Chad Person’s Recess

Stumbled across this and I feel pretty conflicted about it.

On the one hand it deals with prepping for disasters and the like. Which I think is cool and all, and frankly, a responsible thing to do. He’s building a bunker out of what was a swimming pool in his backyard. Okay. Might not be a bad idea as a defense against wind storms and the like I suppose. He’s got some other stuff that is worthwhile - raising chickens for instance.

The odd thing about it is that it is billed as an art project. He had a gallery opening for it. Uhm, all right. Not really something I would consider art, but maybe I’m just too parochial too see the brilliance of how he’s “expanding the paradigms and broadening the discourse of formal juxtaposition of what constitutes art” or some such BS art speak.

Then he starts doing things that just leave me scratching my head, like telling the whole world about what he’s doing, to the extent of a map of exactly where he lives, strikes me as really foolish. He talks about all kinds of touchy feely stuff like not hiding the fact you're prepared, that you should work with your community, yada, yada. Sure, I believe very much in the idea of resilient communities, of working with your neighbours. Sure. Telling the entire world, ie, a bunch of strangers who are not part of your community, ie, people who could care less about you, ie, people who would gladly victimize you and your loved ones to get your stuff, just flies in the face of common sense. 

But where it starts to veer over into fuggeduppedness is making improvised shotguns. Uhmm.... I know some armorers and tinkerers who have made weapons. With a decent machine shop it’s not so hard to do. But what he makes reminds of what the MauMau were making. IE, frighteningly crude hack jobs, probably more likely to blow up in your face, than dispatch a predator. You can get a decent shotgun for what, a $150. And by putting it all up on the internet, he attracted the interest of the BATFE. Telling the whole world about it, and then being surprised when the authorities take umbrage, and then whining, “yes, but it’s really just an art project” strikes me as really dumb. 

But what makes me really question this guys sincerity and sanity is that he posts what his neighbours have on the internet, labelling the fact that they have solar panels on their roof or a 4 wheel drive vehicle or propane tanks for all the world to find. I realize that anyone with evil in their heart could drive around and locate things to steal in any neighbourhood. But it creeps me out that this guy is blatantly highlighting who has what for the whole world to see. Did he ask any of them if they would mind? Is he doing this because he plans to rob his neighbours if the shit hits the fan, or pretty much inviting others to do so? Putting up a map of what he euphemistically calls “resources”, ie other peoples stuff, isn’t just stupid, it’s downright dangerous and irresponsible. Pulling all your neighbours into it, by highlighting what they have, with some inane idea that you’re creating community cohesion, is arrogant and rude. If he highlighted for the world to see that I have a 4x4 in my garage and a garden, he would be dealing with either a punch in the face or a lawsuit.

Like I said, I’m all about preparing for unpleasant eventualities. But I’m certainly not a paranoid kook, dreaming about what an exciting adventure the post-apocalyptic world will be. I’m all about trying to be as self-sufficient as possible, lay in a supply of food, learning as many useful skills as I can, working together with friends and neighbours, to weather system disruptions or natural disasters and the like. But what this guy is doing just strikes me as all wrong.

I’m not even going to hotlink to it.

http://chadperson.com/recess/