Hey!
Yeah, so, like, we're in Toronto and stuff. It's Sunday, we just finished another day of pre-production and are planning to head into the studio on Tuesday morning. We've begun to settle into a true commuters routine. We wake up, grab a piece of fruit and a bagel, and head on down to the subway station. When we get to the subway station, we get on a train that goes underground, takes us far away, then leaves us there. It's totally sweet.
So the songs are feeling strong. We've been pumping them full of vitamins and trimming the fat. I think you'll all be happy with the final result.
We've also discovered we're guitar heros. We play this game called Guitar Hero every night after work, boy is it fun.
Right, so like I said, we start tracking Tuesday. Wish us luck.
Bye,
David
I just watched this movie. It's a documentary focusing on the teachings of a radical (not like, rad, in a good way, but radical, like extreme) fundamentalist christian. She holds something called Jesus Camp every year just next door to Manitoba, in North Dakota. This movie is scary as shit. I don't really want to get into a big discussion about the evils of indoctrinating youths, but I think I will anyway. These people claim that it is their responsibility to give their children the 'facts' about the world. They essentially teach closed-mindedness, insecurity, guilt, guilt and more guilt. In one scene the leader of the camp has a rec-hall full of kids weeping, 'speaking in tongues', and asking Jesus for forgiveness because she has told them that they've been phonies, God's been watching them and he knows that there have been times when they've swayed from 'the path' and said a swear word with their friends. Not only that, but she so wisely and boldly states that Jesus' blood is going to be on their heads if they don't repent. Good crap! Assuming Jesus existed and did all these great things I have my doubts as to whether he would want people talking about him that way. I also doubt that he would revel in the sight of a room full of children weeping due to the fact they have been told they're christian phonies.
If that wasn't depressing enough,here's the thing that really, really, upset me. These people, through the destruction and pollution of intelligent young minds, are shaping young (and I quote) 'christian soldiers' to clean the world of sin. The young people that are focused upon are obviously bright. They could make a truly positive and lasting impression on this earth. They just don't stand a chance. They're home schooled by parents, from a textbook called 'Creationism! Wow!' (I made that up, but it was something nutty). They're told that it is wrong to believe in global warming, as if global warming is some sort of new religion, and they make these friggin' snarky, sarcastic, scorning comments when the child is so insolent as to ask about the merits of science. Knowing about
creationism is great, seriously, but learning about
evolutionism is great, learning about
global warming is great, learning about
Islam is great, learning about
Christianity is great! It's all great. These 'parents' should be locked up. These kids are set on a course for a mental breakdown by the age of 12, when they realize that they can't stop saying the word 'fuck' because the devil has his grip on them (or because saying 'fuck' is fun sometimes, and it feels good, that's all, please don't have a breakdown) they're going to end up crying themselves to death. Oh, one more thing, apparently Harry Potter is an evil warlock and those children who read of him will be punished in the fiery depths of hell. Oh, and, this, driving shitty old trucks and shopping at Wal-Mart is God's divine will and it doesn't matter anyway because we only live a couple decades on this earth, and then we don't have to worry about it anymore, and don't bother thinking about your kids or their kids, or how it's going to affect them. Just continue your quaint conviviality until you meet your end. Yeah, great.
I know all this stuff is pretty old hat by now, and I'm not saying anything new, it just got me angry, which turned into feeling sad, and now I'm angry again, but when I remember those poor little kids I'll probably feel kind of sad again. This movie just reminded that there are 50 million people like this in the United States right now. And a whole bunch in Canada, too. A large number of these people are of voting age. Shit... Shit, shit, shit. I don't know what else to say. Shit.
Go Hermione!
Ted Haggard... Congratulations!
