Brad Warner's Hardcore Zen: Sharp Angle
In his book Zen Mind, Beginners Mind, Zen teacher Shunryu Suzuki says that in most religions practitioners become like a sharp angle pointing away from themselves, while in Zen the angle points towards ourselves. The events Monday at Virginia Tech showed clearly what can happen when someone keeps sharpening and sharpening that angle pointing away from himself. We can say that the worthless piece of garbage who committed those murders was a nut case, schizophrenic or whatever multi-syllable word they finally settle on to describe him, and maybe its true. But he wasnt the least bit different from the rest of us.
We all strengthen and enlarge our egos by constantly raging against things outside ourselves that we say make us upset exactly like that dirtbag did. Maybe in our case it's different stuff we blame for our troubles and maybe we don't deal with it the same way. But we are absolutely convinced, just as he was, that the source of our problems is out there somewhere, not inside our own hearts, minds and bodies. That sharp angle points ever and always utterly away from the real source of trouble.
Thankfully most of us dont take things to the kind of extremes we saw on Monday. Were more likely to simmer and stew in our own misery occasionally pausing to rail at a world we never asked to be born into, but mostly just feeling sad and sorry for ourselves. Trust me, friends and neighbors, I know all about this. I was the sharpest angle pointing away from himself you could ever want to meet. My unhappiness was everybodys fault but mine. There was never any lack of evidence of this, so nobody could ever convince me I was wrong. Not that most people I knew ever tried very hard. Cuz if my troubles werent out there then neither were theirs. And thats not an easy thing to own up to. I was lucky enough to meet one person who had admitted to himself where the real source of his problems were and who helped me to see the real source of mine. I later discovered there was a long tradition of people who did this. But its always been a tiny, tiny minority.
It is the hardest thing in the world to admit that you are the real source of your own problems and your own pain. Harder than anything you can possibly imagine. Well commit any kind of atrocity, endure any kind of agony, slaughter our families, friends and neighbors, terrorize each other, do pretty much anything horrible, wrong, deceitful and stupid all just to get away from putting the blame for our troubles where it really belongs. Not out there in those bad people. Not out there in those terrible circumstances. But right in here. Its you. Its always been you and it always will be you.
Pretending the trouble is out there is a great way to avoid doing the real work that actually needs to be done. You can never really do anything about your problems as long as theyre out there. Its hopeless to try and change the whole wide world into something more to your liking. You can write blogs or letters to the editor or scream and shout on street corners. You can shoot up your whole campus or post office or blow up a few major buildings. Or you can just do the little things we all usually do, act like jerks, insist on our own way, cut in line, litter, pardy hardy and wake up our lousy neighbors. But no matter what you do to all those people out there whove made you so upset its never, ever, ever going to solve your real problem. September 11th didnt convert the world to the Muslim faith. McVey didnt topple the United States government. That asswipe in Virginia didnt teach the rich and the debauched a damn thing. And nothing you do against all those people and things out there you think caused all the shit in your life will ever make a bit of difference either. But when you change your attitude and change your focus, point that sharp angle back at yourself then presto! everything changes completely.
Does this mean you never do anything to put the outside world right cuz everything's, like, groovy now and you're all enlightened? Not a chance. Youll be working at it every second of every day for the rest of your life. Because the most important thing you can do to put the outside world right is to get yourself together. And that's a job that never ends.
This is a very serious matter. The idea that our problems are all out there beyond ourselves is the cause of all human misery every crime, every suicide, every act of terrorism, every war. Even your common garden-variety complaints can always be traced back to the deeper underlying idea that our problems are somewhere out there.
If you really want to do something to make sure other tragedies like this dont occur anymore, you can. Theres a lot of work to be done, and its going to take time. But its work you can do right here and right now. More than that, it's the work you really want to do. It's what you were born for. It takes real courage to do this work because what youre going to see is that the crazed killer isnt out there in Virginia or out there in the hills of Afghanistan or out there in the White House. Hes you. But the good news is that once you see that, then you can take real, useful action. And it doesnt start by watching that idiots dumbass manifesto over and over and over on YouTube or whatever. Or watching the folks at NBC lie to us that their motivation for releasing the tape was anything other than irresponsible greed. Or even with reading what I or Shunryu Suzuki or anyone else has to say about it. It starts with you being very quiet and seeing who you really are.
