feedback on Expo
I want to thank Roy for his feedback on the Expo. Any other list members
who attended the Expo are welcome to send me feedback - positive and/or
negative - on the Expo, via posting or private e-mail.
We had a "Suggestions" box at the Expo. The only two suggestions submitted
in the box were insults directed at me. The SF-LiFE member who provided the
boxes thinks he saw a certain (notorious) fruitarian zealot, submitting
a suggestion. If this is correct, it is just another example of how immature
and hypocritical some supposedly "compassionate" vegan/fruitarians are.
The zealots cannot stand that I tell others the truth about raw foods diets.
(The member who controlled the suggestion box, remarked to me that "I didn't
know that we let children into the Expo.")
I have been a vegetarian since 1970 (January 1, to be precise). I was a vegan
for most of that time, but now consume small amounts of raw dairy. Even when I
was a vegan, I was shocked by the antics and hostility of the vegan and
raw food zealots. I wonder if/when the vegan/raw food community will ever wake
up and see the damage such hypocrisy causes the community? A message to the
general vegan/raw-foods community: zealots are NOT your ally - they do real
damage to the "cause". The hostility of zealots provides non-vegans with a
valid, logically defensible reason to ignore the "message" of veganism.
(If this offends you, please take an honest look around you, because there
is much truth in the above complaint.)
On other topics...
Ray Kent: I met him for the first time at the Expo. I read his book some years
ago - pretty average natural hygiene book; not bad, not great. He was on the
panel, and was funny at times. What struck me as odd though, was his frequent
criticism of religion/spirituality, while praising Herbert Shelton. Perhaps
he has made Herbert Shelton into a substitute for "God"? I don't know
the answer to that question, but would comment that I have met many NHers
who are devout Christians, but who seem to place Shelton above God. Personally.
I think that is a very bad idea indeed.
Re: the David Wolfe talk. I did not attend, but an influential member of SF-
LiFE heard the talk, and the report is similar to that made by Roy here.
The report is that the talk was mostly sayings and slogans, with a very low
information content. The member kept waiting for content, but didn't find
any.
possibility of another Expo
We have been given a brilliant suggestion for another Expo. I call it brilliant
because 1) if properly executed, it should be more successful than the first,
2) it may inspire some new members to actively participate in the planning and
execution stages (us poor Expo Committee members are tired and won't do it
again without lots of additional help.)
This suggestion would significantly change the vendor portion of the Expo.
Most of the vendors at the first Expo would NOT qualify as vendors at the
next. Formal guidelines have not been established, but the idea is that at
the next Expo, 3/4 of the vendors would be food providers/sellers, and
the remaining 1/4 closely related (water purifiers, equipment suppliers).
Again, there are no formal guidelines yet; the above is NOT an official
statement of SF-LiFE, and is not binding in any way.
The idea is that the vendors would become an event of their own (a "food fair"
of sorts). Such events are very popular in this area, and might draw lots of
normal (i.e, not raw fooders) people.
The speaker/workshop portion of the next Expo would be similar to the first,
but with some changes already agreed on by some current Expo Committee members:
1) the event will NOT be under the SF Vegetarian Society umbrella. (Such a
decison will cost hundreds of dollars in extra rent charges.) This will allow
us to invite instinctos to actively participate. We might invite Zephyr
and Aajonus to be speakers, perhaps one of them a keynote speaker. SF-LiFE
is an open organization, there is none of the anti-instincto bias that
characterizes certain hostile fruitarian zealots.
2) we will have "birds of a feather" sessions at the Expo. It is easier to
find a session coordinator than a speaker. Sessions we might host include:
one for instinctos, one for people who are just starting on living foods,
one for NHers, etc.
3) I will argue for an Expo date in early May (when UC Berkeley is in session,
and we will get more students). Of course, the "if?" question is uncertain
at present, and must be settled before the "when?" is answered.
Again, there are NO plans now for another Expo. Whether the above becomes a
reality or not, depends on local volunteers - a commodity in very short supply
for the last Expo!
If you would like to see another Expo, wish us all luck!
P.S. suggestions on the above are welcome.
Regards,
Tom Billings
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