Will We Make It?

It's 5.20pm here in City of Angels and although there are several hours left before the day is officially over I am quietly confident that I will not need the shotgun after all. It's a shame because I spent the better part of the weekend polishing it, putting it away, getting it out again and polishing it some more.

I've been monitoring the news all day and so far, at least to my knowledge, we haven't had any "officer related shootings" or "excessive" uses of force that may cause social unrest. Violations of civil rights such as these have occasionally resulted in riots. Thankfully this has not been the case as it would just spoil the celebratory mood and isn't really in the spirit of the day.

I'm glad that the memory of Dr.King has not been tarnished although I could use a new portable telly (preferably colour) for the caravan or an alarm clock that makes you a brew, in fact there is many a luxury item on my "want list" and a civil disturbance would surely afford me the opportunity to cross a few of them off. This doesn't mean that I advocate the looting of retail stores at the drop of a hat. There would have to be a really good reason with which I identified and that I was prepared to defy the law for. When I think of the words of MLK, here are a few that I agree with:

"I'm concerned about justice. I'm concerned about brotherhood. I'm concerned about truth. And when one is concerned about these, he can never advocate violence. For through violence you may murder a murderer but you can't murder murder. Through violence you may murder a liar but you can't establish truth. Through violence you may murder a hater, but you can't murder hate. Darkness cannot put out darkness. Only light can do that."

It's a bit deep, and he may have been stoned or had a few jars before he said it but when you think about it he's right and you can't really argue with it, especially the bit about darkness and light. I would have to say though that I would have added "darkness can also put out light". Maybe he did have that bit in there but dropped it at the last minute to avoid confusing stupid people.

Anyway, as far as I'm concerned, anybody who gets me a paid day off work is alright so fair play to him. Dr. Martin Luther King - I salute you.

"We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools"