The revolution will be televised, after all...

The actions at UC Berkeley and now at UC Davis these past days have been eye-opening. Around the country we are seeing civil disobedience being used effectively again.

Image by Pj Seleska.I've long thought that for real social change the following would be necessary:

1. The left would need to claim higher moral ground.

2. Good street theater would need to occur.

3. The above two points both de facto assume the need for civil disobedience.

4. An insistence upon the honest use of language would need to be successfully re-asserted.

I never had much hope of the above actually happening — but it's happening now. For one thing, I thought the eroded nature of public discourse — given corporate media control — was unlikely to be turned back. I assumed the left would need to keep groveling for crumbs of media attention. I listened with a certain agnosticism to reports of the role social media has played in places like Tahrir Square recently. ("Yes," I thought, "cell phones must be something like handy walkie-talkies in the streets now.")

But now that I see social media in effect near at hand in places like Berkeley and Davis, I'm changing my tune — even if only in this important arena of political action. The "people's mike" and "mike checks" are more than poignant metaphors. Cell phone cameras create "citizen journalists" everywhere.

The revolution will be televised, after all.

Peacewalk for a Nuclear Free World

Here is a very good reason to have a nulcear free world. Visit the latest post on Red Egg's SARHENTARUC JOURNAL, Sacred Sites Peacewalk for a Nuclear Free World.

The Wild West - part 3

This Sunday was the fourth day into our trip, and we felt the need for a little culture. Breakfast at the Custer County Art & Heritage Center was the best (and maybe only) option in town. 

There we were treated to an exhibit of LA Huffman’s photography...

and paintings by Theodore Waddell.

Outside, the Yellowstone River was threatening to crest, and this flood warning was announced on the news: “The river will continue to rise & exceed flood stage Sun morn at Forsyth and will rise above flood stage by late morn at Miles City.”

But that didn't stop us—and it didn't stop the Cowboy Mardi Gras either. Once again we trudged through the mud for another afternoon at the Bucking Horse Sale.

Not every princess can get away with wearing a shower cap under her tiara.

Is this young stud the next Blake Shelton?

Or the next JJ Elshere?

And hopefully this young cowboy sticks with gum...

and doesn’t pick up this nasty habit.

Say "hi" to Scott, Betty, Annette, Suzanne, Sarah and Juliette. The Western Muck Dusters.

Well, alligators live in swamps, right?

“He’s one of our youngest cowboys, but don’t let his age fool you. Do I hear $1200 for this talented young buck?”

Calm down, girls, it’s not what you think. These cowboys are being auctioned off for the bronc riding competition.

“My baby and my Bud!”

As a photographer sometimes you have to put yourself in the line of fire to get the shot.

The shotgun chaps are pretty dang cool!

Especially from this angle. Now I was getting up close and personal with the riders...

and with the horses.

This is the Calcutta event where some the top bronc riders in the world come to compete.

Keeping your chaps clean is an added incentive for staying on that bucking horse.

Many think that the "flank strap" causes the horse pain, but it actually tickles the horse's abdomen which makes him kick out higher and straighter. Once the ride is over, the strap is taken off the horse...

and removed from the ring.

OK, I'm really not obsessed, I just couldn't resist.

Yep, that's yet another Bud can.

Getting the saddle on the horse is likely just as difficult as staying on the saddle for eight long seconds.

Can't wait for those pick-up guys, right?

The Old Yellow Slicker

No matter how sloppy or muddy or lowery;
No matter how cold or unpleasant the storm,
No matter how blusterin', gusty or showery.
That old yellow slicker I wore kept me warm...(read the whole poem here)

It looks really awkward, but laying back on your horse is the correct way to come out of the chute.

The flank-strap is being taken away, while the horse is being picked up.

Though a good cowboy should be tough, he should also have "soft hands," much like a good pianist.

This thrown rider was a pretty good sport. After hurling mud at the hecklers...

he strutted back across the field with a big smile on his face,

and the announcer politely ponted out that he had missed a spot on his right shoulder.

Is this a Crest White Strip ad if you've ever seen one?

I returned to the stands to meet my friends...

and we watched the final event where the horses were auctioned off.

And then after all the bucking and mucking in Miles City, we headed back to Runamuck Ranch.

And on that wet drive back, we watched the dark clouds and the rising river and pondered the risk of staying in that area with road closures and unsafe riding conditions. But far more serious was the threat to crops and homes from the bulging rivers and the imminent snow melts as the Yellowstone swells and pours into the Missouri River.

The Wild West - part 2

As you may remember, we left off after a full day of mud and broncs at the Bucking Horse Sale. The next morning we joined the locals for a pancake breakfast at the Memorial Hall of the Range Riders Museum. 

And yes, we had pancakes.

Biscuits and gravy. 

And of course, Tang. I’m moving to Miles City to relive my childhood.

This napkin is loaded with local brands. SuzAnne and the Longs added their brands. East meets West.

We heard a little local history. 800 pioneer plaques and biographies are displayed on these walls. About 788 of those plaques are men—sheriffs, wranglers, ranch hands, homesteaders. 

For example here's a close up of Louie Pelissier, Cowboy-Rancher. If you ever find yourself at the museum, you can open any of the black tubes below the plaque and read about a particular life in the scroll inside. 

Off to the parade. It rained on the Miles City’s parade. 

One truck,  

two truck, 

red truck, 

blue truck.  

Old truck, 

new truck.

Shower caps for your cowboy hats is a great idea for the rain.

It hadn't rained at the Bucking Horse Sale since 1977.

But everyone came prepared.

 

We dropped into a coffee house and had a brief respite from the storm.

Coffee, like beer, bridges all cultural divides.

We dropped in Murdoch's Ranch & Home Supply...

thinking they would likely have muck boots. 

Juliette got new muck boots and cut the label off with her new buck knife. 

Time for a little lunch at the Hole in the Wall Cafe.

In Miles City you don’t need a cast or a jr. high graduation to get people to write on your body.

The 7th Calgary Drum & Bugle Corps from Sheridan, Wyoming, went from bar to bar... 

and played for their Bud. 

In Miles City Budweiser is considered the finest brewery in America. "For all you do, this Bud's for you." This would not be a suitable place for my designer beer husband.

Back to the fairgrounds for more mud and broncs.

The rain and mud didn’t make it easy on the horses...

 

or the riders. 

A few managed to stay on for the 8 seconds.

Amazing as that was at times. 

Here are a few rides that were photo worthy.

 

It was hard watching the horses snort mud like this.

But this rider still scored big points for... 

keeping his toes pointed out and...

for his smooth...

and controlled ride.

And there were some equally impressive falls.

The horses weren't the only ones eating mud.

Belly flop!!

Even she is probably wondering why anyone would want to do this.

For the few riders that managed to stay on, the pickup riders...

 pulled up and gave them a hand.

We thought that the pickup riders were the most impressive of all!

Check out the boot in the stirrup.

This rider didn’t fare so well. This is the real “true grit”!

I'd hate to have his chiropractic bills. 

 Chris DeLoux can tell you why the The Cowboy's Hat is important.

The cowboy's hat won't stay on the ground for long.

Everything is OK in the world if a rider walks off with his hat on.

In the immortal words of Dr. Seuss, "From there to here, from here to there, funny things are everywhere."