Thursday, June 28, 2018

A Letter Of Hope From Henry Rollins


I hate “we’re fucked.”

I mean, I don’t want to shame anyone who has said it, thought it, or posted it. I have too. But as a philosophy, as a statement of belief, I hate it. Because it means you’ve given up.
We are absolutely NOT fucked.

Things are so bad. This country has taken a turn that I could never have predicted. It is absolutely fascist, nativist, and extremist. It’s every bit as scary as it seems.
But we are not fucked.

I read a long-form article on the Russia hacks in the New Yorker not long ago. However much you think that influenced the outcome, it was an instructive piece of journalism. There is very little indication that there was a specific political agenda that was being wished for. The goal was simple: Sow chaos and undermine the faith of Westerners in their own institutions.

This is really important to think about right now.

I have a high regard for Mueller and I think his investigation will have some influence. But don’t wait on him to save us. He can’t. And don’t wait on impeachment. I would support it fervently, but it is nothing to bank on. And especially don't assume Trump can't win again. He absolutely can. Our best bet - better, even, than all of our protests and actions - is actually voting.

It’s so square. It’s so old-fashioned. Many of us involved with the hard-left or anarchist scene have been trained to disregard it.

Fucking don’t. NOT NOW, guys. It is the best tool at our disposal. Yeah, you can say that they will sabotage it, reject it, whatever. “Sufficient to the day is the evil thereof.” In other words, don’t create troubles before they exist. Anything seems possible to me right now, but it remains the case - despite hacked voting machines and gerrymandering - that there is no known mechanism by which our government can deny massive voter turnout.

Take back the House in November. Then take back the Presidency in 2020. The worst thing we could do is pretend that these are givens. I never, ever, ever thought that this piece of shit could sit in the Oval Office. I was so humbled by my error. Therefore I assume he could take it again - I know he could - unless we accept the threat as real.

When we say, “We’re fucked,” we roll over. We defeat ourselves. We do their job for them. Don’t do that. We are NOT fucked. We are in a fight. It sucks. It’s hard. People are suffering. The earth is suffering. It will get worse.

You know, since everyone loves the Nazi comparisons, there were people during the HEYDAY of the Third Reich who NEVER said, “We’re fucked.” They said, “We’re in a fight.” And you know what’s interesting? Nazi Germany went from the worst regime in the world to a liberal democracy within a lifetime.

Look at Japan. Take the historical view. Stop pretending that the worst of what’s happening now is what is going to always happen. This is what is happening RIGHT NOW. That’s all you know. If you think it’s going to be this way forever, read a book.

Countries slide into fascism for long periods. It happens. Countries also have short-term extremist right-wing governments. Happens in Europe all the time. They get voted out. The threat remains. The threat of fascism will remain in America in a way it never has before. It’s a real movement. But we’re not fucked. Not even close. We can get off the ropes in the mid-terms and knock them out in 2020. But only if we stop saying that we’re fucked, and start seeing this as a fight.

I’m no Pollyanna. Things are so unutterably bad that I walk around in a constant state of nausea and horror. But you have to take the historical view, and you can’t lie down and say we’re doomed, or else they have beaten you.

Again, I don’t want to shame anyone who says, “We’re fucked” as an emotional reaction. I get it, I really do. But if you say that as a historical reality, then you SHOULD be ashamed. We are so far from being fucked. It's time for that warrior spirit, from everyone.
 
Our best bet, actually our only realistic bet, is to mobilize the vote. There has always been a silver lining to this situation. I have always hesitated to state it, for fear of sounding like I am not taking the horror seriously. Fuck that; I do. But there has always been the possibility, there remains the possibility, that this is a time when our country faces up to its worst reflection, sees it truly, and breaks the fucking mirror. A time when the last bastion of white power and male supremacy and oligarchy attempts to enact fascism, but the antibodies of the American system and American multi-culturalism kick in to reject it.

Where do you want to stand in that equation? As someone who rolled over because we’ve have had two awful years of shit that much of the world has already experienced many, many, many times over, so you decided that we’re finished and done for? Come on. Look at Europe, look at Africa, look at Asia. Back and forth with this shit, and much worse.

I have your back. Get up. Here’s my hand. Let’s fight.
 
It can’t become hip to give up. It can’t become hip to say we are fucked. Look at history. People have been so much more fucked than us, and won. If you truly believe we are finished, I’m sorry, but you were the first to fall. Stick a fork in you, turn you over, you’re done. I don’t want to see you do that, if only for the selfish reason that we need you.

Do all the protests, do all the direct action, make all the phone calls, then mobilize in October and November. That’s when we can get off the ropes and start punching again. Take the long view, my sisters and brothers. Don’t let them take you out of the fight.

And if you need me for anything, I am here.

43 comments:

Debra She Who Seeks said...

A great call to action! And he's right. Anti-fascists didn't roll over and surrender to Hitler and they should not do so now for Trump.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

Let the Revolution begin. I hope they get my good side on camera.

DrGoat said...

Up the corporate establishment.

Count Robot said...

Wise words.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

You get nothing less from Rollins.

Unknown said...

