The Faux Pas Press #27: Now in America

05 April 2010

The Faux Pas Press #27

A Weekly Thought

Now in America

By: Jason Fresh

How meaningless are the worlds we build? The employees of Enron, the cutters and seamstresses in the dead garment district, the former builders of American cars, and the school teachers all across California are sitting around now wondering how they can convince the other demigods of America that their little worlds are still turning – foreclose or short sell the home without loosing face. They’ve still got Facebook. Thanks, Mark Zuckerburg.

And how meaningless are the dances taped out by wannabe choreographers? Are we this lonesome and starved for affection that we just keep loading more attractive photographs onto Facebook? We just keep watching ourselves in the mirror wondering if we are going to make it. “If I could just get in touch with that one person I could make it happen.” I’ve got news. Now, in America, and forevermore - he who dies with the most Facebook friends still dies alone. Also, he who builds a successful brand still must sustain the brand in the face of global change – and he still dies alone.

How much of what we see is paid for on the backs of foreign slaves? Now, in America, children are being pushed through a public school system at hilarious rates, and the tragedy, on the flipside, is that every student pushed in and out of the school system is another jobless American, they are another hopeful standing in a thousand yard line waiting for Simon to invite them to Hollywood. Of course, if you work hard enough, now in America, you can still make a movie or do something stupid enough to get a million views on You Tube. Is that fair to say? Yes, of course, if you wish upon a fucking star, make a wish, pray to Jesus, and pay your tithes, the gods will smile down upon you - maybe put you on an episode of Grey’s Anatomy or maybe put you in a music video with Clay Aiken. But, now in America, more than in any other post-colonial juggernaut, Americans need to find their own jobs - the jobs will not find them. Why? Because everyone is busy recording a fucking album? Perhaps. But I don’t think we are asking ourselves the right questions. What do we really need – now in America? This is the questions we ought to be asking.

Now, in America, the people who support, who hold the vacuum cleaner sucking up dust along the line of progress and perdition are the consumers of the global market, us, we, the depressed 21st century American. Do you know why we are so depressed in this country? Why the military is overextended and seemingly bloated beyond repair? Why we have an obesity epidemic and no end in sight. Because we are all too prideful to admit that our lives have meaning outside our income level, meaning outside our position, meaning outside of our past. We’re too embarrassed to say, “I can’t afford a fucking house and I probably don’t really need or want a mortgage in the first place.”

Depression comes from the repression of anger – anger is present when essential needs to the Self are absent. Now, in America, we are not unemployed – we are jobless – empty. We are angry and hopeless, disgusted with ourselves and what we have become. Anger is present when essential elements of the Self are absent. We are drunk and can not remember what it felt like to be sober.

When I say jobless I really do mean it. Who the fuck is going to work in this country when every body wants to do a reality television show? Is everybody in this country just going to design apparel and broker labels around? Who the hell is going to manufacture anymore? Who is going to engineer the new infrastructures in cities? Who is going to educate – really fucking educate the quiet lives ready to die in silent desperation?

What happens to art when no one person dedicates himself to a discipline? We are truly prancing around in the animal shit found on the dirt at our own horse and pony show. I fear for the day but it is upon us. Are we just going wait and watch our students, teachers even, film their own suicides after realizing the vacuous nature of their life and time? What are the ratings for that? How many views would you get for that? The solution is simple and beautiful.

What are you about? What is your job? Don’t ask yourself how you are going to make a living – but rather, how are you going to make your job? How are you going to make a life? What color of dye will you leave on the fabric of night? What color is the human stain? Now and forevermore - in America.

Green Lights and Galactic Pulsars of Good,

Jason Fresh

www.fauxpaspress.com