Story of Jeffrey

Comment

Comment by Michael Marquardt on March 15, 2013 at 4:34am

Great video.  Many people seem reluctant or unable to examine themselves from the 3rd person perspective, but you narrate yourself in such a way.  I believe this is what separates you from others and creates division from others who conduct their everyday lives through a sort of 'socially conditioned automation'.

 

I felt the same way you do for years.  It just seemed like people around me were sleep-walking through life.  I became angry with the world and the people that I just didn't understand.  Then I started studying things that piqued my curiosity.  Subjects such as psychology and sociology.  I listened to lectures from many people with many different ideas and perspectives.

 

Once I was aware of subjects such as cognitive dissonance and the Ashe Experiment and things became clearer.  I recently began listening to TEDTalks and unconventional thinkers (such as Jacque Fresco) and have come to understand the reasons people behave in these ways.  Alan Watts said it best in my opinion.  You can't blame people.  You can't blame their parents or teachers.  You can't blame their parents' and teachers' parents and teachers.  They are just passing on the lies that they themselves have been taught.

 

I was an honor student myself through school and joined the honors society in college.  It just seemed to me college was training me to be a worker, not teaching me anything of actual substance so I began to seek knowledge from alternative sources.  I never wanted to specialize in anything, simply learn as much as I could.  I took jobs in many different areas for modest pay simply to gain understanding of different processes.  I have done drafting, machining, CNC programming, comstruction.  I dabbled in restaurant and retail management.  I have spent the last few years learning more about manufacturing and warehousing, even administrative work.

 

People keep telling me I should focus on one field and stick with it ... make a career out of it.  But I never wanted to confine myself to just one thing, one idea.  I began to suspect long ago that something was inherently wrong with society as we know it.  I have always excelled at any venture I undertook.  I wanted to learn many different skills out of some sort of subconscious drive.

 

I don't mean to bore you, but I see the same subconscious drive in you as well.  To me, it's a sort of calling.  Finding other people who are willing to come together with a wide variety of skills could become something amazing.

 

I hope you will continue to absorb as much information as possible and learn many different skills as well.  You have a gift.

Comment by Jeffery Martin Cromer on March 13, 2013 at 12:13pm

Cool I joint a few months ago, but I guess I've been on the crusade since reading Daniel Quinn's books. If you haven't they are a must! I look forward to chatting with you as well, and maybe more. I want to try and grow some gardens this year in pittsburgh pa, where I live. I don't how close you are to here or if you drive or anything. I just wanna be more active. I have this term "Gonzo Environmentalism" it sorta means sporadic moments of change, be it through a facebook post or whatever, a conversation about sustainability, whatever. But I wanna do this full time and find others just as dedicated. I am a bit of a shut in but its a new year and all that so I wanna try to do more. I've found it hard to get connected with this sorta thing. I personally know whats right and wrong, or sustainable vs not sustainable, but it hard to find others on the same wave length. People seem so wrapped up in gathering money for survival. I don't I just WANNA CHANGE STUFF! lol,:) Anyway though I really really urge you to read Daniel Quinn's works! 

Comment by Deborah E Butler on March 13, 2013 at 8:56am

Thank you! I am looking forward to chatting with you more! This is pretty new for me so I have just recently started sifting through the info out here. My friend, Priscilla Houston turned me on to it. I will check out your facebook also!

Peace - deb

Comment by Jeffery Martin Cromer on March 13, 2013 at 12:52am

Same here. My mother committed suicide, all four of my grandparents died around the same time. My father than tried to commit suicide and I had to go into the foster care system, than 3 years later he dies. Than the only girl I ever really cared about committed suicide a few years ago, after a 2 year relationship of me trying to stop it. Now all I have is an older brother and myself. Everyone else I meet turns out to be a bad person, and ends up trying to use me, or hurt me. So I've tried suicide a few times myself, and think about it everyday, and now with nothing to live for I put my efforts into trying to change a way of life that causes so much pain to all of its people. Let your life be a friction to stop the machine, to quote Henry David Thero. I am trying to raise some capital with a book I've written and some song I've wrote, and many other writings  So that I can kick start Tribalism 2.0, or merge with another group like the Venus project perhaps. Than whoever wants to live without money or hierarchy can join, if you look at some of my other blog posts I tried to outline what this new way of life would be life, you may be very interested. Just stay strong keep your thoughts as well as your environment allows, there are many of us out here trying to brighten the future, and stop the greed ideas that rule all, quality of life should not be dictated by money! If you ever want to talk I would be here for you, as I am a very lonely person, and would love to talk to new people. Take care Deborah, every thing will eventually be ok. If you have faebook, you may like my page, facebook.com/ThebFollowing .Message me anytime. 