The only trouble is..Rollins did NOT write this..Will Stenberg did:https://www.facebook.com/wstenberg?hc_location=ufi

wren said...

This was not written by Rollins. This was written by Will Stenberg. He just happened to use the photo of Rollins on his post because it echoed sentiments in his post. You need to change your attribution.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

But that is deceptive. How stupid. Why put his picture and write just like he would write. I feel duped. Maybe I won't change it.

Unknown said...

This wasn't written by Henry Rollins...This was written by Will Stenberg.....whether you think it was stupid of him to put a picture of Henry Rollins on the post doesn't change the fact that it wasn't written by Henry Rollins....are you going to perpetuate "fake news" bc you don't agree with the author of a great piece of inspiration's choice of layout. C'mon man...that goes completely against what I'm assuming you stand for by reposting this.

alberta said...

He doesn't write like Rollins, he writes like Will. He simply posted a quote and photo of Rollins 🤦

Mr. Enigma said...

You're seriously shocked a post called "A Letter from Henry Rollins" is confusing people? The title is 100% misleading.

Jason A. Quest said...

You made a mistake, Calvin. Now own it and stop making excuses for it. "Maybe I won't change it." Doubling down on your fuck-up just makes you the kind of news-faking garbage that makes excuses for Trump.

TimeSnow said...

Of course whomever wrote this is absolutely wrong. You're utterly fucked.

The main lesson of Trump is that America is a soft target, easy to manipulate and with no meaningful defense against parties - foreign and domestic - that want to manipulate it.

Not that that is a shocker to anyone that's been paying attention.

The justice system is racist, classiest and corrupt, your education system is broken beyond repair, and has fed generations of kids propaganda, and your political system is a global laughingstock.

America is a dead man walking.

Unknown said...

Nice summation and plea for constructive action. I would offer two great books to help those out there trying to make sense of all this. A great and easy read of our short history is "Americana" highly entertaining and well written, was asking myself why I wasn't taught this in school? The other is "Age of Anger". You'll learn real fast as post so wonderfully stated above, that it's not about us. This is a cyclic occurrence that humans everywhere are going through. You don't think so? Watch one episode or two of "Vietnam" on Netflix, then ask yourself if there was anyway in 1962, anyone, anywhere in any manner would of believed that China would be making almost everything we have in America? You would of been laughed at and dismissed. So...learn your history well and know that out of every trough comes a peak and it has to get pretty dark before the sun shines again.

Zed said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

Nice to see people who have never been here telling me what to do on my blog. Go away if you don't like what you see.

Total Party Kill DM said...

Not Rollins. Will Stenberg. The original pic was of Rollins being interviewed and stating something to the effect of, "These are punk rock times! There are the days Joe Strummer trained you for!!!" Please give credit where credit is due. Thanks!!!

Unknown said...

But Henry? What happens when less than a fraction of the people? LEss than one third? Enact what might become a dictatorship?
What happens when people have been in Congress for forty years?
Henry? How long was Strom Thurman in office? How long? I have google, I can go look it up.
What if the problem is inherent in the system? What if -we- have become the Imperialistic threat to the world. What if the rest of the world got over it, but we didn't. Not we. Not I. What if these assholes who have controlled the system since before I was born and are continuing to control it?
They dream of Empire.
It's Rome and the Senate has no knives.
Sorry, I am being very very stupid. It's not good to voice such things.
There was a first amendment

Unknown said...

The original post by Will Stenberg: https://www.facebook.com/wstenberg/posts/10156414314761192

Unknown said...

Just my personal opinion, which may or may not mean much to anyone...

I think some of you are getting too wrapped up in who said it to who. It seems that the meaning of WHY this was posted has been far thrown away or dismissed. I feel THE MESSAGE is what was intended for being posted, not who wrote it.

Of course credit should be given where credit is due, and I'm definitely not trying to belittle anyone's opinion about it. But who are we to say what someone should or shouldn't post in their own blog?

Ok, so whether Will Stenberg wrote it or Rollins wrote it, it was a great "wake-up call". It was great to read!

Unknown said...

"Go away if you don't like what you see."
Sure thing...but not before calling you a Jackass for misattributing Hank.

Ved said...

Yes, it's a great wake-up call and a great message—all the MORE reason to give proper credit where credit is due! How would you feel if you wrote a fantastic piece that went viral and everyone ignored you and gave credit to the wrong person? Attribution in this age is more critical than ever, so by dismissing the attribution as unimportant or less important than the message, one becomes part of the problem with the increasingly broken communication system. False attribution damages the efforts of all who produce valuable material and rightfully expect to be properly recognized for it as the noise online gets louder and crazier.

You can even risk a lawsuit with such a simple thing as misattribution. This is lazy publishing and the hallmark of an amateur effort in general. As it becomes harder and harder to identify work worth spending our precious time on, we will learn to ignore things that have low-quality scores like poor writing, false attribution and bad production values. So, if you don't mind if your work is mostly ignored or cast onto the scrap heap, then by all means, don't bother with "fussy and irrelevant" things like proper attribution, formatting and high-quality writing and editing.

