[P2P-F] Fwd: [bgcon] TACIT FUTURES > recap #2 BG Annual Conference 2016

[Michel Bauwens]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Krystian Woznicki <kw at berlinergazette.de>
Date: Thu, Nov 3, 2016 at 3:52 PM
Subject: [bgcon] TACIT FUTURES > recap #2 BG Annual Conference 2016
To: digi-yards at berlinergazette.de


Hi,

working on the results of the conference, we realized that the time has
come to say goodbye to the conference subtitle: "Towards a democratic
control of movement" – a word play, that probably works a little better in
German than in English, basically fusing "Bewegungskontrolle" and
"demokratische Kontrolle".

"Bewegungskontrolle" (movement control) evokes a dystopian narrative, I
guess we don't have to explain that. But it can also be used in quiet a
neutral way in order to describe a world composed of increasingly automated
and self-driving systems, in which all the traffic by humans, goods, bits
and capital depends on mechanisms of control. Take the packet switching
system of the internet as an example.

"Demokratische Kontrolle" (democratic control) in turn is used in
discussions on democracy in order to describe the role and responsibility
of the formal democratic systems to "check" and yes, to "control", forces
that play by their own rules, e.g. the financial market. There is a lot
scepticism today whether such control is possible at all.

Fusing the two terms into "demokratische Bewegungskontrolle" (democratic
control of movement) was meant as a provocation, playing with the
dystopian/emancipatory aspects of control, twisting them, turning them
upside down. Looking at the reactions so far, we feel it has done its job –
whether a good or bad job, we are not sure.

The critical reflection as well as the critique of the terminology started
already around April 2016, when BG embarked upon an exchange based on the
BG position paper that was written as preparatory impulse for the TACIT
FUTURES conference. The philosopher Marcia Cavalcante, who participated in
this exchange, stated for instance:

"Democratic control of movement, democratic participation in the decision
regarding the “need” to control movement, such a claim is deeply ambiguous.
It sounds to me very alike claims such as for a more just capitalism;
capitalism is a system based on injustice and inequality and even if we
must fight for more justice and equality within capitalism, we have to keep
in mind that capitalism is based on unjust inequality and unequal justice.
Of course, it is important to fight for more transparency, and against
technologies of decision-making. [...] But this fight is not enough. Thus
we shall not forget that democratic control is unfortunately always
entangled with the control of democracy. How to control elections processes
in order to avoid the election of a Hitler without controlling and thereby
undermining democracy? Democratic control of movement – if I understood
correctly the question – cannot be a response against the demagogy of fear,
because it relies upon the same logic of fear. The political logic of fear
is quite old. One of the oldest known Maya testimonies of colonization
tells that the “dzoules”, the conquistadores, have taught them (the Mayas)
fear and have castrated the sun. The logic of fear – its educational
politics is the logic of control that shows its most devastating energy
when it has to control the control itself, in order to enhance control. It
seems that this is the main question that is being asked here. Asking how
to control worldwide, ubiquitous control, we ask for a control that is even
more controlling than the control itself. However, not asking how to
control the control we remain hostage of the apocalyptic logic of
uncontrolled control destructing itself. In this situation of no way out of
the logic of control, the very simple fact of the possibility to remain
alive, to resist alive, indicates another direction of meaning and of
questioning. Thus how is it possible that singular life resists alive? Is
not singular life as such already a resistance? Such a question may sound
very “inoperative” but moving the question from the one about the need to
control the control towards the question about how life resists control,
towards the question of resisting both in the sense of ‘counter-acting’ and
‘not following’ the logic of control, it becomes possible to reengage with
the need for developing today what John Keats, the romantic poet, called
once “negative capability”."

Some workshop guests of the TACIT FUTURES conference in turn tried to play
with the term itself. The journalist, activist and organiser André
Rebentisch for instance stated:

"Bewegungskontrolle gefällt mir, weil a) von "Tanz" über "Gehen", Protest*
bis hin physikalischen Effekten wie der Brownschen * extrem breit ist, b)
sie technokratisch klingt, ein wenig dystopisch, c) "Kontrolle ist die
Überwachung oder Überprüfung ...und somit ein Mittel zur Herrschaft oder
Gewalt über jemanden oder etwas", Kont-Rolle, also die Gegenrolle, das
Gegenlesen."

In the Public Talks of TACIT FUTURES the control of movement was a primary
dystopian narrative. And when it came to expand it with a democratic
narrative, it seemed to cause irritation. For instance Gayatri Chakravorty
Spivak said, that the notion of democratic control "scares" her.

Even if there is more to it than that, we feel that a lasting effect of the
word play will not be conveyed without an active discussion – like the one,
that took place at our conference. Therefore, when it comes to preserve the
ideas of the conference project for the future on a website that serves as
a ressource rather than a discussion forum, the BG prefers to replace it
with a more descriptive subtitle: "Re-imagining the Politics of Movement".

We would like to modify this on the websites and all documents related to
the project. It will take approx. seven days to get all this done. If you
dislike this idea or have any arguments against this decision, please let
us know by then by email (kw(at)berlinergazette.de).

Kind regards,

Krystian
-- 

-------------------------------------------------*
TACIT FUTURES | BERLINER GAZETTE ANNUAL PROJECT 2016
RE-IMAGINING THE POLITICS OF MOVEMENT*

TACIT FUTURES: BG Annual Conference | Workshops, Performances, Talks
Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz,
27.-29.10.2016http://berlinergazette.de/tacit-futures

TACIT FUTURES: Essays and Interviews (in
German)http://berlinergazette.de/feuilleton/jahresthemen/2016-tacit-futures/

TACIT FUTURES: Documents of BG's annual project
Photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/berlinergazette/albums/72157662038932563
Videos: https://vimeo.com/album/3785772
Audios: https://soundcloud.com/berliner-gazette/sets/tacit-futures

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