This won't fix everything today or tomorrow or by the end of next year or in the next decade. But slowly the effect will spread. It's all up to you.
Brad Warner is the author of Hardcore Zen and the forthcoming Sit Down and Shut Up!. He maintains a blog about Buddhist stuff. If you're in Southern California and you want to try some Zazen for yourself, he has a group that meets every Saturday in Santa Monica.
Virginia Tech Shooting
Thirty three people are dead today at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia after a lone gunman opened fire on students. Reuters is reporting that at least two dozen others have been injured.
Officials say this is the deadliest school shooting in US history.
According to CNN:
"Some victims were shot in a classroom," university police Chief Wendell Flinchum said.
[...]
"Today the university was struck with a tragedy that we consider of monumental proportions," said university President Charles Steger. "The university is shocked and indeed horrified."
The killings mark the deadliest school shooting in U.S. history, surpassing attacks at Columbine High School in 1999 and at the University of Texas in 1966.
One person was killed and others were wounded at multiple locations inside a dormitory about 7:15 a.m., Flinchum said. Two hours later, another shooting at Norris Hall -- the engineering science and mechanics building -- resulted in multiple casualties, the university reported.
The first reported shooting occurred at West Ambler Johnston Hall, a coed dormitory that houses 895 students. The dormitory, one of the largest residence halls on the 2,600-acre campus, is located near the drill field and stadium.
[...]
The reporter said there were "lots of students running around, going crazy, and the police officers were trying to settle everyone down and keep everything under control," according to Steele.
Guntards Hate Bloomberg
Sweet Virginia, youre always there for me when I need a moronic story. This time gun loving Virginians are hopping mad at New York City Mayor and raging hippie, Michael Bloomberg. The mayor has filed a lawsuit against 27 out-of-state gun dealers for selling firearms illegally to undercover private investigators who were working for NYC. Bloomberg wants to force the 27 gun dealers from Georgia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Virginia to allow monitoring of sales. But Virginia is striking back, like a retard throwing a haymaker.
The Virginia Citizens Defense League came up with the idea of a Bloomberg Gun Give Away. It is fucking brilliant. Customers who spend $100 are eligible to win a handgun or a rifle in a raffle that will be held on April 19. The winner will receive a handgun or a rifle worth around $900. Two stores are partaking in this example of swift and brutal Virginia vengeance.
"The truth is, if Bloomberg hadn't picked on Virginia, we wouldn't have gotten involved. But he made the mistake of stepping into Virginia with this," said Philip Van Cleave, president the Virginia Citizens Defense League.
Well, consider him beaten. On one side, Bloomberg filed a lawsuit that caused two Virginia gun dealers to go out of business due to legal fees and two others to settle and agree to the court monitoring. And on the other side, the tough-as-nails Virginians started a raffle. Game, set, and match.
You have to feel for the Virginian gun dealers. All they were doing was illegally selling guns. According to private investigators running the sting, one person would fill out legal forms in order to buy a gun for another person who was not legally allowed to own a firearm. But now they are being punished for selling guns to people who could have been felons. Typical big city bullshit.
Bloomberg took aim at the out of state dealers because 90% of guns used in crimes in New York City come from out of state. But Virginia gun dealers see it from another point of view.
"The best way to get guns off the street and criminals off the street is to lock 'em up," Hill said. "They seem to want to pick on an old stereotype: It's so easy to get a gun in Virginia and run it up to New York. When quite honestly, you can break into a house anywhere and get anything you like."
So, let me see if I can get this straight: We should all have guns to protect us because someone might break into our house to take our guns. Gotcha.
At Bob Moates Sport Shop there are pictures of Bloomberg, Sarah Brady of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence and Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle taped to a shotgun rack. Bloombergs face is circled in pink. "Here are our worst enemy" is written below. Which is confusing, because either enemy should be plural or are should be replaced with is, unless of course the store is just looking to maintain that Virginia mountain feel.
