Life Goes On......Or Does It? - and - Gustav Dore's Vision

                                    Gustav Dore's illustration for Dante's Inferno: a scene

                                    of those who are condemned to spend eternity upon

                                     burning sands, being struck by balls of fire

     The news is not good.  The year 2023 is the hottest year in recorded history

and it is probably the hottest year on Earth since before human beings became the

dominant species on the planet, and even farther on back through many thousands 

of years of prehistory.  All across the world, increasing numbers of people are being 

killed by the heat.  The temperature of the ocean water, around southern Florida, 

has risen above the hundred degree mark, killing off the corals which create the reefs, 

which are the breeding grounds and nurseries of ocean life.  And wild fires are raging 

out of control around the globe, while exceptionally violent storms bring death and

destruction beyond anything anyone has experienced before.

     All of these torments are reminiscent of scenes from Dante's Inferno, but this is an

inferno which we have brought upon ourselves, not the tortures imposed on us by

some supreme being.

      This crisis is not unexpected.  The climate scientists and truth tellers have been

warning us for decades, that if we did not strive to reduce the amount of green-house 

gas emissions that we have been pumping into our atmosphere, we were headed for

a drastic change to our global climate.  For a couple of centuries now, we have been 

burning up our fossil fuels as if there is no tomorrow, while at the same time we have 

been cutting down the carbon-dioxide absorbing, rain forests, as if they are a waste 

of space.  Now it appears that there actually may be no tomorrow for us. 

     Our species has had the power to make great changes to our planet, but we have

lacked the intelligence and will, to make these changes wisely, to preserve the health

of the Earth and every living thing in the ecosystem. From President Taft onward until

the present day, we have never had a Republican president who expressed any great 

interest in reducing the environmental impact of the fossil fuels industries, and related

manufacturing.  They have always insisted that the business of America is business, 

and if the environment suffers because of business, cost-cutting greed, then the later 

generations of us will have to deal with that.   Whenever the issue of global warming has 

come up among our Republican leaders, they have ignored the science and declared

that the rising temperature of the Earth is a hoax.  For them, personal profit is more

important than truth.  Chief among these deniers is of course, the liar-in-chief, Donald 

Trump. 

      In our 2020 election,we came close to having someone in power, who would 

help focus government attention on this coming crisis.  Vice President Al Gore was

in the forefront of advocates of clean energy and green energy.  If a full recount of 

the votes in the state of Florida had been carried out he would have become our next

president.  But the Supreme Court didn't allow the recount to go forward; they handed 

the presidency to George Bush, who had no particular goal for the presidency, other 

than a desire to invade and occupy Iraq, and kill the dictator who insulted George's 

daddy.   The result of that was thousands of lives lost and many billions of dollars

of U.S. treasure wasted instead of being spent toward getting us off of fossil fuels 

and getting us focused on green energy.

    Is it too late for us now?  We don't know the answer to that question yet.  Perhaps

we have already passed the tipping point beyond which we cannot stop the escalating 

global warming.   The heat goes on.

                                                    Eugene P. McNerney

 

 

    

Where Are The Snows of Yesteryear? - and - The Gardenia

 

                                                   The Gardenia

                                                   An original drawing on 100% rag Strathmore

                                                   9" X 12", unframed

                                                                                 ( click on image to enlarge )

     Francois Villon's famous line of poetry doesn't have much to do with today's 

posting on the blog, but it speaks eloquently of the cruel and relentless passage 

of time.  This week is one of the sadist weeks of my life: I have lost my one and only 

brother.

     During the midst of the great depression, shortly before world civilization became

swallowed by World War Two, my parent's married and bravely began to raise a family. 

They had two baby boys, separated by just two years.  The first born was named after

his father, and the second was named after his father's brother.  The couple worked hard, 

struggling through financial setbacks and health problems, to raise their boys to a high 

ethical standard.  There were plenty of snows of yesteryear as the boys were growing up, 

with many long, icy walks to school, in those days before busing.  And there were the

the episodes of mumps and measles, chicken pox and whooping cough,  scarlet fever

and broken arms, and all of the other difficulties which threatened children's lives in

those days.  But there were also games and skating, biking and sledding, and annual 

holidays and birthdays marking our growth.   

     The older brother soon began showing a curiosity about how things worked.  

