transactional | The Direction of Intention

No Surprise [David’s blog on KS Friday]

Posted on January 10, 2025 by davidrobinsoncreative

“…the larger story of this moment is the plunder of public land for private gain.” ~ Historian Heather Cox Richardson, Letters From An American, January 7, 2025

When future historians ask the question, “What the heck happened to the United States of America?” they will need only look to Heather Cox Richardson’s encapsulating phrase: the plunder of the public for private gain. Were I one of the future historians I would title my book, The Nation That Ate Itself.

Our Achilles Heel? We worship business above all things so believe everything should run like a business. Government-by-transaction is no way to run a country. The natural conclusion of a nation that confuses public-service with business is the blatant exploitation of its people. It inevitably divides and feeds on itself. I would conclude my imaginary-future-history book with this: “It was inevitable and calculated. Their demise was no surprise”.

We watched the storm roll across the lake. The clouds were ominous and roiling yet the colors were gorgeous. It’s the reason we stopped. The visual collision of beauty and menace. While Kerri snapped photographs I was awash in metaphor (of course). The coming storm.

Our fall is not so different than the fall of Rome. When wealth is consolidated at the tippy-top and controlled by a gluttonous few, a once powerful nation tips over. It’s simple physics. Feasting on the people, the nation rubs its fat belly and decides to protect the privilege of the few over the health of the many. History repeats itself and, as we’ve written of Rome, our demise like theirs, is not and will not be a surprise. Root rot.

Kerri believes that, as people age, they do not change but become more of who they really are. Life boils them down to their essence. The same might be said of our nation. The plunder of the public for private gain is endemic in our system.

There is no mercy in the god of transaction. There is no morality in a worship made hard by the fundamentals of bottom lines. The church of Dog-Eat-Dog has little use for truth.

When asked the question, “Why did so many of the plundered public vote for their own demise?” the future historians will smile and answer simply, “They were manipulated by their social-media-masters into seeing their neighbors as dogs-to-be-eaten.”

Communal root rot. The mighty tree falls. No surprise.

Kerri’s albums are available on iTunes and streaming on Pandora

read Kerri’s blogpost about THE STORM

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Filed under: KS Friday, Metaphor, Perspective | Tagged: artistry, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, gluttony, Heather Cox Richardson, Kerri Sherwood, kerri sherwood itunes, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, mercy, morality, plunder, plunder of the public, private gain, Rome, story, studio melange, the melange, transactional | 3 Comments »

Shake The Sickness [David’s blog on Flawed Wednesday]

Posted on October 30, 2024 by davidrobinsoncreative

We thought it was motion sickness or perhaps a brush with heat stroke. In retrospect, it was her first symptoms of COVID. Fever and nausea. Perception is a funny thing. We were on a pontoon boat on Lake Powell, a miracle of water in the middle of the desert. We ascribed her sickness to the circumstance of the moment, blinding ourselves to the presence of the virus.

20 days later, now at home, I called an ambulance. Searing pain in her back, intense nausea. She couldn’t move. She lost consciousness and when she came back into her body, she was utterly incoherent. She couldn’t keep her eyes open. I dialed 911. I thought she had a stroke or heart attack. It never occurred to me that it was COVID inflaming her spine. Sometimes we miss the obvious sickness in the pressure of the moment.

It is through these two experiences that we witness and interpret this moment in our nation’s history. The sickness is right in front of our faces. Is it the pressure of the moment, the circumstances, that make so many of our citizens willingly blind to the hate-filled virus? To what do we attribute the appeal of this maga-fascist movement within a multi-cultural democracy? I am writing ahead so am freshly disgusted by what we witnessed last night at the maga-rally at Madison Square Garden.

This morning I heard this question: Why do we hold Kamala Harris to a high standard for her position on issues, her capacity to articulate ideas, for the emotions she does or does not exhibit – and yet, there is no equal standard or expectation for her opponent? For him, there is no bar too low, no lie too repugnant, no assertion too vile…We’ve normalized his hate-speak; we’ve come to expect his racist, misogynistic rhetoric.

