I sure am…

I’ve been traveling a lot lately. I was over in Australia during Easter. It was interesting to note they celebrate Easter the same way we do : by commemorating the death and resurrection of Jesus by telling our children a giant bunny rabbit left chocolate eggs in the night. Gee, I wonder why we’re so messed up as a race. You know, I’ve read the Bible. Can’t find the words “bunny” or “chocolate” in the whole book. I think it’s interesting how people act on their beliefs. A lot of Christians, for instance, wear crosses around their necks. Nice sentiment, but do you think when Jesus comes back, he’s really going to want to look at a cross? Maybe that’s why he hasn’t shown up yet.

- Bill Hicks, “Easter,” Rant In E-Minor

• “Once upon a time, a group called the Clash sang, ‘We’re a garage band.’ But who can afford a garage nowadays?” Ian Svenonius explains the current rock scene in terms of space and buildings. (Thanks, Mike.)
• Also, check out the Weird War site. And my write-up from the Miami days.
• Archive.org has the whole Power Of Nightmares documentary (never shown in the US) available for free download. Sean shared this with me last year, and I highly recommend it to anyone who, like me, wants to learn more about the rise of fundamental Islam and neo-conservatism in the second half of the 20th century.
• Bill Hicks’s solution. More Hicks quotes.
• Finally, these Fibonacci poems are getting out of hand. The NYTimes has a report. Don’t forget who showed you how way back when.

If comedy is an escape from anything, it is an escape from illusions. The comic, by using the Voice of Reason, reminds us of our True Reality, and in that moment of recognition, we laugh, and the “reality of the daily grind” is shown for what it really is—unreal…a joke. True comedy turns circles into spirals. What before seemed a tiresome, frightening, or frustrating wall, the comic deftly and fearlessly steps through, proving the absurdity of it all. The audience is relieved to know they’re not alone in thinking, “This bullshit we see and hear all day makes no sense. Surely I’m not the only one who thinks so. And surely there must be an answer…” Good comedy helps people know they’re not alone. Great comedy provides an answer.”

—Bill Hicks, “The Wicked Christians,” in LOVE ALL THE PEOPLE: LETTERS, LYRICS, ROUTINES