Posted on 05/08/2016 9:15:09 AM PDT by NOBO2012
Dear Mother, I meant to write you before this and I hope you haven't been worried.... I have met some Beautiful People and... ― Tom Wolfe, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test
Many mothers across America got some version of this letter during the 1960s-70s as their sons and daughters were tuning in, turning on and dropping out. The drug of choice at the time, along with the perennial favorite, marijuana, was LSD. And while Timothy Learys name is most often cited as its leading proponent the de facto leader of the of mind-expanding, transcendental LSD cult was Ken Kesey, a young writer who had just published One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest.
In 1967 Thomas Wolfe, an established journalist, joined Keseys band of Merry Pranksters, boarded the Day-Glo bus named Further and left California for New York, acid tripping their way across America. Wolfe was there to chronicle the happening in the manner of what was then new journalism and the result was an entertaining book titled The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test.
Interestingly, what was new journalism then injecting yourself into the story and relating the facts as you fancifully see fit, is now just journalism. Once the purview of Fine Arts and English programs, non-fiction today has oozed its way into J-schools as literary reportage which helps explain situations like those examined in yesterdays post. Most journalists are now writers of creative non-fiction a genre that not too long ago would have been considered an oxymoron.
As I was reading this years Mothers Day Proclamation I was suddenly struck by how similar the Story of BO is to the Ken Kesey story. Both stories are about charismatic leaders whose only credentials were their books; both led movements to transform America into something they thought would be better by having their followers drink(literally, in Keseys case) acid-laced Kool-aid.
Both stories evolve around a messianic anti-hero.
Would it be too cynical of me to note that in this, the last year of the Occupancy, nothing - and I mean nothing - falls outside the influence of the Obama electric Kool-Aid acid test? To point out that nothing is sacred any more, nothing is exempt from being transformed by the giant, psychedelic propaganda machine which is transforming Amerika bit by bit every day? If its just me, then fine; perhaps I just over-reacted to Barrys 2016 Mothers Day message:
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
A PROCLAMATION
On Mother's Day, we celebrate those who are the first to welcome us into the world. Performing the most important work there is, mothers -- biological, foster, or adoptive -- are our first role models and earliest motivators. They balance enormous responsibilities and shape who we become as adults, their lessons guiding us throughout life. Regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status, mothers have always moved our Nation forward and remained steadfast in their pursuit of a better and brighter future for their children
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim May 8, 2016, as Mother's Day. I urge all Americans to express love and gratitude to mothers everywhere, and I call upon all citizens to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities. [ed. - apparently flowers, candy and dinner out are not structured enough and therefore not state-approved] Read the whole thing if your crap detector hasnt already reached terminal velocity.
Happy Mothers Day, to the Mother of the Year
Everything was becoming allegorical, understood by the group mind, and especially this: "You're either on the bus...or off the bus. ― Tom Wolfe, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test
My advice: if you dont want a bad trip, dont get on the bus.
Posted from: Michelle Obamas Mirror
Timothy Leary’s dead.
No, he's outside, looking in.
My first experience with the Moody Blues was on Youngster Cruise out of Annapolis in 1973. I was aboard the LPD Coronado and we were on the last leg of the Atlantic cruise. We were two days out of Norfolk, coming home, and the Captain allowed members of the crew to bring a stereo set and speakers out on the flight deck after dark. There was no moon, almost pitch black, and just millions of stars across the sky, the thick band of the Milky Way hanging above us. It started with Days of Future Past and Seventh Sojourn and all of the other Moody Blues albums playing while I laid out on the flight deck staring into space. I was hooked on the Moody Blues forever after that...
It’s all too beautiful.
Without question.......
Under dreamin’ spires
To Itchycoo Park, that’s where I’ve been.
I want it...I want it...I want it...I want it...I want it...I want it...I want it...
YOU CAN’T HAVE IT!!!!
My roommate in college, 1970 Honolulu, introduced me to this band (Ronnie Wood & Rod Stewart members), and we shared an awe for the Moody Blues.
Thruppence and sixpence each day.
And then to burst up
Through tarmac
To the sun again.
Really,,,
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