Changethethought

This has been on my radar for a while, and I reread an annotation of it tonight in the Economist. I had to bring it to your attention. It’s tantamount to what has ruffled me for years and years now. Yes I read the Economist. I don’t just read about design. I try to stay on top of where spaceship Earth is traveling, and lately our trajectory has seemed to be on a direct collision course pitting us against our own survival.

The event I want to call to your attention happened a millennium ago (in web time) on March 19th. It deserves a certain amount of attention though, especially from young people. It highlights, in an off-the-cuff candid way the mindset of our highest elected officials. If you have a pulse and you care about where this country is headed and just how far it has veered off course, it should make the hairs on the back of your neck stand on end. For too long now, with their integrity laid on the slab like a helpless sacrificial lamb, I have been watching people refuse to speak out about the fascist political climate in the U.S. because they are afraid of risking their job security. It’s a sad state of affairs, and it is exactly what people like Thomas Jefferson warned us about.

So without further ado, a little less than a month ago Vice President Dick Cheney appeared on ABC news. When told that seven out of ten Americans think that the war in Iraq is not worth fighting, he responded with a smug smile, “So?” You can see it preserved forever digitally, which is what now accounts for celluloid, above.

It really took my breath away when I saw it. I felt like it was one of those moments of honesty that the camera was able to capture, albeit momentarily, until he was able to again compose himself and do his best to pretend to be a politician and not the worst embodiment of a cut-throat soulless American Capitalist. It was just shameless and unabashadly nefarious on all fronts. How long have we slept to allow such a disconnect from the outer appendages connected to the body politic? Our politicians should represent the soul of our nation and Cheney is black to the core. There is no heart there, he is a machine born to plunder and make money. It is a mirror that we need to gaze into and take a long hard look. It’s embarrassing and quite frankly, I believe we are better than this. I know we are. I still have faith in America, especially in the public. I am not alone either, it is still a candle held by disenfranchised people the world around. That candle is what inspired people to cram themselves onto rickety ships and push their way past the foreboding halls of Ellis Island for many years.

If anything good can come out of this dark time in our history when our Vice President can, in a single simple one-syllable word, completely disregard the public who elected him, it is that we reopen our lines of communication. It is time to engage. If you want to be relevant, then start thinking and start caring. We are overdue. We have a chance here to right some very wrong wrongs. There is still hope and we cannot give in to this era. We must not let it define us. We are better than this. I honestly care about this country and I especially care about the generations younger than me who will one day have to take the reigns of what could then be a stallion too wild to tame. Let’s get this behind us as soon as we can and start diplomatically working towards a better world once again. Then we can be the country that the world has prayed we would one day become. It’s not about money, it’s about human life, progress and the future of our planet. It isn’t an individual endeavor, it’s collective. At one point in time, there was a lot of people out there hoping we would be the country that would pave the way towards a global society. We can be that country again. We just need to ask for a second chance, apologize and bring the people who have perpetrated crimes at the highest levels of our government to justice. Nothing in our lifetime, in terms of politics, will prove more important.

I say to you Mr. Cheney, ‘so’ long and good riddance. I hope you have amassed enough blood money to buy a spaceship and build a home on Mars. You don’t breath air, have a heart, or need other human beings anyway. We can live without you. It’s time we move on and start working towards the progress of the human race again and stop making a bunch of arrogant old white men rich.

“So” Mr. Cheney, thanks but no thanks, you had your chance, now get the hell out. You will not be missed. I promise you that.

written by Christopher | tags: Dick Cheney, Politics, So

According to an opinion poll released this week by the New York Times in conjunction with CBS 81% of Americans believe American feel “things have pretty seriously gotten off on the wrong track.”

This percentage was up from 69% last year and 78% of those polled believe the country is worse off than it was 5 years ago. The times concluded that Americans were more unhappy with the country’s direction than at any time since a similar survey was conducted in the early 90’s. Of course the economy is top of mind right now in the American collective conscious and according to the Times only 21% of those polled believed the overall economy was in good condition. In my opinion, that 21% probably don’t have a T.V. or read a newspaper very often. Nearly 2 out of 3 polled believe that the economy is now officially in recession.

