Influence and Concern

Daddy Don't Screech.

You don't get to be the father of a nation without tremendous influence and a deep concern for the future of a people in a place that is heaven sent. Our founding fathers could not have imagined that in little more than 200 years this great experiment would be so trashed by a lack of concern for human life and the natural splendor that is the North American Continent.



Old Scruel: Tar, Feathers and a bit of Water-boarding.

Human nature indeed has a sinister side. There certainly have aways been some morally bankrupt people worthy of contempt, but there is another kind of person out there. The person who, in order to feel good, must inflict pain on others. With blood on their hands (bush/cheney) they abuse their influence with no concern for Karma.



My Way and the Highway.

Rush (the Limp) Limbaugh, Glen Beck, Oreilly and their ilk appear to wield tremendous influence on ditto-heads and Fundi-fruitcakes but are not the least bit concerned about our collective safety. They preaches hatred and encourages violence and intolerance. God bless their sorry drug-addled gas-bags.



Material Girl in a Spiritual World.

We are all in the midst of an epic conflict between the spiritual and the material. Call it what you like, Creationism vs Evolution, Intelligent Design vs Technology, the fact of the matter is that it's much ado about nothing. We need to reconcile the cosmic energy with sustainable means of providing comfort without trashing the material world. I used to hang out with Madona when she had little influence and a big concern for fame and fortune. Today she has tremendous influence yet little concern... unless you are an African orphan.




We Eat Cows.

A big juicy T-bone and a bottle of whiskey sure would be nice right about now. I come from a proud and hearty line of Cuban ranchers. But as We are What we Eat, most of today's meat is practically toxic. Our influence on the life-cycle of bovine has brought a grave concern for the very thing we crave, meat. It takes a barrel of crude to fertilize an acre of corn to force-feed the cattle that are pumped with hormones and steroids so their multiple stomachs don't explode.



Q: Why does man kill trees? A: Because trees can't run away!

Hat-racking is a popular request in the swamp as many "landlords" battle the elements using stuff like Round-up and businesses that specialize in lowering the quality of life. Clean is nice but we need all the green we can grow. They paved paradise to put up a parking garage.



I'm Looking Over,
Afoul-leaf Clover-leaf,
That I Over-looked Before....
The world went Car-racy.

So where does all this auto-business get us? It gets us in a pickle with progress.
Where is our influence, where is our concern? It is in the hands of others. We willfully shake our head and carry on in either dis-belief of just plain stupidity for the sake of personal convenience and sing in harmony " that's just the way it is now".



King of Kings, Bang of Bongs.

There is no Godzilla, there is no magic bullet, there is no fairy-god-father, there is no bail-out.
Just me and you and a dog named Sue. So what's there to do? Take a deep breath and find one simple thing to make a difference, be part of the solution. Turn off your a/c when it's not hot. Turn off your TV, read a book. Don't buy individually wrapped cheese slices or single size water bottles. Write to your congress-person. Get Godzilla on the phone.



A Stench in the Trench.

Seriously folk, there is stuff going on out there out off sight that would make your head boil.
Like rock pit mining in the Everglades or economic hit-men in the developing world or black-ops syphonning our treasury. Where is our influence, what is our concern?




Miami and the Beaches are rife with plundering projects. Sure they're good for some few, but is the South Point Park really for the public anymore or is the grandiose MIA Art in Public Places really for us to enjoy? no.

Who cares about what you care about.... swampstyle does.

*