Imagine in YOUR MIND the last time you paid money to see a film. That is, YOUR OWN MONEY, not currency belonging to someone else. Think of what film you saw. Was it, by chance, "The Bicycle Thief"? Do not answer out loud, or you shall only further drive home my point.
If it indeed was "The Bicycle Thief," chances are you watch too many Robert Altman films. But it doesn't take an insult tossed at Tim Robbins from an aging droogie to see the connection. If things were truly like that, we'd all find tulips to plant.
But, I digress. It is, in fact, the very last film you saw which has implanted in your mind a very delicate egg. This egg counts as your view of the world, as it is today, in your mind. Which is not to say if you last watched "Last Man Standing," you'd only see men shot out of barrooms by angry civilians, no. Rather, your attitude and view of the world is slightly altered by the thematics and schematics of that very last film. If watching a trilogy, such as "Star Wars" or "The Godfather," then you are triply affected.
So, remember a certain scene in that last film. Examine the set used in this scene. Chances are, you will see a number of shadows, perhap even more than once thought existed. Not a slight in the world can compete with that.
Remeber mythology, which maintains shadows house darkness, perhaps evil. Evil itself pervades into our very midst, unbeknownst to the masses. This evil in darkness is held in strict Judeo-Christian terms. Had Jesus been nailed to a Yin-Yang, we perhaps would feel differently. But he wasn't, so there.
If this follows, then it may also be said in the Judeo-Christian Heaven, no shadows exist. For, Heaven, in the very meaning, implies an absence of evil. One must remember though, angels can still get down. Satan was once God's right-hand man. Perhaps, "left-hand man" would be a more suitable term considering the persecutions in medieval times.
If shadows are caused by blocking of light, then it may be presumed blocking no light will leave no shadow. Thus, if man, in all his moral ecstacy, wishes to construct a "living heaven," he must discover a place which casts no shadows. So where is there to go? One might say to go in the deepest, darkest cave, where no light exists. One must remember, though, this very cave exists in one large shadow. The cave blocks light from the sun, hence, its very interior bathes in shadows.
In fact, the entire planet Earth is plagued by endless shadows: shadows fall through trees, between rocks, through windows, even under clouds. Therefore, it is very safe to say no place on Earth can become a man-made heaven.
That is not to say, though, heaven cannot be made. If you examine the very source of the light which helps create shadows, I think you'll understand what I mean. Yes, a star is the answer. With all of that gas being burned, a star creates a great deal of light. However, man cannot simply build a colony on a star, no, no; that would be much too hot. He simply need build a colony on the interior of the star, hence the star's light will shine on the colony always. But, you may be thinking, would not the very buildings used for the colony cast shadows under the star's light? Yes, I would answer. In fact, I am one step ahead of you.
The very answer is this: this colony will have no buildings. It will have no buildings, or cars, or jet-skis, or K-Marts, or White Castle Hamburger Restaurants. It also will not have any food stores or other implements which otherwise would cast a shadow.
Again, even with these precautions, the problem of shadows still exists. The men and women who live in this colony will have the trouble of casting shadows themselves. But again, I have this thought out. Each of the colonizers will merely fast for a period of three weeks or more to drop excess weight off. Also, the colonizers will need to consume great deals of caffeine in order to thin their skin. After doing so, each of the colonizers will need to swallow a flare, roman candle, or another sort of incendiary implement. Doing so will send a sallow light through their skins, which will allow them to return the light the star casts upon them, and thus, eliminate any shadows. After such, Jon Anderson's cry of "We Have Heaven" will be justified.
But, you may ask, what does this have to do with Robert Altman? Plenty. Examine one of his later films, "Kansas City." Now, Kansas City is one of those cities which derives its name from the state it resides in. Kansas City is a lot like New York City or Mexico City. Which brings me to my point: Mexico City.
Certainly, we have all heard the saying, "When traveling in Mexico, don't drink the water." A friend might have even told you this when he heard you were planning on visiting Mexico. But what about retaining water? In fact, if you examine our planet's ecosystem, moisture is in the air. So in fact, when we breathe, we are drinking water. What does that leave you to do in Mexico City? Simple: Suffocate. Your "friend" merely wanted to bump you off so he could have your AC/DC collection.
But what place does paranoia have in a modern democracy? Plenty. In fact, paranoia is the chief driver for many businesses: home alarms, car alarms, insurance, police, hospitals, drug stores, swimming pool inspectors, the Mafia, etc. Not even Burger King would be in business if people weren't afraid of what might be in the Big Mac's Secret Sauce.
You might try to fight it, but it is futile in the end. You have a computer because you're paranoid about living behind society's standards. Or, you don't own a computer because you're paranoid about spending thousands of dollars on a system which is obsolete in two weeks.
When you get down to it, you kill yourself because you're too afraid to go on, or you keep living because you're afraid of what awaits afterward.
Certainly, but chicken soup is the way to go. Even further: When was the last time you were sick and someone brought you a bowl of Mrs. Grass' chicken soup? Great time, wasn't it? Mrs. Grass always was the best because the chicken stock used for the broth looked like a hit of acid. But that's a whole other "trip," if you know what I mean. Or, if you squeezed it just right, the stock looked just like an egg. Perhaps it looked like the egg planted in your mind by "The Bicycle Thief" or "Last Man Standing."
But I digress. In fact, had Jesus been nailed to a Yin Yang, perhaps ritual suicide would be instilled in our "Great American Democracy." But who's to know.
Which is not to say I envision a society where the rallying cry is "RAZORS FOR SALE!", no, quite the opposite. I wish to build a society not where might is right or people resolve their own prime movers, but a society in which men and women can each hold on to their childish hopes, dreams, fears, sexual preferences, and preconceptions. I wish to build a society in which everyone stays culturally numb and learns little past the fifth grade. I wish to make a society in which everyone has high-paying careers and sends all their salaries to me. A small dream, true, but one I hold dear.
Mine will not be a totalitarian system, though. A totalitarian listens to no one but himself. I will certainly listen to everyone. I just won't care what they say.
Perhaps, in a way, I DO subscribe to delusions of grandeur. But I also subscribed to "The Electric Company" once. I subscribed to "Highlights," "Sesame Street," "Weekly Reader," "Ranger Rick," and all that other crap. But periodicals are wonderful. Every periodical has something to say. Except SPIN.
In fact, getting back to what I was saying earlier, if there in one magazine which is the shadow in print, it is SPIN. SPIN is the type of reading which a third grader considers intellectual. Above that, though, you're pushing it. SPIN presses its cutesy brand of "cutting edge" coverage of everything from Trent's Top Hair to the Soles of His Feet. They also like to think they cover politics, which is little more than blatant policy bashing with little insight: the perfect fuel for hungry juvenile delinquent anarchists as they play Green Day on their headphones.
"Anarchist" perhaps isn't the best term for them. "Counter-Culture for the Sake of Counter-Culture" is albeit longer, but is a more accurate term. Instead of subscribing to true anarchy, these lower lifeforms follow the almighty SPIN as their totem. If SPIN informed them that if they all drilled 7 3/4" holes in their foreheads, they'd meet Kurt, True Value would be on back order until the millennium.
But even if there is Armageddon at the beginning of the millennium, you still have to look on the bright side of it: Think of what you're leaving behind.
Sincerely,
Brian
------written Spring 1997-------