On Violence

April 14, 2018 by Bob Redmond in poetry, res publica

Here's another pome also from the manuscript for Dante's Internal Combustion Engine, circa 2005. One reason for reconsideration is our current national debate on guns, and also, considering Hannah Arendt's essay "On Violence," the question of origins of violence: is it bureaucracy and the faceless "rule by Nobody" (as she would have it)? Or is is more personal, in which powerful actors exercise tyranny? Arendt said that the latter, the more identifiable they are, should tend against violence (and towards power), because one could appeal directly, attempt to redress wrongs, and if necessary, rebel.

Dante's Internal Combustion Engine

April 03, 2018 by Bob Redmond in poetry, haiku

This is the title track from an unfinished manuscript circa 2005. Posted now à propos of my recent time in medical clinics and—incredibly—the wars that will not end. I stand behind my conclusion (see the last line), despite it all.

For Virgil, wherever you are...

Adventures in Lo-fi

March 30, 2018 by Bob Redmond in cancer, music, this is now

When last we met (over a year ago), I'd channeled my inner John Lennon, in the wake of winter and a crippling nerve condition. It was a new year—2017!—with new hope; I was shedding social media and trying an old-school blog.

With numb hands I tapped out a few things, then tapped off the computer entirely to roam Woody Guthrie-like many miles to South Dakota and back…

April 29, 1942 - January 22, 2014

January 22, 2017 by Bob Redmond in haiku, this is now

Mom died three years ago today. The feeling of loss and love never goes away, it seems. On the contrary, the loss almost heightens the memories. During Mom's last months in Ohio countryside, I saw my siblings and our uncle Rick. We drove through the Amish farmlands, argued politics, and made grim jokes while watching Breaking Bad…

Klaatu barada nikto

January 21, 2017 by Bob Redmond in res publica

A blog, wow! So 1990's! Why and what for?

Three reasons: first, the dynamics of Facebook, with its binary like/dislike discourse and time-wasting attractiveness, is no longer merely distasteful. It's truly harmful: narrowing friend communities to hysterical echo chambers, facilitating fake news, creating destructive and expensive feedback loops for small businesses. It's a two-dimensional reality that allows for no quietude (I exist only if I click), no nuance, no reflection or meditation, no evolution of our human-ness…

with apologies to John Lennon

January 20, 2017 by Bob Redmond in music

This song became an obsession for me during the 2016 election season. Not exactly a natural affinity for my "style," it proved to be almost impossible to sing, not to mention that while I recorded it, my right arm and hand were partially incapacitated due to a nerve condition. Playing caused excruciating pain, which became a positive challenge because of the subject matter of the song and my feelings about the state of our country, dialogue, and social interactions. I recorded it on December 8th, the day John Lennon was murdered in 1980…

Central Park, NYC © 2010 Bob Redmond — Central Park, NYC © *2010 Bob Redmond*

testing

January 19, 2017 by Bob Redmond in this is now

well, we are live now. check one. check. yeah, hey! hey.