Aug 27 2024

From The Playa To The Sea

The gates of Black Rock City have opened, and BMOrg are still selling tickets on their web site. You can choose to buy a $575 $653 one or a $1500 $1696 one, whichever takes your fancy.

Catch the live video stream here and the BMIR radio stream here.

Burning Man has already been marred by its first death for this year, a 39-year old woman named Kendra Fraser who was found unresponsive – police are investigating. Let’s hope this one is the last. There was a time when deaths at Burning Man were unusual enough that we could write posts recalling them all, such as 2013’s 9 Ways to Die at Burning Man. In 2018 Salon pointed out that “Black Rock City’s staff are 13 times more likely to kill themselves in the off-season than veterans returning from active combat duty.”

Is there any other festival in the United States were people die every year and it’s allowed to keep going?

Are these all accidents, or is there some element of occult sacrifice going on?

In our last post Burning Man and the Gaza War we showed statements from the official Burning Man web site that politics definitely belong on the Playa.

Well, it seems that SOME politics are allowed. Woke politics.

This is the Sigil of Moloch coat of arms of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. Although Reuters acknowledges use of the symbol by Ukraine’s Nazis Far Right Nationalists, they claim that’s OK because the symbol is ancient.

Perhaps predictably, the ADL claims any connection between Ukraine and Khazaria is an Anti-Semitic Conspiracy Theory. They are probably referring to this Veterans Today article which has 100 million+ views: The Hidden History of the Incredibly Evil Khazarian Mafia. In 2014 The Times of Israel claimed Jews Are In Fact Khazars, then just days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine they updated this 8 year old story in their archives to clarify it was just some Purim humor. #YMMV. Some claim even Purim humor itself originated in Ukraine. You can read about The Khazar Origin of Ancient Kiev on JSTOR. The Khazarian use of the symbol is in the Wikipedia page for the Ukrainian Coat of Arms. The mass religious conversion even gets a mention in Encylcopedia Britannica.

What’s the problem? It’s Radical Self Expression! If people want to make giant statues of Moloch Sigils on the Playa, more power to them! After all, the Temple theme for 2024 is Togetherness: “In this time of global challenge and conflict, we are invited to find strength in unity, and to be seen, loved, and inspired” [Source: Burning Man web site]

This argument would carry more weight if giant statues of Jesus or Trump were also welcomed. We point to the recent case of the 14-ft Watermelon as evidence that this Tin Principle should be renamed Radical Woke Expression. Say anything you want, provided it is politically correct and aligned to the Progressive narratives that dominate the San Francisco Bay Area.

[Source: LA Times]

The piece was removed after an online petition gathered nearly 2000 signatures.

“Burning Man should not be allowing an installation of a watermelon representing political statements against another group,” one person wrote…“This is just crazy that this art was approved after what’s going on in the world after Oct. 7, it needs to be removed ASAP,” another wrote. [Source: LA Times]

Thanks to the work of Elaine Velie at Hyperallergic, a screenshot of the original listing in the 2024 Art Installations was found at the Wayback Machine.

Here’s the official statement from the Org:

Burning Man Project has removed a listing for a 2024 Black Rock City art piece from burningman.org. The listing was made using an anonymous Burner Profile – this violates the terms of our art placement submission process. Additionally, the listing’s content contained language understood by some to be hate speech.

We do not tolerate the use of violent, hateful, or incendiary language on our platforms.

It is customary for the Burning Man website to feature previews of art which Burning Man Project funds – this is called Honoraria art – as well as art that is self-funded and has applied for placement in Black Rock City. The listing was not an Honoraria art project and did not receive funding from Burning Man Project. We have a curation process for placement of all art which is functionally for operational purposes to ensure that height, fire safety, and location-related variables are applied.

Art is a very important form of self-expression, and Black Rock City is a very important venue for self-expression. We do not curate self-expression.