Interestingly enough the poll also shows that Americans blame government officials more for the mortgage crisis than banks or home buyers.

The poll was conducted March 28th and included what I think is a rather low number of 1,368 adults who were kind enough to offer their time when called at most likely right around dinner time. The margin of error was 3 percentage points which fortunately when you are talking about an number like 81% doesn’t really matter. Even at such a small number this poll is obviously alarming and points to the finality in the American mindset about the results of 8 years under the current administration. I’ve been saying how bad I thought things would get for 8 years and it was only until about 2 and a half years ago that a lot of people finally started agreeing.

As I have stated before, if you think you can hide behind the creative veil without feeling the effects of the current socio-economic climate in the United States it is time to think again. As creatives we are often akin to remoras riding on the backs of giant corporate sharks. When some of those sharks start getting hungry or decide to fast for a while, we remoras have a tendency to fall away pretty quickly.

Speak out now, honestly and resolutely, no matter what your opinion is and vote in every election possible. The time for passive apathy is past. We are a new generation and we are being handed a very troubled world. We have our work cut out for us. Solving the problems now plaguing us is going to require a group effort that extends beyond the borders of the U.S.

written by Christopher | tags: CBS, Opinion Polls, Politics, The New York Times

Our esteemed President was booed, resoundingly by his public as he threw the opening pitch to inaugurate the new Nationals baseball team in Washington D.C. earlier this week. Hmm. Let’s check the opinion polls on this one, oh ouch, they look bad. Ah to hell with opinion polls anyway right? No wait a minute, why is everyone booing me?

The look on his face as he takes the field and looks back to the crowd is priceless. It’s a testament to his bald-faced arrogance. I don’t think we’ve ever had a President more out of touch with the public. Of course, immediately following the incident, the announcers did their best to pretend it didn’t happen which is analogous to how the rest of the American media has been responding the the sad state of affairs repressing the American public for almost 8 years now.

I don’t know what the opinion polls say right now but it was clear how a stadium full of Americans feel about the President in his home town.

written by Christopher | tags: George Bush, Politics, President, Washington D.C.

I have my fingers crossed for Obama in Texas today. It sounds good so far but anything can happen. I found this little video yesterday and I thought it couldn’t be more appropriate for the types I am guessing read this blog.

written by Christopher | tags: Clinton, Politics, Presidential Election

Anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr may let a 6 month cease-fire expire as soon as this coming Saturday. The move could send Shiite militia fighters back into the streets of Bagdhdad and pose a major threat to the recent appearance of success from the U.S. led surge. He ordered the cease-fire last August, and it has been credited for reducing violence in Iraq by as much as 60 percent in the last six months. If the cleric remains silent until Saturday it will be assumed that the cease-fire has been lifted and be seen as an order to commence Shiite guerilla fighting.

We will have to see what this does to the U.S. occupation. If the order ends and the violence rises dramatically, will it be enough for us to finally pull out, declare a loss and bring our boys home? Something like this begs the question, ‘Why are we still there and what are we trying to accomplish?’

Time will tell.

NOTE: THIS IS AN UPDATE. THE CEASE FIRE WAS EXTENDED THURSDAY THE 22ND FOR ANOTHER 6 MONTHS. IT WAS A SIGH OF RELIEF FOR THE AMERICAN MILITARY.

written by Christopher | tags: Cease-fire, Iraq, Muqtada al-Sadr, Politics

I was asked by the local Colorado chapter of the Obama For America Campaign to create a poster.

