Thought for the Day - April 5

Subject: Thought for the Day - April 5
From: Peter T.
Date: 05 Apr 00 - 09:04 AM

Out of the city, talking to a farmer friend of mine as we walk over the concrete-like fields awaiting the spring planting. Day cold, grey, April. I say: "How in hell are you going to get by without any rain? You had virtually no snow this winter, and are not getting any rain; the ground is as hard as a rock." He replies: "Corn these days, and the way we work, you don't need much rain: a bit at the right time is nice." We keep walking: hard, hard ground. He says: "The whole point of a farm now is a factory with invisible walls. The whole point of all this work for 100 years is to regularise and bring under some kind of control this damn working out of doors. Weather, drought, bugs, the whole shebang. That's what all the chemicals and boys in white coats and gasoline replacing horses is for." We keep walking: his outside dog bounds around us, barking and jumping in the sculpted furrows. I say: "I thought you liked farming because it wasn't factory work." He smiles at me: "You can't escape it, brother. One planet: one factory." It starts, spittingly, to rain.

Subject: RE: Thought for the Day - April 5
From: Hyperabid
Date: 05 Apr 00 - 09:16 AM

I don't know if this is wholly appropriate - punk poetry rarely is - There follows the text of a poem produced by a little know and long defunct punk outfit known as Flux of Pink Indians

Can you smell the nu smell
Travelling through the air
Aye that I can lad
It's a coming from over there
Over hills, down in t' valley
There's no buildings there
There's nuclear power dumpsite
Someone doesn't care
Parliament says it's safe
So why not bury it there

Unusually for the music genre these people were both pacifists, environmentalists and vegetarians... and whilst their "beef" - if you'll pardon the pun - at the time was with the nuclear industry - this nearly 20 year old protest has echoes of your comments above Peter T.

However the A-side of the record feturs a song with the lyrics -

I love tube disasters
I wanna marry a tube disaster
I want another one like the last one
'Cos I live for tube disasters - yeah!

So I guess that provides a little balance...

Hyp

Subject: RE: Thought for the Day - April 5
From: MMario
Date: 05 Apr 00 - 10:37 AM

Peter - why do I feel a sudden chill running up my spine?