Should the artists want to contact the organization and appeal this decision, they can reach out to the art department using the normal means. Based on the circumstances around the way the listing was submitted, we believe that this is likely not an actual art piece coming to Black Rock City, but that the listing was instead intended to stir an emotional response within the Burning Man community.

We apologize for publishing something that should not have made it onto our website.

Burning Man culture is at its best when we build bridges across differences to make a better world. We are committed to this work.

Is a giant watermelon really more politically offensive than a shade structure under which people were murdered? This piece doesn’t seem like it would need round the clock security from Guardians working in 6 hour shifts.

Political statements for me, but not for thee…

[Source: Avi Katz, Jerusalem Post, via Tony Greenstein]

Aug 24 2024

Burning Man and the Gaza War

Black Rock City has dealt with terrorism before – see Anonymous Terror Group Claims Responsibility for Burning Man Attacks. Pershing County Sheriff Jerry Allen said in 2016 that Burning Man Could Be A Terror Target:

“What better event to have a worldwide impact in Northern Nevada than Burning Man, especially with the ‘loose morals’ that some Burners live by,” Allen wrote in an email to the Reno Gazette-Journal, alluding to the nudity and alcohol and drug use at the event. “Just because it hasn’t happened, doesn’t mean it is not possible. Remember, there was never a bomb at the Boston Marathon until there was. Nobody ever flew into a skyscraper until 9/11.

“If an event of that magnitude happened at this event, the soonest we could get resources to assist us in quelling the issue would be two hours. A lot can happen in that amount of time.”

With the planet on the brink of Global Thermonuclear War, and millions of people marching in the streets all around the world angry about genocide, what better art project to bring to Burning Man than something commemorating the Nova festival, where party-goers were slaughtered by both the paragliders of Hamas and Apache helicopters of the IDF.

This is one of the most triggering, divisive issues of modern times. Surely it won’t be a downer on anyone’s acid trip though…right? Instead it will be the “Must Have” Instagram selfie of the year.

From The Times of Israel:

[Source: Times of Israel]

A source tells us “the shade structure of Nova Heaven was the same one under which dozens of innocents were killed”.

Rest In Peace to the 400 dead party-goers. There are some weird things about this whole situation. The festival’s location was moved at the last minute, just 2 days before the event, from 40 miles away from Hamas to 3 miles away.

[Source: Dust and Tribe]

The BBC reported that Egypt Warned Israel Days Before The Attack, CNN reported that the US gave repeated warnings in the days leading up to the attacks, and the New York Times reported that Israel knew of Hamas’ plans more than a year in advance. So this last minute relocation approved by the Army is certainly very strange.

The Nova rave was actually combined at the last minute with another party called “Unity”:

[Source: Haaretz]

The orders came down from up high: forget the warnings, the show must go on!

If only we still had real journalism in the world, maybe we’d be able to get to the bottom of it all. Instead, like so many things of our times, it’s just swept under the rug as a big unsolvable mystery full of bizarre coincidences…but definitely not a conspiracy of any kind because those don’t exist and if you think they do, you’re a tin-foil hat wearing flat earth kook (and probably an unvaccinated Anti-Semite to boot!)

In the past we’ve had political figures like Grover Norquist, Denis Kucinich and General Wesley Clark visiting Black Rock City. The Washington Post even wrote a story in 2012 about The Mainstream Republican Values of Burning Man. İn 2012 the Occupy movement made its presence felt at Burning Man with the epic Burn Wall Street art project. In 2020 Black Lives Matter was all the rage. Last year we had Climate Change protestors stopping traffic and scuffling with police.

It’s a slippery slope…and look where we are now.

The Org seems to feel strongly that politics has a place on the Playa:

The “Burning Man isn’t political” perspective is based on the false narrative…that Burners find themselves or wish for their experiences to be separate from the world around them. We’re a year-round culture. We are a community of people from around the world, representing countless perspectives, caring about countless issues, with an endless list of reasons why we participate in Burning Man.