Either way, the raffle is a success. One longtime customer claimed he had earned six or seven tickets and will probably buy more just to get back at mayor Bloomberg. Sadly, he will not get back at mayor Bloomberg because he is already a legal gun owner, which would mean the gun transfer would be legal. That is exactly what Bloomberg wants. The only way he could really get even with Bloomberg would be to give the gun to a felon and hope the criminal would kill a child on the streets of Brooklyn. Then he could yell a big and victorious, Gotcha.
Virginia Not Down With Young Man on Man Love
Two Virginia politicians have introduced legislation that would force high school students to receive permission from their parents before they join school clubs. While it may sound relatively benign, it is not. The bill is clearly aimed at students who join gay clubs.
"It's good policy to make sure parents are aware what's offered at the schools . . . so they can choose what they want their children to participate in," Cole said.
Cole claims that the bill does not single out any particular club but odds are the math club will not lose any members when it passes. And his bullshit statements contradict the Family Policy Network, a Christian GOP think tank. The FPN is encouraging politicians to introduce parental-permission bills as a way to slow the growth of gay-straight alliance clubs.
"Not many parents are going to want to allow their children to sit in front of a homosexual activist and learn about deviant lifestyles and how they're OK," a policy analyst says on FPN's Web site.
Theres nothing like taking away the only safety net of gay Christian teenagers to make yourself feel good. Should lead to suicides if it passes. Well, done Christian warriors.
Time To Rid America Of The Scourge Known As Divorce
As a good Christian country, we have been fighting a valiant effort against the nightmare of gay marriage. To date many states have passed laws against same sex marriage and our children are safer because of it. But now we must look to the next battle that God wants us to fight: Ending divorce.
The first battleground will be Virginia. Last year the state passed a constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and now the Family Foundation of Virginia will use its influence to change the state's divorce laws to make it more difficult for parents to end their marriage. Halleluiah.
The current law allows for a husband and wife to just end their marriage without any cause. They can actually just look at each other and say, I dont want to do this anymore, even if they have children. Its like spitting in the face of the baby Jesus.
The Family Foundation is advocating "mutual consent divorce" for couples with children, which would require a husband and wife to agree to divorce before a marriage can be legally terminated, except in certain instances, such as abuse or cruelty. The proposed legislation would not affect childless couples.
Hopefully this legislation will pass because the children need to be saved. Children who are raised without two parents in the household usually grow up to be rapists, or worse, criminals. Now, if a man beats his woman for being insubordinate she wont just be able to up and leave because she is sad. He will have to agree with the decision also. And the children will have two parents. And Jesus will be happier.
"You can just walk away from someone right now. There is less security in the covenant of marriage than if you and I agree to open up a hamburger joint," Marshall said.
True, sadly, so very true. Please be the first to save American, Virginia
World's Greatest Fuck You Ever
In November, Keith Ellison of Minnesota became the first Muslim elected to Congress. Ellison then told the press that he would swear his oath on a Koran and all hell broke loose.
Conservative commentators went ape shit because they incorrectly believe the oath should be taken on something called The Bible. The controversy swelled when a fellow Congressman, Virgil Goode, declared:
"When I raise my hand to take the oath on Swearing In Day, I will have the Bible in my other hand. I do not subscribe to using the Koran in any way. The Muslim Representative from Minnesota was elected by the voters of that district and if American citizens don't wake up and adopt the Virgil Goode position on immigration there will likely be many more Muslims elected to office and demanding the use of the Koran."
Ellison was born in the United States and his family roots in this country can be traced back to 1742. None of that mattered to Goode, who became a hero on Fox News where he claimed that he stands for the principles upon which this country was founded. Goode represents the same Virginia county where Thomas Jefferson was born in 1743.
Which is probably why Ellison decided to shove Goodes morals down his ignorant throat throat with a little American history. Today Keith Ellison announced he would take his oath of office on a Koran that was owned by Thomas Jefferson.
Jefferson's copy is an English translation by George Sale published in the 1750s; it survived the 1851 fire that destroyed most of Jefferson's collection and has his customary initialing on the pages.
It survived the fire because God wanted it to be used in a future go fuck yourself moment. Goode has no comment.
