The Reverend Squeaky-Eye will be taking a holiday sabbatical for the next week. and will be travelling with the Genetic Envelope.
Meanwhile, the stickers have arrived!!!! I will be getting those stickers out to the faithful as soon as I return from holiday travels.
Courtesy of the Vashon Island 99% Chorus, I would like to offer up this revamped classic holiday carol:
Deck the Jails
"Deck the Jails with Wall Street Bankers...
Fa la la la la, La la la la....
We know they're all crooks and wankers..
Fa la la la la, La la la la."
"Don we now our pepper spray gear...
Fa la la la la, La la la la....
Hope the cops don't gas the reindeer..
Fa la la la la, La la la la."
"We charge you with reckless banking...
Fa la la la la, La la la la....
You deserve a great big spanking...
Fa la la la la, La la la la."
"You behave as if you own us...
Fa la la la la, La la la la....
You deserve jail and not a Bonus!!
Fa la la la la, La la la la."
Happy Holidays Sisters and Brothers!! Keep the Faith and Fight the Power!!
Friday, December 23, 2011
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Shortest Days
Hello Friends and Neighbors!
The last of the shortest days are upon us, at least for this year. Regardless of which group of dogmatics tries to claim it as their own special day, we know, as our ancient Brethren knew, that each year the shortest day, and longest night, represent a significant passage. The winter solstice marks the return of the light, ever so slowly and surely, as the days lengthen and the night's darkness retreats. As the solstice passes, Sisters and Brothers, we are blessed with the promise of the return of light and warmth.
So it goes, my Brethren, with our struggle against the Down-Pressor. Even when the darkness envelopes us the longest, there is hope. Hope galvanizes our will to continue the struggle. So today, this day, what can we do to strike a blow? What are we going to do today to take back the power? How can we, each of us, take back a dollar from the Down-Pressor. I understand Brethren, it is only a dollar. But, like the light, change comes gradually and steadily, almost imperceptibly, yet it comes and the promise of hope remains.
Brothers and Sisters, let the return of the light for this season be a return to action! Rabble-rouse, my Brethren! Rake up some muck! Shine a light on the shenanigans of the Corporations. Hold up a mirror to their lackeys in government. Occupy, inspire and interact within your community, as the new season's light pushes back the darkness. And, and my Sisters and Brothers, take the individual actions that can and will strike a blow against the Down-Pressors. If you are able, pay down even the smallest fraction of your consumer debt. Think of the power of your pocketbook when you make a purchase. We send a message every time we buy, or choose not to buy.
As the light returns, we must, each of us, keep up the fight! As our most esteemed Brother Bob Marley sang to us, "Now you see the light, Stand up for your right!"
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Turn About
Good Day, Friends and Neighbors. My hope for today is that each of us finds a way to break at least one link in the chains that the Down-Pressors employs to bind us.
My Brethren, on this fine winter day, I find myself perplexed. Thousands of our good Sisters and Brothers are re-occupying Wall Street, as well as occupying banks, foreclosed homes and other locations across our great land, in an attempt to call attention to the greed of the Corporate Demons. At the same time, many of the powerful Down-Pressors gnash their teeth and, in an attempt to end the occupations, are sending in their hired guns to beat, pepper-spray and otherwise assault our Brethren. Those in power object to the actions of the Occupy Movement, yet the Down-Pressor has been attempting to occupy our workplaces, our communities and even the sanctity of our homes, for more than half a century. Why should we, the working populace, be assaulted and jailed for attempting to spread a message of reform, while the marketeers are allowed to spew poisonous messages at us in the form of a constant barrage of advertisements?
If those who control the police wish to make a valid contribution, they might consider employing the folks wielding the tasers, stun guns and pepper spray on the denizens of Madison Avenue and the rest of their advertising ilk. In this way, the riot police could still use the toys they are so fond of, and perhaps slow the steady flood of advertising that has become the constant backdrop to our culture.
For many years, the Corporate Demons, their government lackeys and their agents, the Down-Pressors, have attempted to inculcate the working populace with their warped ideas of over-consumption. In the late 1950's, as television sets became more widespread in American homes, the Ad-Man began to have direct access into the homes of our citizens. They have been making fine use of that, and other media, in the intervening half-century. Despite the social criticism of the time, and an ongoing drum-beat of warnings from a plethora of thinkers, writers and activists; consumerism, and the idea of conspicuous consumption, have become a huge presence in our culture. In fact, the juggernaut of consumerism has become the engine of the runaway train that our economy now resembles.
The Down-Pressor was not content to simply invade our homes with advertising messages. The Ad-Man uses billboards, pop-ups, newspapers, magazines, reader boards, radio, airplanes with banners and logos on sports figures. In an even stranger twist, some of these marketers have convinced our Brethren to actually pay for the "privilege" of becoming walking sandwich boards for Tommy Hilfiger or Nike! There are even advertisements above urinals in public bathrooms. Where is a nice tall stool when a Brother needs one?
Estimates of how many times a day we see advertisements vary, from 300 per day in the 1990's to 3000 per day at present. In any case, the number is far to high. The estimates of how much advertisers pay each year hover on the order of 620 Billion dollars!!
This, then, is the source of my perplexity, Sisters and Brothers. For longer than the Rev has been alive, the Down-Pressor has been engaged in an invasion of the lives, homes and the very psyches of our working Brethren. The continuing efforts of these charlatans to sell their snake oil has caused us to be beset on every side by their messages of deceit. And yet, and yet good Friends, when we as a people become angry, and express our displeasure as allowed by the Constitution, we are pepper sprayed and arrested. Why? The Down-Pressor has occupied us for long enough!
The Reverend urges all of our Brethren to fight back! One of the easiest and most effective ways to strike a blow is to disregard, avoid or turn off the exhortations of the Ad-Man, one of the slipperiest of the Down-Pressors. If each of us do everything in our power to set aside the influence of advertising in our daily lives, we effectively remove one of the strongest weapons in the Down-Pressor's arsenal. Deflect the influence of the Ad-Man, Sisters and Brothers! In the words of our friends, Public Enemy: "Don't Believe the hype!!"
If we re-occupy our own homes and communities, without inviting the Ad-Man to join us, we are both becoming members of the Occupy movement, but we are also reclaiming what was, and is, rightfully ours in the first place. The only thing, Brethren, that is simultaneously New and Improved, Old Fashioned, and Stronger than Dirt, is our faith in ourselves, in our friends and families, and in our communities. Until next time, Keep that Faith!!
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Bona Fide
Good Evening to you, Brothers and Sisters. My wish for all of our Brethren this fine winter evening is increased autonomy from the Down-Pressors, and freedom from their financial snares.
I have been hearing from some of our Brethren, which is always a joyful event. In the spirit of transparency, I am compelled to answer a query posed by a solid Brother.
"Hey Rev, are you really a Reverend and why the name Squeaky-Eye?"
First off, let me say I admire the Brother for slipping in two good questions for the price of one, just as slick as you please. Secondly, well, I guess the Rev had better present his Bona Fides.
The answer to part one of our Brother's question is simple. Yes, the Reverend Squeaky-Eye is an ordained minister, sanctioned by the State to perform marriages, funerals and the other rituals of the whole durn human comedy. As an aside, should you wish to have the Rev marry you, he would be only too glad to do so, in exchange for a nominal donation to your local food bank. If the Rev has to travel more than a day's ride by moto, I would hope you would throw a plate of grub his way and provide a flat spot, out of the wind, where he could unroll his bindle for the night. It goes without saying, of course, that the Rev performs whatever ceremonies and rituals need performing, without regard for sex, creed, colour, or the gender orientation of our beloved Sisters and Brothers, Brothers and Brothers, Sisters and Sisters, or what-have-you.
Should any of our Brethren require a Bris, the Rev can recommend some very qualified Rabbinic Mohels, Compeers of course. Understandably, the Rev would have to decline any invitation to perform this particular rite.
The answer to the second part of our Brother's question is equally simple. The Rev has a squeaky eye, the right eye actually. Rubbing the eye in question produces a cleary audible squeaking, which gives some folks within hearing range the willies. There are several causes for squeaky eye syndrome. The most common is dry eyes or dry tear-ducts, but my right orb has squeaked for years. The real cause of a permanent squeaky eye is an air pocket behind the eyeball, caused by sinus issues. A far fetched possibility is that I am unknowingly a member of the Squeaky-Eye Tribe, the existence of which I did not know about until I did the research for this entry.
