Closer Than We Appear

Galley:

The kitchen in a ship or aircraft. (also galley proof) A printer's proof in the form of long single-column strips, not in sheets or pages. [ORIGIN: galley from French galée denoting an oblong tray for holding setup type.]

The purpose of this blog is to focus on bridging the generational gap. Not only in a societal sense but also in the professional, political and entertainment realms. When I was younger, the concept of technology was a color TV and an Atari video game. Politics consisted of not getting in another Viet Nam War, fighting inflation and keeping the job market open. Much has changed since then. The youth of today still want what we wanted back then but they are confronted with a multitude of faster, easier and more treacherous options.

There is much to be shared between the latter day baby boomers like myself and the generations that have come to be known as Generation Y, X and Next. It is my strongest belief that the bridge decks rest on the columns of art and the art that speaks universally is music and visual stimulation.

CactusGrass Productions’ primary mission statement, in short, is to use music and movies to narrow the gap, lesson the distance and to recapture and strengthen the bonds that tied us together once before. If we unite across the boundaries of age, we can strengthen a nation being brought down by ruthless politicians, corrupt industry, a complete loss of ethics and values and the ongoing assault on the family and individual rights.

Those of us who were here before you were born, not only hear your disappointment and anger, but also we sang about it, wrote literature about it and even made movies about it. Then one day we all got busy and let the anger and determination slip away in exchange for kids, a minivan an over priced house and OK paying job. While we were not looking they divided us, where we had made huge strides racially and doused the fires that burned back then, they quietly fanned the coals to keep them easy to reignite.

Now without each other we let them taste victory and take our very souls away. My old friend and Grammy Award Winner, C.W. McCall once sang, “There won’t be no Country Music, there won’t be no Rock and Roll. Cause when they take away our country they take away our soul.” How close we are now and how we should have kept singing, writing, talking and, most importantly, listening back then. We just did not believe it was possible but looking back now, we realize it is not only possible but also it is coming to pass.

Through Music, Art and Education, we can reunite the ages, bring our families back to the family night out, and inevitably win back our country and our Independence.

This may all seem strange and foreign to some right now, but in the surveys and focus groups I have conducted locally, the response has been inspiring and overwhelmingly supportive.

This is only the beginning but stay diligent, observe and participate if you feel the passion. With nothing to reference but history books, you cannot see how it has changed and if you wait 30 years like we did, the chance for change will already have been eliminated.

For those of you who cannot relate to an old country singer, here are some lyrics to a song you may find more familiar. “Don’t annoy us further, Oh we have our work to do. Just think about the average, what use have they for you. Another toy to help destroy the elder race of man. Forget about your silly whims! It doesn’t fit the plan.” (Rush 2112). If you have never listened to it, as entertainment students you really should.

I encourage you to watch these incredible videos It is part 1 and 2. Keeping in mind that the song is 35 years old, tell me if it does not seem hauntingly familiar in today's world.

Like our guns, the government knows the power, over them, that art yields. If we do not use it to keep them at bay they will simply take it away. Do you think that is outrageous? Take a look at the current legislation to regulate the Internet. Here is just a sample of what is to come and what has already come to pass.

McCain's Bill to Ban FCC Regulation

Australian Censorship

"It is not the function of Government to keep the citizen from falling into error; it is the function of the citizen to keep the Government from falling into error."

- Robert H. Jackson (1892-1954), U.S. Judge

While it might sound far fetched, it is very real and coming fast. The greatest power we have is our faith our art, our spirit and each other young and old. There will be much more to come but for now, as students of entertainment, please understand we are charged with protecting more the profiting from what we have accepted as our lives work.

'Tis better that we stand and deliver now, rather than sleep and realize what we have lost then.

After all, we are closer than we appear.