As is obvious by now, Comprachicos emphasizes the importance of emotional intelligence and self-knowledge to the health of civilization. Emotional intelligence and self-knowledge are not normalized as concepts within the modern world, nor have they ever been. They are viewed as extracurricular and taken up only by a minority of determined individuals—many of which have suffered traumatization as a result of what was either their own erstwhile lack of emotional guidance and self-awareness or the lack displayed by those in whom they placed their trust. Note that these essential intelligences are also being viewed by society at large as ‘personal’ interests in line with physical fitness, rather than as ‘collective’ interests, like if to say that the health and maturity of the individual holds no objective, communal value. Even then, the absence of means whereby to measure such decidedly abstract concepts leaves them open to the constant, unqualified minimizations of a materialistic people, and in this world where nobody contests the winner of a sports match, we see that empathy, skill, intelligence and spiritual capacity can be denied by anyone at all who would rather not recognize them. Those attempting to better themselves are often derided and alienated outright, while billions seek consolation via the falsified notion that wisdom and maturity develop naturally with age, as if some given, rather than via mindful, intentful and strenuous effort, and the concepts remain so ill-defined and unexplored as a result.

It is an unsettling fact that most individuals will not willingly seek out knowledge outside of that which is required by their school system and place of employment. Thus the general assumption held by the average individual upon graduation—whether are they capable of admitting to as much or not—is that they have acquired all essential knowledge in life (even though no one is disputing that there remains a world of knowledge beyond them, although it can easily be written off by their minds as irrelevant and therefore inessential). If we see it as mandatory that the population be taught a particular concept or idea, it must be mandated via the schooling system rather than being left to the chanceness of electivity. However, the modern standard of education is highly outdated and devoid of all foresight, being firmly tied up in governmental institutions which are typically truncated fairly early on in our lives, ending as soon as we are capable of being trusted with heavy machinery and important phone calls. Public education has never been about teaching us how to lead healthy and fulfilling lives, but about streamlining the competentization of future workers. We are so overly accustomed to this way of doing things that few ever question the strangeness of seeing most people so convinced of having reached the height of knowledge and capability at only a quarter way through the average lifespan. Many may resort to the excuse that ‘learning never stops’, with life itself acting as a teacher to all the living; and that may be true on a technical level, yet I see it as a deflection of the reality at hand, and the reality is stark: our potential is going unmet as a result of negligence.

I feel very strongly about the state of our education system, and I have to imagine that there are many who feel similarly; yet I’ve not caught wind of any collective effort or organized push to really instate a new standard, while schools and children’s education have become naught more than an arena for nominal adults to carry out their political tantrums.

In the years 2013-2016 I took part in a complex, if disorganized, campaign known as Operation Hexagon, the purpose of which was to construct a new schooling model and potentially even a school—the tentatively-titled Alba Favum Academy (roughly meaning ‘Academy of White Combs’, or ‘White Honeycomb Academy’). It was an idea built upon a similar set of principles to those seen in this text being carried out under the banner of Comprachicos, although the project was then related to the KHT, with its name being an allusion to the naturo-alchemical process whereby bees create the sweetest, most perfect substance from the sum of their internalized experiences: divine, golden excreta. Our effort was merely slated to act as an experimental prototype of sorts in which new approaches were tested out. At one point we were attempting to outline a veritable curriculum. This was eventually shelved, though I never lost interest in the project, always hoping that I would one day be in a place to resume that goal so grand, and with Comprachicos I intend to do just that.



Trust me when I say that the normalization of emotional intelligence and the universalization of these values is among the most important and consequential of all acts. Until then, we are as blindfolded children complaining that all is hopelessly dark. But again, I will stress: the darkness of our environment is not tantamount to the blindness of our eyes.