Hero Stands Up To Future Muslim Nightmare
Virgil Goode, a Virginian Representative in the US House, isnt afraid to stand up and fight for America. Goode wrote a letter to his constituents to explain his concerns about the possibility of Muslim hordes living in our sweet country. He was reacting to the frightening controversy over the first Muslim being elected to the House and deciding to be sworn in on the Koran.
In his letter, Goode warns Americans that the US has to close its borders in order to guard against the Muslim hordes. If not, there will be more Muslims and those Muslims will be elected to Congress. Goode goes on to narrate an incident that occurred in his Washington office recently. It seems a Muslim student stopped by and asked him why he did not have the Koran up next to the Ten Commandments on his wall. Goode was not amused because he loves God. He claims he told the punk:
"As long as I have the honor of representing the citizens of the 5th District of Virginia in the United States House of Representatives, The Koran is not going to be on the wall of my office."
He really set that fictional student straight. And may I say, it is about time fictional students like him were put in their place. Goode is fighting the good fight in other ways also, having proposed an amendment to the Constitution to make English the official language of the US. He believes that if things continue on the current path we could end up like Canada. Which, I think is bad?
Here is the full text of the letter.
Thank you for your recent communication. When I raise my hand to take the oath on Swearing In Day, I will have the Bible in my other hand. I do not subscribe to using the Koran in any way. The Muslim Representative from Minnesota was elected by the voters of that district and if American citizens dont wake up and adopt the Virgil Goode position on immigration there will likely be many more Muslims elected to office and demanding the use of the Koran. We need to stop illegal immigration totally and reduce legal immigration and end the diversity visas policy pushed hard by President Clinton and allowing many persons from the Middle East to come to this country. I fear that in the next century we will have many more Muslims in the United States if we do not adopt the strict immigration policies that I believe are necessary to preserve the values and beliefs traditional to the United States of America and to prevent our resources from being swamped.
The Ten Commandments and In God We Trust are on the wall in my office. A Muslim student came by the office and asked why I did not have anything on my wall about the Koran. My response was clear, As long as I have the honor of representing the citizens of the 5th District of Virginia in the United States House of Representatives, The Koran is not going to be on the wall of my office. Thank you again for your email and thoughts.
Thank God somebody in Congress cares about America, I was beginning to worry.
Salon.com's Person of the Year: S.R. Sidarth
Time magazine's person of the year has become something of a media phenomenon in and of itself. Forget the fact that the increasingly irrelevant "news magazine" is heading the same direction that Life went a generation ago, its annual coronation of some lucky individual is still enough to sell a few copies and generate a small amount of buzz. The magazine took a noticeable nosedive in 2001, however, when they decided to make Rudy Giuliani person of the year, despite the fact that the title is meant to be bestowed on the most influential person of that past year, who (even if you hate him, his impact can't be denied) unquestionably should have been Osama bin Laden for orchestrating the 9/11 attacks. Since then it has been getting worse, reaching what may be its nadir with this year's cover, depicting "You," complete with a mirror-image computer monitor, the savvy net user, as the person of the year.
Though it may be a bit premature, I'm predicting this issue marks the end of what little impact Time magazine still has on the world, and hopefully we can all move onward to better things. Certainly others are trying, and Salon.com makes an impressive case for another person of the year: S. R. Sidarth. The man who brought the term "macaca" into the vernacular, and brought down a giant of a Republican politician, significantly changing the political landscape of the country.
Sidarth is right that the macaca incident played a pivotal role in the election. It just may not be the role he imagined. Sidarth wants to believe it means the race card is losing its potency in the rural South. Pundits wonder about the long-term implications of homemade, unfiltered, viral webcasts on political campaigns. But the real message of macaca may have been the kid behind the camera.
