Friday 14 December 2007

"Don't tell 'em We're Porters!"


A few months ago I spent an evening down town with some of my brother porters. We drifted from pub to pub as lively fellers do, sampling the beverages and talking to people. All at once a group of attractive-looking women came up to us and we began a conversation. One of my friends, Steve (not his real name) immediately took me to one side and whispered fiercely in my ear: “For God’s sake don’t tell ‘em we’re porters!” He then turned back to the group without giving me a chance to reply. One of the girls then asked: “So what do you guys do for a living?”
Steve replied: “We work up at the John Radcliffe Hospital.”
“Oh really.” She said. “Doing what? Nursing?”
Steve shrugged. “No, we… just help out.”
“We’re porters.” I interjected in a loud voice. There was a tense silence. Steve glared at me. The conversation continued for a few minutes then the girls said goodbye and left the pub. Steve was furious with me: “Why did you do that, Ben!? What the hell were you thinking of, telling those girls we were porters!? Do you think I want to women like them to know I’m only a hospital porter!?”

There are pimps and drug-dealers who are not ashamed to publicly declare what they do for a living; why is it that so many people who provide essential services to society feel that they cannot? Not only hospital porters like myself, but cleaners, dustmen, road-sweepers and those who maintain public toilets. We talk about getting a “good job” and “I want a better job”. This usually means a job that earns more money, but not always. A policeman, fireman or member of the armed forces enjoys a high-profile job without a large salary. It seems to me that we live in a world where jobs have been categorized into a hierarchy of status. Different levels of status have been arbitrarily attached to jobs within the hierarchy that usually do not relate to that job’s importance or contribution to the human world. A stock-broker and airline pilot enjoy high status, yet society could easily function without them (some might claim it would even be better off!), however the man who removes and processes our rubbish is vital to human well-being; without him every city would have long ago been buried under a mountain of its own waste. But if you were to meet a stock-broker and a dustman at the same time, who would you consider the most important? The caste system of India is not confined to India; it’s a foundational cornerstone of Western society.

Any system of groundless values is part of what I call the Conformist Regime. The Conformist Regime is a fundamental part of the New World Order agenda. It is a deliberate strategy, not just an accidental pathology, yet I believe I am the first conspiracy researcher to understand and define it in any detail. The Conformist Regime is promoted, on a person-to-person level, with the same amount of coercion, insidiousness and violence as any other part of the NWO. There’s an interesting scene in the film Babe that gives a perceptive summary of the Conformist Regime: The scene begins with the little piglet, Babe, trying to follow his adopted mother, Fly the sheepdog, into the farmhouse. Fly turns to Babe and says: “I’m afraid pigs aren’t allowed in the house.” Babe asks “Why’s that, Mum?” and Fly replies: “That’s just the way things are.” That’s just the way things are. It just is. So many questions are answered with that non-explanation, and we simply accept it. I imagine that when Fly was a puppy she asked her own mother the same question and got the same response, and again when Fly’s mother was a puppy etc. The purpose of HPANWO and one of the great missions of my life is to end that acceptance. We should not accept It just is and That’s just the way things are as answers and justifications. We should demand to be told the reason why pigs are not allowed in the house. If there is no better explanation than That’s just the way things are, then we should break that rule; bring the pigs indoors!

I’ve already mentioned an example of a very frustrating and upsetting aspect of my job. Another is when someone approaches me and says: “Ben, have you ever thought about going up the ladder? Surely you don’t want to be a porter all your life. Why don’t you train as a nurse, or a paramedic?” This happens less than it used to because word has got round the hospital about what my answer will be. I used to respond to this is several ways. Sometimes i just said: "No". I also used to ask the questioner if they’d ever gone up to a nurse or paramedic and asked them if they’d ever considered becoming a porter! When they said: “No” I said: “Why not?” and they’d just pause and stutter for a while and say: “OK, Ben, if you’re happy doing what you do that’s fine.” And quickly walk off. It didn’t take long though until I discovered a much more sinister side to these questions, from the ODP’s- Operating Department Practitioners. An ODP is a person who trains for three years and gains a diploma or degree that allows them to do the same job as a theatre nurse without a nursing qualification. I met many of them when I during my six-year theatre tour... and nearly all of them are former porters. They more than anyone else have “popped the question”. The difference is the reaction when I gave my reply. They were reluctant to take no for an answer. They usually pursued the subject, becoming more intense and heated. Sometimes they’d say: “Come on, man! Porters are shit! You’ve got to get away from them!” or use platitudes like: “Ben, you’ve got brains. You’re too good for portering.” And one or two of them didn’t stop there. One man, Derek (not his real name), was very friendly towards me for the first few days after I met him, but after he’d popped the question his attitude towards me changed. He hardly spoke to me and when he did it was in a very abrasive and argumentative manner. He’d challenge everything I said for the sake of it. When we were working together in theatre he used to bark orders at me and criticize my work in front of other staff. Why? It amazes me that Derek could become so hostile towards me for simply being different to him. It’s as if being a porter and then training to become an ODP himself was not enough for him; Derek needed everyone else to follow in his footsteps! He once said to me: “I can’t imagine anyone wanting to stay as a porter”. What, anyone? That’s an awful lot of people! Everyone in the world in fact. How can he speak for so many people? But that’s what the Conformist Regime is about. It’s an ingenious system because it’s a mental and sociological prison, but unlike other prisons, you don’t need warders. The prisoners themselves are their own warders! David Icke puts it very well: “When one of the prisoners tries to escape, all the others stop him ‘Don’t you dare get out! You’re staying in here with us!’ One of them starts to dig a tunnel and the other fill it in! ‘Our prison wall’s coming down! Get the bricks and mortar!’” During my service as a theatre porter I found out just how far the prisoners will go to stop a fellow inmate escaping when I met John (not his real name).