My interest, however, goes beyond simply swapping one subject out for another and souping up the jungle gym. More than simply prioritizing the practical and psycho-spiritual within our education system, I wish to see the working model expanded altogether, for it is sensible to conclude that one’s attitude changes significantly when it is believed that they are done learning, influencing both the shape and pliability of one’s paradigm, and I wonder what it would mean for our society if the population continued attending a school-like environment throughout their lifetime and it wasn’t being viewed as an unusual occurrence. Obviously we have college, which is open to individuals of all ages; yet not only does there exist certain sociocultural associations (and expectations) which limit the extent to which older individuals are willing to even consider such a path for themselves, but even then, our colleges neither take the specific approach, nor do they cover the subjects that I would wish to see being implemented, because once again, highschool and college (though college even more so) are geared toward preparing us for our careers and occupations and not so much our actual everyday lives. College also tends to be very expensive, sending many into debt (at least here in the USA), while I would ideally wish to provide the public with access to free education, thereby making it accessible to the general public in the absence of the usual barriers.

I believe that extending and normalizing education in this manner would come with a host of positive effects upon the minds of the populace, both subtle and profound, by not only keeping our minds engaged, but soft and humble, whereby we shall remain open, receptive and ultimately youthful before life well into adulthood and old age. Apart from that being the healthiest way to live, isn’t that also the most enjoyable? Isn’t it that which we all desire? However, it would do well to follow more closely to the schedule of your average church, taking place maybe twice a week—and optionally so. Church seems to me as a suitable point of reference in this case as people will often attend weekly or bi-weekly church services throughout their lifetime and you won’t hear them making any fuss regarding the feasibility of such expectations. It’s something that can be managed—for most people—without having to shift things around in our life.

One of the more intriguing aspects of this approach is the idea that it could be a way to normalize and integrate therapy into the daily lives of the population, at which point it may evolve into a new entity altogether which now has as much or more to do with prevention as it does healing. Note that by ‘therapy’ I refer not to therapy as a strict discipline but to the various components which make up your typical therapeutic session, as in open dialogues regarding psycho-emotional health and the many benefits of such openness and honest examination. Although it would be taken up, in this case, as a group, rather than on an individual-by-individual basis, and I wonder of the potential benefits and drawbacks of that, say, versus the commoner therapeutic format. That being said, there is no reason why anyone who desired the more classic set-up couldn’t pursue such therapy on their own time, should that hold any appeal and/or relevance at this point, since I don’t expect this to leave psychiatry outmoded, and there may be many individuals who slipped through the sieve the first time around and require a bit of extra attention—not unlike how some kids will require summer classes to make up for certain topics wherein they are struggling.


One of the greatest problems liable to be resolved by this approach is the matter of adult loneliness, which I now recognize as a significant issue not only in itself—referring to the magnitude of socio-emotional issues faced by the preponderance of modern adults over the age of thirty—but for all of the secondary effects to come of such isolation, the likes of which which will often give way to unhealthy traits and practices affecting all aspects of their life, their perspective and society in turn. Indeed, most adults struggle to socialize; however, I do think that if there existed a stable outlet for such, not only would it increase the quality of our lives, but reduce the reliance on religious institutions to provide us with that community—with the communal elements of religion accounting for perhaps its greatest appeal unto masses of men and women who, if we’re being honest, are very rarely disposed toward spirituality (tending to conflate spirituality with ritualism). Consider, also, the environments and conditions in which the adult population will typically interact, as it most commonly entails church and the work place—both of which maintain semi-formal settings that discourage vulnerability, imperfection and self-expression. Therefore, even where adults continue to interact with others on a semi-regular basis throughout their lives, it is not commonly carried out within an environment in which they can explore and express their individuality—their humanity—and this works not unlike deliberate suppression by creating for a psycho-emotional need which, in turn, amounts to aggression as such that is most likely to express itself in the domestic environment and even in one’s political views.