Personally, I am sticking with the "air-pocket" theory, but the tribe thing is the coolest.
Thanks for indulging me, my Brethren. I will have to leave the question of whether or not the prefix of "Reverend" is applicable. I would propose that actions speak louder than titles, so the Brethren will have to judge for themselves.
Tomorrow we will be back to the nuts an bolts of throwing off the shackles of the Down-Pressor. In the meantime, Keep the Faith and Strike a Blow!!
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Traditions
Good Morning Friends and Neighbors! The Reverend Squeaky-Eye has completed the Saturday morning chores around the Fortress. The birds are fed and the walk is swept and laundry is a-churning.
A few evenings ago the Rev was hanging with some of his esteemed compeers, sipping on a bubbly water, whilst others enjoyed their oat sodas. The discussion, as at all of our gatherings, was boisterous, varied, and eclectic. The proprietor of this fine establishment and I were discussing consumer debt and consumption. I know this is a shock to you, my Brethren, but it is true.
In the course of our conversation, my most worthy Brother related a recent conversation he had had with some mutual friends. It seems that while holiday shopping for their three year old son, they had spent $300. Three hundred dollars on a three year old! I was, quite frankly, shocked. This discussion caused me to do a little snooping into our holiday spending habits. Statistics on consumer spending tend to vary wildly, but some of the figures I have found show holiday spending on the average of about $650 per adult person polled.
Before the Rev's genetic envelope became a 6'-4" teenager, he enjoyed toys as much as any kid I have met. Many were the days, however, when I would find him joyfully playing with, or inside, a big cardboard box, while the toy that had recently been packaged in the box sat idle nearby. Brothers and Sisters, this extravagance of consumption is a plague on us, and we have let it happen. The corporations are only able to sell us cheap, plastic crap because we buy cheap plastic crap, and lots of it. Kids are perfectly capable of being happy, joyous and free, without piles and piles of toys moldering beside them while they watch children's television whose only aim is to sell more piles of cheap junk.
The Rev would like to throw all of the blame for this onto the slippery shoulders of the Down-Pressor man, but alas, he cannot. It is we who are at fault, my Brethren, for giving the Corporations a window into our children's minds. Infomercials, thinly disguised as cartoons, stream into our homes, and into our children's consciousness, because we allow it to happen. If we give the Corporate Demons access to our children's minds, they are only too happy to oblige, planting the seeds of consumerism in the fertile soils of younger and younger brains. The Down-Pressor is not only happy, but eager, to make consumer zombies of our young people. Remember, "Start 'em Young" was always the moto of the tobacco companies!
Sisters and Brothers, we are the ones who choose our traditions and our values. We all, as individuals, parents, and members or our communities, choose what messages are beneficial. It is each of us, my Brethren, that can see the falseness of the Down-Pressor's unctuous and omnipresent stream of manipulative codswallop. We must not allow the Corporations to turn our children into a generation of consumer automatons. This is their constant desire, make no mistake Friends and Neighbors.
My Brethren, the Rev encourages each of you to lavish love and affection on all of the members of your families and communities, both during the holidays, and throughout the year. The Rev loves giving and receiving presents, and encourages this wonderful tradition. What I am urging all of us to do, including myself, is to look to our own traditions and values for what is reasonable and appropriate during the holidays. Why should we settle for the corporate view of the holiday tradition? The Corporations would offer us a soiled parody of a tradition, whose only aim is to enrich the Down-Pressor. Our own traditions of family and friends and community have served us well for generations. I implore all of us to enrich ourselves, and our fellows, by tapping into the wealth that our own traditions offer us.
Sisters, know the Down-Pressor's deceit for what it is, for there the truth is not in it! Brothers, shield and nurture our children, teaching them about that which has real value, according to our esteemed traditions! Whether your holiday season tradition is Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Winter Solstice, or naked Wiccan dancing, the Rev encourages all of our Brethren to wrap each other in the tradition of love.
Once again folks, Keep The Faith and Fight The Power!!!
