Imagine

He would have been seventy this year, no doubt still spry and feisty, still concerned with the ills of the world, doing what he could to change them. Sadly, today, December 8th, we celebrate the 30th anniversary of his death. I speak of none other than John Lennon, a pioneer in music and another proponent of social conscience, felled this day by an assassin's bullet.

There is not much I can say that has not already been said of him and about him. I can only say that his fire still glows within many of us, as we look around at a world still plagued by poverty, disease, cruelty, war, and injustice. He accepted that some would think him a radical, a hippie, a freak, a rabble-rouser, and he was fine with that, choosing to turn his energies to making the world aware of the things that should concern us all, and caring little what anyone thought. It was his vision and his determination, that showed many of us the way, teaching us that you did not have to be a rich and successful music maker to do your part for social change, you only had to care about something, anything, but most of all, you had to care about people.

It is always easier, after the fact, to criticize, critique, and condemn, and many still see the things he did as somehow self-serving, but no man, no person, can be considered perfect, and we all must live with our foibles. His foibles just happened to be on display for the world to see. If he did not always put things tactfully, if he rubbed us the wrong way, if we thought what he said occasionally bordered on the egotistical, at least he got us to listen, and perhaps hear something that would make us think. He never seemed to tire of putting issues before us, dragging them from the dark places where we would prefer they stayed hidden. Unorthodox, maybe, but his words and his music set a tone, which said, in essence, "Look, this thing isn't going to fix itself -- we need to do something about it."

We will never know how much more he would have accomplished, and we can feel only sorrow at the loss of his talent, his passion, and his love. Let us not remember him this day in sorrow; let us, instead, remember the beautiful gifts he left us, the legacy that remains even to this day, and the nourishment he gave our souls. Bless you, John Lennon, wherever you may be, and thank you.

Endangered Species

It has been endangered for a long time, a rare bird whose presence at once heralded the birth of a nation, but was hunted into near extinction. It has fled from its normal regions, to hide in dark nooks and crannies, trying to eke out a poor existence and somehow maintain itself until the day the environment changes. That bird is bipartisanship.

Help Honor Love And Foster Compassion

Again, I ask of you, gentle reader, to help do something, but this time, instead of trying to move a political mountain, I want you to be moved by love in order to help someone I know with a dilemma. For there is a woman who loves her cat more than anything, and no, it's not in the "crazy cat lady" way, but in the way that I wish we humans could learn to do to all other humans and the nature we inhabit. Her cat is sick, needs an operation she cannot afford, and is desperate to see him well again. This cat has helped her through trying times, and now she is trying to return the favor, that he might be there for her again. It is as pure an expression of love as you will find in this cynical age we live in.

Now, some of you may be thinking, "Aren't there better causes to put my money towards?" The answer depends on how you define "better." There are certainly many worthy causes in this world that demand our attention during the holidays: world hunger, AIDS, poverty, natural disaster. Given the economy and how pinched many a wallet or purse is, to ask for money is excruciatingly painful, because so many of us find ourselves short at the end of the day. Still, we try to do what we can: a dollar here, a quarter there, whatever we can spare. It is far more than some who are much better off will part with.

I ask you to give to this because it shows the ineffable quality of true love that is so sorely lacking in an age where we are only concerned with the foibles of the famous. Here is a woman, who wants nothing more than to help her long-time companion, an animal that has given her comfort and strength through some of the worst times imaginable, including no less than Hurricane Katrina. If this comes to pass and she gets her most fervent wish, it is a sign that all hope for humanity is not lost, and that compassion still reigns in many a beating heart.

I do not ask you to give all you have, nor take food from the mouths of children, or to short those worthy causes you would normally support. I only ask that you help someone I know, and kindle more of the true spirit of giving and love the world needs. Whatever you can spare, no matter how little, I would appreciate it. Below is the link to the page where donations can be made. And thank you.

Nicholas's surgery

UPDATE: As of today, 12/6/2010 @ 4 pm EST, the fund has raised $512 dollars. Thank you to all those who have donated, and to those who haven't, scrape up whatever you can, or pass this on to others who would care to help in a cause such as this.

There's A Party Going On And On And On...

During the most recent election, you know the one that was a "mandate" from the people, the Republicans rolled out their "Pledge to America," which read suspiciously like every talking point they've used since 1994, and was short on actual details and long on partisan bluster. They promised to go to Washington, D.C. and turn things around, fighting for deficit reduction, smaller government, and the repeal of the Health Care Law, among other things. They were going to work for the people, because the people had spoken, and they didn't like the direction the country is going in. Strangely, they neglected to mention that it was a Republican administration that had put the country on this course in the first place, and that captain had rowed away, leaving the current one with a ship with a mighty gash in the side, taking on water. In the end, some Americans, spoke, and because of the apathy of other Americans, the Republicans got half a loaf and turned it into a feast... sort of.

You see, the party of fiscal conservatism, that stood on the rock and howled at stimulus spending, big bailouts, and health care reform, has been selling America a rotten bill of goods. You see, they are determined not to spend another penny of Federal money -- unless it happens to be going to their friends in Corporate America or those who feed off it for their riches. Rather than ensuring that everyone making two hundred fifty thousand dollars a year or less gets to keep their tax cut handed them by President Bush, they are insisting that their rich friends get their fair share, too. Of course, there's the several hundred billion dollar hole in the budget that will create, but hey, that's just a trivial annoyance.

No Man's Land

To be a man in the modern age of humanity is to be subject to the same impulses, desires, and limitations as even our distant ancestors, save with one clear difference: we have the power to override the vagaries of our hormones and are encouraged to do so. Encouraged, but at the end of the day, sadly lacking in motivation or courage. It takes conviction to decide that the old patriarchal norms are no longer of substantive value, and that we must place our mantle of societal leadership upon the ground and allow all to have the opportunity to partake of it. We act as if it diminishes us somehow, instead of what it actually does, which is marking us as advanced and enlightened beings. To loose our grip on power that has been ours for so long is not a renunciation of all that we have accomplished, but only a broadening of the scope of possibilities that will make humanity stronger.