maybe not my people?

[boxofdelights]

Last Saturday I went to a Permaculture Guild meetup. I'm interested in permaculture, and I liked most of the people. (There is always That Guy, who keeps turning "conversation" into "lecture by me, because I am The Guy who Knows Stuff." I have some sympathy for That Guy, because I know I would have been That Guy except that I was born girl-shaped, so I was taught early and often that nobody wanted to listen to me talk.)

There was some newage mysticism, but also a lot of knowledge and experience. This Saturday is the second meetup. We are supposed to discuss the first part of Change Here Now: Permaculture Solutions for Personal and Community Transformation, which seems very interesting so far. Reading the book is not inspiring me with ideas of how to take action, but I'm hoping that discussing it at Permaculture book group will.

But I'm worried about the mysticism. I'm worried about whether it is anti-science. Specifically, anti-vaxx. There was someone at the last meetup who doesn't want to vaccinate their livestock, but does want the veterinary certificate that will allow them to take their livestock across state lines. I don't know whether that means that they eschew vaccines for themselves also; I don't know whether that is common among the people who join a Permaculture Guild; I don't know how to ask.

Comments

[sabotabby]

Oh no. I'm like, mysticism and permaculture-adjacent but crunchy can go bad very easily.

[laurajv]

I think as with anything else, it can vary. I've had a permaculture design certificate for almost a decade now, and between keeping up with things and knowing a LOT of the local permaculturists....yeah, some permaculture folk are to the anti-science side, but plenty are not. (I suspect the pandemic has made the anti-science folks worse.) Honestly, in order to make permaculture work sustainably at scale, you need to be working from evidence.

[sonia]

Walk up to someone and say cheerfully, “So glad I got my bivalent booster! How about you?” While wearing a mask, of course. Unless you’re wanting to keep a low profile… Me, I want to know if a group is anti-vax or even tolerates anti-vax so I can high-tail it out of there.

[lunabee34]

Those are worrisome signs. Hmmm

[regshoe]

I have some sympathy for That Guy, because I know I would have been That Guy except that I was born girl-shaped, so I was taught early and often that nobody wanted to listen to me talk.

Oof, I know that feeling.

Anyway, I hope future meetings go well—that book sounds interesting—and that any anti-science attitudes are at least mild and rare.

[jesse_the_k]

I misread some sewage mysticism and I was correct.

May your skeptical seeds engender luscious blooms of science.