So, I decided to create not just one poster, but a series of posters that would be easy to distribute to all who were interested in spreading Barack Obama’s message and help get him elected President in 2008. As you can see in the button tabs on the site, there is now an ‘OBAMA’ tab where you can download the posters for free in your choice of either PDF, Illustrator or EPS file formats. The posters are free and intended for mass distribution. There are two series of posters. The first are in a large-scale 24×36 format and are intended for promotional purposes only. The second series is available in a smaller 11×17 format and has white space intended for writing any additional messages that might be needed such as a meeting time, directions, etc. Please use the posters only for positive purposes and to help spread Obama’s message.

To find out more about the series of posters and download the zipped files completely free of charge, click here now to visit the OBAMA section of the site.

Whether you support Obama or not, please get out there and vote in the next election. We get the government we deserve in this country and after 8 years of a corrupt and tyrannical administration, I think we deserve better. You have heard it before, but it bears repeating, YOUR VOTE COUNTS.

Now you can also purchase a poster and by doing so give back to not only Changethethought but the Obama for America campaign as well. Get your Obama Commemorative Poster here.

written by Christopher | tags: Barack Obama, Changethethought, Politics

Well, I couldn’t just be totally partisan and show the Barack Obama video. You need to see the other side, so here is an equally inspiring, albeit in another way, video featuring the big mac, John McCain.

written by Christopher | tags: John McCain, Politics, Presidential Election

The Glass Booth is a nice little website that aggregates the positions and views of prominent in-the-running politicians. You can take a quiz, checking off your view on key issues and see how they align with those politicians. It presents an informative way to get a better handle on what your favorite candidate might be saying and how you align with his or her vantage point.

written by Christopher | tags: Glass Booth, Politics

I have some great news that I can hardly keep to myself. A friend recruited me to help make posters for Barack Obama’s Colorado campaign yesterday. I will be starting work on them this week. I was so exited to be contributing, even in a small way like designing posters, that I could barely contain myself. I was even told to just ‘do what I do’ and make them art. I can barely wait to get started. I’ll post images in the ‘work’ section and on the blog when I am finished.

written by Christopher | tags: Barack Obama, Changethethought, Politics

A group of celebrities and musicians gathered to create this inspiring little diddy about Barack Obama. It is nice to see him gathering some steam. I sure would rather it be him than Hilary come nomination time.And yes, I did cast my vote for him at the caucus.

written by Christopher | tags: Barack Obama, Politics, President

Shepard Fairey has thrown his hat in the ring to endorse Presidential Candidate Barack Obama. He will be selling a poster this Wednesday, January 30th with proceeds going towards posters for a large statewide campaign promoting Obama and his message. If you would like to help with the campaign, email info@obeygiant.com with OBAMA as the subject line to receive further instructions on what you can do to help. Lets hope it helps add more momentum to Obama’s campaign because I too believe he is a candidate who shows real promise and a push towards a positive change for our bruised and battered country. It is time for a real change in this country and I think people can feel it.

written by Christopher | tags: Barack Obama, Obey Giant, Politics, Shepard Fairey

Ah, this Onion editorial made me laugh until I cried and then after I started crying, I just kept on crying as the laughter faded. Jimmy Carter’s got what America needs right here. If only we had listened to him, on a number of things, when we still had the chance.

written by Christopher | tags: Jimmy Carter, Politics, President

So, what exactly has the Iraq war done to our economy besides the glaringly obvious 9 trillion dollar deficit. Well, it is also destabilizing our currency, that’s what. If you think of the Iraq war as a business venture, which I am sure some people in the administration do, then you have to wonder who is profiting here because it most certainly isn’t America. The problem is, the more we spend the more in debt we go, and that doesn’t exactly make us look attractive to lenders. Would you loan someone money who owed 9 trillion? Better yet, would you loan someone who owed 9 trillion and was still in the process of pissing what money that had left down the toilet. Worser still, if that said person actually printed their own currency, would you really trust it’s value?

Well, if you can jive on that simple logic than you can see the systemic problem and also probably envision how it is probably going to get worse before it gets better.

How exactly is the war effecting our currency, well here is a short list. Get ready to trade those Benjamins for Euros and get ready to be beat down at the pump.

written by Christopher | tags: Currency, Iraq, Politics, War