Jim Webb eked out a statewide victory on the basis of massive margins in the booming suburbs of northern Virginia. Macaca and all the missteps that followed helped convince voters in these affluent, well-educated and increasingly diverse zip codes outside Washington that they had grown tired of George Allen. But the same voters may also have recognized Sidarth, born and raised in northern Virginia, a straight-A student at a state college and a member of the local Hindu temple, as their neighbor. Allen was just a California transplant with dip and cowboy boots who had glommed on to the ancient racial quirks of his adopted home. Sidarth was the kid next door. He, not Allen, was the real Virginian. He was proof that every hour his native commonwealth drifts further from the orbit of the GOP's solid South and toward a day when Allen's act will be a tacky antique. Allen was the past, Sidarth is the wired, diverse futureof Virginia, the political process and the country.
The excerpt is a helpful summation but the entire article is short, readable, and worth taking a look at. The "macaca" incident took place in late summer, when support for Bush and Iraq war was sliding but hadn't landed in the garbage just yet. Republicans were still cautiously optimistic about keeping control of the house and the senate wasn't even considered to be "in play" for the Democrats. George Allen was a guaranteed victory and almost a surefire candidate to seek the Republican nomination for president in 2008. And a single man, much more representative of the changing face of America than the tired stereotype of the bigoted Southerner the Allen campaign catered to brought a key player in the party to his knees, and set the stage for the dramatic victory of the Democrats in November, which will reshape American politics for at least the next two years, and made the talk of a "permanent Republican majority" a bad joke rather than a dismal prospect.
Voter Intimidation Already Getting Started
Election day is barely half over and the heated battle between Democratic challenger Jim Webb and incumbent George Allen for the Virginia Senate seat has already brought out some of the worst in election day shenanigans.
In the Washington, D.C., area, NBC affiliate News4 reported on its Web site that it had received e-mail from a viewer in Virginia who said he received a phone call from so-called volunteers threatening voters with arrest if they cast ballots.
News4 reported: The viewer's e-mail stated after he had voted, he received a call from an unknown caller who said they knew the voter was registered out of state and would be arrested if they voted today. The viewer's e-mail stated he's been registered to vote in Virginia for the last three years and has the Virginia Voter Registration card to prove it.
The Webb campaign also said other voters are getting calls telling them their polling location has changed.
There are also allegations that fliers that say, "Skip This Election," are blanketing African-American communities, News4 reported.
Ain't democracy grand?
Just Vote On Toilet Paper And Wipe Your Ass With It
Next week will bring another election and if all goes well the Republicans can steal this one also. The dirty tricks have already begun and they are starting to pile up. The Guardian UK is predicting chaos.
"Machine failures, database delays and foul-ups, inconsistent procedures, new rules and new equipment have some predicting chaos at the polls at worst, and widespread polling place snafus at best.
First stop: Virginia. Voters in three key areas won't see Senate challenger Jim Webb's name on the summary page of their electronic ballots. Because of a computer glitch, Webb's name will read "James H. 'Jim.' Also, his opponent George Allen will not be listed as a Republican. This same glitch is occurring in other places around the country. Election officials will post signs in voting booths explaining the glitch. That shouldnt cause any problems.
FAVORS: REPUBLICANS. (Surprise)
States requiring voters to show ID before they get a ballot has risen from 11 states to 24 states this year. Republican legislators have been behind this obstacle in every case.
FAVORS: REPUBLICANS. (The unwashed will not vote. The unwashed are usually Democrats.)
How about easy hacking of voting machines? A Princeton professor easily hacked into a voting machine (He opened it with a hotel bar key) and installed a virus that could alter vote counts. The exciting virus could also infect a wider network of machines. The professor repeated the whole process on television.
FAVORS: REPUBLICANS. (Democrats are too lame to figure this out)
New system boards were were installed in Diebold voting machines in Maryland. These modifications were supposedly made in an attempt to fix screen freezes. The technical refreshers were made to several thousand machines without the knowledge of State Board of Elections members.
Hmm. Diebold owned by staunch conservatives. Shady fixes. In the past, such as Max Clelands loss, these fixes have helped
go ahead and guess
FAVORS: REBUBLICANS
More from Maryland. Paper ballots are arriving late from some company named Diebold. The elections administrator is not happy.
Its really terrible. Time is running out. Its going to deny people the right to vote.
FAVORS: REPUBLICANS. (Voter suppression always favors Republicans)
Even more from Maryland! A former Maryland state delegate
received Diebold voting machine source codes in an anonymous mailing. The delegate is an outspoken critic of the current election system.
