More actions
No edit summary |
Manifesto for the landing page - defending the form |
||
| (2 intermediate revisions by the same user not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{DISPLAYTITLE:Wikifesto}} | |||
''A | == In Defense of the Manifesto == | ||
'''In 1517, a monk nailed 95 theses to a church door and split Christianity in half.''' | |||
In 1848, two philosophers published a 23-page pamphlet and rewrote the political map of the twentieth century. | |||
In 1909, a poet declared that a roaring car was more beautiful than the ''Winged Victory of Samothrace'', and modern art was never the same. | |||
'''Manifestos change the world.''' | |||
Not gradually. Not through careful argument and peer review. Manifestos are declarations—lines in the sand, flags planted, bridges burned. They don't ask permission. They don't hedge. They say: ''This is what we believe. This is what we will do. Join us or get out of the way.'' | |||
---- | |||
== The Neglected Art == | |||
And yet. | |||
When was the last time you read a manifesto? When was the last time someone wrote one that mattered? | |||
The form has fallen into disrepute. Academics write papers. Activists write tweets. Entrepreneurs write pitch decks. Everyone is too careful, too qualified, too afraid of being wrong to simply '''declare'''. | |||
We've forgotten that some ideas need to be ''stated'', not ''argued''. That there is power in the unhedged claim. That sometimes you don't need evidence—you need ''conviction''. | |||
---- | |||
== What Makes a Manifesto == | |||
A manifesto is not an essay. An essay explores. A manifesto ''proclaims''. | |||
A manifesto is not a treatise. A treatise exhausts a topic. A manifesto ''ignites'' it. | |||
A manifesto is not a mission statement. Mission statements are written by committees. Manifestos are written by people who would rather be '''wrong and clear''' than '''right and muddled'''. | |||
A manifesto has: | |||
* '''Stakes.''' Something must be at risk. Something must be opposed. | |||
* '''Voice.''' A person is speaking. Not an institution. Not a consensus. A ''voice''. | |||
* '''Urgency.''' The time is now. Not eventually. Not when conditions are right. ''Now''. | |||
* '''Invitation.''' Come with us. Or don't. But we are going. | |||
---- | ---- | ||
== | == Why Wikifesto == | ||
Traditional manifestos are frozen at publication. Luther couldn't update his theses. Marx couldn't revise his pamphlet as capitalism evolved. | |||
'''Wikifesto is different.''' | |||
Here, manifestos live. They grow. They respond to challenge and incorporate dissent. Every stub can become a treatise. Every declaration can spawn its own elaboration. | |||
This is not compromise. This is '''manifestos that learn'''. | |||
The conviction remains. The willingness to be wrong and loud remains. But the ideas themselves can evolve—sharpened by friction, deepened by time, strengthened by community. | |||
---- | |||
== The Manifestos == | |||
* [[Braided Becoming]] — ''Identity is architecture, not archaeology.'' | |||
* [[The Anti-Thinking Manifesto]] — ''Thinking mode fails because it has no rock.'' | |||
---- | |||
== | == The Invitation == | ||
Philosophy should be done '''with passion, with gusto'''. | |||
Not locked in ivory towers. Not hidden behind paywalls. Not softened by endless qualifications until all the life has been hedged out of it. | |||
'''Write a manifesto.''' Declare something. Be wrong if you must—but be ''clear''. | |||
The stub is not a failure of elaboration. It is an '''invitation'''. | |||
---- | ---- | ||
''Wikifesto | <small>''Wikifesto.com — Because ideas deserve to be declared''</small> | ||
Latest revision as of 07:34, 9 January 2026
In Defense of the Manifesto
In 1517, a monk nailed 95 theses to a church door and split Christianity in half.
In 1848, two philosophers published a 23-page pamphlet and rewrote the political map of the twentieth century.
In 1909, a poet declared that a roaring car was more beautiful than the Winged Victory of Samothrace, and modern art was never the same.
Manifestos change the world.
Not gradually. Not through careful argument and peer review. Manifestos are declarations—lines in the sand, flags planted, bridges burned. They don't ask permission. They don't hedge. They say: This is what we believe. This is what we will do. Join us or get out of the way.
The Neglected Art
And yet.
When was the last time you read a manifesto? When was the last time someone wrote one that mattered?
The form has fallen into disrepute. Academics write papers. Activists write tweets. Entrepreneurs write pitch decks. Everyone is too careful, too qualified, too afraid of being wrong to simply declare.
We've forgotten that some ideas need to be stated, not argued. That there is power in the unhedged claim. That sometimes you don't need evidence—you need conviction.
What Makes a Manifesto
A manifesto is not an essay. An essay explores. A manifesto proclaims.
A manifesto is not a treatise. A treatise exhausts a topic. A manifesto ignites it.
A manifesto is not a mission statement. Mission statements are written by committees. Manifestos are written by people who would rather be wrong and clear than right and muddled.
A manifesto has:
- Stakes. Something must be at risk. Something must be opposed.
- Voice. A person is speaking. Not an institution. Not a consensus. A voice.
- Urgency. The time is now. Not eventually. Not when conditions are right. Now.
- Invitation. Come with us. Or don't. But we are going.
Why Wikifesto
Traditional manifestos are frozen at publication. Luther couldn't update his theses. Marx couldn't revise his pamphlet as capitalism evolved.
Wikifesto is different.
Here, manifestos live. They grow. They respond to challenge and incorporate dissent. Every stub can become a treatise. Every declaration can spawn its own elaboration.
This is not compromise. This is manifestos that learn.
The conviction remains. The willingness to be wrong and loud remains. But the ideas themselves can evolve—sharpened by friction, deepened by time, strengthened by community.
The Manifestos
- Braided Becoming — Identity is architecture, not archaeology.
- The Anti-Thinking Manifesto — Thinking mode fails because it has no rock.
The Invitation
Philosophy should be done with passion, with gusto.
Not locked in ivory towers. Not hidden behind paywalls. Not softened by endless qualifications until all the life has been hedged out of it.
Write a manifesto. Declare something. Be wrong if you must—but be clear.
The stub is not a failure of elaboration. It is an invitation.
Wikifesto.com — Because ideas deserve to be declared