There is lots of politics pervading the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía which if you think about it is somewhat ironic. I mean, the place itself is named after a queen. And lots of anti-imperial politics pervades (including some well-deserved anti-Americanism). But a queen? What kind of democracy has a monarch? Or still reveres a monarch? Seriously. Those days need to be behind us as a species.
Anyway, the ill-begotten gains of monarchy are at least being spent on art and not on oppression. Or is art just an opiate slightly stronger than religion? These are difficult issues to plumb.
And are they old fashioned or what? No pictures of some of the pictures? Trapped in the past they are. The guernica room is a shrine that should be full of life, not a mausoleum. Spain still seems to have a Franco hangover.
The fantastic Firehouse Gallery in Berryville today featured a NYTimes best selling book authored by our neighbor, and a trunk show of local art featuring sustainability. Also salami.
On a recent trip to Regensburg, Germany (two weeks before the national elections there), I watched the townspeople reject the neo-Nazi NDP party idiots vociferously. The police were present in great numbers protecting the Nazi’s from being ridden out of town on a rail.
Probably the most interesting phenomenon was when all of the church bells in town were rung at once to drown out the Nazi rally.
Hey NSA! Stop collecting my trap and trace, pen register, email header, stoplight camera data. You may not be Big Brother, but I want you out of my business. How the hell can an idiot like Snowden have root access to your ultra classified database? You guys are too stupid to control the pile.
Our neighbor Forrest Pritchard just published a book. Amy stole it, so I have not read it yet (wish me luck getting it back), but my bet is it is both entertaining and clear headed. I thumbed through it today after our copy arrived, and I can’t wait to read it. Sustainable agriculture, organic farming, ecological stewardship, and local food; what’s not to like? We salute you Forrest.
