You’ve seen them selling t-shirts, bumper stickers, and magazines on the busy corners of Georgetown, Dupont Circle, and other areas. Their schwag carries the same bold slogan: “Stop Bitching, Start a Revolution.” Perhaps you or a friend have even purchased a shirt or sticker.

And although we hadn’t put much thought into who the people selling the stuff might be, this week’s City Paper delves deep into the source — a West Virginia-based agrarian commune known as Zendik Farm. The article explores into the history, philosophy, and even sexual practices of the group, concluding, “Zendiks do decidedly more bitching than revolting.” It notes the obvious irony that the group’s primary source of income comes from hawking copyrighted wares in swanky D.C. neighborhoods.

Founded in 1969 by artists and eccentrics Wulf and Arol Zendik, the group has at various times been based in California, Texas, Florida, North Carolina, and most recently, West Virginia. But unlike many other cult-like groups, the City Paper’s Ryan Grim finds that members come and go freely and that the group maintains a detailed website with bios of their members and even an online store where you can buy their magazines and t-shirts (where we found this photo). As best as we can tell the group’s philosophy is based on a rejection of the mainstream (to them, “death”) culture and a DIY approach to living which involves mostly hard work on their organic farm.

This DCist was once walking down Wisconsin Avenue near the National Cathedral when an older couple walking ahead of us noticed one of the Zendik bumper stickers on a parked car. As we passed within earshot we were expecting to hear a snide dismissal of revolutionary politics. Instead the apparently foreign couple were chuckling, amused by “how American” the sentiment was.