OK, so its been a month! I just love sabbaticals, don't you?...
It happens to me often. After a few weeks or months of posting ad naseum, I get ants in my pants and have to vent in other ways rather than the almighty pen, ... or keyboard. Sorry, its in my nature to want variety of blow-hardness. This time it was not ants that got to me, this time it was my desire to do something tangible, something real,.... meaningful. So I did two things that I've never considered in the past. One, I started a "MySpace" page. What is normally a social-mingling virtual cafe, I've decided to use as a base of operations. Its really a grass-roots (on my end) venture to connect with local like-minded independent-fiscal conservative-libertarians. Yes local. I want to build a local-only net-roots of political mass inertia. The second thing?... I am looking for a race to get into. A real race, a seat in the local school board, a seat in the local redevelopment agency, a voice in the PTA, a volunteer in the local whatever ,... anything ANYTHING to get me wired into the real machinations of LOCAL government. After all the belly-aching I do about my shitty Government, I decided that I am a hypocrite-ass who is happy to be on the sidelines barking at the moon. Enough, I thought. Do something or shut your trap AND and your pen. Why did I do those two things? Why the emphasis on local?....
It happened during one of the early debates, I believe it was the first YouTube debate of a few months ago. I found myself thinking, "My God, I know the names of most of the Federal Executive Branch, but can't tell you who the hell the Mayor of my town is.." I can name 30 Federal Agencies, yet can't name 3 local ones. I can name details of the Federal budget but have no idea what is the budget of my city. Seriously. It is a microcosm of my prism. I am obsessed with national politics, the soap operish nature of the election cycles,... I am glued to talk radio and the cable talking heads,... and yet I found myself embarrassed at my inexplicably low knowledge of local and state politics. What the f**k is that all about?... Why am I, -and the nation for that matter-, so fixated on the at-large motions of politics. Tip O'Neill had it right. All politics, he said, is local. No shit.
So I'm local-inizing myself (pardon the Bush-ism).
I've been pounding the keyboard for more than a year, and while it has and will continue to be fun, cathartic, amusing, and challenging; I want to balance it with really doing something that I can sink my teeth into. See, I think in some way, we have become enamored with the macro. And while its entertaining and back-patting as all hell to be bantering with my fellow blogger-brethren across the land, the truth is, my little town is still knee deep in the problems that I've been bull-horning all along. So why not turn my bull-horn to myself, to my town? .... yes, I've been making noise, but in the wrong direction.!... Am I really changing anything?...
I want to make a change right here, in little Gilroy, California. I've begun the mother of all subversive plans and if it takes me 10 years,so help me hades I am going to make a difference. National politics will always be there to piss on,... but if all politics are local, and if the preponderance of the electorate begins to fix their own backyards,... then the Feds will have to take notice, ... and if they don't, then we are really up shit creek.
Memo to the red, purple and blue counties across America,... look at that map people, look at it! Fly-over country should not cede the the power of the future of America just because a few mega-populous states control a third of the house of representatives. Subversion is the key, your very own underground movement against your unsuspecting local government. Subversion, will no longer be a lexicon monopolized and identified with terrorists. It should be ours. Government should fear us,... always. My call to all, is simply this. Join your school PTA, run for office, be a citizen politician, dare to get your hands dirty, dare to do something else than sit right there where you are sitting. Somewhere, maybe in your town, ... while you are watching Hannity and Colmes, or Keith Olbermann and nodding in agreement, there are people all around you pounding the pavement and making real change...... sometimes change that does not necessarily dovetail with you idea of America,... or the world for that matter. This is not a soapbox moment, I am really talking to myself... , you can join me in my self-flogging at your peril.... or blessing.
The days of politicians and the media controlling the message and content are really over. The Internet, YouTube, the bloggers,... all have made it possible that a little guy like me, with a laptop, a few editing programs, -and most of all- an idea,... a message, can make the proverbial ripple in the water. This is a magical moment where for the first time in history everybody can take the power back from the professional politicians who have fleeced us for 200 years. I will be God-dammed if I am going to look my daughter in the eyes and say that all I did during these years was bark at the moon.
I will continue to be here and post my musings as often as I can, and as time permits. Keeping my grass roots page has had me up for weeks,... the project has been daunting. But once I get it rolling, I may,....repeat, may, link it here just to get your feedback. In the meantime keep your sonar ears on, will ya?...
..... Down periscope, batten down the hatches, set condition one-alpha... rig for silent running....
