Those are some of the questions I found myself asking after revisiting a Van Halen video from days gone by. Music itself is designed to stimulate your mind and take you to another place - that is what happened to me. I watched the video and really paid attention to what was written on the screen. The goes through a series of scenes with various backgrounds while placing text over the picture. The writings are sayings that complete the first two words - "Right now," just as the title of the song implies.
Here are a few of the "Right Now" phrases that piqued my interest:
Right now:
1. Justice is being perverted in a court of law.
Of course it is. We live in a fallen world with fallen critters trying to run the show. Justice today is a far cry from either the Biblical meaning or the intentions of this country's founders. Do yourself a favor next time you have time off during the day - go the the County Courthouse and spend some time in the gallery of family court proceedings. It's a mess and you too will walk out of there saying, "justice is being perverted in a court of law."
2. Blacks and whites don't eat together much.
That statement offered up to us in the 1990s rings true today. There are racists who exist on both ends of the spectrum but that's truly not representative of our culture as a whole. In order to really communicate, to provide solutions for difficult situations, we need to be able to just sit down and express our feelings without fear of judgment or presupposed notions. Breaking bread is a great way to do that.
3. Guilt is tearing someone inside out.
4. There is a bomb factory hard at work.
True story. War is big business and as a Navy Veteran, I am rather partial to the Department of Defense. The situation is dire, though, isn't it? There are wars and propaganda all around us that no longer takes into consideration the frailty of the human condition and masks it with a jet fighter. The military industrial complex is alive and well and thriving. The veterans, however, are committing suicide, becoming homeless, suffering from emotional issues that no one can truly understand unless they have been there, and they are morbidly underpaid.
5. Oil companies and old men are in control.
If there were ever any doubt to this revelation, just look at the members of Congress who have been there for longer than some of us have been alive and they have been propped up with cash from big oil, big coal, big whatever. Their messages finely crafted by the best orators in the world, and their tanks full of fuel, they are often told what to say and how to say it with the purpose of getting their agendas passed. A man gets arrested for an ounce of marijuana and spends a decade in prison, an oil company spills millions of gallons of crud into the ocean and the CEO gets invited to Presidential dinners. Do the math, friends, and wake the hell up.
6. Nothing is more expensive than regret.
We have all done things or experienced things that we regret and it becomes seared into our existence, influencing everything we do and say. In time, the regret will eat at us, cause us to question our judgment, and more importantly, could cost us our very lives. I know that my life is filled with regrets and it has cost me pieces of my soul.
7. Science is building a better tomato.
Genetically modified foods may be effective for producing massive quantities of fruit and vegetables, but that doesn't mean it's any better for us. In fact, some can be dangerous.
8. People are working to hard for minimum wage.
Nothing could be more truthful. My brethren on the right often complain of the laziness of the lower classes and those who receive government assistance, but the truth is that it's what we have created or ourselves, isn't it? Corporate America has sacrificed the availability of American-made products at the altar of profit-centers. Profits are good, but what profit it a man that he gain the whole world and lose his very soul? Imagine that you have only $500 per month upon which to live. Find an apartment, budget food, budget electric bills (the average for even a small one-bedroom apartment averages $70/mo), and of course, transportation to and from work. Can't do it, can you? Think about that the next time you start bitching about the minimum wage being raised - and how about Congressional pay? They automatically get a pay raise every time federal workers get raises, yet you're not bitching about that...
Again, I ask you: What is going on in your life at this moment? Are there family members you need to contact? Have you told your children that you love them and are proud of them? Have you decisions in your future that if made incorrectly, you'll regret them for the rest of your life?
We're the greatest country in the world and trust me, I've seen other countries that are hell holes. We have an opportunity to create real community with one another, we just have to do it.
Of course, I could be wrong but I seriously doubt it.
Ron "Gorilla" Black
And here's the Van Halen video...
If there were ever any doubt to this revelation, just look at the members of Congress who have been there for longer than some of us have been alive and they have been propped up with cash from big oil, big coal, big whatever. Their messages finely crafted by the best orators in the world, and their tanks full of fuel, they are often told what to say and how to say it with the purpose of getting their agendas passed. A man gets arrested for an ounce of marijuana and spends a decade in prison, an oil company spills millions of gallons of crud into the ocean and the CEO gets invited to Presidential dinners. Do the math, friends, and wake the hell up.
6. Nothing is more expensive than regret.
We have all done things or experienced things that we regret and it becomes seared into our existence, influencing everything we do and say. In time, the regret will eat at us, cause us to question our judgment, and more importantly, could cost us our very lives. I know that my life is filled with regrets and it has cost me pieces of my soul.
7. Science is building a better tomato.
Genetically modified foods may be effective for producing massive quantities of fruit and vegetables, but that doesn't mean it's any better for us. In fact, some can be dangerous.
8. People are working to hard for minimum wage.
Again, I ask you: What is going on in your life at this moment? Are there family members you need to contact? Have you told your children that you love them and are proud of them? Have you decisions in your future that if made incorrectly, you'll regret them for the rest of your life?
We're the greatest country in the world and trust me, I've seen other countries that are hell holes. We have an opportunity to create real community with one another, we just have to do it.
Of course, I could be wrong but I seriously doubt it.
Ron "Gorilla" Black
And here's the Van Halen video...
