Money or the lack of money fuels fear, power, fear, greed, fear, control, then fear again, and thus the need to be released from all these things via distraction, and preferably inexpensively and free of consequence. Welcome to the convergence of the information highway and the super-cause way of acceptable corruption of our minds, imagination, politics, media - de facto - our society. The loafers often found at this intersection are 'we' the addicted apathetic consumers of the 'have it your way right away' gimmick that holds no truth for anything worth a fuck in this world; but if packaged correctly and flashed before our eyes quickly enough with as few informative words as possible, won't be unwrapped or checked for ingredients, but rather gobbled up at the drive-up window before speeding off again to the next.
Everything is about economics - everything in this world whether we want to believe it or not, is about money. And while there are streams of exits we could jump off on in response to that remark, I mean only to focus right now on the economic con of politics and the frightening reality, that it is now nearly entirely driven by private funds/interests/agendas that all boil down to getting more of OUR money whilst giving us less, and, less of an explanation for the shit deal.
Let's break it down shall we. The borders set up all over the world that are more heavily controlled than ever before, have more to do with controlling the movement of consumers, and the overhead costs of running countries than it has to do with...terror and those who are marketed as the purveyors of it. Immigration control is a financial concern first and foremost isn't it? Running a country is running a business, essentially. Cut overheads, secure the fixed capital which includes land ownership (for majority shareholders) and its use, control distribution, keep the cogs maintained and oiled, upgrade where you can and especially in areas where wear-and-tear can break down the machine, outsource and delegate expensive industries, create cost effective partnerships and efficiency, and increase rest/rejuvenating spaces to keep customers and in-house staff and shareholders healthy...and happy to come and happy to stay without incurring debt. These are some the basics - often spoken of politically as health care, immigration, education, infrastructure, treaties and trade, bills and legislative laws, environment, etc, etc, etc...etc. We get emotional and rightfully impatient about these issues because the business is 'us', and the business practices must adhere to the inalienable and indisputable edicts of fair conduct and human rights - and our day to day lives incur immediate data on how well the business is serving our lives; and if the current faltering comforts of living don't change in 2.5 nanoseconds - somebody has got to go down...now.
Well, I rant on not from a place of financial comfort - I'm an artist, and all the risk that that implies. But I fancy myself a crude analyst as well, in that I need to distill, compare, correlate, and stratify, in order to understand the macro and the minutia so as to nullify the mind-numbing fear that would certainly result if I didn't. And THIS my friends is EXACTLY what I'm not supposed to do. Of course not. Not in a world that is currently driven by a new culture of attention deficiency that keeps us apathetic rather than critical; overwhelmed from too much information rather than energized by it (guilty here - often guilty!); and thus too tired and happy with our shiny-flashy-media-filled-giggle-toys to be bothered with a thought, let alone act of revolution.
Now I'm no revolutionary. I love my toys. And I take lots of pictures so you can look at them on your toys! I've never held a picket sign or attended a march. I've been a petition signer, or a volunteer in various relief or art organizations, and ah...that's it folks. But I do choose to create this much of a footprint here on this blog as my act of revolution - to simply say, I'm on to you funding-machine mutherfuckers! People, let us not kid about the topic at hand, politicians don't have that kind of money, the private sector does. I have maintained in private company for some time now that I can barely watch or read the news anymore because it has become oh-too-common, or dare I say, lazy, to blame them - or at least to blame them solely. The real blame for me lies with the greedy land/big biz/corp owners who amalgamated this paradigm we live in to keep us brilliantly distracted, and now the politicians need them to fund their campaigns the way Zuckerberg had fun creating networks. Do you see the connection? We're not so powerless you know - in so far as being able to demand differently anyway. Look at the landslide win that seated a black man in the Presidential office! The trouble is we don't use this voice consistently. We won't pay attention to any serious issue without it being packaged the same way the private sector packages the merchandise we like to buy! And who's going to pay for that kind of marketing for financially restricted politicians? Bingo guys! The private sector - now having racked up nearly $2bn in campaign spending tomorrow to get your vote or to stop your vote.
Anyone familiar with third world politics, directly or indirectly, can say a thing or two about that slippery slope. There is a type of corruption that exists in other parts of the world, that no matter what you say, I'm sorry, has never had the privilege of existing here in the US of A. It's in fact what the nation was founded on, in part, right? Earning your fortune the new fashioned way - by working hard for it, rather than having it by connection, lineage, or sponsorship - like the old monarchies the founding fathers split ways with. And yes, I am aware that the unfair edges and slopes have been around from jump street everywhere and will be - but that super highway I mentioned at the top of this post just got tilted to a near 72° angle in the last year and if this upcoming election and the wealthy finger-pointing-parties keep tipping it with no intervention from us, it'll hit 96°, and um...that's what you call a free fall. How did it become so acceptable for people have to use such obscene amounts of money just to convince us to support improvements to our lives? How did we become so fickle and short-sighted? Where did the critical conversation go, and the analytical look at the long-sighted plan - or rather the real understanding of work, sacrifice, investment and timely care for sustainable growth? These are the things that keep a country evolving, and keep social activism...well...active.
Now this is all just a general gripe, I don't have all the details of the successes and failures by our current President Obama. But I do have enough in my noggin to know that his agenda for this country has more to do with the long view improvement plan for us shareholders. And a personal favourite of his record is that this man holds the correct group responsible; the greedy corporations who sunk our globally collective ship, dried out the land, and sped away atop it, in their gold encrusted Bentleys. And if you've been paying close attention and doing your cog part in this, some of that has been immediately effective. But because everything didn't and isn't happening in 2.5 nanoseconds - we're ready to push out the folks who are helping the fella we were so wet for just a mere two years ago. And why, because we have a mid-afternoon-biscuit-and-scones party with no real or current responsibilities or accountability who can spout off risk-free criticisms without cited support and without real refute. And why again, because they lost money when he charged their friends for greed. And....WHY would WE side with that gripe of theirs??? It's the most incredible thing to me really. That all said - I also worried during the elections in 2008, when we saw so many come out in droves to support Obama's proposed policies. Yes, he put a grassroots money cap on how much could be pledged to his campaign...but I wondered what we didn't see...and if he pushed forward with his plans with any integrity - surely this would piss off a few of his new rich friends. And so...in some cases...it seems this has come to pass...
We live in a nation that should be leading in a good handful of industries, not least of all technology, manufacture, and green energy and we don't have a foothold in any of these - because that other late afternoon party with their pots of money thought it better to export...(why bother list them when the only competitive ones remaining are showbiz and the military)...nearly ALL our industries to other nations to cut overhead costs here. Hence no jobs. Hence no 2.5 nanosecond economic or employment rebound. Hence our faltering infrastructure with few remaining experienced/skilled/trained labor to address it. Hence unhappy shareholders. Quite simple really, and not such a smart way to run a business is it? Rather, a stupid and shortsighted way for you and me, while their pockets get longer under the cutting table in the stretch-custom-fitted-G5-winged-Bentley taking off from our barren highway for a weekend in Dubai!
Yep this is a long one, and I don't get so political usually and I know I often give you pics too (back to that next time, I promise) - but for God's sake people, use your voice while we still have a bit of a lean on this slope. Barrack Obama still has the office for another two years, and what he is able to do while there is quite dependent on these elections. So yes, this started actually as a spontaneus gripe, but has turned into a plea for you to vote today. It's harder for any of us to speak up when we're piled up over the edge of any highway if it leads us to nowhere, or worse, veers 96° down.
-Voting Offices by State
Upon arrival I received my copy of the recently released Jamaica Fi Real: Beauty, Vibes and Culture - a book written about Jamaican history, culture, and contemporary life on the island by Kevin O'Brien Chang. I submitted a couple shots to Randle Publishers earlier in the year, just a couple images I had lying around really - some of which were taken with my little (now old) Canon Powershot S1000 point + shoot. Anyway the book features about 200 fotos and illustrations - and they printed two of mine. SWEET! 
(Taken in Port Antonio, 2007) 
(Btw I will also have photo books of all the black and white portraits from Neue Rootz on sale at the gallery, and through an online store - more on that in another post.)