FAVORS: DEMOCRATS! (But only for the investigation after election is stolen)
Illinois. More hacking! Someone hacked into the DuPage County Illinois Election Computers. They added some fun stuff; such as a new requirement that voters cant be homosexuals. Country election officials quickly removed the requirement and took actions they thought would stop any further attacks. Nope. A couple days later a new requirement showed up: Your grandfather must have voted.
FAVORS: PUNKS
How about a classic? Its already happening all over the country in early voting. Voters choose the candidate, only to have the machine choose a different candidate. In almost every case ever reported, the touch screen glitch gives votes to Republicans. Yeah!
From Missouri:
A friend of our familys went last Friday to early vote in Maplewood at Sunnen Park. He voted for Claire McCaskill, but each time he, the election worker, and the election supervisor pressed the screen for Claire, the screen said he had voted for Jim Talent.
I sent this info along to a friend that works in Claires campaign. I have the name and number of the guy this happened to if you are interested.
FAVORS: REPUBLICANS
How about the boys abroad? The Defense Department has a new set up to allow military and overseas ballots to be cast via the Internet. Whats safer than the internet? A private company will convert soldier and overseas citizen votes from unsecured email voting into faxed documents. That private company would then forward the vote to the appropriate county jurisdiction. What could possibly go wrong there? Experts have described the process as "ripe for fraud."
FAVORS: REPUBLICANS
BRAD BLOG got their dirty little hands on an unaired interview with former U.S. Elections Assistance Commission chair Rev. DeForest Soaries. Soaries was appointed by George W. Bush but ended up being a little disappointed.
Soaries excoriates both Congress and the White House, referring to their dedication to reforming American election issues as "a charade" and "a travesty," and says the system now in place is "ripe for stealing elections and for fraud."
He believes he was "deceived" by both the White House and Congress, and that neither were ever "really serious about election reform."
No shit.
The good news is that Americans dont think their vote matters anyway. According to a Gallup poll, only 1 in 4 Americans are confident votes will be counted accurately.
"The public places equal trust in electronic or computerized ballots and paper ballots to correctly record its votes this year," Gallup relates.
Now go vote and find out why Republicans are down in the polls but Karl Rove is so oddly "confident."
Needled News: Marisa DiMattia's Tattoo Revue
Today I'm talkin' about a tattoo revolution. After reviewing this week's news, I've whipped out my Che t-shirt, put Patti Smith on the iPod, and substituted Manolos for steel toes the preferred footwear for ass-kicking.
Across the US, city councils, community boards and even state agencies comprised largely of wrinkled old men who get hard when pounding a gavel are deciding whether, when, where, and what can be tattooed on our bodies. Men who believe that altering the body is sinful and our laws are better off following the Bible than the Constitution.
Many of these officials haven't read the recent statistics that body art decorates more soccer moms than musicians, and musicians that are getting needled can now find an artist at award shows with tattoos part of the highbrow swag given to celebs (along with a ride to the parlor on a private jet). It also seems that some officials skip articles like this one on soldiers coming home from Iraq and getting memorial tattoos to honor those they've lost. Sinful, indeed.
Photo by Donnie Roberts/The Dispatch
But even if body art is as ridiculous as K-Fed Tattoo Day, the right to make these kind of mistakes still needs to be protected.
So, I'm calling out to all the heathens to get involved in some recent cases that could take away the freedom to tattoo nineteen vaginas on your back.
First, Oklahoma needs your help. While their state-wide ban on tattooing (the last one in the US) was lifted in May, officials are now debating how to restrict artists from opening shop; proposals include a prohibition on body art businesses operating within 1,000 feet of a church, school or playground in a state where theres a church on every corner and requiring studios to obtain a whopping 100-thousand-dollar surety bond. But you can take action to block these proposals from becoming law and you can do it from your keyboard, not some wind sweeping plain.
Support Oklahoma tattoo artists by submitting comments to the state's Protective Health Services Division on the proposed rules for body art studios before September 14th. While comments of Oklahoma residents are solicited, those out of state can voice opinions via email. Let Health Services know how tattoo studios in your home town did not lead to gang riots and corner crack whores. [But try to sound a bit classier.] Or strap on those steel toes and march to the public hearing at the State Department of Health Building in Oklahoma City on September 14th at 1:00PM.
