Photography Exhibit: Part America, Pt.1

This was my most audacious project of all time. I wanted to capture the essential 'American Flag' photos and, no word of a lie, I missed a shot of a flag flown off a motorcycle in a big empty Iowa nowhere. I cannot express how much my regard for America increased at that time. Naturally, all pictures posted as part of this exhibit will be disappointments, but some I believe are at least poignant disappointments. One American on a motorcycle casts a large shadow, in the right conditions, and to be honest I am happy I saw it, because fuck the internet. You want to see something that awesome go find it already, it's against my ethics to give you a cheap cyber look at a moment so pure. I feel I took some quite justiceful shots, anyway.

There is of course the quintessential small town American Flag. This subject has inspired probably dozens or more photographs, and this rare shot also manages to portray the ideal truck to car ratio in small towns, sometimes epithetized as 'real Amerika'.

Ah, the limpid flag by the corporate signage. A metaphor? A prophecy? Surely not. America's real flags are like those of any country: its skies. Another important thing about America is that you must explain or have explained to you the value of flag sizes. A tattooed flag, interestingly, is worth far more than a 40-80 footer. And ultimately, almost every sentence in this paragraph started with an 'A' in awe (eh?) of awesome shit; I bet that dealership sold the first Mustang or something. And what it is now does not matter it was part of the goddamn golden era.

Keep in mind the picture above was taken in 2009 so it's kind of thematic. Go back, click for the full-size and lose yourself in morbid thoughts. No, this isn't a cheap-shot at all. It's a real picture and I took it. I don't believe in post-processing digitally because I am an atavistic fool, I suppose. More good fucking business ahead...

The Jon Stewart / Juan Williams Interview

Apparently on the 27th of June at some point there was a discussion between two individuals about certain things regarding, vis a vis, et cetera... partisanship in the media. Jon Stewart being a media person, and Juan Williams as well, it was kind of interesting. I'd recommend it for anyone looking for hope, really. Were that discussion to be multiplied a millionfold, or at least the questions involved, things might look a bit better for everyone.

American Heroes in Action, or 'Everyday Joes'?

And that's kind of why America is still a sort of beacon, though distorted and melted, because at various times and places certain important questions still manage to bubble to the surface. This happens everywhere and has always been happening alongside its counterpoints. Because, who knows, maybe there's some evolutionary advantage to willful ignorance. The Darwin Awards beg to differ, but how trustworthy are those who would mock serious clusterfucks?

It was simply interesting to hear the issue addressed, because perhaps the time for mocking dysfunction is actually past and we are in more serious times. Or most likely of anything, dysfunction needs to be analyzed and only then mocked, once it has been brought out of the dim caverns where it assembles its myopic empire.

The interview asked one question that so imposed itself on my imagination that I couldn't shake it, and consequently missed part of the interview. I'll paraphrase for the gentle reader's convenience, but the bit deserves to be watched by a wide audience and some of it filed away. "What would a non-partisan news agency look like?" Would it be CNN, with its gaping loss of viewership in the last decade? According to Stewart/Williams the liberal paragon is NPR and the conservative paragon is Fox News.

I admit, their delineation does not shake my weak conception of US politics. It's kind of a no-brainer and since they are de-facto Kings of North America... all I know is Canadian Prime Minister Harper is planning to built condominium jails in Toronto. Back on topic: what would such a network look like? Are there global examples? Does Canada have that sort of reportage? Yes Canada is also a theme.

Well we have recent Fox News rat finks Sun Media, aka Part One of the Royal Plan to Put Conrad Black in 22 Sussex. Furthermore, the CBC is kind of our NPR. And of course I jest frivolously, but I learned something important from the Stewart/Williams interview – inflate and deform everything to hideous dimensions. That's how demons were made in the olden days and that's how honesty can be beaten. And the whole partisanship media shenanigan is proven by the past, and that is why it can be correctly attributed as a strategy of both progressive and regressive social elements anywhere. Like any currently known tool it is ultimately directed by some person, and like any old trick it is a pedigreed thing.

And is there any uncolored information? Along with the general increase in raw volume of information, our ignorance and pettiness seem to increase as well. Our famed high-density areas are largely full of indifference and spite, and that microcosm is played out on the screen and even in governance, apparently. Which begs the question: which is the true show and which is the farce? Or is it simply that they're both fucked?

The Moment of Zen was an uncanny failure, perhaps only because July 26 2011's episode had one of, if not the best Moment of Zens I've ever seen.

Four Letter Words

There are a lot of four letter words in the English language, and probably some other languages, too (though 'merde' is five, 'sheiße' even as many as six letters ) but those are languages I don't know a damn thing about. Anyways, these English four letter words are the basis of the system of general invective. As you might know, or at least expect, pretty much all of these words are overused. Some stem from blasphemy but most are sure-fire ancient solutions that were first invoked to construct Stonehenge.

Words like shit, damn, hell, fuck, dick, cunt, toes, jizz, piss, jism, and the incomparable tits are as old as druids or speculative astrology. It's true that they were used also to frighten Roman invaders, who then adopted them into their own perverse systems. Anyways, English has a number, I probably missed a few because I'm not as vulgar as I could be. 'Goof' for instance is a particularly strong word in general, and unforgivable in some society. (My only back-up phrase for that caesura was: certain circles - I don't even really like alliteration and that I couldn't escape it there scares me.)

Damn that word. It is probably the worst word around. People blame it for all kinds of misery and strife and crises. It's a genuinely bad word and conjures up images of crying families, crippled men drunk in gutters, and racing cars in 1930s dustbowls. I don't even really want to state this frig of a word. It's dumb.

