Thank you, Kevin. While I know little about Bruce, he was depicted on a recent Prime series, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. I wonder what Tom thought of it.
Chatting with Peter Smith in Goshen’s Elsie’s and (I think with) Tom, one of us rhetorically asked, ‘do you think the man is fucking with us?’ Peter having a military career before restaurateur, offered the sage observation that if ‘the man is fucking with you, you are gonna know it...’
In a sense that comment is right on target; consider Malcolm X, Daniel Ellsberg, Chelsea Manning, Julian Assange, Jesus… They all knew.
But in another sense, we are all fed toxins. Our food is loaded with high fructose corn syrup, laced with pesticides and a host of other industrial materials. Genetically modified agricultural and animal products bring unknown risks. A huge variety of chemicals are distributed in the air, water and any other part of our environment. Drugs of all types from anti-depressants, statins, vaccines, to opioids are pushed on society - often providing little to no benefit (excluding those reaping profits). One cost of this is that most of us face a future of health problems. Diabetes, heart disease, cancer… Even worse, with the growth in pharmaceutical usage we’ve see the rates of serious childhood ailments rise to epidemic proportions.
The establishment's favorite word to categorize the conditions that stem from our immersion in these hazards is ‘disorder’. But this is a semantical trick to imply that these conditions are a result of our shortcomings. It is like suggesting that your weakness is responsible when wounded by a bullet. This categorization is one of the tasks carried out by a host of federal agencies that ostensibly exist to ensure our safety – but inevitably become captured by, and serve the industries they claim to regulate.
This shifting of responsibility seems subtle, but when something is pervasive as gravity, you begin to believe it is real. One small step that can be taken to push back against this tide, is every time you encounter the word 'disorder', replace it with 'response' – it will almost always be more accurate.
Polluting industries are driving our world toward environmental cataclysm. Our lives play out on an Orwellian stage. We are all being fucked with. As Leonard Cohen sang out: Everybody Knows.
This nation always portrays itself as the champion of human rights, but at this moment, the land of the free is bankrolling genocide.
Our tax dollars decimating a population returns us to great people being fucked with by the man. Aaron Bushnell can’t be persecuted to death, so the path the ‘man’ follows is to say that this young serviceman was crazy (surely he had some of this) - and to attempt to erase the meaning of his action; his courage, the conviction of principle, the morality, the refusal to participate as a cog in the machinery of genocide, the willingness to sacrifice himself in the attempt to protect the lives of others. The irony is that these characteristics are exactly what is expected and honored above all else in the ideal American soldier. A man with reckless bravery and unyielding values is the image that we are meant to see when we see a field of crosses in Arlington.
Another good one Kev!
Always good to remember and think back to our more should I say, carefree days.
Tom was ahead of his time to be sure and another good one lost!
And hello to My old bud Billy Ellerkamp, I see posting here as well.
More good memories of the hood.
Be well friends!
Beautifully written piece, Kevin…still trying to come to terms with the fact that he’s gone. Thank you for writing this.
Me too, Keith.
Thank you, Kevin. While I know little about Bruce, he was depicted on a recent Prime series, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. I wonder what Tom thought of it.
Thanks for sharing Kevin. Lest we not forget!
Chatting with Peter Smith in Goshen’s Elsie’s and (I think with) Tom, one of us rhetorically asked, ‘do you think the man is fucking with us?’ Peter having a military career before restaurateur, offered the sage observation that if ‘the man is fucking with you, you are gonna know it...’
In a sense that comment is right on target; consider Malcolm X, Daniel Ellsberg, Chelsea Manning, Julian Assange, Jesus… They all knew.
But in another sense, we are all fed toxins. Our food is loaded with high fructose corn syrup, laced with pesticides and a host of other industrial materials. Genetically modified agricultural and animal products bring unknown risks. A huge variety of chemicals are distributed in the air, water and any other part of our environment. Drugs of all types from anti-depressants, statins, vaccines, to opioids are pushed on society - often providing little to no benefit (excluding those reaping profits). One cost of this is that most of us face a future of health problems. Diabetes, heart disease, cancer… Even worse, with the growth in pharmaceutical usage we’ve see the rates of serious childhood ailments rise to epidemic proportions.
The establishment's favorite word to categorize the conditions that stem from our immersion in these hazards is ‘disorder’. But this is a semantical trick to imply that these conditions are a result of our shortcomings. It is like suggesting that your weakness is responsible when wounded by a bullet. This categorization is one of the tasks carried out by a host of federal agencies that ostensibly exist to ensure our safety – but inevitably become captured by, and serve the industries they claim to regulate.
This shifting of responsibility seems subtle, but when something is pervasive as gravity, you begin to believe it is real. One small step that can be taken to push back against this tide, is every time you encounter the word 'disorder', replace it with 'response' – it will almost always be more accurate.
Polluting industries are driving our world toward environmental cataclysm. Our lives play out on an Orwellian stage. We are all being fucked with. As Leonard Cohen sang out: Everybody Knows.
This nation always portrays itself as the champion of human rights, but at this moment, the land of the free is bankrolling genocide.
Our tax dollars decimating a population returns us to great people being fucked with by the man. Aaron Bushnell can’t be persecuted to death, so the path the ‘man’ follows is to say that this young serviceman was crazy (surely he had some of this) - and to attempt to erase the meaning of his action; his courage, the conviction of principle, the morality, the refusal to participate as a cog in the machinery of genocide, the willingness to sacrifice himself in the attempt to protect the lives of others. The irony is that these characteristics are exactly what is expected and honored above all else in the ideal American soldier. A man with reckless bravery and unyielding values is the image that we are meant to see when we see a field of crosses in Arlington.
I think I’m going to back to bed!