Rocks metaphorically embody Spirals of the Marketplace and Power’s concept of Information Control. The actual Marketplace being only accessible in death, Cult members construct their own structures for novelty extraction, and exploit commodities through trading networks – faux “marketplaces.” Although neural-democracy is the Novel Universe Cult’s default form of governance, each Rock Body who chooses not to use a neural-democracy may invent any form for themselves. The two recommended archetypes of Power are the Tower and the Square – the Tower, a governance of hierarchy, like an absolute dictatorship; the Square, anarchy, pure democracy. Libertarian, authoritarian, kakistocracy – there’s no inherent limit to how a Rock Body may construct itself, only that its founding documents are approved by the River.
Is suicide evil? Is physical combat to determine who’s on the right side of a dispute good? Should strict laws for everything, nothing, or somewhere in-between exist? Rocks, and Power in general, are not necessarily “evil” or “good,” but both. Power is any forces in opposition, whereas the very distinction between good and evil does not exist within Love’s understanding. So long as the Rock Body’s laws are clearly spelled out for their members and visitors, do not interfere with any other Body, and are strictly enforced according to the founding documents, the Body is free to define what is good and evil, what can or cannot happen within its physical / virtual borders. In general, Rock-based laws are crafted to maximize the quantity and quality of valuable novelty for profit. Bodies establish an initial, concrete framework for their government, including any such acceptable procedures for what might be changed and how to accomplish such changes to their Body’s underlying framework. Although Bodies are not required to have such flexibility written into their founding documents, they are encouraged to do so, as organizations without any mechanisms for evolution at scale are more likely to fail. For those Rock Bodies in habitual or egregious violation of their founding frameworks, the River may direct their dissolution.
Clades are the initial Rock Bodies, a loose group of Freemen virtually / physically formed around a Primary Organizing Pillar with a limited formal Charter approved by their River Sage(s). Members with affiliations based on their Pillars’ common interests are known as Assembly Clades; whereas a group of tight-knit friends or literal family are known as Family Clades. With a minimum of two members for Clades and twelve for Tribes, there is no maximum number for either. Should a Clade coalesce in purpose and membership around a common POP, they may work by themselves or with other Clades through the River to become a Tribe with a formal relationship to the River. For the purpose of governing its members, River Sages will assist the founding members to form a Tribal Contract. Unless otherwise stated in the Contract, each member wishing to join the Tribe may independently negotiate the terms of their adherence to / benefits from this Tribal Contract with the Body’s Power structure, be that a leader, council, form of democracy, etc. Although Orphan Clades – Clades not part of a Tribe – are lightly regulated, so far as they adhere to their Charter’s governing rules and principles of Power, Tribal Clades are bound by their Tribal Contract, based on their POP.
With assistance from the River, Tribes are encouraged to create a settlement, permanent or otherwise, but are not required to do so, and may instead become “Roaming” Tribes. Like Communities, “Settlement” Tribes are further required to provide each Freeman a physical, tangible “Spiral” – a secure space to store personal items, as well as, retreat in mediation, consumption, and rest. These spaces symbolize the Signature-Frequency Set’s absolute Information Control. Tribal Spirals are private spaces that might only be violated by an Active Sage(s) with a Cult mandate to search the space for specific items as part of a River case. Rock Bodies are barred from passing laws that might violate the sanctity of or access to a member’s Spiral. With this in mind, any punishment / corrective action deemed appropriate for a Freeman that includes temporary isolation or imprisonment will be carried out in the member’s Spiral. Visitors – even spouses or other close family members – must always be invited into the Spiral. Tribal Spirals honor our right to a safe space, especially in a facsimile of the Marketplace, where the security of seclusion is the foundational principle of Power’s informational network of trade.
Because profit is a foundational mechanism of Power, Rock Bodies are affiliated with a number of Water Bodies as both the Waters’ economic representatives and physical protectorates from the world outside the Novel Universe Cult. If, for example, a world-changing invention comes out of the Cult, Rock Bodies have the unfettered ability to profit from and distribute that invention, but Water bodies do not engage in any economic activity, only contributing their direct innovative efforts to the project within the Cult itself. Only Rock bodies may engage with entities outside the Cult who might directly invest in the Cult itself. This relationship insulates Water Bodies, symbolizing their seclusion behind the barrier of Complete Information – a process of accountability that orients one to the Concert Hall’s primary state of intentional vulnerability among all participants.
The Cult supports all aspects of innovation among its Bodies, including labor, resources, skill, and technology, to the best of our abilities. All property, both physical and intellectual, created by any Cult Body, belongs to the Cult membership, managed by the River for the purposes of balancing the needs of our Bodies. Despite the profit motive as a fundamental, religious tenet of Power’s Marketplace, Rock Bodies, themselves, cannot exist as individual, for-profit entities without violating various governments’ definition of a legitimate religion. Therefore, each Rock Body’s marketplace has a formal relationship with the Novel Universe Corporation (NU Corp), itself an external, for-profit, affiliated entity administered and staffed by River Sages, specially appointed by and answerable to the Cult’s membership. As NU Corp is a structure of Power, its Board consists of, at minimum 50% and maximum 67%, Sages who primarily belong to Rock Bodies, what are called Power Sages. NU Corp’s sole purpose is to legally manage all profit-seeking activities of Rock Bodies, while its Sages provide both support and oversight with these activities as needed, filling roles such as intermediaries, advisors, attorneys, arbiters, etc. Ultimately, the Cult’s membership has authority over NU Corp, with each member an equal shareholder in the corporation, and might collectively direct NU Corp’s activities through their votes.
Rock Bodies are designed to effectively extract novelty for each member through the Body’s Primary Organizing Pillar, while maintaining the potential to make real-world profits for the individual / Body with entities inside and outside the Cult. Rock Bodies are under the River’s general restrictions against things like malicious parody and outright warfare between Cult Bodies, but as long as they behave within the defined boundaries of their founding documents and Sage-approved POP, the River supports their activities, even at the financial or social expense of other Rock Bodies.
All costs associated with the innovation and production of goods and services for profit by any Cult Body are reimbursed to the non-profit Cult through NU Corp, with net profits remaining with the for-profit Corporation. These profits are turned over to those Rock Bodies directly involved in the economic activity, who subsequently distribute them among their membership according to their founding documents. The River Sages reallocate all Cult tithing, donations, and other Cult income for the benefit of the Cult as a whole. Furthermore, if a Community shifts toward an incentive for profit-seeking activities, it is no longer a Community, but a Tribe. (Click here for a detailed example of how this works).
Reflecting the Rock Body’s POP, the preferable naming format includes the Body’s form of Power, and some object or concept owned by something; simply put, the name is a reflection of the Marketplace’s function. For instance, a Tribe might be called Emperor Sheldon’s Motorcycle Tower, or The Martial Arts Square of Hip-hop Masters. This scheme is designed to reflect Power’s defining characteristic: the consumption of novelty by some individual or group, in other words, the absolute freedom absolute control affords the entity.
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