But I suppose it explains certain things – certain hang-ups or neurotic behaviors. It's a word everybody knows, too. You may even be thinking of it. Like I said it starts with a D and the rest of it is ubiquitous, overused, and the definition of a curse or hex.

(Also I hereby coin the term lexiconoclast, or the intentional perversion or misuse of a word  for the express purpose of drawing out and frustrating pedants; "That one was a lexiconoclast, just to see if the professor was just an inflexible, hidebound pedant." or "Did you see Frank's face when I dropped that lexiconoclasm? What a tightwad." et cetera)

Heat Waves

Well it's summer and people are surprised that it's hot. This inexplicable rise in temperatures catches people by surprise when they live in the northern hemisphere of Earth. To be fair, the weather is cold more than half of the year, so people generally work up sweat when they exercise vigorously or when they have sex. In cold weather there are few other activities worth it. What it is is effort, and with a bit of that effort people could perhaps accept that there is heat, that the heat is inescapable, and that it is going to lead to a tiny amount of discomfort and a fair amount of sweat.

But since North America is one of the world's softest places, people just sweat and complain, even when they do not have work to complete. That's right. Lazy people complain about the heat too. Mostly, I imagine, this is because of the amount of Air Conditioning that we engage in. This wasteful practice stokes a human's idea of entitlement. To be quite clear: nature owes you no comfort. AC is unnatural, and it makes you soft and weak, plus it makes it seem even hotter when you go outside. So AC makes a nation of house-bound complainers who sit in air that is far too cold (anything less than 24C is crazy overcompensation) and then wonder why it gets hot. Not only do they use energy, which is known to manifest itself as heat, but the high amount of energy they use is causing more heat, both directly and indirectly.

That's right. Humans are short-sighted to such an extent that instead of nutting up about heat, they seek to avoid it in creative ways that generate more heat. Also, in the midst of a heatwave, all the smug bastards who ask about global warming on those -22C winter days disappear and keep real quiet. But they'll open their mouths again in December, no worries. As a matter of fact, I have a theory that global warming deniers can be used to heat small spaces in winter, since they're so apt to get heated up about ridiculous shit.

And this globe's unstable dance through the solar system leads to periods of heat and cold, some cycles that we are used to: such as day/night, summer/winter; and some we are not: like 'younger dryas vs older dryas' and the orbit eccentricity cycle. But that's all stuff better documented by smarter people in less vivacious and weighted language.  I'll just go ahead and say it: if you can't stand the heat move north or go for a swim or harden up a bit. Complaining only makes you warmer because it takes up energy.

My advice about heat?
Don't sweat it!

Virus

Few things in the world are as bad as is the virus. Some complain about bacteria. Some moan about fungus. Some even hate molds. Some disagree with disease, but there is not a single person in the world who likes a virus, the smallest, most multitudinous, meanest unit of life. Oh, wait, that's right: Nobody can even say if a virus is a living thing. Something like 5000 years of dedicated medicine and at least twice as long of skillful health practice and the worst sicknesses are still products of 'evil spirits'.

There is no placating these spirits. They as old or older than life. And who could hate them, really? They are the agents of entropy and probably maintain life in as many senses as they destroy or pervert it. I find something admirable about something (less than?) a billionth my size that can cause me more problems than, say, the United States, legalism, or even the Universe. There is obviously much unstated wisdom in being small and unobtrusive. More admirable yet is that as many times as I have killed viruses (there are many slain) they come back, different, yet with the exact same effect. I'm talking to you, common cold infection.

I wouldn't be surprised if viruses spurred evolution and were the flame that caused life to soar and run. Oh of course viruses also rotted life and do so to this day. They can cause headaches, death, hemorrhage of various organs, disappointment, castration, etc... As much as I hate them, organic viruses are pretty got-damn badass. Viruses will outlive us all. I'd have a lot more to say about this but I am sick and too tired to watch the screen. My eyes hurt, my head hurts, and my pharynx is all uncomfortable. I am in combat with the oldest enemy of all, ironically enough an enemy that may be the foundation of life. Entropy, chill down my spine, etc...

July Predictions

July 2011 is going to be unremarkable compared to the months around it and the year its in. 2011 might go down in history for some reason or other, but at this point it looks as if July 2011 is going to be 'sleeper month' when the news networks could just as well be deactivated for a few weeks. Everyone would feel plenty better if this happened.

Predictions for July 2011:

- It's easy to be a news junkie, and this global habit will not be broken in July 2011.
- Consumerism will be defended and attacked by the listless people it has already exhausted.
- Someone will say something about 2012.
- A video game will be released. People will not like certain aspects of this game.
- People in a park will discover or rediscover the joys of public drinking.
- People will bitch about something. Privileged individuals will bitch most loudly.
- Pride will lead to at least one downfall. The term 'hubris' will remain purely literary.
- Annoying news events will take place, the reporting will be paid for by the subjects.
- Niche activism will convert another 33 people. Worldwide.
- Democracy will continue to be a byword. People in certain countries will protest for it.
- People in other countries will continue to abuse the term 'democracy'.
- A beautiful life will be cut short and largely ignored, because such things always happen.
- Twitter will inexplicably continue to exist. I will still be incapable of using Twitter on July 31.
- I will have extreme difficulty and trouble conceiving and finishing blog posts.
- My lovely audience will continue to visit half-heartedly.

Canada Day Means...

With the royal visit and all, it still pretty much means getting drunk and eventually talking to somebody who was roughed up by the cops for no reason. Oh and you sing the anthem. 2006, with the kids pissing on the memorial, was a landmark year for patriotic outrage. Since then it's all been good, not particularly crazy, and if you're in the capitol you'll see some crowds.

But mostly people just get drunk. This is how this country works. We may not be a Top-10 drinking nation, but we're in the goddamned top 20 for a reason.