John was an ODP who’d entered the profession in the usual way, through portering. He began a scheme in the department to fast-track porters onto the Operating Department Practice course. He said “I really want all the porters to have the opportunity to progress”. By then I knew that when he said “opportunity” he really meant “mandate”; and by “progress” he really meant “what I and the Conformist Regime considers progression”. It took him no time at all to pop the question to me and his reaction to my response was more extreme than I’ve ever experienced, and it made me realize the extent of the Ickiean prison and the lengths the inmate/warders will go to protect it. He said all the things that Derek did, but unlike Derek, he was usually friendly to me and I often saw him outside work in the hospital social club and local pubs. Then one day, he was talking to a brother porter of mine in a pub near the hospital, trying to recruit him to his scheme. I told them that all my brother and sister porters are free to do whatever they like, but I would not be joining the scheme. I was proud to be a porter, considered portering an essential part of a life-saving team and didn’t see anything more conventionally successful as “progression”. John turned to me and seized my collar. He became red in the face and screamed abuse at me. In the end the landlord had to intervene.

Really I feel sorry for John and Derek because they only do what they do; and say what they say, because porters, like all people of low status, have been put under such enormous social humiliation and violence. The media, peer-pressure, family values and education have all promoted the Conformist Regime. The One Goal of human life is to gain as much money, power, property and status as possible. Anyone who doesn’t achieve this is considered a failure, regardless of anything else he or she achieves. For in Conformist society nothing else is worth achieving except The One Goal. But by “going up the ladder” and “progressing” you are not escaping the Conformist Regime. You can’t go up to the Conformist Regime with your cap in your hand and say “please respect me”; the Conformist Regime doesn’t do respect. The pressure will still be there because there are still people above you who’ll look down on you. Even the 13 Illuminati Primi have superiors in other worlds. The solution is to see the Conformist Regime for what it is and reject it. But that can’t happen by courting favour from the system. That can only happen if your self-respect comes from within and is not dependant on the system, and on how others see you. It means being proud to be a porter, or a cleaner or a toilet attendant or a road sweeper even if every other person in the world demeans you. It actually means that Steve should be willing, even eager, to tell those attractive girls we met that he is a hospital porter. If they then lose interest in him because of that then as the old saying goes “If I ain’t good enough for you… then you ain’t good enough for me!”

Since I made the decision to do that a few years ago I actually feel happier because, even though I may have fewer friends, and have had fewer girlfriends, I know that the few friends and lovers I have had are true friends and lovers who accept me for who I am. I also enjoy the notion of doing a job that is important and essential regardless of its status. I find I enjoy my work more these days; I find it more interesting, exciting and rewarding. My experience with Steve hurt me more than anything any civilian has said to me. I’m not really bothered when I hear: “Porters? They’re shit!” I get bothered when I hear: “Porter? We’re shit!” It doesn’t matter what civilians think of us; what matters is what we think of ourselves. Unfortunately some of my brother and sister porters have a passionate belief in their own worthlessness and will staunchly defend it from all borders. As you can guess, these porters don’t get on very well with me! But I feel that the tables are turning. More and more porters are standing tall and calling out from their hearts: “Hospital Porters Pride and Dignity!” They are discovering the immense liberation and inspiration that it brings. Such feelings sound the death-knell for the Conformist Regime. With the end of the Conformist Regime we will be one major step closer to the end of the New World Order.

I’d like to finish this article with the lyrics to the Hospital Porters anthem that I wrote:

Oh, I’m a Porter and you’re a Porter
We’re Porters through and through
With Dignity and Pride too
Don’t give up on being you
We’re Porters through and through
In every county’s every town
Don’t let con-vention put you down
We’re Porters and we’re Proud!

12 comments:

Alex Robinson said...

Hi Ben
I read this article a while ago, it struck a chord with me at the time and I felt the urge to come back and acknowledge it.

I'd never thought of the corporate ladder as a conformist ladder - silly really, because as soon as I read it it was so obvious.

It was a job well done.

Ben Emlyn-Jones said...

Thanks, WW. Glad to have helped.

nessa felagund said...

I really enjoyed the article, Ben. I certainly appreciate porters and the work they do. It's good to see you standing up for yourself, too.

Hats off to the porters!

mad as a cat said...

