Your Government At Work
Kurt Schwitters, 1939, Oil and Wood on Plywood
Greetings all, Steve here. Well, I’ve often thought that much of what happens in government was silly and pointless (and many others seem to feel the same way) and I’m glad to see someone in government finally coming out and admitting it. The mayor of Lawrence Kansas, one, I swear, Boog Highberger, has come out with a plan for stopping covering up government waste and silliness and instead is promoting bringing Dada into government. Dada was a post World War I art movement based on silliness, randomness and general craziness. Having just lived through the most violent and pointless conflict ever, this probably sounded pretty reasonable. Dadaism wanted to point out the craziness, childishness and senselessness of everyday life. Boog Highberger wants to do the same for politics.
Chad Lawhorn, writing for LJworld.com, quotes Highberger as saying: “A lot of Dada events leave the interpretation open to the observer, and it seems like there is some of that going on here.” The United States and much of the world locked in an intransigent political polarization? Yeah, that could be called a matter of interpretation. Mayor Highberger has declared International Dadaism Month on days randomly scattered throughout the year.
Art History professor John Pultz, who appears to have a strong gift for understatement, states that he thinks a little Dada might be just what government needs, as the world is currently in a state of serious distress and could use a good laugh. “It is almost like it is kind of an unhappy time.” Yeah, almost.
Well, I think it’s terrific that the mayor of Lawrence, Kansas wants to bring governemnt lunacy out of the closet and embrace it. Well done, Boog Highberger. If only our federal politicians had your sense.
December 31st, 2005 at 6:40 am
I have a friend who believes there is only one George Bush and he is a vampire, like Bram Stoker’s Dracula, becoming younger as he drains the life force of others. If I had followed my vocation and had become the world greatest clinical psychologist I would have been forced to rob my friend of his delusions yet as a ‘citizen of the world’ I can quite happly dream of playing Buffy, or perhaps one of her male cohorts… (Hotpants aren’t my bag). Dadaism to me was about getting rid of the hypocrisy that shrouded the maddness of western civilization. With modern politics there is a difference, stupidity by concent. Let us say everyone likes sweet things yet fat is a know evil. We demand our elected power solves this immediately and it does with a new protein… lets call it rumpartame! Some more conservative. people may want it testing; I mean it may be dangerous. No, a wise administration rules by giving in to the desires of the people and not what they say they want. So if the USA is short on oil but still desires larger cars than the rest of the world who can argue that America hasn’t the right to liberate it from the tyranny of Bagdad. Remember none know better than the naught dwarf Rumpstiltfelt, he shook hands with Sadam after all…
January 1st, 2006 at 1:49 pm
Na, doesn’t hold water. I’ve seen photos of the two of them together in the same room:)
Funny, I have dreams about Buffy too, but it’s not about being Buffy…:P