He made kites of unique design and flew them well.  And he made large, model

airplanes, out of nothing but thin strips of balsa-wood and tissue paper, with a

wind-up propeller, and these planes would sometimes fly so high that we could not 

see where they had gone.  Then he would have to depend on the kindness of the 

strangers who found the planes, to call us and return them.   These early interests 

led him naturally toward the fields of engineering and drafting. 

     The younger brother tended to be a bit of a dreamer, who closely observed

the natural world of flora and fauna, and developed a talent for drawing the

things he saw, better than most boys his age.  That was a portent of his life yet

to be.

     So we began life together as a pair of starry-eyed little boys, a pair of traveling

companions, looking out at a world of wonders and surprises.  And he remained

my loyal traveling companion on this long mysterious journey we call life.  He did

not have the title of a nobleman, but he was a nobleman in spirit.  Honest and

trustworthy to all, he was always ready to answer a call for assistance, whatever

the problem might be.  He remained a loving husband and father, and a devoted 

brother, until the very end of his journey.   Now his half of our shared travels is 

finished, so I will have to complete my half of the journey alone.  I will be the 

final repository of our shared memories, of a family which once was; a father 

and a mother, and a brother too, now gone.

                                                    Eugene P. McNerney 11

P.S.    I have been observing the blossoms of a gardenia plant in the garden

this week, as the end drew near for my brother.  There is a kind of reluctance 

about the way the tightly wrapped petals of the buds gradually unfurl, like little 

fingers trying to keep the flower's fragrance from escaping, much the same as 

my reluctance to let go of my brother's loving spirit. 

                                                Thomas T. McNerney Jr.

                                                June 19, 1935  -  June 27, 2023

                                                Rest in peace.

The Cult Of Ignorance - and - Tom Sawyer Was Out In The Rain Last NIght

                                  Tom Sawyer Was Out In The Rain Last Night

                                  An original mixed media painting

                                  9" X 12" unframed

     Those viewers who may be somewhat familiar with this blog,

may have seen this painting previously.  It is one from my series of  book

paintings which I have shown here in the past decade or so.  I chose a 

book painting today as another reminder for everyone to think about all

of our individual rights which are being taken away from us by autocratic

state legislators and governors.  Everything that we do in our own personal

lives, to help us determine our future health and advancement, is under a

constant threat of being taken away from us by the Republican tyrants

who have gained full power in so many of our states.  Perhaps the sadest

part of this new reality, is the fact that we have the Trump Supreme Court

which gives these idiots permission to abuse our personal rights as they like.

     The latest example here in my state is a law which restricts freedom of 

choice in our libraries. The kinds of books libraries can buy and make 

available to readers, are now limited to those which these right-wing politicians 

see as appropriate for their children.  Any one parent has the power to block 

what the children of all the other parents can see and read.  Failure to comply 

with this law results in loss of funding for the library.  

     Libraries have always been the bedrock of American democracy, from

our beginnings.  They were the places where we could go to get the full

information we needed to help us conduct our lives for our own best benefit

and for the best benefit of society in general.  These Republican efforts to stifle

truth and factual information, is a further example of the way they are grooming

this cult of ignorance, to help them stay in power.  I am reminded again of

Socrates famous words that proclaim ignorance to be the world's greatest

evil, and knowledge to be the world's greatest good.  Nothing has changed

in over two thousand years.

    My advice to all readers now, is simple.  When you go to the library, go

directly to those restricted sections, which  contain the books which have 

been given limited access, due to Republican political command.  That is 

the area where you are likely to find some of the best books in the library.

Take those books home and read them.  They will expand your mind and

help you see the world in new colors and whole new dimensions.

     Don't let anyone tell you what you are not allowed to read. It is a 

knowledgeable citizenry which eventually removes tyrants from their 

positions of power.  

                                             Eugene P. McNerney 

We who are about to BUY salute you.

 

                                                             ( detail - Roman gladiator sculpture )

 

     When Roman gladiators entered the Colosseum to entertain the roaring crowds, 

they would address their audience by saying,"We who are about to die salute you!"

In the title of this posting, I have changed one word of that declaration, in order to

create an appropriate greeting for the NFL teams owners to use, when they open their

annual, college, players draft.  The 2023 draft has just wrapped up in Kansas City.  