Why bother? Well, if we stay quiet, then assholes like these guys in Norfolk, Virginia try to relegate tattoo studios in industrial areas with the not-in-my-backyard mentality. Great job protecting public safety by exposing open skin to commercial dust! It's also a pretty racist act considering the Council wishes to zone "undesirable businesses" in areas with large minority populations.
Currently, the city of Norfolk has an all out ban against tattooing, but Chris Bowman of Blue Horseshoe Tattoo just opened up a new studio anyway to challenge the ban. He's also filed suit against Norfolk, and the City Attorney is afraid Bowman will win, which is why the City Council is expected to vote soon, on September 12, to approve tattooing in town but zoned in specific areas. [If you plan on going to speak up for tattoo artists' rights, first read these guidelines.]
Showing up at local board meetings and calling council members does work. Just check out this recent success story of a South Carolina tattoo artist who did just that and realized his dream of opening a studio in his hometown of Conway.
You can fight City Hall.
But say you're more of a lover, not a fighter: Consider kissing some babies and shaking hands by running for office yourself. Tattoos may be sexy but power is the ultimate aphrodisiac.
Marisa_DiMattia is a lawyer and editor of Needled.com, a blog on tattoo art and culture.
The Senator, the Monkey and the Nana
Senator George Allen has been having a rough time since he called a college student a "Macaca." Macaca is a common racist term used in France, where Allens mother is from. His once large lead in the polls is rapidly slipping. And now he is being forced to change his planned campaign stops to avoid protesters, including two who dressed up like a monkey and a banana.
On Friday Allen was at an event at a Holiday Inn when a University of Virginia law student asked an important question no media member has the balls to ask:
Have you ever used the word nigger?
The student then went on to ask why Allen had once displayed a noose in his office. Handling it like a politician, Allen smiled, put his hands on the students shoulders and said they could talk about it later. His aides then escorted the student out. Allen turned to the nearly all-white crowd of Greater Augusta Regional Chamber of Commerce members and said,
Once in a while you get ambushed, thats OK. Thats part of it.
Part of being a racist? Or a politician?
Allen then made for his bus and got the hell out of there. His next stop was supposed to be City Hall where protesters, supporters and city officials were waiting. But Allen made the wise choice and did not show up. The banana and monkey photo op was apparently not a good one.
Virginia Senator Gets A Man Style Beat Down
The Senate race is heating up in crazy Virginia. Republican Senator George Allen whipped out the flag-burning card and attempted to savagely beat his opponent, James Webb with it. On Tuesday, Allen voted for an amendment to ban the burning of the old red, white and blue. James Webb has stated his opposition to such an amendment. The amendment failed by one vote but Allen now had a bullshit, totally unimportant issue to attack Webb with and he struck fast.
Allen immediately sent out a news release noting Webb's opposition to the amendment. The news release went on to say Webb is beholden to liberal Senators John Kerry, Ted Kennedy and Charles Schumer, who all voted against the amendment. Allen then found out he is not fighting against your typical take it and lay down Democrat. Webb is an ex-Republican who left the party over Bush's handling of the war in Iraq. He has written novels informed by his Vietnam experience and a recent non-fiction book "Born Fighting." Webb blasted Allen with both barrels:
While Jim Webb and others of George Felix Allen Jr.'s generation were fighting for our freedoms and for our symbols of freedom in Vietnam, George Felix Allen Jr. was playing cowboy at a dude ranch in Nevada.
People who live in glass dude ranches should not question the patriotism of real soldiers who fought and bled for this country on a real battlefield.
Allens news release is a weak-kneed attack by cowards.
Allen and his camp crawled off the mat and mumbled a response from their beaten down position:
They're saying we questioned (Webb's) patriotism, and that's a lie. We just raised a legitimate question about whether he supports a flag amendment or not. How is that questioning his patriotism?
Wow, cry much? You started it, bad boy. Now deal with it. Looks like the Virginia race is going to be a fun one.