2/4/10 - by Ru-Bot - collective thought

Assume one has a "self" and there exists a "cooperative." "collective thought" is not one wanting or desiring to do what is "best" for the cooperative, nor is it one showing a willingness to compromise in the name of the cooperative ( in fact compromise is precisely the opposite of collective thought...but ill get to that later).

If one however desires to merge ones self and the cooperative, then he has achieved cooperative thought. It is important to see that it is not the "merging" of self and cooperative that characterized collective thought, instead it is the "desire" to do so that defines collective thought. It is something that must radiate from within, something natural and all encompassing. Thus collective thought is not the thoughts or ideas one has, but the source of those thoughts and ideas. In this way collective thought is different from thought in general because it is rooted solely in emotion and is not governed by the mind (it is simply realized by the mind).

wait andrew... how is compromise the opposite of collective thought? Compromise implies one yielding in the name of the cooperative. it is not however a desire to be one with cooperative (for if i desired to be one with the cooperative i would have never needed to yield to it...since that would imply i was yielding to what i wished to become.) In simpler (and less elegant!) words, compromise is one saying "i will let you have some of what you want (though i dont want it)." the key is that the compromiser is not making an effort to "want" what he is giving up. the compromiser's views on "what should have happened" are the same before and after the compromise. The collective thinker, however, would not have attempted to shifted the outcome, but instead would have expanded his own view.

I maintain that Cooperatives can only exist if all its members have achieved collective thought or want to do so. what we did on friday (2nd hiring) was as close to a forum of collective thinkers that i have seen in the general store. this made me feel warm inside.

I also want to give my take on some potential "reasons collective thought is negative (or couldnt happen)."

1. it takes away the individual's "self".

I whole heartedly disagreed. Collective thought by its very definition is one seeking to expand ones self. It is the individual not compromising ones self but embracing the "self"s of others (in addition to maintaining ones own).

(however i have not been able to convince myself of how this sort of thought could be practiced on a large scale....but in the context of 10-20 people, it is achievable).

2. Disagreements happen. it sounds like you just want people to agree on everything. Like magic.

Lets play pretend for a moment. Two collective thinkers (as i define collective thought) John and Kate are in a disagreement. John thinks hot dogs are good, Kate however does not. How do they resolve this? They certainly do not come to a compromise (i already talked about how i dont like that!).Well, remember that john is desiring to merge himself with the collective, and thus he is not only trying to show that hot dogs are good, but also to believe they are bad (since this is kate's belief and she is part of the cooperative.) And kate is doing the same thing. Thus any outcome that may look like a compromise to the outside observer is not, it is either john or kate (or both) making the movement to the other persons view. This is key. at the moment of resolve, both john and kate agree. and they did this by not yielding their own views, but altering them.

"This sounds dangerous. i do not want to alter my views. "

This is only dangerous if everyone is no collectively thinking (and those who are, are doing so naively). if i keep my views the same, and everyone alters theirs to mine, then this gets scary very quickly (and kind of awesome...jk jk jk jk lol rofl)

but if everyone is collectively thinking, this sort of danger is impossible (for it is contradictory for one to desire to merge with the cooperative and to desire the cooperative to merge to him).

2/3/10 - By Ray-Ray - So I'm sitting at work (not the G-Store but the job the "man" has provided for me to numb my senses and dull my outcries), and I decide to read up on some Yahoo! News. Always a treat. Not only have I learned webcams can save lives (interpret as you will) but apparently kids who don't have friends grow up to be burn-outs and psychopaths. So grab a hand and a webcam and you're sure to turn out fine.

Which brings me to ridiculous capitalist enterprise of the day (I love me a good rip off): According to Yahoo! News the Six Biggest Rip-Offs are....... *drum roll please*

1. Text messages - they cost 1/3 of a cent to send, but on a pay-per-text plan it's 20 cents to send and 10 cents to receive. For a grand total of a 6,500% mark-up. I can haz txt msg plz?

2. Movie Theater Popcorn - it cost 60 cents for every medium sized popcorn! like, what?? Usually these babies run for about 6 bucks. According to the article though, the theater pretty much gets zero profit from your 10 dollar ticket so they jack up concessions to make money. (Wait, why are movies 10 dollars?)

3. Something about Free Credit reports not being free...

4. Name Brand PainKillers - a 60% markup. Name-brand bottles cost around $8.50 whereas generic brands cost about $5, though by law they both have to be effective and only vary in inactive ingredients like coloring. Yay for $3 colorzzzz! From my fairly assiduous efforts in grocery shopping, I have learned the value of insert-grocery-store-name-here brands in keeping me out of the poor house and safely in my overpriced apartment complex located conveniently down the street from our lovely university. My roommate on the other hand, needed some very delicately imparted words of encouragement to keep from committing said deadly sin. Trader Joe's, I have nothing to say to you, except that my grandmother (a.k.a. the Matriarch) swears by you. 'Nuff said.

5. Wine at Restaurants - 500% markup. You guys, Franzia isn't that bad.

6. DUN DA DUN!! College Textbooks - $900 a year. Here at the General Store Co-op we have a Textbook Rental program, renting select frequently used books for only $25!!

Direct quote from the article (this isn't just a ploy), "Don't worry, kids -- at the end of the semester, you can probably sell that $250 calculus book back to the bookstore for a buck or two." It's like, we're not the only one with brains?!?! Take it from us students, school sucks! So come to the General Store. We're over there.

1/27/10 - The General Store has hired 6 (yes six) wonderful new people, and will no longer be accepting applications. Come by and check out our dope new shipment of sunglasses that have freshly arrived. The rain is over (hopefully) and you'll need UV protection. We also now have Honest Tea for a limited time, come grab a bottle.

In other news, we still have all the awesome things you've come to love and expect from your friendly neighborhood T-Rex, like FREE Super Nintendo & N64, DVD rentals, and a fresh stock of the mini pumpkin hookahs that were so popular in 2009.

We're also actively looking for new artists and craftspeople to offer consignment deals to. For more information on this or anything else, shoot a quick e-mail to trex@generalstorecoop.com. roar.