Why the disparity? His fascist rants drive ratings. In a decent society it should disqualify him.

Are we truly this sadly transactional? Is our moral center nothing more than quid-pro-quo?

Kamala holds herself to a high standard. She actually has ideas to articulate. She has and follows a moral compass. She holds fast to a firm belief in public service and champions the tenets of our constitution. She believes the occupant of the office of the presidency should lead by example, should elevate rather than diminish others, should support rather than threaten, should solve problems rather than make accusations, should embody and lead from a high standard, should take responsibility rather than blame. I’m almost embarrassed to write this as it should be a given for any candidate for our nation’s highest office: she also has a firm grasp of reality.

Her opponent and his party have no such expectation of themselves.

We’ve just witnessed a major newspaper withhold an endorsement for fear of retribution if maga-man wins the election. Jeff Bezos does not wish his future business deals to suffer in the event of a maga-win. We are witness to politicians – like Mitt Romney – who fear retribution and banishment from their party if they speak honestly about authoritarian big daddy. That our business leaders, that our politicians fear retribution – retribution from a candidate for president – this is the sickness. This is the fascist disease currently infecting the tongues and minds of those who have platforms to speak.

Think about it: In the United States of America, many of our senior republican politicians are so fearful of defending our democracy that they ask us not to hear what we hear. They gaslight without shame. In 2024, in the United States of America, some of our most successful business people, some who control much of our media, are choosing silence at the very moment we most need their voices. Or, worse, they are actively spreading the lies of the autocrat-wanna-be. Apparently, magnifying the bile could be good for business.

Quid pro quo. No virtue necessary. No moral fiber required. This is the virus attacking the courage- the spinal system – of our nation.

We hold Kamala Harris to a high standard because she holds us to a high standard. She believes that we will vote for a healthy future and not a diseased-fantasy-past. She believes that, after the maga-fever-dream passes, we will as a nation reunite, regain our health. We will hold ourselves and our elected officials to a higher standard. We will re-embody our famous optimism – and those who lost themselves in cowardice and hatred will reawaken, shake the sickness from their hearts and brains, and ask, as Kerri asked in the ER, “What just happened?”

read Kerri’s blogpost about THE VIRUS

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Filed under: Identity, Perspective, Possibility | Tagged: artistry, Constitution, covid, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, disease, fascism, hate, Kamala Harris, Kerri Sherwood, kerri sherwood itunes, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, MAGA, moral center, moral compass, MSG, perception, quid pro quo, responsibility, sickness, standards, story, studio melange, The Constitution of The United States, the melange, Tim Walz, transactional, virus, vote | 3 Comments »

He’s Got You [David’s blog on Merely A Thought Monday]

Posted on October 28, 2024 by davidrobinsoncreative

I listened to a news reel last night, white men complaining that they were sick of being blamed for the ills of the USA. It was their permission-structure for voting for authoritarian Big Daddy. “He gets us,” one man declared.

I didn’t realize that so many self-proclaimed rugged men, you know, real men (“I put my feelings in my back pocket…I don’t have feelings!”) could be so fragile, so sensitive. So in denial. If I rolled my eyes any harder they’d fall out of my head.

The woman almost spit bile on me. “You liked it!” she fumed. She was incredulous that I actually went to The Barbie Movie. Apparently The Barbie Movie poses a threat to the manly-men who sit atop the patriarchy and the good soldiers and wives all the way down the man-ladder. “Art is supposed to make people think,” I thought but did not say. She had no intention of thinking.

Thinking. It is in short supply, especially for those rough-and-tumble-guys who believe that he gets you. He’s getting you, alright. Your masked-hyper-sensitivity and emasculation-fear make you easy marks. He’ll get your vote in order to toss our democracy. Remember, everything is transactional for authoritarian Big Daddy. He’ll take what’s yours to get what he wants. He’ll tell you what you want to hear as long as you turn a blind eye to what he says, who he shames, who he hurts. No evidence required. No reality needed. He expects you to swallow each lie – hook, line, and sinker.

