When the story of last month’s raid on the Gibson Guitar factories and offices in Memphis and Nashville broke, the first thought that hit me was…”Were the drawn weapons really necessary?  Is this still America?”  Imagine my complete surprise when I learned Gibson’s Chairman and CEO, Henry Juszkiewicz, is a staunch Republican who does not bow at the altar of Obama; Gibson is the only major guitar manufacturer in a non-blue (read non-union) state; one of his company’s leading competitors, C.F. Martin & Company, uses the same materials in their products with impunity; and Martin’s CEO, Chris Martin IV, is a long-time Democratic supporter.

Sarcasm off.

This incident has vintage guitar owners left wondering…”What next?”  Will the Feds be busting down the doors of musicians, guns drawn, to inspect our guitars to see if we have any contraband they can confiscate?  I have a hunch if that were to happen, they’d target musicians who are openly…dare I say…conservative.

And guess where they would start.

Nathan Picard

It just so happens that our featured artist, conservative singer/songwriter Nathan Picard, makes his own guitars.  Here is what he had to say about the latest display of thuggery by this Administration:

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Rock the Vote (RTV) is one of the nation’s most influential youth-targeted non-profits, describing itself as a non-partisan initiative whose “…mission is to engage and build the political power of young people in order to achieve progressive change in our country.”  While the organization touts its alleged centrism, actions over the past decade have caused many to believe that partisanship does, indeed, play a role in the organization’s operations.

During my tenure at Teen Web Online (a site I created back in 1999 in the wake of the Columbine massacre to help my generation overcome various youth-specific issues), I was extremely supportive of RTV.  I remember being enthralled by the notion that an organization would extend itself to trust and place value in America’s young generation, while working feverishly to make our voices heard.

Ten years later, I, like many others, have begun to wonder just how willing the organization is to remain true to its self-professed “non-partisanship” and whether I mistook indoctrination for trust.  While I am certainly supportive of the notion that a healthy democracy is characterized by a variety of organizations that represent divergent viewpoints, I am increasingly perplexed by the existence of organizations that shield their true intent behind a “non-partisan” status.  (more…)

Some lives slip through the cracks, people who you might pass everyday without giving a second thought. Precious is one of those people.

Vastly overweight and carrying her second child at the far-too-young age of 16, Precious is an African-American girl living in the Bronx who’s stuck four years behind her age group in the 7th grade, with a single mother who is verbally, emotionally and physically abusive towards her. Her father is only in the picture enough to come over and rape her, which led to her first child being born with Down Syndrome, and Precious utterly unaware of proper prenatal care or even a delivery date for her second.

The only thing that brings her any sense of joy is her imagination, which Precious uses to block out horrific moments of the past and present with visions of herself on red carpets and other glamorous situations. But when a school official steps in and orders her to go to an alternative school for troubled young women, a concerned teacher, social worker and eventually a male post-natal nurse discover the extent of Precious’ problems and help her take the drastic actions needed to save her life. (more…)