Re: The Shadowed Thoughts of Silas McBane #4: Perfect World

 Let's say the world, more specifically your world, were perfect.  What might that look like?  Would you have all of things items and toys you've ever wanted?  Would you have the perfect job?  No job?  The perfect mate?  Piles of money?  Have you ever thought about it?  See, I have this naïve notion about humanity.  I believe that, for the most part, people are intrinsically good.  Somewhere deep, deep down, people want to be fulfilled from their souls, not from their wallets.  We want to be internally joyous, not externally.  I wonder how many of us would accept the offer of perpetual peace for the rest of our lives in place of riches and greatness.  I wonder if I could accept such an offer, although I know it's that for which my soul cries out.

 I met an interesting fellow the other day.  He was homeless.  He was dirty, hungry, alone and had virtually nothing in his possession aside from his filthy clothes and a tattered backpack filled with who-knows-what.  I saw him in a parking lot.  He approached me and instantly I thought he'd ask me for money.  To my surprise, he did not.  He saw me reach in my pocket and he informed me he wasn't interested in money.  He had no use for it, he claimed.  He simply wanted to know the time.  That's all he wanted!  We chatted for a few brief moments and he told me he lives the way he does by choice, not because he was thrust into it by some twist of fate or dramatic misfortune.  He simply wanted to gracefully bow out of the world's system and find his own way.  Obviously, that isn't a choice many of us would make, but it's what he decided his soul wanted after years and years of toil and stress.  He was peaceful.  He was happy.  He was free.

 Never would I advocate anyone make that choice.  However, to each his/her own.  That's not necessarily my path to peace and happiness, but I'll admit it did sound awfully appealing the way he described it.  It's not the whole homeless aspect that moved me, mind you.  It was the sense of peace and freedom he had achieved.  That took tremendous courage for him to make that decision.

 So, after much consideration, I think I could use a re-evaluation of my life.  Where it's going, what I want/need, etc.  I'm inspired.  Funny thing, inspiration.  It leads us to fantastically amazing conclusions and, if we so allow, wondrous free adventures and peace. 

                                  -Silas McBane

The Shadowed Thoughts of Silas McBane #3: Ode to a Hole

I'm safe now
Safe and sound
Away from the world
My hole in the ground
I see only me
And light invades not
And here I will stay
Whether cold or hot
I'm safe now
Many moons under my belt
My hole in the ground
My tornado shelt…er

 

                                  -Silas McBane

The Shadowed Thoughts of Silas McBane #2: A Life to Save

The simplicity of it all is staggering.  To simply end your life, or to save it.  I have that power, you know.  But, what a weighty decision!  I can hardly breathe from the magnitude of it all.  Oh, I've watched you.  Back and forth, from here to there, all the while knowing my patience was growing thin, so very thin.  Your comings and goings have been so sinister of late.  It's a dare!  That's what it is!  You're daring me to do what you think I don't have the fortitude or will to do!  How dare you dare me!  Have I not given you a place of solitude?  Have I not, willingly or otherwise, provided abundant sustenance?  I remember a time when I regarded you as a guest.  Then, simply a presence.  This slowly evolved into nuisance, then unwelcome trespasser, and now I simply cannot stand the sight of you!  Yes, I must do it.  I do tremble.  It's unnatural, having you here, really.  Perhaps I could engage someone else to carry out the deed, but that would only prolong my misery and thus delay my reacquisition of the freedom I feel you've taken from me.  But even now, as I look at you, this sadness!  I've made up my mind that I must snuff the spark of your life or toil in agony until one of us eventually succumbs to illness or time.  The decision is made.  Oh, this knot in my stomach.  I could just faint!  I've got you in a corner and it's now or…never.  But…I would miss your company.  Not often, just every once in a while.  Just at those times when the presence of another brings just the slightest comfort and relief.  And sometimes, just sometimes, that makes all the difference in the world.  Oh, me.  My heart does not allow me to take a life.  I must rescind.  I release you from this corner, I beg your forgiveness for even the mere contemplation of killing you.  I see now that I may not value my life above yours.  Let us be free in this place together, old friend.  Soon again shall I see you, and more welcoming then, for certain.  Flee, little cockroach.  Flee.