Comment by Jeffery Martin Cromer on March 6, 2013 at 6:45am

... So if this makes sense to you I urge you to contact me with your ideas, or constructive criticisms. So that it may gain so momentum or be crushed if it is found to be impossible. Ya know a bit of the scientific method. Thank you for you time and good luck, we either change, or we go extinct from our stubbornness, and the stubbornness of those who most of you allow yourselves to be controlled by.

Comment by Jeffery Martin Cromer on March 6, 2013 at 6:44am

Well that's good. I hope you can find home someday also. I think we need to make a better way of life than everyone would always feel at home. You might like my essay, just don't confuse it with socialism, for it has no money.              All our problems today seem to be affected by money in one way or another. So as I've said before, I'll say again, WE NEED TO ABANDON CIVILIZATION ON MASS SCALES. Create a way of life with no money,or get BEYOND CIVILIZATION, as any glace at any part of history will show, societies with money never have equal peoples. What divides them, aside from religion?, MONEY! If you look closely the only place when people were doing the best was in pre-history, or before civilization, when they lived tribally. True they were not doing much in building and accumulating stuff, but they were happy and secure. So why don't we create tribalism 2.0. This would entail the security that a tribal life brings, with the comfort and art that civilization has brought. All would be taken care of, because in the tribal way that's how it works. Even today where they still live on in places our culture, or civilization leave them be. They get by fine with no money, no written laws, and no civilized technology. This is where the 2.0 comes in however, we wouldn't have to live in the "dirt" as they choose to. There would still be people willing to make computers, beds, cars, shelters, and so on without the sad motivation of money. Since it would be somewhat tribally the computer maker would be fed for his role of producing computers, and the food producers would receive computers for doing their part by producing the food. Same would be for all other functions necessary to fulfill our needs and wants. Things would be made on demand, not in mass production. Therefor cutting down on the use of natural resources, and the need for wage slaves that produce goods with planned obsolescence, in shifts 24/7. Also planned obsolescence would be done since that practice came from the greed money promotes. Yet another perk would be if you are say a car maker, and you finish all your work, all have their electric car, you could do another function if you wanted, or take your leisure time to simply enjoy life, or make art, whatever, while still being fed and having a right to your shelter since your duty is done for now. Until someone needs another car. The same would go for the computer maker, or solar panel maker. All would remain equal since their motivation would not be to gain money from competing with one and other, as it is now. There is always a hierarchy with money in the fold. A ruling small percent that hold most of it, and a massive amount of people who are but modern day serfs, or as they are called today, wage slaves, ya 'know jobs and careers. We should not be wasting time, effort, and intelligence trying to fix what we have now. Its the same as trying to make a ten story building from one story's worth of bricks. Taking bricks from that bottom story to try and create 10 more. Stupid, and unsustainable. This way of life can't be made fair no matter how many programs you try to make to better it, they may work for a time, but either way this way of life is like an airplane destine to crash, it maybe 10,000 feet up now, but its slowly headed towards the ground, even if it seems to be flying fine. So I say to YOU grab a parachute, in trying to make this new way a reality, before you crash with every one else trying to continue civilization. You may think that tribalism 2.0 sounds like a commune, you'd be half right, just don't think so small, it could be a GLOBAL commune. Or whatever you'd feel comfortable calling it. Think it through, as I cannot make this on my own, but it is a new vision, or story to enact, and I'd say it seems a hell of allot better than what we have now. As I said it still needs much work as it is still in its idea state.

Comment by Priscilla Houston on March 5, 2013 at 6:22pm

Im living in Erie right now. I was born here. I left when Iwas 18, moved all over now Im back but it doesnt feel like home. Maybe someday Ill find somewhere that does. Im glad I found you guys though. Its given me a whole new look on things.

Comment by Jeffery Martin Cromer on March 5, 2013 at 5:41am

I feel ya man. I don't have to work, not because I am rich but, damaged I guess from my traumatic youth. I have thought and tried suicide before. Now however I am focused on doing whatever I can to better the world, as well as I'm curious to see what happens. Where about PA do you live? Have you read any of Daniel Quinn's books? If not you should, they would help you find some more fulfilling purpose in affecting change in the minds of those you come across. Good luck man, maybe we'll meet someday! Take care.

Comment by Priscilla Houston on March 2, 2013 at 1:11pm

I completely understand.. I am 30 soon to be 31. I have been working at meaningless jobs that change every year or 2. I have lived in Florida, Texas, Georgia now in Pennsylvania and I am ready to leave again. My brothers cant understand how I live like I do. They all make good money and have families. The idea of a (Normal Life) sounds horrible to me. I have contemplated suicide many times. But I guess I just want to stick around to see what happens in the future. Wether it be peace or total destruction of civilization.