Tech Deck Tricks: Opinion: Be Careful When You Laugh At Burning Man

Editor's note: Jill Filipovich is a New York-based journalist and author of OK Boomer Let's Talk: How My Generation Got Left Behind . Follow him on Twitter . The opinions expressed in these comments are entirely his own. See more on CNN .

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"Radical self-reliance" is one of the 10 principles of Burning Man, the Nevada desert's festival of arts and creativity (and an increasingly influential, famous and funded tech entrepreneur): "Burning Man encourages people to discover, experience and inspire." Just rely on their resources. The Inner World". Source".

That policy was certainly put to the test this year, as torrential rains left thousands of surfers stranded on beaches for days. Fortunately, the rain has stopped and officials said on Monday that participants could start to disperse, although organizers urged people to wait as traffic jams could last for several hours.

Many of us (including me) are confused when we see someone on fire. Burning Man is undoubtedly a lot of fun - some of my friends like the famous Burns, Burns - but even long-time visitors will realize that the event has gone from a traditional mecca to a desert drug party. Influencers and people from Silicon Valley. The show's cover paints a picture of a festival that reflects the worst of libertarian techno-bro culture in recent years: a sense of self-belief coupled with the shallowness and narcissism of creativity; The hope of strong self-reliance can only be achieved through access to abundant resources; Full of interest and meaning, but lacking depth, morality, or any real grand purpose.

But we can easily ignore this avoidable disaster - either because the worst is yet to come or because the people who burn are simply unbearable - and this should be the latest in a long line of warning signs: climate change is here and it's coming for everyone. we .

It can be hard to sympathize with those who spent so much money on drugs in the desert, promised extreme self-sufficiency and self-sustaining societies, seeing the prospect fall short of their expectations. Resources for adequate self-care.

Heading out into the desert to make potions, make fires and burn things - or, in a simpler version, dress up in silly costumes, make art, throw a party and set yourself on fire as a giant wooden man - sounds like a lot of work party weekends for sure. Being fun. You can think of worse ways. The festival, yes, we're just a bunch of idiots in Mad Max costumes who want to party, so Burning Man won't feel bored. On the contrary, it can be something more meaningful, life-changing and ideologically demanding - and then it fails to live up to the principles of "the rock in the dwelling of the first people".

Much about Burning Man feels hypocritical, from its "decommodification" policy that hosts billionaires flying private jets to its "better places than we've ever been" to its "leave no trace" policy. . However, this will inevitably lead to total devastation in places from California to Utah.

This year, things got worse: According to an email from Nevada's Pershing County Sheriff Jerry Allen to the San Francisco Chronicle, festival goers routinely "remove a lot of property and trash from the festival in and around Reno." However, he wrote, "This year was a little different as vehicles were scattered along the beach for miles."

He continued, "Some participants didn't want to wait to get out of the desert or use the beaten path, and had to leave their cars and personal belongings where their cars were parked."

You really want to leave this place well.

This year's theme is "Animals" which means "celebrating the animal world and our place in it". But to make the Nevada desert accessible and suitable for the animals, Berner had to drive gas-powered vehicles for hours or fly in from different parts of the world. Some concerns about private jets, which Burning Man still rejects (as do single-use plastics); And it makes alternate visitors freeze. In the year In 2019, the carbon footprint of burning man reached 100,00 tons of CO2 per year.

Fortunately for Berners this year, the rain stopped, the festival audience was able to disperse and avoid a real disaster. And in the short time people are incarcerated, some decide to leave on foot or by car, while others later share the wealth. But a few more days of torrential rains leave the Burners in dire straits: stranded and trapped in the desert, running out of food, water and fuel.

For the thousands of people who come to the playa for a few days of sex, drugs, and good Instagram content, I wonder how long "radical confidence" can last when conditions get so extreme that they find themselves dirty and hungry. . Thirsty, you cannot charge a dead cell phone while sleeping in a metal tent. One expressed suspicion that if the rains did not stop, radical self-reliance would quickly turn into emergency workers.

In a statement, Burn Man organizers wrote: “Burn Man is a community committed to supporting each other. We come knowing that this is where we brought everything we need to be saved. So we are all prepared for such weather events.

I wonder if many burners realize what is happening here: while the festival is primarily about good sportsmanship in a hostile environment, this climate disaster has made it clear that climate change is changing the way many of us live sustainably, many of us building homes for people. . , the community and creative space is truly welcoming .

All burners can be left and returned home. People whose homes have been destroyed by floods, forest fires, hurricanes and other natural disasters caused by or exacerbated by climate change do not have this opportunity.

So this should be a warning to those who want to enjoy themselves in a neutral utopia, but want to engage in the boring but very important work of civic and political participation - their wealth and voice. To be sure. Those who fight to make our planet livable.

But this should be a big warning to all of us. Regardless of what you think of Burning Man — cool or funny — the now-inevitable desert disaster could lead to more deaths (though not from the bad weather, one person died). As our planet becomes less habitable, these are the dangers we will see more and more.

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Flooding in the Nevada desert has caused severe weather disasters: wildfires that have turned orange in American cities from coast to coast, tornadoes that have forced evacuations and flattened homes, and floods that have destroyed roads and railroads and swept away virgin land. . . For years, environmentalists have warned us of future warming and floods if we don't reduce emissions and control the biggest polluters. Now this future is here.

On a planet that is increasingly becoming a desert, some of the richest people in the world find it very unpleasant to camp out in the desert and throw big parties just to make sure they can (of course they have generators, cars, planes, AC units, and the ultimate timeline). So it's interesting to witness festival goers doing little to protect their lonely desert-like environment under the guise of cleanliness and responsibility.

The reality is that climate change will save some of us, and the devastation it causes will be felt disproportionately by those who deserve it. It is inevitable that those with few resources will be prepared to respond and survive. We expect an event like the Burning Man Flood to be awe-inspiring to both those who experience it and those who watch it from afar.

This is easy to see in Burning Man, which seems both important and unnecessary. But the chaos of unanticipated climate change means we could be trapped, hungry, scared and busy in the future.