebllfieovreifnirntesheuedscoehmpcailtanicdeessa,adrvaeenndsttiublerlsetifdroeersm,aelnmldahoanusysblryeeevdonalonuvtgeierorensoaturisy- "dabWieiwstceghaiervwkdeoenardnk,odvtreohertedhtuseocuretbhdrseettdapounlancadenfaneoniwftnghlriofioeutfursaghslaasllla
reveemraywmhfeorreaeflseew.hWohurys,riwshkearnretshterienatrheeaftinhaonucsiaalnddiustnrgiuctartodepdutstuoppgsriagfnfistiinthtahtewsiullbuornblsy -cFpee.lrIefebMcratartimioeonanelstst.ai",ndFutthueriasnttCicoiopkabtoioonkof
waiting to singyour song? Quite a few ofthese recipes are designed especially forthe
Middles-of-Nowhere ofour world, the nondescript margins ofhistory where Nothing
Ever Happens.Astheysay,thequickestwaytothetopisto turntheworldupsidedown
Revolutionis, among otherthings, areversal: thefirstbecomes the last, the marginbe-
comes the mamstream, the nameless convictbecomes Nestor Makhno, commanderof
the anarchistarmies ofthe Ukraine. Theanonymous, inexperiencedteenagers who get
theirhands onthisbookinMissoula, MontanacouldbetheonestomakehipNewYork
andthis bookitself, totallyobsolete. Ifyou're one ofthem-whereveryoulive, however
oldyouare—foreveryone's sake, don'tunderestimateyour own strength.
One more subjectbears comment-the countless recipes left out ofthisbook espe-
mciaUytheonesyouthinkweshouldhaveincluded.Those,myfriend,arethefirstrecipes
^lourbook,whichyouhadbetterstartwritingas soonas possible.
Yours fortotaldestruction andrecreation,
andwishingyoumanyasweetrepast,
Crimethlnc. International Federation
ofFoodServiceIndustry Escapees
—
Setting the Table
12 Preface: DirectAction 219 DumpsterDiving
whatitis, andwhatit'sgoodfor 229 •Effigies
234 Evasion
•
28 AffinityGroups 241 -Festivals
35 AntifascistAction 248 • FoodNotBombs
66 AsphaltMosaics 258 Graffiti
75 Banner Drops and Banner Hoists 269 Guerrilla Performances
•
85 Behavioral Cut-ups 275 • HealthCare
92 • Bicycle Collectives 287 'Hijacking Events
100 Bicycle Parades 296 • Hitchhiking
107 PaintingbyBicycle 306 Infiltration
111 • HowtoMakea Bicycleintoa Record Player 322 -Inflatables
114 •Billboard Improvement 329 • Legal Support
127 Blocs, BlackandOtherwise 336 Marches and Parades
162 ' Blockades and Lockdowns 346 • Independent Media
178 •ClassroomTakeover 358 •Mainstream Media
183 Coalition Building 366 Mental Health
•
191 Collectives 383 • Musical Instruments
205 • Corporate Downsizing 392 'NewspaperWraps
210 Distribution,Tabling, and Infoshops 397 •Nonmonogamous Relationships