 

-Silas McBane

The Shadowed Thoughts of Silas McBane #1: Take It All Off

That's right, take it off.  Take it all off.  The clothes, the shoes, the hairdo, the makeup, the jewelry, the scowl, and every single thing you think gives you your identity.  Get rid of it.  Why, you ask?  Because we have to from time to time.  Because you and I get so attached to our outward identity that we become separated from the things that really make us who we are.  Please understand, I'm not talking down to anyone, here.  I do it, too.  I seldom leave the house without looking the way I want people to see me.  And for the record, I don't feel like there's anything really wrong with that.  However, we get in that pattern and observe that routine and the subsequent mentality for too long sometimes and it cripples our self-perception.  I have been told before that the outward is a reflection of the inward.  I used to agree with that, but I don't anymore.  I am pierced.  I am very tattooed.  I have been unfairly judged and criticized for these things.  But that's the natural byproduct of choosing to look and express myself in such ways.  So, as a result of my appearance, I have to try just that much harder to rally against the general perception of people that look like I do, and prove to people that I have a soul, a heart, and am capable of doing tremendous good.  Kinda the whole "random acts of kindness" thing, you dig?  The decision I made a long time ago was to occasionally take time away from my "image" and just be me without it.  It's very healthy and keeps me balanced and centered, and it ultimately keeps me free from the grip of narcissism and ego.  Don't we all want to change the perception of the gothic community?  I know I do.  It starts with me being me.  It starts with you being you.

 

-Silas McBane

Did the recent push from DGM help DirectTV axe their "Undesirable (Goth)" ad campaign?

While no apologies have been officially made by DirecTV, after DGM's recent encouragement to Goths to complain to DirecTV about their recent ad campaign which depicts Goths as "undesirable" delinquents, the ads seem to have vanished from the cable and broadcast channels. In their place are much more humorous spots that do not attempt to denigrate a culture!

Hopefully the responses from Goths around the country and the world to DirecTV's PR department will continue to encourage DirecTV and others who might want to berate Goths to refrain!

With that said, let us remember that, fair or not, the way we look is something that often confuses people in the outside culture. By choosing to show people how caring and intelligent we are through positive actions, we help stop stereotypes from being accepted and believed! This will only help us and assure us of having sympathetic allies in the future!

Are new airline policies targeted at Goths?

On a recent trip to Detroit, editor Pasclato got elected for a patdown, despite his minimal piercings and a pre-removed belt. The reason? Possession of liquid on his person. What liquid? Perspiration.

Yes, that's right, perspiration!

Apparently, the sensors of the newly updated liquid detection scan system (which already reminds many of us uncomfortably of the dystopian future presented in "Total Recall") are set so sensitively to any form of liquid that a southern heat wave is leading to nearly all dark clothed passengers receiving patdowns!

The message is clear. If you want to fly and you want to wear black, you better get yourself delivered to the airport in a refrigerated container truck! (And, of course, much like a weight watchers meeting, make sure you empty your bladder before you get in line, because who knows how deep they're looking for liquids!)

Thoughts on DirecTV's attacks on "Undesirable" Gothic people?

If you haven't been under a rock of late, then you've probably come across DirecTV's blatant attack ads that seem pretty targeted at Goths.  Labeling a young man who has all the accoutrements of many in our community as an "undesirable" is pretty appalling, but more so is the fact that we in the Gothic community are so splintered that the ad hasn't been pulled.  We're a safe target because, unlike most minorities, we won't protest en masse. 

Try to imagine DirecTV replaced the Goth with a black man, labeling him as "undesirable"?  The NAACP would proclaim DirecTV were racist Neo-Nazis and the public outcry would reach a fever pitch.  Likewise if it had been a lesbian, the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force would have had someone's nether regions in a sling over the slight.

So, what do you think about it?  Let's talk about it here and be open and honest!  If it offends you, then bombard DirecTV's facebook and YouTube and Twitter pages and let them know about it.