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
A Link at a Time
The holiday season is upon us, Sisters and Brothers. I am reminded of the Dickens classic, "A Christmas Carol", in which Jacob Marley, in death, wore the chains he forged in life. Marley's ghost comes back to warn Ebeneezer Scrooge that he, too, will bear a heavy chain if he doesn't change his way of life.
The burden of consumer debts, Brothers and Sisters, are the chains that we wear in life. We forged these chains, link by link, over time. We can break these chains, but it will take time and effort. The breaking of the chains, and the throwing off the shackles of the Down-Pressor, is not the work of a moment, but rather a change in the way we live our lives. It is a hard labor, my Brethren, make no mistake. The benefits, however, are great, and the freedom that comes of our efforts is sweet reward indeed.
Today I want to lay it down about actually paying off our debt. I know that we are looking hard at the ways to stop increasing our debt. We are not digging the holes any deeper because we are putting down the shovel.
People ask me, "Hey Rev, its fine to talk about paying off my consumer debt, but how do I go about doing do that?"
Good question, Brethren! How exactly do we start paying off our debt? The first step in the process is knowing how much we owe and to whom. The Rev has been urging all of our Sisters and Brothers to build a budget so we all know where our money is going. In addition, we need to know who our money is going to. One good starting place for debt reduction is to make a list of any and all of the people, or firms, that we owe money to, or make payments to. The list should include the outstanding balance, the monthly payment, the due dates and, most importantly, the interest rates for the different cards or accounts.
Once we have out debt list completed, we will have a clearer idea of where our money is going, and to whom. As we are compiling our list of debts, it is also a good time to spend some time reviewing the actual credit card statements. Are there charges on our credit card statements that are not in our budgets? A critical review of our credit card bills can illuminate our spending habits for us, and can show us where we might be trimming some costs. Impulse purchases show up on the tally, or eating lunch out when we could have brown-bagged it, or paid cash. The Rev likes to take a high-lighter to that old bill, smearing a big blob of yellow across the items that might not have been the wisest purchases.
After we have our list of debts, we need to apportion the money to pay these debts off. Here is where the pain starts, my Brethren. It is time to bite the proverbial bullet and pony up. Credit cards can have interest rates as high as 20% or higher, and minimum payments as low as 2-3%. If we pay off only the minimum balance, it can take up to 25 years to pay off debt of $10,000. This is exactly what the Down-Pressors wants us to do, my Brethren. The Down=Pressor loves the minimum payment because it makes him rich!! We have to strike a blow by paying more than the minimum payment listed on the billing statement. The ability to do this will vary greatly amongst our people, but we have to try. If the best we can do is to double the minimum payment, that is what we should do, knowing that we are making progress.
While we are apportioning money to pay off our debts, we need to decide which debts to prioritize. Many financial experts advise paying off the highest interest rates first. The Rev agrees with this approach, however there are other ideas as well. Some wise folks advise to pay off whatever debt concerns us the most, or to pay off some of the smaller debts first as this often affords a sense of accomplishment. All of these methods are valid and our Brethren need to decide which to employ. The Rev advises whatever method yields the best sense of personal satisfaction for our Sisters and Brothers. If paying off one of the smaller cards encourages us to work harder on some of the bigger debts, the Rev shouts "Hallelujah!!"
Once we begin paying down our debts, we can try to persuade the banks and credit card companies to give us a better interest rate or fee structure on the existing debt that we have. The worst thing the Down-Pressor can say is "No," and they may do exactly that, but they certainly will not lower our interest rates if we do not ask. Now, Sisters and Brothers, dealing with the Down-Pressor is a tricky business. He is slippery and he is sly. The Demons do not want to give you a lower interest rate. They do not want to relieve you of any of the fees or burdens that they lay upon you. When we deal with the Down-Pressor, we have to use a language that they understand, a language the temporarily lulls their greed to sleep. I have attached a link, below, that lays down an actual script for asking a bank or card company for a lower rate. I hope this will be of aid to our Brethren.
Brethren, it is time to take action! Every journey begins with a starting point, and the journey out from under our oppressive debt is no different. Take that first step, Sisters and Brothers, take that first step towards a life that is free of the Down-Pressor's chains of debt.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Reason and Results
Good Evening, Sisters and Brothers.