That’s real man stuff! Grit your teeth, beat your chest, and follow the lemmings who call themselves cowboys, an independent, a rogue. Rev-up the engine of your Silverado and fly the flag from the bed of your machine. Make a bold statement! Mimic the bully. Pretend that you are in full control of your feelings as you let your rage run roughshod over your brain.

Lie to yourself as you swallow the lies of your fascist-wanna-be. Yep. He gets you, this man who was born into privilege, calls our veterans suckers and losers, demeans and strips the rights from our daughters, mothers and wives.

Keep this in mind (if you can find your mind): He’s never been in a grocery store. He’s never lifted a shovel or had to worry about where the rent was coming from. His daddy bailed him out of his multiple bankruptcies – no sweat – just like your daddy tossed money at you when you were worrying about feeding your family. He rapes women (“It was only a civil trial!” you proclaim in his defense.) Just like you? He brags about it. You, too?

Also consider, he would not stoop so low as to drive his own truck – he has drivers. And chefs. And assistants. And sycophants.* Scores of them. Just like you. Telling him everything he wants to hear so he can tell you everything you want to hear. An authoritarian echo chamber. A fascist feedback loop.

He gets you, remember. And he is poised to get his hands around the throat of our democracy. He’s been honest about this one thing: he’ll strangle the constitution and toss the body of democracy into the dumpster, just so he – and you -can feel like a man. Hot dog! Top dog!

He’s got you.

(*Sycophant (noun): toady, flatterer, fawner, doormat, kowtower, leech, bootlicker…)

read Kerri’s blog about DEMOCRACY

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Filed under: Merely A Thought Monday, Perspective | Tagged: artistry, authoritarian, cowboy brain, david robinson, davidrobinsoncreative.com, democracy, fascism, Kamala Harris, Kerri Sherwood, kerri sherwood itunes, kerrianddavid.com, kerrisherwood.com, lemmings, macho, men, patriarchy, story, studio melange, sycophant, The Constitution of The United States, the melange, transactional, white men | 4 Comments »

In Friendship [David’s blog on DR Thursday]

Posted on September 5, 2024 by davidrobinsoncreative

“Where self-interest is the bond, the friendship is dissolved when calamity comes. Where Tao is the bond, friendship is made perfect by calamity.” ~ Thomas Merton, The Way of Chuang Tzu

The basket of grasses has moved several times since I first set foot in this house, now my home. Our home. Kerri has a designer’s eye and the basket of grasses migrate according to her latest conception. Of late, they traveled to our bedroom and rest between the gingham chair and her jewelry box.

I know what you are thinking. As a dedicated wearer of black, a lover of earth tones, it is surprising that she has a gingham chair. Do not be fooled by her limited clothing color palette, she is eclectic. I am particularly fond of this unexpected chair since it was where she was sitting when we had our first phone call so many years ago. It all began in a the gingham chair.

I am not unusual in that the great changes of my life have been punctuated by the culling of friends. The forces of change topple the rootless relationships. Yet, while many drop away, a precious few transcend the moment. Not only do they endure, sinking deeper roots, but they grow in strength and fondness.

It is an understatement to suggest that, for us, these past few years have been rife with calamity. It is also not an understatement to say that we are emerging from the hot fire with a band of fast friends. Forged and polished. Beautiful.

Over time I’ve learned to read the movement of the basket of grasses. They are my personal Farmer’s Almanac, my home-decor-tarot. Kerri moves them after a life-storm has passed. She rearranges to re-ground. With every movement of the basket of grasses, I know we’ve come through the latest chaos. And, I know without doubt who stands with us, who we stand with, who will be with us no matter the circumstance or calamity.

In friendship, in our friends, we are the wealthiest people alive.