Friday, May 27, 2005

Commie Russians and Red Chinese

Hi All!

My perfect wife has always been the political moderate of the family, which is why she keeps getting elected where I could only come close. I spent over $50K on my campaigns, she has paid $2 filing fees. 16 years of public service, 10 elected. She is truly a wonder in so many ways...

But here is what she said just a scant while ago, which made me glad I have kept my recap of the day's events hidden in the "drafts" folder.

As I narrated my day, she interrupted me to say, "Are we living in communist Russia?"

Holy Hanna's handgrenades!

What a blast from the past!

Growing up, two of the most common threatening admonitions we received from our parents at showing the least hint of rebellion were:

"You could have been born in communist Russia!" and;

"Scrape up and eat that leftover canned cream corn. You could have been born in red China where the children starving! then wash the dishes and go to bed and thank God you can eat with a fork instead of chopsticks!"

These were usually followed by the reassuring "You should pray and thank God every night that you were born in the United States of America."

That starving threat never quite made sense to me, even when the victims switched to "Africa" after Vatican II. Not that the events were linked, they just sort of happened at the same time. I think the Biafra pictures shifted it.

I would have been happy to bombard the starving red Chinese children with crates of Del Monte canned, cream corn. Perhaps it would have delayed the dominos falling should we lose Vietnam, after which it was only a matter of short time before the red Chinese and communist Russians would meet at the Mississippi and establish a new East/West World Order.

We St. Paulites would speak Russian and Mill Citians would coverse in Chinese. Something like that is really happening now, but it is a bit more subtle and gradual and involves more cultures.

Come to think of it, it was pretty scary to be a kid born in the mid 1950's. My uncle Gordy had a bomb shelter. There were tons of provisions under the bleachers of CST stadium which was the evacuation place for our neighborhood. They were still there when I matriculated in 1977.

I think the big drums of "potable water" were more like "dehydrated potable water" by then.

Well, so the thing is, you will have to wait for me to hunt n' peck down my story of today. It has been verbally related to Laura, so if the ultimate life's irony hits me by being killed on account of a drunk, she will have the "oral history" to pass down.

I recently dredged up a CD of the "Commandos Commit Suicide" concert recorded at the Longhorn in 1978.

"If you don't like it, BURN IT DOWN! BURN IT DOWN! If you really hate it, "BURN IT DOWN! BURN IT DOWN! You don't have to take it"....

The link has some audio clips if your inclined to sample some forbidden fruit from my youth.

Unfortunately the "Burn it Down" teaser fades out before the "good part"" but you will get the idea if you check it out. They also cover "It's My Life" by the Animals in a medley not listed, which is right up there with "I'm Not like Anybody Else" in my book.

If nothing else, check out "Emission Control." SOoooo late 70's with the wordplay on the energy crisis and an altogether more evergreen teenage crisis...

If I survive the weekend, I will resume on a calmer note. Thanks for reading.

By the way, I still AM filled with gratitude to God for having granted me His divine providence in sending me down to be "Born in the USA."

Cheers!

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