As an eclectic, half stoic/dutiful German, half fun-loving Irish Gemini, I’ve always had a wide range of interests: music, from Gershwin and Glenn Miller to Heart and Wynonna; art, from Michelangelo and DaVinci to Escher and Wyland; science fiction, especially the original Trek series, Isaac Asimov works, Anne McCaffrey’s Pern and Anne Rice’s gloriously creepy excursions into the realm of the human psyche; animals, from common dogs and cats to the more exotic Amazon parrots and Volitan lionfish; Apple computers, from the Lisa on up; and various other topics, ranging from psychology, sociology and philosophy to Scrabble.
Two areas had seldom interested me: history, since none of my teachers explored the whys of things, and memorizing dates bored me (I would remember just long enough to ace tests, then it would fall right out of Brane); and politics, because I detest manipulation, mind games and hypocrisy in any way, shape or form (since I had grown up surrounded by them all in church and could spot Elmer Gantrys and snakeoil salesmen coming from a mile away).
I lost all faith in “the system” on November 22, 1963, at the ripe old age of ten; and barely-rekindled hope was dashed upon the rocks again when my 15th birthday was declared a National Day of Mourning for Bobby. I have respected very few politicians in my half-century of life and, aside from voting once every few years, had no desire to follow the process. It rolled merrily along, with nary a whimper from me, since I had accepted the “fact” that it was a crazy, mixed-up deal and there was nothing that I could do to change it.
*How WRONG I was!*
And how wrong WE were to accept the feeling of powerlessness that has been thrust upon far too many of us for far too long. The pen really can be mightier than the sword, and knowledge really *is* power — that’s why the current Powers That Be have tried so hard to suppress the truth under a stamp of “national security” and squelch all oversight and accountability through claims of “unitary executive privilege.” But we CAN resist the bloodthirsty, avarice-driven agendas of the unconscionable bastards who have hijacked our ship-of-state. WE MUST.
My artwork and this blog represent my journey back into political awareness, my way of reclaiming that to which we citizens of the United States of America — indeed, all human beings on this spinning blue sphere — are entitled: the right to determine our own fate and secure the future safety and opportunities that our children deserve.
There will be some (secularly) righteous rants here; oh, yes, there will. After a lifetime of being *too* polite and *too* understanding — always trying to see all sides of all things and avoiding confrontations — I now find myself residing at the corner of Fed Up Street and Must Take A Stand Road. I call a spade a spade and an ass an ass, so those with “delicate sensibilities” may want to surf along. To everyone else…
I hope you enjoy our journey together, back into the light.
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