This is not some fluke but the standard of our society. We are manufacturing individuals that are completely out of touch with themselves. As children they are deprived of guidance, while as adults they are handled as mere tools within the collective toolbox, being expected to trade their time and even identity for their basic survival. Still, their best is rarely enough, and in the end they will be sent off to the junkyard (prison) or the mechanic (psychiatrist) as if some defect; yet when every product coming out of the assembly line is malfunctioning to a similar degree we must see that all fault belongs to the manufacturer. This is not a fact of life. This is not man at the mercy of nature. This is a population at the mercy of ignorance, greed and stubborn traditionalism and it is not something to be accepted as the standard. It is criminal at worst, and negligence at best: the result of a failure to readjust our societal paradigm in light of the changing times and all that change brings with it. I mean... not so long ago we would have considered forty years old to be ‘old age’ (relative to average life expectancy). Nowadays it is common to live twice that duration, though we have yet to really come up with much to say for how to put the second half of life to good use, or that’s how it seems. A shockingly large amount of the population holds to the view that many of life’s most significant aspects, such as learning, socialization and even pleasure itself reach a peak in youth and drop off in our mid-to-late twenties, leading thus to a lifetime spent looking back with certain fondness—and tragically so—upon a period characterized by elements that could, for the most part, be experienced at any age at all. In being convinced that our stories are over so soon, we seek to live vicariously through media and politics rather than continuing to develop our core selves. It is a tragedy, but we were hardly left with any other outcome, seeing as we have not been provided a guide on how to go about such development, nor have we been given an image of what the final result should look like.

This idea of encouraging adult socialization via a stable, non-religious, non-occupational means may not sound like a game-changer, though I surely wouldn’t underestimate the value of keeping individuals engaged on a consistent basis throughout their lives and within an environment which is permitting of exploration and error—all of which is essential to not just the growth of the individual but the growth of our society.


The implications of this model are vast and various, and I am still in the process of exploring all of the potential benefits, such as how it can be used to aid the homeless population, which suffers foremostly not from a lack of desire, but a scarcity of opportunities. With only a few basic rules set in place (mainly for the sake of fostering a hygienic and drug-free environment), I honestly feel that this could be utilized as a means to facilitate educational, occupational and social opportunities for those without a permanent address and a stable income.

I’ve also given some thought to the idea of how to go about introducing spirituality into such a system and in a manner that is so centered (as in ‘neutral’) as to provide our society with a healthier spiritual identity, while reducing dogma and extremism and encouraging collective exploration. I do not expect that it would replace churches, and that is not what I am attempting to do, nor do I think that we should attempt to force everyone into a single doctrinal mold; although I do believe that, if properly and tastefully executed, it would satisfy the spiritual need of the vast majority of individuals who are not themselves considered devouts but ultimately choose their team based on familial and cultural disposition (if not Pascal’s wager). Also, let it be made known that I base my conclusions in this case not off of my personal spiritual and religious preferences, but upon the belief that we must locate and build upon a center of mass in any case that we wish to see our efforts grow strong and tall without collapsing our society. We may each wave our different flags, whether are we atheist or theist, but at the end of the day, on the elemental level, we are all just different shades of agnostic in terms of our understanding, and until our society is an accurate reflection of that much—as in an accurate reflection of what we do and don’t know—then our society will reflect overconfidence and delusion in its architecture; and that architecture, I can promise you, will not hold under the weight of us all. I don’t expect that statement to go by without its share of controversy and opposition, and I say all of this as an atheist and Aseitist firm in his stance, yet even I am not too proud to admit to the reality of human understanding and the sheer importance of accurately estimating our position so as to not choke our potential on both the individual and societal levels.

For all of the religists out there who may look upon these words with worry unfounded, opting to view it as some threat to their objective, let me quickly point out that, despite my atheistic leanings, I am still very much in favor of human spirituality in all of its entailments and I wholeheartedly believe that something of this sort could be instrumental in restoring our collective attitude toward the topic of spirituality, which has become overgrown with associations and assumptions as such that have made exploration so impossible. And while I am deeply disturbed by how our concept of spirituality has developed and distorted over time to become some placating pill, I am even less comfortable with seeing society throw the baby out with the filthy, browning bathwater. I do not seek to abolish our spiritual inclinations but to restore them to a healthier state; bringing humanity back to a point where ‘spirituality’ was neither synonymous with authoritarian politics nor escapist fantasies, but a more humbling reality, as in our willingness to recognize that there is more to our world and our experience of this life than is readily definable; than is readily measurable. That may not fall perfectly in line with what is practiced by the modern church—speaking of ‘the church’ as if it were a unified entity—though I am still of the mind to say that this effort will benefit spiritual communities more than it will detract therefrom and religists would be better off attempting to work with us in finding this balance than in lobbing onions at our offices.