Hiya Ben.
That's a good, thought provoking article you have written.
Many times, we are conditioned to belittle others-it's so wrong.
As a child, I used to say "Hello" to the bin men - my mum was horrified! But quite often, a 'lowly' job can pay quite well-one of the bin men drove a better car than my dad, who had an office type job!

You're doing a grand job Ben,and you're proud to say it too-good for you!
All the best, 'madas'.

Ben Emlyn-Jones said...

Thanks for you're comments, Madas! Sorry it's taken so long for me to reply. I'm glad you've got the wisdom, even as a child, to see through the vacuous delusion of conformity. I don't know if you're familiar with Isaac Asimov, but he writer a story called "Strikebreaker" all about some dustmen on a space station that addressed this theme.

Lucia said...

Hi Ben
Can't remember how I came across this article of yours.
I teach English at high school in Italy and I'm going to have my 16-year-olds read it and debate on their experience of "status" and "social ladder". It's sure to be interesting.
Thank you for contributing to the world's Collective Intelligence

A.Rosaria said...

There is no sense in advancement. You work harder, invest money and time to study, and you loose time you could have used for doing more fulfilling things. The higher you go, the government made sure you will be pulled back just enough for you wanting to keep on going. There will be more laws that you will have to deal with, more taxes that you will have to pay, and the more you gather, the more you could loose. The further you advance the more you will keep enslaved working for more that will never come. That’s a reason why those that strife for more get angry when they meet someone that doesn’t. They feel threatened by the possibility that they are wrong, because they know subconsciously that they will never be happy striving for more, and thus they need to be acknowledged in their strife to feel good about it.

When I see those who “Made it”, prancing with their big cars and houses, and their two vacations a year, I think; you got a nice house you almost never live in, you have a big car you only use to drive from home to work, and you get a few weeks off, but spend most time trying for advancement. People focus so much on getting somewhere, and in doing so forget what is important. They all want the big high prestige jobs, and forget that the knowledge they gained is not essential to live and survive. They all look down on careers, like the plumber, the carpenter, the handyman, the fisherman, the farmer, the holistic healer, etc, etc, It goes even so far as scientist and researchers looking down on engineers that actually design and make stuff.

It’s really unhealthy looking down on those that can actually do and create stuff. We are trapped into an insane society that makes us blind to the reality that we aren’t free. It’s freedom we need to chase and not some make believe status. We should try our best to be free and find the happiness there. For a job is a job. No job is better than another, sure there can be more demand for a certain job and that person doing it will earn more, but that doesn’t make it more of a job than the other. It’s just a job that does earn more.

I didn’t intent for my comment to be this big rant. I felt motivated to share my own experience reading this post. Do you know how I got to this post? I’m searching for a possible job at an hospital as a porter. And, no, I’m not unemployed. I work as a system administrator and earning okay. I’m just fed up with my current job and I wish to move to Ireland and start a new life there. I’m seeking a job where I can find some fulfilment and just work doing something sensible. Those trapped in the idea of advancement will call me crazy. I don’t care. I don’t see it as a less worthy job, a job is a job to me, and if I’m glad doing it, it’s worth doing for me. It sure would be a great job to combine with my writing. It wouldn’t demand tons of hours to keep up to date in the field. In addition, it’s physical work, which would be beneficial to my health. Sitting all day is very bad for your health.

If anyone knows a nice job as a hospital porter in Ireland, please contact me. My e-mail address is: desconosi@hotmail.com I’m able and willing to move my ass to Ireland in two months time after getting a job. My wife supports me in this choice, and my children would love moving to another country. I’m content with a modest salary, a roof on my head, and enough food to feed my family. I don’t need a lot.

It’s not that I abhor all IT work. I would love a job in customer support in the gaming industry, being that I’m an avid gamer.

Working in a kitchen would also be fine with me, as long I may taste the food. :D I would quickly get in shape, I would be round in no time.

(I actually wrote a much longer piece about twice the size, but blogger didn't like that. I might post the whole text on my blog for those interested.)

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cathalijne said...

I did read this article with enjoyment. It's quite humourous. I'm Dutch by the way, and I used to be a nurse, but I'm in wheelchair so I know I'm down on the ladder too...it's different when you look sick, or handicapped. Life is different, but...I do spend a lot of time researching. Oh, I really like this blog, and also it's good that you folks also feel we have to stand up aganst the NWO! Wonderful

Ben Emlyn-Jones said...

Hi Cathalijne. Thanks for commenting. Always good to meet somebody from the Netherlands. My mother was a Dutchwoman. Sorry to hear you've had to use a wheelchair. i know many nurses who end up badly harmed in their spine by chronic manual handling. You're a hero! You're one of many fighting the NWO, so you're among friends. All the best. Ben

Anonymous said...

..."The less you eat, drink and buy books; the less you go to the theatre, the dance hall, the public house; the less you think, love, theorise, sing, paint, fence, etc., the more you save – the greater becomes your treasure which neither moths nor rust will devour – your capital. The less you are, the less you express your own life, the more you have, i.e., the greater is your alienated life, the greater is the store of your estranged being..."

Buther

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