The acquisition of the new players was a three day spectacle of noisy, frenzied fans,

making themselves look as stupid as possible, in order to demonstrate their 

everlasting loyalty to the surrogate warriors of their tribal cities.  

     Popular entertainments, including ball games, have always been loud, crude

and simpleminded, so it was not unexpected that the three hundred thousand fans

who showed up here, to cheer for their teams, would make quite a show of it. 

At times the draft resembled some kind of a blend of a ritualized slave-auction 

and the presentation of a new crop of Marvel-comics super-heroes.  All of that 

only shows how little we have changed over the past several thousand years and

 more, into history.  The recorded history of ball sports extends back through

countless cultures.  From American-style football games in ancient Greece, to

Harpastum in Rome, to Cuju in Ancient China, to field hockey sports in Medieval 

Europe, ball sports have had  a presence in almost every continent at some time.

No doubt when those athletes of old, finished their games, they had plenty of

avid fans waiting outside the gates to get something in the way of an autograph 

or perhaps something more from their heroes. 

       What the big show of the draft comes down to in the end is money.  Put on

a big enough, glitzy production to create excitement for the fans, and reap the 

rewards of increased profits from the publicity and sales of expensive tickets 

and all of that new NFL team-merchandise.   Are you ready for some football?

                                                        Eugene P. McNerney

        

Murdoch's Monstrous Triumph - and - Owls Taking Flight

 

 

                                                              Owls Taking Flight       

                                                             An original mixed-media painting 

                                                               ( click on image to enlarge )

                                        

     I have not posted this painting on the blog for a decade or so, but I was reminded of it 

because I have been hearing owls calling in the night, and because of recent events in 

the news.   Throughout the history of literature and art, owls have been seen as somehow

wise and able to foresee a troublesome future.  That is a fanciful notion, but about one 

third of American voters seem to be less intelligent, more angry and afraid than the owls.

That mental state is due in large measure to the constant stream of poisons being fed

to them by Rupert Murdoch and his lying team of program hosts at Fox, who play to

to all of the worst fears and hatreds of their followers.   Legitimate news organizations

provide the honest truth about everything that is happening, so that people know the 

facts.  Murdoch gives the people whatever lies will bring him the greatest profit.  

     Now the real news organizations are reporting on the fact that Murdoch has 

paid close to eight hundred million dollars to settle the Dominion lawsuit, just so he

wont have to stand up in court and admit that everything Fox has been telling people 

about stolen elections, is a complete lie.  Fox will never do any kind of on-air report

or admission of guilt or apology for their assault on the belief in our honest and

fair elections, which are the basis of our democracy.  Now Murdoch will be able

to conduct his lying business as usual, after paying some hush-money, much the way

Trump pays hush-money to porn stars.   Murdoch is reportedly worth nearly

eighteen Billion dollars, more money than anyone could ever need, so the pay-off

was a way for him to win again, without costing much serious pain. 

    But there is something that all of those lying Fox program hosts should probably

remember in the future.  Those avid Fox followers out there may not be the most

intelligent birds in the aviary, but most of them probably have guns, because of

all the things you have done to reinforce their fears and hatreds.  So when the 

truth finally begins to filter down to some of them, they may start coming after

you, just the way they stormed the Capitol on January 6th.  Wouldn't that

be a hoot?

                                            Eugene P. McNerney

 

Florida Bans Michelangelo

      The book-banning Floridians are at it again.  They are going to strip (pardon the

expression) Michelangelo's David from their books.  They say that the sculpture is

pornographic!  

     Michelangelo's David is probably the most famous, monumental, stone sculpture

in the world.  That well known image has been featured both inside and on the covers

of countless books and magazines.  Everyone who has seen Michelangelo's amazing

artworks are in awe of his spectacular achievements.  Hundreds of thousands of 

people have stood in line breathlessly awaiting the opportunity to enter the Sistene

Chapel for a few minutes, to gaze upon the wonder of Michelangelo's art.

When they are finally able to go inside and look upward, I can guarantee that none

of them have ever said, "Wow! Porn!". 

     Those Florida nitwits don't know the difference between photos of fine art and

photos of pathetic people having sex for money.  The human figure has been at

the core of artistic expression in Western Civilization since the dawn of history.

