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Friday, October 5, 2012

On The Couch With Tom, Peter, George, Bill and Rick

Out of Commission on The Couch, a self portrait, charcoal, 2012
So you play hooky  at the theater, while cleaning your pens and wake up the next day, an important meeting day, with a head cold and aching sinuses. What do you do? You send Ellis to the meeting and you retire to the couch with a large cup of tea with a dollop of BB with the idea of watching  and dozing through the  gossiping ladies talk shows. But no. The responses to Jeff Daniel's monologue on my blog yesterday--particularly from Unknown--were just too invigorating. Lots of fun.

I kept thinking about Unknown's attempted insult about Tom Jefferson, not only the key guy  drafting  the Declaration of Independence but also a key guy in founding the Democratic - Republican party in opposition to Hamilton's Federalist party in the First Party System. Then my casual Google/wiki search quickly got me to something I'd never heard of before : the Era of Good Feelings: " a period in the political history of the United States that reflected a sense of national purpose and a desire for unity among Americans."
Thomas Jefferson, US founding father, principal author
of the Declaration of Independence, founder along with James Madison
 of the Democratic-Republican Party (first party system),
third President of the US.
It was a very brief period in our history, but by golly, we could definitely use another one like it.

The close minded, partisan bickering that has been going on  is outrageous. Us against us. Like a little civil war where snipes are used instead of bullets. Needless to say, lying on the couch reading about Tom, the admirable side of the man, as well as the abominable side, renewed my interest in this  period in our history. How lovely it would be if we could do what President Monroe wanted to do (amalgamation): eliminate parties altogether from national politics and put the welfare of the country above secular political ideology?

This morning, with my absentee ballot (bad knee, over seventy gets you one), laying along side this computer on the breakfast room table, got me thinking about another rabble rousing monologue performed by Peter Finch in the 1976 movie Network with William Holden, Faye Dunaway, Peter Finch and Robert Duval.  Finch's delivery in this scene won him the Best Actor Award. It made me laugh remembering all the times in my life I wanted to shout out the window, I'm mad as hell and won't take it anymore, but also of these times and the behavior of our politicians who promise everything and anything to go to Washington DC to be a big wig, throw nasty  unrelenting punches at one another while the politically biased press cheers their candidate's politics, from their ring side seats.

Will we ever get the straight, unbiased scoop? Not yet.  Our new global society with its global marketplace is very complicated to say the least. The least we can do is try to be as informed as possible and recognize technology has shrunk the planet to the size of a pea. The Kingston Trio's observations voiced in They're Rioting in Africa, written in 1959, the year Fidel took over Cuba and Khrushchev was barred from going to Disneyland, has lost its humor for there is no room for these types of feelings.


Now we're not mad at any country--well maybe a couple-- but unemployed, we're mostly mad at corporations and banks and Wall Street and  those high finance kinds  who never stopped getting bonuses-- and then at our politicians and broadcasting companies (now that it's election time).  We're mad at  outsourcing, but we forget the important thing about that is where the money ends up.  We're  mad at ourselves for not coming up with the iPhone before Apple did, but we're glad the money ended up back here in our  market accounts.  This is a walloping huge topic that could go on and on, but I have pens that flow, a laundry room and garage that's a go, three bathroom presentations to make presentable, and a portrait of a cat I'd like to do. I'm not mad as hell, I'm actually happily quite busy so I'm off the couch headed for the office then the studio.

PETER FINCH'S ACADEMY AWARD WINNING MONOLOGUE IN  NETWORK, 1976:



  

23 comments:

  1. http://www.ourfuture.org/obstruction

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    1. Thank you very much for visiting. Your comment yesterday was very inspiring to a few folks. However, the conservative obstruction in the 110th congress introduction (and the rest of the story) is getting a bit deep. Politics in American films and song is an amusement. I appreciate you giving me this url, but my son told me to never open a site you don't know; that's how viruses spread. Happy painting.

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  2. Ik vind je schilderij prachtig begrijp niet helemaal je verhaal er bij zal wel komen taal problemen
    Maar bedankt dat je het met ons wilde delen lieve groetjes Danielle

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    1. The story is Danielle: there's politics in American films and folk music and the ideology seems to make people either upset or happy pending on their own ideologies. Thanks. I do love charcoal better than rapidograph pens.

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  3. I don't really understand your politics in the US, (come to think about it, I don't understand them here either), but it is apparent that you have strong beliefs and I think YOU should run in the elections. Reckon you would put a few people in their places Linda, good for you.

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    1. Are you kidding. I've had my share of organizational work and sitting on committees. It's a bear. I'll just keep voting. It's a privilege we're lucky to have.

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  4. Love that SP, you have a magical way with charcoal. As for politics....YAWN! But you go girl, I agree with Anns Art!

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    1. Yes politics is a yawn. Not being employed is not; it's a worry for a lot of people who do not paint.

