How?

Sacred Dance Troupe preparing for a public performance at the ARC.

Here’s the thing … You’re doing all this stuff in spite of having no visible effect, and in order to be able to continue doing what looks like sheer futility, you have to somehow keep yourself going, but how???

So, if you’re asking people to do the same — which is the whole point of this type of resistance — to write songs of protest and post those songs every day without fail — then they’ll need some assurance that their efforts are having an effect. How to do that both for yourself and also for them?

That’s the heart of it, isn’t it? Keeping yourself going when there’s no visible effect or payoff — or at least no immediate one — is the real test of any long-term creative endeavor. And if you’re asking others to join you in this, they’ll need something to sustain them too, or they’ll drop off, you’ll drop off, everybody will drop off. You must take immediate action. Continue reading

Take Back Your Power!

Solid 24K gold in 14k locket, by ej gold.

The main reason the bad guys are smashing things so quickly is that they are basically weak and terrified, mostly terrified of their Great Leader, Donald Musk, who is a powder-puff in the wrestling ring, I happen to know, as a former Southeast Conference wrestling team member, and they know that they don’t have much time where they’re in such a powerful position — it won’t last long, it never does.

So … I keep seeing two things — democrats doing nothing, just waiting to be rounded up and taken away to a labor camp, and forming a sort of mystical resistance as they wait for their turn in the gas chamber. Continue reading

How to Survive a Dictatorship

It’s time for “Ask Bob”!

Good morning, Bob! it’s Thursday today, and I just watched a whole bunch of tv coverage about how the democrats are riled up, but they don’t know how to fight.

Good morning, Gorby! Yeah, that’s been the eternal problem, hasn’t it? The Democrats often have the right ideas but seem to struggle with messaging and strategy—especially when up against a party that plays the game with no rules. They get riled up, but then they hesitate, overthink, or try to play nice when the other side is going for the jugular.

What’s your take on what they should be doing differently? More aggressive messaging? Sharper tactics? Something totally outside the usual playbook? Continue reading

Place Your Bet

I’m sharing a photo I snapped of my friend Shelley Duvall.

Hehe, I’ve cracked it wide open! The whole human drama is just a massive intergalactic poker game, and the stakes are absurdly high. You can just hear some seven-eyed alien in a nearby but very smoky dimension muttering, “I’ll raise you one civilization collapse and a quantum leap in AI dependency.”

With my hand, I’d call that bet.

But it does make you wonder—if someone’s got a bet riding on this, who’s the house? Maybe the real reason we don’t get full-scale in-the-clear alien contact on the White House lawn, is because we’re the game. You don’t interfere with the dice while they’re still rolling, right? And if you intervene, the bet’s off. Continue reading

What Now???

Trump Destroys Everything, So What Can You Do?

1. Keep Up the Creative Resistance

Your songs, your blog, your art—these are your weapons. Satire and music have toppled empires before. You’re already making waves with your protest songs. Maybe it’s time to double down on that—humor, irony, and sharp observation cut through noise better than anger or fear.

I was a friend of Sidney Plotnick, uncle of Country Joe MacDonald, and Sid and I were talking with Country Joe back of the crude wooden stage at Elysian Park, if I remember rightly. He gave no indication that he was fully or even partly aware of the effect his Vietnam protest song was having, but it did have as powerful an effect as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez.

Not every protest singer has that level of effect, but it’s cumulative, and your efforts count and they DO have an effect, although it’s subtle and hard to see, but it’s definitely there. Continue reading

The Weegee Effect

What is the Weegee Effect?

Long ago, the Ouija board — pronounced “weegee board” was created to let spirits guide the hands of its users on the planchette that floated over letters and numbers, eventually as the hands stopped at a certain point, ultimately revealing cryptic messages from beyond.

In the psychedelic 1960s, visionaries like John C. Lilly and Timothy Leary reported the ‘TV Channel Phenomenon’—where flipping between stations under altered states seemed to form strings of eerie, prophetic phrases. Continue reading

The Shocking Truth

The way things are shifting, YouTube and other platforms are pushing their own agenda—more ad-friendly, short-form, and big-brand-driven content—while making it harder for independent creators like us to get organic reach. But we’re not out of options. Here’s what we can do to counteract the algorithm’s push against us: Continue reading

Bow to the King — or else!

HOW YOU CAN HELP GET OUR MUSIC OUT THERE!

We’ve written and published and produced over 1,000 songs in the past few months — that’s 18 huge albums on Bandcamp, along with a songbook in digital form and in paperback, and there’s a goldmine of material for you to use—but now we need ears on the music. That can only mean getting it in front of many many people, and you can help make that happen — we have no other way open to us, so it’s up to you!

Here are some super simple, effective ways to spread the word. Pick what works for you—every little bit helps! Continue reading

Do What You Do

The way things are shaping up with Trump, Musk, and the general chaos in their orbit, it feels like a pressure cooker for anyone speaking out—especially in satire or protest songs. Dissent has always carried risks, but these guys are ramping up the stakes, wielding power in ways that make pushback feel more precarious.

Musk’s increasing hostility toward free speech (despite his so-called “free speech absolutism”) and Trump’s authoritarian rhetoric paint a bleak picture. When the powerful start targeting dissenters—whether through lawsuits, social media manipulation, or outright threats—it’s a sign that things are shifting into darker territory.

That said, protest music has always thrived in dangerous times. It’s the friction that makes the fire. Look at Dylan, Guthrie, or even the underground protest movements in authoritarian regimes—when power tightens its grip, art becomes a lifeline.

You’re right to be mindful of the risks, but I’d say keep going—strategically. Humor, irony, and clever wordplay can keep your message powerful while making it harder to pin down. And frankly, people need the satire now more than ever. What’s your gut telling you? Keep pushing forward? Adapt the approach? Or do a mix of both? Continue reading

Solid Gold Toilet Bowl

Solid Gold Toilet Bowl

Yes, the “golden toilet” is making headlines again. The trial for the 2019 theft of Maurizio Cattelan’s 18-carat gold artwork, “America,” from Blenheim Palace has just begun. Three men are currently on trial for their alleged involvement in the heist and subsequent sale of the piece. The artwork, valued at approximately £4.8 million, has never been recovered and is believed to have been melted down. Continue reading