Hi there. This is gonna be about exercising your right to vote. And it is going to be about Frank Zappa -- maybe some stuff you didn't know about either subject but might, given the fast approaching Day of Destiny for our next four years, be of interest to you.
Here is just one thing I loved about Frank Zappa: He chose freedom. In doing that, in every moment, he was free. He was present. And that one thing that I loved about him was in everything and so it became everything. It was everywhere around him. Every disadvantage became a challenge and a different opportunity. Saying yes to freedom means saying no to anything else -- anything that is other. Anything that is a disguise. Anything that is a lie. From him I learned how to own and operate the word "no." Such a tiny word and the only word in our alphabet. It is the one we need to learn. It is the one that will set you free. When you understand the power in this word you will fly. It is the line beyond which you will not go. It is the choice you will not make. It is the permission you will not give. It is the space you will not yield. It is the deal you will not accept. It is your word, your honor, your name, your invitation to the world to be vigilant. To protect. To preserve. To pay attention. To be present.
Frank said that democracy was our greatest export. He said, "Democracy doesn't work unless you participate." Remember, voting "yes" is also your chance to say "no." Choosing who represents the people is also choosing who may not. Your vote can be the choice that puts people out of office. Choose people who will represent a free people. Choose freedom.
In order to vote you have to register. In order to exercise your choice you need to vote. In order to participate in democracy, you have to VOTE. FZ included Register to Vote on every album since the 18 year-old vote was passed in 1971. (See for yourself at iTunes or wherever fine Zappa Records are available.) He released more than 65 albums in his lifetime. He was the first to register voters with the help of the League of Women Voters in the concert halls he played in. He showed up for you. There are more than 20,000,000 women out there right now who could change the current rhetoric against women's rights, who could change the national dialog to benefit children for real just by getting registered now. Take your girlfriend, your wife, your partner, your mom, your sister, your neighbor, your babysitter, your daughter, your aunt, your grandmother, your niece, your sister-in-law and her mother to the post office to register to vote. And while you're at it, don't forget to VOTE.
Ask not what your president has done for you lately -- ask what you have done for yourself, your neighbors, your friends, your countrymen, your countrywomen, your country-children, your environment, your planet.
VOTE like your life and your planet is at stake.
gz
www.zappa.com
 |
 |
|
| Obama | Romney | |
|---|---|---|
| Electoral Votes (270 to win) |
332 | 206 |
| Obama | Romney | |
|---|---|---|
| Total | 65,899,660 | 60,932,152 |
| Percent | 51.1% | 47.2% |
| Democrats* | Republicans | |
|---|---|---|
| Current Senate | 53 | 47 |
| Seats gained or lost | +2 | -2 |
| New Total | 55 | 45 |
| Democrats | Republicans | |
|---|---|---|
| Seats won | 201 | 234 |
"Hello Frank Zappa"... There is hardly a day that has passed in my 70 years being here that I don't think about some aspect of "We are only in it for the Money."
His spirit is gripping.
There's also "hi," and "stuvwx."
Notice the "was."