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  5. I am reading on the couch too, the book I am reading is about confirmation bias and how humans will look to the things that support their view and discount and dismiss evidence that counters their view. Apparently, it makes the brain "happy" whenever we feel we are "right". It helps me to know this. I refrain from discussions about politics, but I sure do have views. I have become aware that most will not be swayed by my thoughts about elections and so forth. I like your drawing. Happy drawing and reading!

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    1. In a sociology course in college, we had to write a paper where we took a particular position and then prove that we were right. I took the position that there was no position on anything that was absolutely right and I backed it up with lots of second party footnotes. I got a C. The prof thought I was right, but I had sidestepped his assignment. I did, but I was in the position to do so. I had a very strong A average that a C would not hurt. I could afford to have fun with the assignment. So I did.

      I don't talk politics either. I agree that you're never going to sway anyone, nor do I want to. Lobbyists do that. This post and the last were really more about political dissertations in films. The contents of the selected videos were examples, which raised some political responses from one unknown visitor, which got me to give my opinion on unemployment and corporations in this country, do some surfing on some political subjects, which was a lot of fun--better than listening to The Talk.

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  6. This is about art it only sounds political at the beginning ...but I turn into the artist/Shipwright

    Because they had strong land forces,the Americans were able to kick out unwelcome foreigners. Yet they were short on cash and needed to trade all around the world. But the navy wasn't really in existence to defend the merchant ships from the North African pirates, who kept seizing the merchant men. In 1792 Congress had paid out $40 000 dollars to the pirates in ransom ... in 1795 they paid Algeria $1, 000, 000! Congress found it cheaper to build warships ... on 27 March 1794 the US Navy was born when President Washington ordered the building of 6 warships.

    They appointed Joshua Humphreys a Philadelphia shipbuilder to design them. His assistant, Josiah Fox was a highly qualified young ENGLISH SHIPWRIGHT. They began building the first frigate the USS Constitution (later known as 'Old Ironsides')at Edmund Hartt's shipyard in Boston.

    She had a noble career (that means a pain in the b*** to us Limeies ) ... and she is still afloat at the Maritime museum in Boston. She helped enforce the 'Monroe Doctrine.


    OOOH Yes ... the reason for telling you is that I am building her on paper at the moment :0)

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    1. I was waiting for the art part. You are just a ginza of fun information. I think I knew Old Ironsides was still afloat. Now I know where. Would you believe I've never been to Boston? That needs to be corrected.

      Have you heard? We're still short on cash. :-)

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  7. Linda, I am loving your site more and more each day.

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    1. Well these subjects are really more up your alley than mine. I really enjoyed Unknown's response yesterday. I know he/she got mad at the monologue, and/or me thinking employment was a major issue these days and the unmentioned fact that the big bad corporations outsource manufacturing jobs, but I liked it. He gave me something to think about that was much more entertaining than listening to The Talk while I drank my tea. I loved researching our early history and letting my curiosity guide me through the links. I loved recalling the I'm mad as hell speech in Network and the Kingston Trio's song There's rioting in Africa, which I loved to sing when I was eighteen.

      Did you know that of all the great movies Bill Holden made, the two most mentioned were Network and Sunset Boulevard. I think the most historic movie he made was The Bridges at Toko Ri, in which he was the first screen hero to be killed in a movie. I remember being totally shocked.

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  8. Love the self portrait. Take care and feel better soon.

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    1. Thanks. Did the drawing earlier this year. I'm all better. A fun day on the couch surfing US history and drinking hot tea with B&B did it.

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  9. Hi Linda
    I have not read any of the preceding comments here. I read your post. I've never been very politically motivated. OK, so I am one of those guys who stands on the side lines?... "live in the house by the side of the road and be a friend to man...". I do like your sketch and I do like your prose. I visit your blog almost daily and enjoy all of your creations both visual and verbal!
    Your blog friend
    Steven

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    1. I have. It seems I've suddenly gotten political when I, too, usually sit on the side of the road. I guess it's because I chose the Jeff Daniel monologue from HBO's NETWORK to show off his acting abilities and had opinions on employment. I furthered the idea by showing the original Network monologue, expertly delivered by Peter Finch.

      Your paintings are lovely. I see you like trees as much as I do. But you handle acrylics more skillfully. Your brilliant colors say you live in the South where the sun shines more than it does here in Michigan. Lucky you. We're stuck in our house till the real estate market recovers--but oops, there I go getting political again. I do have to watch out for those opinions they creep into everything. :-)

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  10. That is a lovely sketch and self portrait. Have a great weekend and happy painting.

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  11. Love the sketch and still in self denial about the politics. Just a thought, 'What is the starting point for your view of how society should be structured then try to reconcile that with where you stand in the political spectrum?'.

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  12. My god in heaven ... it's been over 50 years, and it's THE SAME!!! And I'm MAD as HELL, and not going to take it anymore.WTF can we do???

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