http://www.aws-om.com/forum/ Sat, 26 Jul 2008 19:14:28 -0700 MyBB http://www.aws-om.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=63 Fri, 19 Oct 2007 08:09:15 -0700 http://www.aws-om.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=63


It was the morning of 9/11.

The nation stared at their televisions, wide-eyed and shocked. The towers had fallen. Suddenly everything was moving very quickly, cascading downhill, head over heels head over heels. Everyone wanted to know what happened. And what was happening.

The news stations knew everyone was watching. They kept their anchors on the air for record amounts of time, there at the scene, spinning us a story. A believable story.

"But how much of this is real?" I found myself asking as I watched reporters literally spin speculation into news and opinion into fact. Spinning gold from straw. Nomad and I decided that against all danger, against all logic, we had to see it for ourselves. Because the television made the event seem real. The panicked calls from relatives made it seem more real. The fact that multiple TV-Stations were covering it made it seem very real. But which elements of it were real? How much can the news really tell us about what this event is LIKE?

Nomad and I heard reports that all access to New York City had been cut off. But how could that be possible? New York City is titanic, its circumference must be too large to bottleneck and seal off.

We had to go see it on our own. We hopped in the car and drove towards the maelstrom. The newsman said we couldn't do it. There was a roadblock, said the newsman, barring all entrances into the belly of the beast.

And the newsman was wrong. Despite the block which the news had created in our minds, we found a way in. We saw the smoke and we saw the machine coming apart and we saw it first hand in a way the newsman never could have told us.

We realized
that day
how the news makes reality.

People's sense of "what's going on" is generated by these "people of authority" on TV and the radio and the internet who tell us The News. And their control is supported because we all buy into this myth.

It's usually an accurate fiction. But it's a fiction all the same.







So now, as you chew on this, you find yourself at the front doorstep of the Adam Weishaupt Society. We are an organization based on mastering the channels of information. The Newsmen and Newswomen know them well. They sail down the memetic river on great big frigates which create enormous ripples and wake. Our Society paddles around them in kayaks - small, quick, and maneuverable.

There's a monopoly on information transmission. We have to steal what we can get.

Members of the Adam Weishaupt Society know that this is all a game. Domination of the infosphere is an art. It's memecraft, newscraft, spincraft. Even as you read this, Fox News is battling CNN, having the exact same sort of conflicts as the sparring matches which take place within our hallowed halls.

We take new information - some might call it disinformation but you and I know how loaded that word is - and put it out there into the river. We cast our nets and try to measure how effective our information was. And then a winner is declared.

Because it's a game, my friends and neighbors. In this strange modern world, a world unlike any world which has ever existed, we have to get our fun wherever we can find it. And somewhere along the line someone figured out that if you dance like People Of Authority, you can lead the dance.

Do you like to dance?


come in,
come in,
you're late!

the masquerade ball
has already started...]]>


It was the morning of 9/11.

The nation stared at their televisions, wide-eyed and shocked. The towers had fallen. Suddenly everything was moving very quickly, cascading downhill, head over heels head over heels. Everyone wanted to know what happened. And what was happening.

The news stations knew everyone was watching. They kept their anchors on the air for record amounts of time, there at the scene, spinning us a story. A believable story.

"But how much of this is real?" I found myself asking as I watched reporters literally spin speculation into news and opinion into fact. Spinning gold from straw. Nomad and I decided that against all danger, against all logic, we had to see it for ourselves. Because the television made the event seem real. The panicked calls from relatives made it seem more real. The fact that multiple TV-Stations were covering it made it seem very real. But which elements of it were real? How much can the news really tell us about what this event is LIKE?

Nomad and I heard reports that all access to New York City had been cut off. But how could that be possible? New York City is titanic, its circumference must be too large to bottleneck and seal off.

We had to go see it on our own. We hopped in the car and drove towards the maelstrom. The newsman said we couldn't do it. There was a roadblock, said the newsman, barring all entrances into the belly of the beast.

And the newsman was wrong. Despite the block which the news had created in our minds, we found a way in. We saw the smoke and we saw the machine coming apart and we saw it first hand in a way the newsman never could have told us.

We realized
that day
how the news makes reality.

People's sense of "what's going on" is generated by these "people of authority" on TV and the radio and the internet who tell us The News. And their control is supported because we all buy into this myth.

It's usually an accurate fiction. But it's a fiction all the same.







So now, as you chew on this, you find yourself at the front doorstep of the Adam Weishaupt Society. We are an organization based on mastering the channels of information. The Newsmen and Newswomen know them well. They sail down the memetic river on great big frigates which create enormous ripples and wake. Our Society paddles around them in kayaks - small, quick, and maneuverable.

There's a monopoly on information transmission. We have to steal what we can get.

Members of the Adam Weishaupt Society know that this is all a game. Domination of the infosphere is an art. It's memecraft, newscraft, spincraft. Even as you read this, Fox News is battling CNN, having the exact same sort of conflicts as the sparring matches which take place within our hallowed halls.

