Common Knowledge AGM: Chair's Report

Chair Professor Richard Ennos's report delivered to Common Knowledge members.

17th March, Edinburgh - Mark Devlin! Mark is a UK-based club and radio DJ and music journalist. In recent years, Mark has begun speaking about the dark forces that have been manipulating the music industry for decades. During lockdown and the experimental vaccine roll-out, Mark was an independent and courageous voice for truth and human freedom. Book a ticket here. (£10)

Chair’s report, 7th March, 2024: The past year has been an exciting and productive one for Common Knowledge, and one packed with incident. Over the last 12 months the group has hosted or been involved in initiating 23 events comprising 17 general meeting talks, 1 interview, 1 panel discussion, 2 comedy talks and 2 social events. Members have been major contributors to the programme (7 talks by members). All talks have been expertly filmed and archived to provide a web-based resource that can be used in the future. In addition, 55 articles have been contributed to the Common Knowledge substack to which paid subscriptions have been added. Background work for setting up a food hub has also taken place that should bear fruit in the future. A highlight of the year was the hosting of an interview with Matt le Tissier which, after extensive promotion, attracted an audience of approximately 250. Feedback on their experience from invited speakers has been uniformly positive. They have been particularly impressed by the quality and depth of the questioning in Q&A sessions, and the very positive and forward thinking atmosphere generated by the group.

All of this activity has been achieved despite serious threats that have had the potential to shut down the group. In April 2023 the Quaker meeting house declined to host a talk from two vaccine injured men on the pretext that we would be spreading harmful vaccine misinformation. The talk was nevertheless held at the Ukrainian church. The Quakers imposed a permanent ban on the group following a talk (ironically) entitled Censoring Debate that dealt with attempts to hold a discussion about the teaching of sex education in Edinburgh schools. The group responded by rescheduling meetings in the open air on Leith Links and outside the Scottish Parliament during the summer period. From September onwards most talks and social events have been hosted by the Taxi club to whom we are extremely grateful.

These experiences illustrate two things. The first is the resilience of the group in the face of attempts at censorship which bodes well for the future. However it also highlights that we remain vulnerable, being dependent on access to a limited number of venues for holding talks and other events. The only real solution would be the ownership of our own premises.

Overall, the group has been successful in its aim of broadening knowledge of the reasons behind, and the imposition of, many of the harmful changes taking place in modern society, particularly over the last four years. In doing so we have also generated a considerable body of accessible video resources that support this knowledge base. We have also created a supportive community of individuals that works well together and is confident in the legitimacy of the principal aim of the group, building a human future. A major disappointment is that the size of the core group, and attendance at meetings (30 to 40 members depending on the issue) remains relatively small. We have not penetrated the wall of censorship that exists to recruit a significant proportion of the Edinburgh population. So long as we fail to publicise what we do, and explain its importance, we will remain starved of the resources to expand and realise the potential projects in which we could be involved.

I suggest that one of the most important goals to achieve in the immediate future is the wider dissemination of the activities that we undertake and the resources that we have generated in order to grow the Common Knowledge community. This will provide us with the wider economic base that is needed to break through the censorship that is currently starving us of funding, and preventing us from capitalising on what has been achieved so far. Establishing the food hub, allying our efforts with those of the farmers and producers, may go some way to achieving this.

Another area in which we need to formulate an achievable goal is in the area of politics. With major elections coming up this year we at least need to consider how to frame and deliver a coordinated message of non-compliance with the current political system. Finally we should capitalise on the fact that groups very similar to Common Knowledge are spontaneously forming in many other parts of Scotland. We have been contacted by groups in Berwick, Elgin and Galloway, and others exist in Glasgow. Linking up with these groups for mutual encouragement, sharing of experience and resources, and building a greater momentum should be an important goal for the future. This needs to be done in such a way that coordination happens, but each group retains their autonomy, individuality and distinct identity. I will be visiting and giving a talk to the group in Galloway this Sunday, and aim to see how best we can cooperate with them in the future.

We have now moved to a paid subscription model for the Common Knowledge Blog. Most of the posts will remain free, but we are hoping that people who share the values of a free, pro-human future will support us. All the money we receive goes to our campaign for that free, human future. You can contribute by a paid subscription to this substack of £10 a month or a £100 annual membership.

KEEP IN TOUCH.

Email: commonknowledgeedinburgh@tutanota.com

Follow us on X @wercomknowledge

Watch our previous meetings on YouTube - @CommonknowledgeEdinburgh

On Rumble - Common Knowledge Edinburgh

On Odysee - Common Knowledge Edinburgh