I find that contemplation is a funny thing, best accomplished when the opportunity arises. I have also found that revelation comes at the oddest moments, at least for the Rev.
Saturday morning found me tackling non-Rev chores around the Fortress of Solitude. There were many piles of leaves to load into the wheel-barrow, and mole hills to shovel away. As I was finishing the work, a friend arrived to putter in the big shop. My work completed and the day ahead of me, I retired to the back deck to be contemplative, watching my feathered friends and smoking a cigar.
In my efforts, I was joined by my friends two French Bulldogs, Ike and Bea, who were not at all entranced with sitting in the shop when they could be having their ears skritched by an idle Reverend. So it went, alternating dogs, until Ike climbed into my lap to allow me a better vantage point for lavishing affection on his doggie self. The Rev highly recommends the company of critters for contemplation. The cigar, of course, is optional.
Eventually, my pal wandered over to retrieve the mutts and to chew some fat. In the midst of our confab, he announced that the Reverend's message was getting through to him, and he was using his tax return to pay off 20% of his consumer debt. Hallelujah!!
Revelation followed contemplation in the following manner. The Reverend Squeaky-Eye's message is clear: "If 20% Pay Down 20%, We Strike a Blow!" I want everyone to know, my Brethren, that I understand how difficult this is for many of our people. My friend has a good job and is in a position to shake off some of the shackles of debt, and that is a joyful thing to hear!! It is a joyful noise, indeed, to hear those chains and shackles fall away from our Brothers and Sisters. The Reverend understands, however, that this is no easy task, and for many of our Brethren it is down-right near impossible.
My Revelation is clear, Brethren, and that revelation is that I need to be clear in the message. We our aim, our goal, is that the hard-working people of our nation, and our world, will be freed from the debt and corrupt financial influence of the Corporate Demons and their Down-Pressors. Part of the method that I am advocating for achieving that freedom is for 20% of our Brethren to pay down 20% of their consumer debt. I know how hard this is, and I know that not everyone can even make ends meet these days. What I am urging, Brothers and Sisters, is that those of us who are able to take action, do take action. If some of our folks can pay off all of their debt, we raise a great shout to them. If some of our folks can't pay off any of their debt, they can still take heart that others of their Brethren are trying to strike that blow against the Down-Pressor!
It is my belief, Sisters and Brothers, that we do not need to pay off all of the consumer debt in our nation to get the Corporate Demons to sit up on their haunches and take notice. No! It is my belief we only need to break enough of the shackles and chains that the Down-Pressor feels the sting in the one place he is vulnerable, his pocket! I am urging my Brethren to back up the words with deeds, to take action and then spread the news of that action to others so that they may take action as well.
Make no mistake, what I am advocating is taking back the money, the money that we gave the Corporate Demons. Take it back! Hurt these Down-Pressors in the only way that they can be hurt, make them change in the only way they will ever change, by threatening their profits. Take the money away from them, and they become empty and harmless.
Brothers and Sisters, if you can only pay off 1% of your debt in the next year, then do that, and know that you have struck a blow. Brethren, if all that you are able to do is simply stop sliding further into debt, then accomplish that, and know that you have struck a blow. It is not the single effort of any of us that will be the undoing of the Down-Pressor, but rather the collective action of all of us.
I have to remind myself, and this is my revelation, that a slogan, even a good one, is just a slogan. It is a means to an end. In the meantime, be well, live large, and in whatever way you can, strike that blow!!
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Contributions
The Reverend Squeaky-Eye is involved in community activities today, but he wishes all of the Sisters and Brothers out there and happy and Down-Pressor free Sunday.
The Rev will be back tomorrow with more ideas on how we can work to free ourselves from the Corporate Devils.
The Rev will be back tomorrow with more ideas on how we can work to free ourselves from the Corporate Devils.
Friday, December 2, 2011
Treasures and Trinkets
Good Day Brothers and Sisters!
I was very pleased to receive a comment from my esteemed colleague, the Reverend Tim, who currently hails from the Twin Cities. The Rev. Tim is doing good work out there. Regarding our discussion on stuff, he writes:
"But I like my stuff! :-P "
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