Opiate of the Masses Story

Endless revolutions the world has already spun in this new age of the Millennium and our thoughts become immersedinto trying times. Our illusions of grandeur become harder to achieve and our promised land never seems to fulfill our personal quests to find Empyrean. We are the consumers who are consumed by fragmented thoughts stored in compressed time as the world continues to spin, like a locomotive trains spinning wheels that sing a haunted lullaby about our land of hopes and dreams.

Here in the Millennium the controversial issues that consume our thoughts are diverse and complex, like the completed painting "Opiate of the Masses" will be. Ideas for paintings come to me in flashes of brilliance and this probably explains why I am not very talented at complex art. It is in one's mind where flash ideas are created, inside the Modula Oblongata, just south of the Cerebral Cortex and just a split millisecond after a Synapses firing. After all the bombardment in ones life by our surroundings and cultural upbringing, the Sojourn of a lifetime is what is on my mind this month and this short story, hopefully will explain my over caffeinated thoughts.

The idea for the painting came to me in a flash while discussing it one day with Paula about her new career in Psychology, and her relentless pursuit of a Doctorate. It was a conversation about how great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events, and how small minds simply talk about people. The conversation eventually led to things that are addicting in our lives, like Opiates and how they play an important role in it. Has CNN changed the way we see the world? Is it possible to have too much stimulation? We have become addicted to wanting excessive immediate gratification and information. Perhaps we should give thanks to the communications networks overzealous reporters in search of global grandeur for pounding it into our heads.

When I was a young boy the lazy summer days seemed to last forever, and it was already bedtime when "Walter Cronkite" or "Rodger Mudd" of the evening news came on television. The news seemed to be more upbeat back then as life was somewhat simpler. As children of the sixties, our parents raised us to avoid too much brain damage and mind over stimulation, "Easy on the sugar kids". It was a much simpler time back then to enjoy your youth and fun-stuff like watching the Flintstones, taking a ride on a bicycle, going fishing or heading out to baseball practice. Although those days are gone now, the memories have left a warm spot in my heart.

As I have grown-up, I have been forced to realize that today's generation of children have been born better off than we were, because of the advancement of modern medicines and technology. I could not imagine in my days of tender youth of being propped up in front of a computer by the age of three, hammering away at the keyboard, sending emails to Big Bird. As the new generation X kids roll into the Millennium, their priorities are different than ours used to be. They want high tech gadgets like miniature cell phones to make calls from in the middle of nowhere to find friends half way around the world on a boat sun tanning somewhere in the middle of the Indian Ocean. All I wanted as a young man was an old clunker car to get around in and an eight-track player to listen to my rocking Deep Purple bulky eight-tracks on. Today's youth are over stimulated and fascinated with synthetic drugs like Ecstasy, Crystal Meth and Viagra, and it seems eerie compared to the days of burning a simple joint of Marijuana. The new wars are now fought in months not years with overwhelming firepower, unmanned spy planes, outer Space Satellites and Laser guided missiles as the Star Wars games have begun. This new generation is crazed by designer freshly ground gourmet coffees like Espresso's or Mocha Cappuccino's, and they no longer appreciate a simple cup of Joe from Maxwell house anymore. Body piercing and tattoos are all the rage as short hair is in once again and long hair is out, and the over consumption of Ultra Designer Napa-Valley wines has replaced old time jug favorites from America's wine pioneers Ernest and Julio Gallo. Peppermint Schnapps is now available with real Gold flakes in it as the need for the classic Manhattan has faded into the blue beyond. Butter is out and Olive oil is in, as nightly family dinners together no longer consist of traditional American home cooking and has been replaced by fast food establishments. There is no time to discuss things with your family anymore, only flash ideas as you surge to find your day planners. Mom's meatloaf has been replaced by micro waved chicken McNuggets and Pizza pockets with Mono Sodium Glutamate. When will the world slow down?

My generation grew up as kids with the Beatles, Herman's Hermits, and simple rock and roll music. This weekend as I walked past a group of kids at the San Diego Sea Port Village the penetrating angry words of rap froze me in my tracks, and I became captivated to listen. Hey Buddy; I was just going for a walk ok What kind of stuff is, I'm a devil in the street with a rap that's hard to beat, stay out of my way or there will be blood on the streets? Listen man, I am sorry but I prefer the Beatles and "Love, Love me do", or "I'm Henry the Eighth I am" by Herman's Hermits. I will even pay you to play some timeless Bruce Springsteen jams, like Born in the USA Here is a hundred bucks, just turn that stuff off and go buy some real music.

