January 27, 2013
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Circular Problems
Still thinking about gun control… I can’t discard the idea that disarming the population is silly for lots of reasons. I’m bumping into a lot of discussion about our “gun culture” and talk about censorship “for the CHILDREN”.
I find it abhorrent to use children as pawns to emotionally manipulate people. Our children (white Americans) are no more or less valuable than brown children in foreign lands being impacted by American military actions.
Too many mothers I talk to say “what if it was YOUR daughter shot in school?”
I say that’s an emotional, not a logical statement and no, it wouldn’t change my mind.Entertainment follows popular culture follows entertainment. Try not to mistake the symptoms of cultural illness for the cause. I ran a server for a first person shooter game for many years and really enjoyed blowing up cartoons on my computer after my college classes. It was a great stress relief for me.
I’m also a turn the other cheek kind of pacifist. I never once mistook a cartoon on my screen for a human life. I avoid killing anything – plants, bugs, animals. My love for life and awareness of inter-connectivity isn’t confused by a silly game.Ah well. I’m glad it’s not my job to make legislation. How on Earth do we heal a culture that doesn’t see the light in other living beings? Let’s hope that the idea of a new golden age is valid – these prophecies that trickle toward us from older cultures…
Love is contagious. I believe that.
A couple of this week’s paintings for your enjoyment. They’re all for sale. I just don’t post prices and such here because this is my “friend” space. The sales space is on facebook (Ocean Starr Cline).
Strange Fruit
Acrylic on plywood
10.5″x15″
I grew up in rural Alabama. Long roads and open fields are in my heart always. I also specialized in African American and post-colonial literature in college. Incidentally, tropical birds are also a big part of my life. So “Strange Fruit” has many, many meanings for me.
Partners Reaching Up
Acrylic, textile, and tissue on canvas
16″x20″A celebration of life. That is all
With love as always
Onward and upward
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Comments (16)
well said, well put, about the gun situation, starr.
these paintings are stunninly beautiful. i identify with you about the South. i was born and raised in mississippi. there were lots of long winding roads, in so many ways. embedded in my heart, along with that beauty being entrenched in my heart, and all the heartbreak that “strange fruit” brought along. (referring to nina simone’s song “strange fruit”). all that stuff went down while i was growing up right near highway 61 in natchez.
Admiral views and sentiments.
I’m so glad to see somebody NOT blaming video games! Anyone with half a brain cell knows that just because you can hijack a car, blow up a bank, and pick up a car full of hookers on a game doesn’t mean you can do the same in real life. At least, not without consequence.
Truth be told, we’re living in an age where everything is expendable and easily replaceable. Phone breaks? Get a new one. Don’t want to pay for music or books? Pirate them. Don’t like the way that bitch looked at you? Shoot her in the face. We spend more and more time in our own little bubbles, with our eyes glued to tiny screens and only teaching our kids the value of material things, when we should be teaching them the value of the intangible.
I personally enjoy living in a country where we don’t really have guns. In my head that makes me feel safer. I have no idea whether I actually am safer or not but I am satisfied that I feel safer. I can however see all your points for not banning guns. And you are so right about the emotional vs logical statement. It is the same reason that families of a victim don’t make the decision about what happens to a person on trial. I believe you also right about us not being influenced by games, the reasons that some people end up killing other people is far more complicated than if they played violent games or not. This is why more attention should be paid to the early years of a child’s life but that is another story.
I love and admire your attitude towards life and the world. I also love your paintings. Strange Fruit is beautiful.
Love is contagious. Now there’s a workable answer.
Cool paintings!
I have asked some people at our school here, weather they have any prevention plans. My daughter now is eleven. Very sad to assume now and (as I think for sure) that they have no plans. Silence is their only answer, when I asked them for any rampage prevention. I should go and tell the press about ? — Their way of thinking may remind me of… long roads… and endless fields …. all best wishes, Michel
I have been puzzled by all the blame heaped on video games. I have seen statistics that seem to back up all the alarm, but these days it seems that anything can be manipulated, so I’m not sure I would even trust statistics. I enjoy video games myself, although I gravitate more toward RPG or puzzle-based games over violent ones. Still, even the Zelda games involve some violent actions, and while bow-shooting and bomb throwing can be a very satisfying way to dispatch imaginary enemies, in real life I can’t imagine purposely harming another being. I wonder why it seems like that would incite some people to carry out Real-life violence? Or is it only that many people with that predilection are also attracted to fantasy violence?