We take new information - some might call it disinformation but you and I know how loaded that word is - and put it out there into the river. We cast our nets and try to measure how effective our information was. And then a winner is declared.

Because it's a game, my friends and neighbors. In this strange modern world, a world unlike any world which has ever existed, we have to get our fun wherever we can find it. And somewhere along the line someone figured out that if you dance like People Of Authority, you can lead the dance.

Do you like to dance?


come in,
come in,
you're late!

the masquerade ball
has already started...]]> http://www.aws-om.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=27 Wed, 17 Oct 2007 19:01:07 -0700 http://www.aws-om.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=27 http://www.aws-om.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=8 Tue, 16 Oct 2007 11:24:32 -0700 http://www.aws-om.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=8
Welcome to the Adam Weishaupt Society. Here's the gist of what we do here.

Cells

Members of the society join cells. Each cell is a team of people working together to spread disinformation.

Cells often have a common theme, but this is not required. For example, one cell might focus on UFO conspiracies. Another might build hype surrounding a video game release. Themes will change as time goes on to follow topics of interest in the news. For example, if a well-known politician dies, one cell might spread disinformation about his assasination.

Cells are encouraged to form well rounded teams which compliment each other's talents. For example, every cell should have at least one writer, who can produce believable news articles. Someone well versed in photoshop is a valuable asset to any cell. Cells might have a person who's role is to join relevant blogs and cross-post news to as many as possible. Another role could be to check up on the blogosphere and collect screenshots of buzz. The distribution of disinformation is just as important as creating the disinformation.



The Game Round
The game is divided into rounds. Usually they are a week long. During each round, cells will spread fake news, shopped images, bogus blog posts, and other media. They will pollute the memosphere with disinformation and hype.

At the end of the round, each cell will post screenshots and other evidence of the hype they've created. (hype about disinformation is called Buzz) The goal is to have OTHER people talking about your disinformation and treating it as real. Blog entries, news feeds, chatter on forums -- anywhere one can find evidence of people taking your information seriously is a legitimate way of scoring.

Once all the Buzz is submitted, each Cell gets to vote. If a cell submitted Buzz that round, they have 100 points to award to other cells. If they did not submit Buzz, they have 50 points to distribute. A cell cannot give points to itself.

Once points are submitted, they are divided by (B + NB/2), with B = number of groups submitting buzz, NB is number of groups not submitting buzz but still giving points. This means that a group's score for the round will fall between 0 and 100, regardless of how many cells are participating.

The cell with the most points wins the round. Friendly competition should lead to higher quality disinformation and thereby better buzz. Over time, the Society will evolve until we've figured out the perfect way to spread believable disinformation.]]>
Welcome to the Adam Weishaupt Society. Here's the gist of what we do here.

Cells

Members of the society join cells. Each cell is a team of people working together to spread disinformation.

Cells often have a common theme, but this is not required. For example, one cell might focus on UFO conspiracies. Another might build hype surrounding a video game release. Themes will change as time goes on to follow topics of interest in the news. For example, if a well-known politician dies, one cell might spread disinformation about his assasination.

Cells are encouraged to form well rounded teams which compliment each other's talents. For example, every cell should have at least one writer, who can produce believable news articles. Someone well versed in photoshop is a valuable asset to any cell. Cells might have a person who's role is to join relevant blogs and cross-post news to as many as possible. Another role could be to check up on the blogosphere and collect screenshots of buzz. The distribution of disinformation is just as important as creating the disinformation.



The Game Round
The game is divided into rounds. Usually they are a week long. During each round, cells will spread fake news, shopped images, bogus blog posts, and other media. They will pollute the memosphere with disinformation and hype.

At the end of the round, each cell will post screenshots and other evidence of the hype they've created. (hype about disinformation is called Buzz) The goal is to have OTHER people talking about your disinformation and treating it as real. Blog entries, news feeds, chatter on forums -- anywhere one can find evidence of people taking your information seriously is a legitimate way of scoring.

Once all the Buzz is submitted, each Cell gets to vote. If a cell submitted Buzz that round, they have 100 points to award to other cells. If they did not submit Buzz, they have 50 points to distribute. A cell cannot give points to itself.

Once points are submitted, they are divided by (B + NB/2), with B = number of groups submitting buzz, NB is number of groups not submitting buzz but still giving points. This means that a group's score for the round will fall between 0 and 100, regardless of how many cells are participating.

The cell with the most points wins the round. Friendly competition should lead to higher quality disinformation and thereby better buzz. Over time, the Society will evolve until we've figured out the perfect way to spread believable disinformation.]]> http://www.aws-om.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=1 Sun, 16 Sep 2007 02:01:45 -0700 http://www.aws-om.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=1
1. Make any posts that violate the law.

2. Post anything that will get the management sued.

3. Post anybody's personal information in any format whatsoever.

4. Forget to have fun. This IS a game, after all. :D

5.]]>
1. Make any posts that violate the law.

2. Post anything that will get the management sued.

3. Post anybody's personal information in any format whatsoever.

4. Forget to have fun. This IS a game, after all. :D

5.]]>