Where it concerns the subjects themselves, I tend to be highly opinionated in terms of what constitutes ‘mandatory learning’, being that I underwent almost zero formal schooling in my lifetime and still ended up doing fairly well for myself from an intellectual standpoint, whereas it was the absence of common guiding principles and a dearth of socialization which has amounted to my greatest struggles in life. Anyone who isn’t totally out of touch with the changing times will understand that we have evolved, what with smartphone technology and the like, to the point where a lot of our curriculum is no longer as weighted and can be cut without making even the tiniest of differences to our lives. There seems no reason, apart from tradition, for why several of our commoner subjects are not moved into a college curriculum to be taken on by consenting specialists rather than being forced upon a population unto which the information is largely useless and inane. And even if we can come up with some excuse for why it isn’t useless, or how it still manages to come with some positive benefits for our mind, aren’t there more productive ways of doing the same?

Topics such as emotional intelligence, psychological health, parenting and spirituality are no less necessary (and in many ways more necessary) to our human experience than the superfluous maths that make up our modern outmoded curriculum. My personal list—referring to what I would like to see given priority within our schools—includes creativity, metacognition, critical thinking, family science and child rearing, psychology, social science and philosophy of religion, all which may be added to the traditional staples of science, health, history, mathematics, biology and language arts. Yet my concern is not with settling upon the subjects and the specifics of what goes on in such a school. That ain’t my wheelhouse, and whatever I say will be adjudged and overruled by more knowledgeable individuals anyhow. Me… I am far more interested in matters of structure and execution, personally, and so I seek to create the frameworks, the overviews, leaving the specifics to be figured out by the specialists among us.

So I’m not even saying just to tack an extra four years on top of our existing regimen, for we must reevaluate our whole curriculum in line with not just the practical, day-to-day reality of modern society but the psychoemotional needs of the modern individual. Surely we would benefit from reworking and possibly extending our model of education so as to tackle the full scope of the human experience and not merely the physical, as if to say that the abstract is of no consequence: a subconscious belief which is eroding the fabric of our world. If you want a good starting point I recommend looking at the manner in which Finland approaches the education system—an inspiring and successful model from which the rest of the world can derive great insights, as it abandons standardized testing in favor of a more interactive approach and fosters an environment of cooperation, rather than competition—among many other important factors which have amounted to very favorable results in so short a time. I’m also partial to the manner in which Finland approaches mental health… and while we’re at it let’s not forget the black metal.

It really isn’t a tough call, and it shouldn’t require a damn judge panel to conclude where our priorities should lie. It gets me so heated to see the kind of things that we have come to prioritize over the psycho-emotional development and well-being of our species. All these nerds with their hands in their pants fixating on interplanetary colonization... because how great would it be to fuck up two planets instead of just one with our unanalyzed souls and rampant traumatized projections! We don’t need better cars. We don’t need better computers. We need better people. So then let us focus instead upon the root of this catastrophe, and with our efforts being focused more on prevention. All else is a distraction born from shortsighted negligence and upheld by neurosis.


It is my belief that we are better off attempting to establish our own school, rather than looking to have our ideas implemented into existing schools, knowing it is unlikely that we will have our ideas considered by the mainstream channels until we have something to show for ourselves and this issue is too important to be watered down so to comply with the vision of visionless fools who have already demonstrated their inability to lead the population. Then we shall not waste our precious time on attempts to win the conditional favor of our governments and banks and self-interested investors, but the trust, support and devotion of the general public. As so, I wish to avoid the avenue of government funding in the hopes of maintaining full creative control over the direction of our endeavor, seeking our funding, instead, through more modern, community-based means, such as crowdfunding, ticketed events and merchandise sales. And with community playing such a significant role in our endeavors, it is recommended that we first put in a concentrated effort to build up that community before attempting something of this magnitude, as the strength thereof will have a momentous role in determining the outcome of all our striving. And ultimately it is my hope that the success of our endeavor would encourage others—including mainstream institutions—to follow suit and lead us unto a much-needed update to the modern molding standard. For you must understand that, even as this operation is being taken on by an odd little fringe collective, the outcome is still meant to become a respectable school capable of standing among the noblest institutions. Though this job is sure to require the input and participation of many separate divisions and not just a small group of individuals located within the self-same region, and so we must see growing our community as the first step of this process.