The word “political” in this context seems to be used to mean that activities or perspectives that tie together Burning Man with issues outside the physical or social media trash fences are not wanted or welcome. 

[Source: Burning Man web site]

In my opinion politics has no place whatsoever at Burning Man. We travel to this remote, harsh environment to escape reality, not to drag it with us. I remember when Burners had to cover up the Ryder signs on their rental trucks. Now will there be political yard signs on display?

[Above: Playa gifts from 2015 and 2024. Source: Anon]

Politics is not part of the Tin Principles in any way. If there is a “Civic Responsibility” to honor the 400 dead victims of the Nova Festival, then the 40,000 dead Palestinians should be honored too. But is a giant, drug-fueled rave really the appropriate place for these energies of death to be summoned in a pentagram?

The Nova Heaven organizers will be banging a gong and playing some thumping Israeli psy-trance:

Nova Heaven will also feature a large gate-shaped art piece with the “We Will Dance Again” motto, along with 405 laser-cut angels to represent the Nova victims and a spiral staircase with 100 English and Hebrew messages including “love conquers all” and “compassion unites us.”

Organizers have arranged for several of Burning Man’s famous “art cars,” including a fire-breathing dragon and an illuminated zeppelin, to swing by their home base on the desert landscape…They have also set up a series of events framed around the motif of angels and “dancing again,” including sets from Israeli DJs, music from handpan musician Noah Katz and “healing sound experiences,” such as a gong performance from David Shemesh.

[Source: Times of Israel]

If it’s all going to be peace, love, and laser-cut angels…why is security needed? Is this going to be the new trend now, plug and play camps posting armed guardians to keep the riff-raff out?

The group appears to have taken steps to prevent any vandalism or protest of the type that has taken place against some Israelis in the United States since Oct. 7 and the ensuing war in Gaza. The group says it has recruited dozens of “Guardians” who watch over the installation in six-hour shifts around the clock to “ensure meaningful connections are made to the art piece.”

[Source: Times of Israel]

Their opening on Wednesday at sunrise (the original attack happened at 6:29am) will feature Infected Mushroom and Axolotl. Axolotl will be playing a Monday event at The Temple with a Palestinian artist. Something for everyone, I guess.

Aug 13 2024

“It’s Not A Rave”

The Burning Man Organization appear to have well and truly jumped the shark…perhaps for the last time. In their desperation for ticket sales, they have specifically requested sound camps to publish their lineups early.

This is ironic because doof doof electronic music has been a staple of Burning Man since its earliest days in the desert, as DJ Terbo Ted outlined for us in his epic guest post The Techno Ghetto – The History of Dance Music at Burning Man. And yet the Org have always fought hard against it – an exemplary example would be the Battle of Dancetronauts as told in Too Loud For Burning Man Parts 1, 2 and 3.

Hat tip to #NOTaDJ Itai, a star of the Tulum scene, for sharing this in true Burner spirit:

Source: Itai Music, Instagram

The missing part of the Org’s email:

We can tell this is legit because Carl Cox’s camp Playground would not do anything without the Org’s blessing, and they just posted their (dope) lineup:

It’s all about the Insta these days, Burners. Tag your friends and the Org. Burning Man have 1.5 million followers on Instagram and 157,000 on Twitter – where they haven’t posted for a year, despite Billionaire Burner Elon Musk being one of their most loyal and ardent supporters, famously saying “Burning Man IS Silicon Valley”.

My how times have changed. Here we have a checkmarked Burning Man account using DJ Tiesto’s name to promote walk-in sales in Reno:

Is it just me, or does it seem like they are really trying very, very hard to move these tickets?

Is this related to the rumblings we’ve been hearing of regime change on the horizon?

Spanky’s, a staple of Burning Man over man decades, are looking to unload 14 tickets below face value. Usually a couple of weeks away from the Burn, everyone would be scrambling to get tickets. I can’t think of a precedent for this.