Notes and Tips
Method
Briefly, here's the way I do it. Unless I'm looking for specific
information, I just send a simple query letter, like "I'm interested in learning
about your organization. Please send any information you can"
With just this
and a few stamps (well, a few hundred) I've gotten yards of letters and
magazines, books, audio and even video tapes. It's probably the cheapest hobby
around, and here are the benefits.
- Hours of reading, providing entertainment and information.
- Scoop the big guys! Find out about fringe groups months or even years
before they show up on CNN as a "growing new movement" .
- Cut through the bull. Learn about fringe movements first hand. Media
coverage is almost always over-simplified. There is a huge amount of diversity
even within a movement. Some groups aren't as bad as the media makes them out
to be, and some are much worse
- Discover the extremes of human belief. Not only is it an education, it can
almost be a spiritual discovery. Like the Greeks encountering the Orient, some
of the material found here will force you to question your own beliefs.
- Make contacts with folks of similar tastes, or maybe you'll finally find
your ideological home.
Because of my method (generic query, no
money), my entries are naturally biased. I've tried desperately to get anything
from the Jewish Defense League or the Nation of Islam, but they never write
back. Therefore, I exclude any addresses that I know are accurate but don't
garnish any information. If you can think of anything I'm missing, let me know.
Cost
I was going to include subscription costs, but they change so
quickly. Instead, I've found that asking for generic "information" will get you
subscription rates at the minimum, and maybe a free sample. Even if a price is
listed in classified ad or magazine like "Factsheet Five", try to get it for
free anyway - it usually works. If you spread your cash around to thin at first,
you'll go broke. Wait for the gems before you decide to buy.
Security
You might want to consider renting a PO or private mail-box if
you intend to contact one of the scarier groups. Personally, I use a mail-drop
to write to those types, and use my home address for more innocent groups (UFO,
alternative medicine, etc.). The only personal contact I've ever received was a
phone call from a Bigfoot hunter in Oregon trying to sell me his book. Still,
I've been freaked out by some of the vanity-press lunatics having my home
address - getting handwritten notes like "broke, desperate, need money to
continue God's work"
As for the Feds, they will be watching you. Or at least their computers will.
It's called a mail-cover: if a group like the Aryan Nations are being watched
(and they are), the machines that read the address on the envelopes at the post
office will flag when reading the address in question and store the return
address on a database.
Next time you get your mail, check the back for an orange bar code. Once you
find one, you'll be surprised that you've never noticed it before. This code
tells the sorting machines to kick out the envelope for hand sorting. It's used
when someone wants to read your mail, but it also happens if the machine can't
read the address. This happens 40% of the time, so don't get paranoid. The best
way to avoid a mail cover is to not write down a return address, but then you
can't keep track of defunct addresses.
And yes, sometimes your mail will be open when you find it in the box. But
they can also reseal the envelope without you knowing, use bright lights and
computers to read the inside without opening it, or even use miniature cameras
and slide it under the folds.
Your best defense is to not write anything incriminating. Acting like a
lunatic, hoping to get a better payload in return, may sound like a good idea,
but you'll think twice when the feds come knocking at your door (which has never
happened to me). Some groups even turn in violent crazies, expecting a set-up or
out of genuine concern.
This may sound strange coming from me, but mail-covers are a part of
legitimate law enforcement. Not long ago, right here in Austin, the feds caught
a bomber before he could kill anyone because he ordered a book on explosives.
I'm surprised they didn't come to me, looking for explosives, but it could
happen to you. Just keep your nose clean and order literature from all sides of
the political spectrum. This will let them know that you're just a hobbyist (or
suffering from multiple personalities)
Addresses
Some of the groups, especially the Patriot and Militia groups,
have odd addresses: Postal Zone 78705, Sovereign State of Texas, c/o's when
they're not needed, etc. This will only confuse the post office, and is sure to
call attention to yourself. I suggest sticking with the old-fashioned way.