The Dickens painted a lovely picture on the wall in the hall, using a double handful of diaper potatoes. She then, still holding on to her "paint" walked up to me and said, "eeeeww". I agreed with her.

Somewhere in that little anecdote there's a metaphor for what's happening to the state of California. I have this vision of a line of sheep waiting their turn to go up the ramp into the slaughterhouse, where an Austrian strongman is waiting with a bolt gun. They go willingly to their doom. The only problem is that they're taking the rest of the farmyard with them. The bolt gun wants the cows, chickens, goats, and even the farm cats, all because the sheep consented to allow the strongman to take over.

Why is it that our social structure mirrors that of herd animals? We're supposed to be a democracy, which means that it is necessary for us to think. Why do so many people just follow that one sheep or cow who bolts at the first sign of danger? Do people confuse fantasy with reality? Why else would anybody vote for an actor to be governor? Do they think he'll "terminate" the budget crisis? Will he wield a broadsword against domestic terrorists?

I'm just groping for answers.

cds I listened to while wondering what state to move to: V/A "Release Your Mind - vol.2" (Relapse compilation), V/A "Virus 100" (Dead Kennedys tribute), Faun Fables at Cafe Du Nord, 11/1/02, and V/A "This Note's For You" (Neil Young tribute) disc one