In my life, my eyes have bled red from tears of uncontrolled sadness brought on by many disasters, but I have also been proud enough to witness so many great things. One of which was seeing President Ronald Reagan in person deliver a spell binding speech after an uninterrupted thirty minute dizzying introductory standing ovation. Ronald Reagan was the great communicator. I have also been unfortunate enough to witness the terrorists of the "Al Qaeda Jihad" and Osama Bin Ladin's band of Merry Men who crashed our own US jets into the World Trade Center Towers and the Pentagon building killing thousands.

There is a hole in my stomach, which has left me with clenched fists of anger and horror. It has left me with an immediate desire to join the Military Special-Forces to pay the Bastards back in spades. That very same week I was resurrected with overwhelming confidence when all seemed lost, to witness on television, an awe inspiring speech from a tear filled New York Church from our new President George W. Bush. It was a speech honoring the proud, the few and the brave that overwhelmed me with red, white and blue patriotism.

These are the best of times and these are the worst of times, and this is the beginning of the end I fear. I am now 42 and no longer feel indestructible. If I had just one wish left, it would be to simplify the world, as it seems to spin out of control. Religion, Politics and War should occasionally be replaced with the Beatles "Sergeant Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band" masterpiece, maybe a little "Freebird" or perhaps some of Peter Frampton's "Do you feel like we do". These are the days of phenomenal times, in a marvelous new age of achievements that have made our lives simpler. These achievements have forced us to forget life's simple lessons that are just as important to remember as the top ten biggies count down about thou shall not? Our personal quests to find Heavens Empyrean here on Earth and all the good things in life are all a part of the Opiate of the Masses. All of us have been drugged from the Opiates of the Millennium and by what the masses want, and what technology produces.

At night, I sit in quiet and wonderment of why the world continues to spin its tireless revolutions. Will the locomotive trains steel wheels run forever or will they eventually rust? Perhaps everyday starts over new and fresh with the fading of black night that brings forth the promise of clean light from a forgiving Sun to reenergize our weakened minds. Each day technology brings us new accomplishments that we think we must have in our lives and the cravings are just too much to bare. Like a child who has been waiting for the tooth fairy to come, to replace a tooth with coin, these cravings are just wants not needs and they are the new Opiates for the Masses.

So, let the Bells of Freedom ring and let the thunder of Americas Military raise their mighty hand in the solemn name of justice to find these Terrorists and hand them their destiny. God Bless America, the land that I love. I will stand beside her and guide her with the light from the night up above. We all have secret wants and desires for the finer Opiates in life and none of us want War and blood shed to come to America. As we hunt out the terrorists of this new era our hands will get bloody, and we all will be riding the same train. For it is on this train we will stand side by side, as it is filled with Saints and sinners, losers and winners, realists and dreamers, the genius and ill fated and people just like you and me. Our world will continue to spin in endless revolutions and the mighty trains steel wheels will continue to roll, and I will hope and pray for all of us in my private thoughts.

This morning as I was finishing this short story, I made myself a big bowl of Quaker Oats grain cereal to start my day. I placed the hot bowl of cereal on the glass dining room table as the butter started to melt into the cream and brown sugar and a beam of light from the golden Amber Sun shone thru the patio window onto my bowl of steaming oats cereal. It gave me the idea of how to finish the story. What a finish this story will have, as my subconscious ponders for a minute to realize how fortunate we all are to live in such a great country as this that feeds and protects the world. I take a big spoonful scoop of hot Quaker Oats and smile contently, and start thinking about America's song. I take a satisfying bite of America's grain cereal and start to hum a little bit of one of the most beautiful songs ever written. From the mountains to the prairies, to the ocean white with foam, God Bless America, my home sweet home. For her Purple Mountains majesty above the fruited plains, God Bless America land that I love for everything, including her Amber waves of grain... And that my friends, is a lot of Frickin Oatmeal to fuel the minds, of all of us who have been consumed by the Opiates of the Masses.

WRITTEN BY GREGORY MICHAEL MANESS D.B.A. GREGOART

THE OPIATE OF THE MASSES SHORT STORY AND 3D OIL PAINTING WAS FINISHED IN SEPTEMBER THRU NOVEMBER OF 2001, IT WAS COMPLETED JUST AFTER THE TERRORIST ATTACKS ON NEWYORK CITYS TWIN TOWERS AND WASHINGTONS PENTAGON BUILDING.

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