i love your POV, as we say
i also agree with my ‘military’ friend, BlueMoon (post rec’d). so, yup, you’re so right, it would be so hard to make the legislation.
the billie holiday sprang to mind, as soon as i saw the title ‘strange fruit’ so it’s interesting that is exactly, partly what you meant. ok.
i posted a strange piece, come see when you have a sec? and don’t be ‘kind’, just say it how you see it. it was an experiment.
i’m not going to get into this whole gun-debate stuff other than saying we really shouldn’t be killing each other – it’s just plain mean!
loved the second work, btw!
Beautiful paintings. And yes, love is definitely as contagious as laughter and smiles.
Your paintings are lovely. I take your point about the video games. And yet…it bothers me that the boys in my life seem to carry a fascination for first-person shooter games into a fascination with guns in general. That’s probably a boy thing.
It is wonderful that your love for life and awareness of inter-connectivity isn’t confused by video games, but I don’t think that can be said for a lot of people – maybe way too many. All people are influenced on some level by the things they are exposed to in their lives, but not all people are aware enough to distinguish how these influences effect their perceptions and actions in their external worlds. I’m older and grew up before computer and the internet. I got my first computer a little over 3 years ago at the age of 58. I can see a distinct difference in the aspect of my consciousness that has since developed around being online and what I call my pre computer consciousness. Definitely two different internal realities. I would image that the younger people born into the computer world in the last few decade have only computer based consciousness and nothing that has developed outside of that. I’m thinking that since you were raised in a rural area, that you have a section of consciousness that is sky-earth-air-nature based so that you do have a point of reference from which you can distinguish your computer mind from your natural mind. I’m thinking that kids who grow up in urban environments where they spend all their time online and are taught through computer based educational environments don’t have this. I liked the depth of thought in your blog so that’s why the comment.
I appreciate your even handedness regarding guns, there is so little of that these days. Our culture is so troubled generally it’s hard to know where one begins, but i doubt if things can be legislated into betterness.
very nice
@be_the_rain - Thank you very much. Growing up in Alabama, I knew a lot of people who had played their parts in the Civil Rights Movement. It certainly made a mark on me.
@chronic_masticator - Well said! There’s no substitute for good and present parents. Whether they can stay at home or not, if they’re not emotionally available, it has huge consequences on the mental and emotional health of the child. How to cure a society? yeah… good question…
@Inciteful - Thank you
@happyworld_ofharibo - Thank you very much. I’m so glad I met you on here. It seems sane and intelligent people are not the majority lol…
@Bels_Kaylar - Strange fruit indeed… I changed it to a pretty birdy… Looking toward a happier future for the South.
@distractedbyzombies - Thank you
@michelmthomas - I could say a lot about school safety, but I don’t make the rules and I don’t want my girl growing up in a prison-like school any more than I want her at risk. Difficult problems to solve.
@suzyQ_darnit - There’s a great book
How to Lie With Statistics
that was assigned a lot at the college I went to. It’s not necessarily fact just because “they” say so.
@l0311879l - Yes. Killing people is mean and counterproductive lol. Thank you
@ZSA_MD - The little one and I had a great time playing at the drug store today. I think we spent an hour in there talking to strangers and looking at the shiny holiday goodies. I know she brightened several peoples’ day. It was lovely. Simple joys!
@ordinarybutloud - The people who played in my server frequently accused me of being a boy lol… Maybe I’m an oddball for enjoying them so much.
@zhyiouu - Very interesting. Yes. Computers have been present in my life as long as I can remember, but I also have spent a large amount of time digging in the dirt and growing my own food and raising animals. It’s been a good balance in my life.
@prairiecowboy - Good to see you again! Thank you! I agree. Legislation isn’t going to fix the root problem.
@hesacontradiction - Thank you!
okay… what we have…
- they don’t “like” to make the problem subject of dicussion
- they don’t have any preventation training
- they don’t compare the guns-onwer data base with names of all people at school
- they dont’ have a two-way-intercom
- the next police station is 3 miles away, and they don’t have a floor plan
- no one controls the entries of the estate.
That’s, may be, not all of their do-not-haves