Welcome to Gaia! ::

Note: This is NOT my handbook, but all ravers new and old should read this.

The Goodvibe Starts from Within.

Stop complaining about everyone else. What about yourself? Are you treating others the way you want to be treated? That is the only route toward the positivity that will unite us all. Don't be afraid! Fear is the source of all our conflicts and aggressions. The next time someone gives you a hard look, understand that they are still captive to their fears like you once were. Don't resort to a negative response because that will only create more negativity. Smile! Let the goodwill within you flow! Maybe your strength and love will give them the courage to open themselves, and they will follow the new direction. It is all up to you. -tito

This booklet is not intended to be definitive in its' approach ... it is a starting point for communication about very important issues that directly affect each of us. Our hope is that it will encourage you to step away from the music with some friends for a moment so that you can discuss the importance of individual efforts in responsible raving.

Yeah? So what's the problem?

It is becoming more and more difficult to continue our cultural phenomenon known as the EDM or "Electronic Dance Movement." The reason that raving is more difficult is because raves and even smaller parties are being shut down by the police and other authorities at an alarming rate. Apart from DJs, sound and lights, in order to throw a successful event you need secure locations, permits/permission and insurance. With any of these ingredients missing there is a strong chance that the event will not get off the ground. In order to get these ingredients we must go to people outside of the rave community ... the public.
It is the public that formulates opinions about us as ravers. Most times it is public opinion that keeps a landowner from granting us use of his property... that keeps an insurance company from providing a necessary policy ... that keeps civil agencies from issuing a permit that makes an event legal and "unbustable." The police are not shutting us down because of a giant conspiracy against ravers, raving and living life to its' fullest ...They are shutting us down because of our own...

* selfishness
* carelessness
* ignorance

If we rid ourselves of these anchors, our public image will greatly improve and our fragile movement will surely flourish. How? What can you do? A lot! YOU can make or break our movement! Think before you act !!
It is incredibly easy to combat selfishness, carelessness and ignorance and still have the time of your life... maybe even have a better time than you've ever experienced. Imagine having the best time you've ever had at a rave ... now couple that with the feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment that you would get from helping build up and progress our scene ... knowing that you did your part. You did your part.

*CARELESSNESS IS OVERCOME THROUGH ACCOUNTABILITY*


Carelessness, which sometimes is accidental, can easily be overcome through a system of accountability. It only takes two friends to commit to be accountable to each other in reminding the other if they are being careless. The more people you have in your accountability group (also called "true friends"), the less likely you are to do something careless. Create an accountability group with the friends you rave with the most. Ask someone to be accountable for you RIGHT NOW. But NEVER forget to be accountable for YOURSELF!! All you have to do is give a simple reminder ... speak up and say, "I don't think it's such a good idea for you to do that." Here are some places where carelessness becomes a problem for each of us in the Electronic Dance movement: Forgetting about any of the above selfishness issues - Go ahead... re-read them!

Driving safely: There is no thing wrong with being too messed up or too tired to drive home.. . unless of course you try to drive anyway. Ask a more sober friend from your accountability group to drive or wait until someone is able to drive. Coffee and other stimulants won''t do the trick. Take your time so you and your friends can rave again another day!!

Dealing with the wrong people: Who are the wrong people? Unscrupulous drug dealers are just as problematic as undercover drug enforcement agents. If you think getting something "bunk" is a problem ... think about how bad it would be if you bought something poisonous or lethal!! This is be coming a bigger and bigger problem as drug manufacturers are finding cheaper ways to make money. Most of them aren't chemists and don't bother testing their new batch ... you may become a "test subject" for an unknown substance.The media and law enforcement agencies are infiltrating our masses to collect information to use against us at a later time. You can never know who is who... so be careful. Know who you're dealing with.

Loitering outside of the venue: This only draws attention to the event and makes police curious enough to"investigate." Loitering also makes it more difficult to patrol a parking area to look for people breaking into cars or doing other selfish activities that hurt individual ravers and hurt the scene overall. When you're walking through a parking lot and you see people standing around ask them to please go inside ... but explain to them why it is importa nt for them to help in this regard.

Acting safely / Acting responsibly: This is a broad area that has too many specific "infractions." Every once in a while just ask yourself (and the people you're accountable for) these questions ...

What am I doing?
* Am I directly/indirectly harming myself or other ravers?
* Am I keeping someone else from having a great time?
* Am I helping build a positive public image about the rave scene?

*IGNORANCE IS OVERCOME THROUGH COMMUNICATION AND EDUCATION*

Ignorance is the easiest problem to overcome but it also depends on individual efforts. All we need to do is educate our selves. But two things must happen before we can educate each other. First, we must be willing to be educated ... we must recognize that we are being stupid, we must want to change and secondly, we must communicate with each other. Since we have no organized arena for ravers to come together and communicate we are held in the dark. We must find a centralized forum where together we can learn from our past mistakes and innovate our future. Until we find that forum, it is up to you to discuss these problems and re-shape our future.
The existence of rave culture depends entirely on you to simply talk with one another... to share all of these important issues with others ... with people you meet for the first time.

Know what you're talking about: Rumors and misinformation are splitting us apart. Know the facts about the real reasons for "busts"... or the dangers of certain substances. Don't let yourself be used as a tool for a promoters personal gain ... or mouthpiece for fabricated drug hysteria.

Know what you're taking: We've already discussed unscrupulous drug dealers. Don't combine lots of different drugs! There are combinations of substances that can quickly become lethal. In fact, more drug related casualties are due to lethal combinations of drugs and alcohol than overdosing!

Let the DJ do the mixing!

Know your limit: Your accountability group can help you with this. Be careful trying to "bump" your dosage. Always let someone know exactly how much of what your taking BEFORE you take it.

Know the law : Get to know the specific legalities of possessing controlled substances. Know the consequences if you're busted and ask yourself if it is worth the risk.

Know how to handle yourself with the police: Be cooperative but also know your rights regarding search and seizure laws (especially in searching a vehicle). Avoid dragging down the rave scene with you. Don't even mention raves if you have a run in with officers. (Doing so not only makes the scene look bad but because of the negative image we have already created for ourselves could cause the officer to assume certain things about you) Be afraid of the seriousness of the consequences but don't let yourself be intimidated to the point that you incriminate yourself.

Bumping this because I love all of you.