nosho18

nosho18 wrote

Not to be a dick, but this title is a little misleading. The whole text is dealing with plain clothes cops, meaning a cop on duty out of uniform, and not undercovers, a specialized cop with a detailed, long-term cover. The tips can be useful, but won't help with undercovers. If you want some additional thoughts on dealing with actual undercovers, here are some experiences from my area:

"Shane" an undercover cop in Hamilton https://north-shore.info/2018/09/06/shane-an-undercover-cop-in-hamilton-on/

Damage Control: The story how one activist group kept themselves safe and strong in the face of movement infiltration https://www.infiltration.fail/

The Toronto G20 Main Conspiracy https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/08/12/18759937.php

Last one in particular is probably the most detailed account on the subject available from an anarchist perspective.

Soli and stay safe,

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nosho18 OP wrote (edited )

It is difficult to discern unified goals among the Gilets Jaunes in France, because it is a large and very complex social movement that is very much politically contested.

In Canada, the Islamophobic far right has been trying to appropriate the yellow vests for their own purposes, but anarchists, leftists and anti-fascists have also been starting to wear them.

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nosho18 wrote

It's good the there are autonomously controlled communications platforms set up. Reddit is the best of the worst in terms of allowing actual anonymity, but in the end they benefit from keeping a self-referential space that doesn't build power irl. Fundamental to anarchism, for me, is that there is no separation between ideas and actions -- it's why free speech arguments fall flat and also why liberatory and rebellious ideas are seen as threats.

It's true that the reason people try so hard to do their politics on mainstream platforms is the sense that they're reaching people that way, which is maybe true. But for most of us, the goal isn't to get the most likes or make space for super low level participation like that. People critique projects like raddle as "talking to ourselves", but what's wrong with that if the goal is to deepen our analysis, maintain lines of communication, and build solidarity to take struggles back into the streets?

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nosho18 OP wrote

I'm assuming your concern is the same as that of the person who commented on North Shore, so I'll reproduce the answer someone posted there:

"I don't believe the person was trans, just that she was a muscular woman. The writer was probably trying to avoid gendering someone whose gender identity they didn't know. Providing a physical description might be useful for people who could have been introduced to this person by Shane."

I'll add that there's a good chance she was a cop too.

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nosho18 wrote

Reply to by !deleted7780

Some folks used to make their own using the metallic bristles that fall off street sweepers, then filing or angle grinding one into a hook and one with teeth. A lot of street sweepers use plastic bristles now and it's a damn shame.

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nosho18 wrote

This guy... He talks such a big game, but he has literally never contributed to struggles in the area (he's based in Hamilton, Canada) even though he makes more money than every activist in the city put together. And he has only ever sounded in to condemn people for going to far (specifically around shutting down oil execs, anti-choice groups, and far-right on campus).

I can't even read his shit anymore, even when he has interesting things to say. Ideas aren't worth anything if they have no consequences in action.

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