All of this comprises a hefty ambition and will undoubtedly take some time to plot out and even longer to instate, should it be in anyone’s interest to do so, though I urge you not to make the mistake of measuring the practicality of such an endeavor by its difficulty. Again, the uninspired masses will look upon such ideals and say that there is no way to get them implemented into society—a common response which rarely has anything at all to say about the necessariness or even the feasibility of a given solution and all to do with the fact that it differs from what we are used to; and that difference is often enough on its own to overwhelm our sense and estimation of reality on the whole.

The idea of starting a school sounds to be an overwhelming venture, especially when our brains will try to talk us down with the thinking that there already exists plenty of schools in the world or that someone else, somewhere, will eventually take up this torch and we shouldn’t have to. And our hope of providing such education free of cost to the public in the absence of government funding may seem to add an extra bit of complexity to it all, though why must it be any more improbable than such and such local business owner allowing a large group of people into their storefront or offices at a given time? I’m not saying that it isn’t a grand undertaking and that it may appear as overwhelming if you opt to take it all in without breaking it up into little series’ of steps. We must approach the matter with reasonability, which means not simply knowing where and when our objectives are unachievable, but knowing where or when concessions, compromises and creative leaps can be made so as to improve the feasibility of our long-term aims. Reasonability is not decrying the potential of our desires, but knowing that our effort needn’t hatch from an egg immediately resembling Stanford University. There exists a spacious community center in my local area which one can rent out for a whole evening at the cost of only a hundred dollars and people will use it for parties and concert events. A place of this sort could easily fit hundreds of people, and in that case I would consider it a bargain if one is able to host one or two gatherings and lectures each week. There are always options and opportunities abounding, and I expect Comprachicos to live up to its creative and experimental nature when it comes to cutting a path through forests so dense.

You know what also sounds crazy on paper? Us being required to gulp down food and water dozens of times each and every day of our lives and then excrete it from our bodies with minimal warning and at no set time. In a world without such processes we would also find a way to reject this as impractical on the basis that it appears to cut into whatever else we think we ought to be doing instead, and gooobygababobogegegegaagga. So clearly, if given a say in the matter, I’m sure that a lot of us would choose to forgo these processes altogether, although we weren’t given the option, and it is that which prevents us from paying overmuch consideration to our opinions on the issue, understanding that they don’t really matter. “But Tendon, it’s not the same!” Can you not see the parallels? Must not the mind be trained as any body so that it is not shitting where and when it pleases, creating a toxic dump of the verdant earth due to a lack of control?

We make room for what is necessary. That has always been the case. And it ain’t to say that my approach or my ideas are perfectly sound. They may not even be the best available. However, I believe that the ends toward which I am working are truly necessary, and as so, I see no option but to take on my most propitious vision as my personal mission; and if you agree with me in that value assessment then I would hope that you, too, will put aside the croaks of the naysayers and accompany me in trying out all feasible means with which we might be able to instate and normalize a more conscious and healthy standard. We must view it as mandatory—not only if we wish to live out fulfilling lives on this earth, but if we should wish to prevent the very-preventable collapse of this cum-guzzling gunk jungle called ‘society’.

So I do not care at all if this comes across as unrealistic in relation to our current diseased climate. When plotting the way ahead we are better off keeping our eyes focused on what actually needs to be done and not getting so caught up in what we are willing to do, as it then becomes more about us and our assumptions than about the actual aim toward which we are working, and that way of thinking can never amount to any significant advancement in our means as it is limited not only to the known and to what we deem comfortable, but expresses a very narrow take on who we are and what are our limits and abilities (which are likely to be based more on cautionary assumption than on reality as it stands). The practicality of a given method must be measured in accordance with the necessity of the achievement of the desired ends. Where the threat is sufficiently dire, no effort is considered senseless which is in reaction to that threat and no sacrifice undue. If laying one’s body upon scorching coals was said to grant immortality, sparing us of death forevermore, you can guarantee that the masses would flock to carry out this painful act, not daunted by the suffering it inflicts.

How, then, do we move forward with such a task if should it be determined that it is in our best interest to do so? We do as only we can: we start with a singular prototype, and if it finds success then it will naturally multiply, becoming two, then three, then four, until we are left with however many the people require.