From ancient Greece to Rome to the Renaissance and clear up to modern times,

the nude figure has remained a central focus of sculpture and painting.  We are

proud to have these sculptural figures in our parks and on our monuments and

on public buildings.  They are featured in fountains, on hundreds of public 

squares, which people enjoy seeing every day.  Their images are even printed

on the postage stamps of many countries, where the people take pride in their

artistic heritage.  Perhaps some of the Florida numbskulls have received  letters

stamped with one of these little images.  If so, I doubt that the receipt of such

an image has given anyone fits of hysterics. 

     So what is their problem?  Why can't they admire the grace and beauty of

the human form in great art?  The answer seems to be that no matter how

beautiful these images may be, the nude reminds them that they are mammals.

And like the rest of the mammals on the planet, we all reproduce in pretty much

the same way, no matter how much these people try to elevate themselves

 to a higher plane, somehow above all that.  When their children ask them

where babies come from, they probably have difficulty giving them honest,

straightforward answers about human reproduction.  Instead of giving

their children the facts, as it becomes age appropriate, they prefer to remove

great art from books or remove the books completely.  They are the fig-leaf

brigades, busily trying to preserve the purity of their warped little minds. 

                                                        Eugene P. McNerney  

Ukraine's Year In Hell - and - Putin Smiling While Ukraine Burns

                                                          Putin Smiling While Ukraine Burns

                                                          10"  X  8", mixed media

     In May of 2021, I posted a Memorial Day piece, asking the eternal question of when we 

human beings would finally learn to stop making wars and killing each other.  That posting 

included a painting called The Exultant Spartan, showing a warrior who had spent the day 

pillaging a conquered enemy city, and was triumphantly warming himself before the fire, 

as he burned the city to the ground.

     Nine months after I posted that piece, Vladimir Putin sent the full force of the massive

Russian army across the borders into Ukraine, intending to annex the entire country into

Russia, and make all of the Ukrainians submit to Russian rule.  Eight million Ukrainians 

have fled into other European countries, and millions more have been displaced from their

 homes.  Many thousands of men, women and children have been killed or severely 

injured, and nothing remains of many cities and towns but bombed and burned out ruins.  

This was all done to satisfy the bloated ego of one man.

    We are now marking one full year since that invasion began.  Things did not go exactly 

as Putin planned.  The Ukrainians have fought the Russians to a stand-still, but he 

refuses to withdraw, so the daily slaughter continues without let-up.  There doesn't seem 

to be any end in sight.  How many more months, or even years, of misery lie ahead?  

And even if the Ukrainians do eventually manage to push the Russians off of their land, 

there is nothing which can compensate them adequately for all of the misery, pain and 

death which has been inflicted on them.  

     There is an old story which says that Emperor Nero played his fiddle as he was 

watching Rome burn.  The image that congers up, of an extreme sociopath enjoying

a conflagration of total destruction, suggested the above vision of Putin, admiring his

own reflection among the fires of Ukraine...... and smiling!  The only things missing,

 from the image are his devil's horns.

     Many people still hold on to the mythological idea of the existence a humanoid

creature who is the personification of evil, living in some underworld kingdom, and

causing people to do evil things.  But the real devils are the sociopaths among us, 

who think only of themselves, and the ignorant enablers who follow their leader's 

bidding.  It doesn't matter whether it is a Hitler or a Mussolini or a Putin, they all 

take power by pandering to, and promoting the worst instincts of the populous: 

the hatreds, jealousies and fears of anyone they see as somehow different from 

themselves.  After gaining a base of support, the new great leader kills off anyone 

who speaks out against him, and abolishes the free press, replacing all genuine 

information sources with his own propaganda machine. After a few years of 

indoctrination, the tribal instinct takes over, allowing the people to think of 

themselves as somehow correct, if they commit evil acts for the good of their 

nation.

    This has all become a pattern of history which is destined to be repeated

until the end of time, unless we finally manage to properly educate every man

woman and child, replacing our mythologies and tribalism, with the guiding

truths of science and humanism.    Socrates told us where we were going

wrong over two thousand years ago.  He said,"There is only one good,

knowledge, and one evil, ignorance."   That is a statement which we should

be repeating to ourselves on a regular basis.   

                                                 Eugene P. McNerney