It really damages the actual message, I would argue. Witness the wasted time we've now spent in the comments regarding the attribution when we could have focused solely on the message instead if it had been doubled-checked and attributed properly in the first place.

Jennie of the Jungle said...

I thought I had read this somewhere else before! I am disappointed at the lack of credit to the original author.

Unknown said...

Fix this please:

https://www.facebook.com/659246191/posts/10156414314761192/

Unknown said...

He obviously isn't going to change it, otherwise he would have already done it. This is probably the most attention this blogger has ever received, so he likes it.

Henry has already said it wasn't him in a Twitter post this morning. Henry also said it was Will Stenberg's words.

This blogger deserves to go away, for misrepresentation and unwillingness to correct his mistake.

Unsubscribe.

Done.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

I was just thinking of changing it but for the first time ever (you would know that if you were ever here before) I will not because I will not be bullied by you retards. I am overjoyed that it's bothering you all so much. Thanks for the pick me up.

Oh and fuck you.

Samuli said...

Just fucking change the title, yeah?

Davey said...

Brah! Did you actually just tell your readership to fuck off?

Unknown said...

Multiple people point out your *mistake* and rather than suck it up and lose some clicks for the TRUTH, you claim bullying. Such bullshit. Obviously you care nothing about integrity and as such should not be listened to no matter what awesomeness you dig up (and misattribute). An asshole who recognizes good ideas is still an asshole.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

people who never commented here before didn't think to maybe just ask me nicely, did they? So give it up. It will never be changed.

Wild Bill said...

I’ll ask nicely. Please change the title. We have to be better than those fools from the other side. We have to be smart and absolutely accurate. Please.

Unknown said...

Ved:

Of course I would say something. But not bully, curse at, Or otherwise be an ass about it. I'm a firm believer sugar will get you further than vinegar. Anyway, just saying if you politely ask someone to do something, especially if it's something of a possible sensitive nature, you may be more likely to get the desired outcome instead of defenses going up and the more apt someone is to annoy or ignore you. Not trying to argue or take sides or anything of the sort, just trying to make the point that if you (people in general, not you specifically),would be a bit kinder, some things may be more apt to change.

Again, not trying to starting anything. I guess in most situations, even if someone did something wrong, they should be treated with at least a bit of courtesy.


Theatre teacher jdreiling said...

I've never been here before. I would say the only reason I came here is because of a link someone else posted that directed me here. Would I have read the letter if it were not written by someone notable? Regrettably not. It's a fantastic letter, and one that should be shared with many people.
Going through the timeline of the above comments, it looks like you were as duped as others when you thought it was Rollins. In fact, you said: "But that is deceptive. How stupid." I agree. So I guess I just don't understand why you want to continue the deception.
But hey, it's your cave. Thanks for the quick tour. I might have been more inclined to stay if circumstances were different.

Truth be told said...

What a douche. I have asked nicely. So have others right from the start.


I have tried to unsubscribe from your piece of shit blog, but can't. It won't let me. Fuck off

Unknown said...

The CFR has controlled foreign policy for a century. The Federal Reserve has controlled monetary policy for a century. But by all means lets continue the keyhole perspective and lay a century of geopolitical dysfuction at the feet of the current administration instead of taking the historical longview and engaging with the suppressed history of the last 150 years.

Lisa Santoro, LMT, LLCC said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

You have to just shake your head at all of the people more interested in shifting the topic away from the meat of this to the fact that it was misattributed.

Unknown said...

I must add that the apparent refusal to fix the mistake forces many to call into question the entire thing. Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is looking and to admit errors when they are made and to FIX them. The utter ignorance of this will only drive people away. This is human nature. I wonder if Hank knows about this. Perhaps a quick email to him will fix that.

And that is what will happen as soon as I finish posting here. Never make the mistake that you can ignore something and it will just go away. Or that someone who is reading this doesn't know someone involved.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

Check my record. I always attribute the source of my posts when I know them. Any time in the past I have made a mistake I corrected it right away. This was the only time in 41000 post that anyone make a stink. I was totally prepared to fix something that I was unware was not by Rollins at the time I found it. No evil intent on my part. BUT when someone comes to my blog and tried to bully me to remove something and DEMAND that I do it on THEIR schedule - well that's were I tell you all to go fuck off. Leave it you want. You were never hear to begin with and I will not miss you in the slightest. But know that I will never change it and it's not a big a deal as you all are making it out to be. That post is long gone is a chain that ends because links are added daily. Find another cause because to me this issue is dead.

G said...

it's cool. "The Riot Tapes" doesn't know the first thing about my country. Never read about us, never listened to our music, knows nothing other than what Pravda spouts.

Next comment?

G said...

and I know Rollins. We've kept in touch over the years. Met him first in '82 when Black Flag were one of the few LA bands allowed to play in the City without having their asses kicked all the way back down I5. Would be very surprised if Will Stenberg didn't transcribe one of Rollins' spoken word engagements. It's his style, and vocabulary.

Don't like it? CATCH UP.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

Thank you for that, G.

Jsta_Barracuda said...

THANK YOU!