<p>The chemtrail conspiracy theory is an erroneous belief that the contrails of aircraft are being used for nefarious purposes, ranging from altering the weather to mind control. Chemtrail (a portmanteau of "chemical" and "contrail") sightings are often reported on the <aclass="outOfNetworkLink"href="https://reddit.com/r/chemtrails"target="_blank">r/chemtrails </a>sub-messageboard of reddit.com, a discussion website which claims to be "the front page of the internet".</p>
<p>On this sub-messageboard, under a section titled "Definitions & such" is the short description of a <em>chemtrail</em> as
<divclass="indent"><em>...a visible trail left in the sky by an aircraft and believed by some to consist of chemical or biological agents released as part of a covert operation.</em></p></div>
<p>Following this is a short text that encourages both believers and skeptics to adopt a tolerant attitude towards each other with a disclaimer:<p>
<divclass="indent">
<p><em>All viewpoints are allowed here, but please be respectful. This is a subreddit, not a court of law. Please don't badger users into providing concrete evidence. Short of flying us all up into the atmosphere with an evidence bag, you probably won't get it.</em></p></div>
<p>Contingencies are incidental to something else, <ahref="please_to_wijnhaven.html#dependencies">dependent</a> on chance, possible, conditional, but usually unnecessary.</p>
<p>A contingency is what something allows or doesn’t allow one to do, constrained by its form and use. For example, a pen is often used to write with, but also has the contingency of being used for other purposes, such as scratching one’s back.</p>
<p>Contrails (a portmanteau of "condensation" and "trail") are the line-shaped clouds left behind by the engines of aircraft flying at low altitude. They are commonly composed of water in the form of ice crystals.</p>
<h2id="taz"name="taz">Temporary Autonomous Zone (TAZ)</h2>
<p><em>THE CONCEPT OF THE TAZ arises first out of a critique of Revolution, and an appreciation of the Insurrection. The former labels the latter a failure; but for us uprising represents a far more interesting possibility, from the standard of a psychology of liberation, than all the "successful" revolutions of bourgeoisie, communists, fascists, etc.</em></p>
<p><em>The second generating force behind the TAZ springs from the historical development I call "the closure of the map." The last bit of Earth unclaimed by any nation-state was eaten up in 1899. Ours is the first century without terra incognita, without a frontier. Nationality is the highest principle of world governance--not one speck of rock in the South Seas can be left open, not one remote valley, not even the Moon and planets. This is the apotheosis of "territorial gangsterism." Not one square inch of Earth goes unpoliced or untaxed...in theory.</em></p>
<p><em>The "map" is a political abstract grid, a gigantic con enforced by the carrot/stick conditioning of the "Expert" State, until for most of us the map becomes the territory--no longer "Turtle Island," but "the USA." And yet because the map is an <ahref="ciao_to_wijnhaven.html#abstraction">abstraction</a> it cannot cover Earth with 1:1 accuracy. Within the fractal complexities of actual geography the map can see only dimensional grids. Hidden enfolded immensities escape the measuring rod. The map is not accurate; the map cannot be accurate.</em></p>
<p><em>So--Revolution is closed, but insurgency is open. For the time being we concentrate our force on temporary "power surges," avoiding all entanglements with "permanent solutions."</em></p>
<p><em>And--the map is closed, but the autonomous zone is open. Metaphorically it unfolds within the fractal dimensions invisible to the cartography of Control. And here we should introduce the concept of psychotopology (and -topography) as an alternative "science" to that of the State's surveying and mapmaking and "psychic imperialism." Only psychotopography can draw 1:1 maps of reality because only the human mind provides sufficient complexity to model the real. But a <ahref="wijnhaven_to_foshan.html#mapTerritory">1:1 map</a> cannot "control" its territory because it is virtually identical with its territory. It can only be used to suggest, in a sense gesture towards, certain features. We are looking for "spaces" (geographic, social, cultural, imaginal) with potential to flower as <ahref="ciao_to_wijnhaven.html#autonomy">autonomous zones</a>--and we are looking for times in which these spaces are relatively open, either through neglect on the part of the State or because they have somehow escaped notice by the mapmakers, or for whatever reason. Psychotopology is the art of dowsing for potential TAZs.</em></p>
<p>—Hakim Bey, excerpt from <ahref="the_psychotopology_of_everyday_life.html"class="outOfNetworkLink"target="_blank">'The Psychotopology of Everyday Life'</a>, T.A.Z, The Temporary Autonomous Zone, 1991.</p>
