Democrats were once the champions of free speech. No longer...

 Not that long ago Democrats were the champions of free speech...

 I remember the protests on college campuses in the 60s and 70s where particularly at campuses like Berkeley in California or  C.U. Boulder the left marched and chanted Free Speech! And had signs declaring that.

Todays Democrats on college campuses and on the internet and particularly on social media like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube literally SQUASH the free speech of those they disagree with. 

How many times have we seen the likes of Ben Shapiro, Ann Coulter, Milo Yiannoupolis kicked off college campuses in the last five years? How many conservatives like James Woods, or Diamond and Silk, or Dan Bongino, or Sharyll Atkisson have been either shadow banned or completely kicked off those platforms? And that's just the famous ones...

How many Joe conservatives have been cyber jailed or put in facebooks famous timeout or completely kicked off these platforms? Heck I'm a nobody just a musician and I've been in Facebook timeout this year MORE than not...and don't smugly say "Well you violated their terms and they're a private business so they can do that"  

Hogwash, numerous times I've protested Facebooks judgment cyber jailing me and several times they've admitted a mistake.

  Today's Democrats are the exact opposite of what they were just a few years ago who now proclaim with their smug noses in the air that "Social media companies are private businesses who can ban, shut down, shadow ban and throw off of their platforms whoever they want" 

Wow, what a complete 180 degree turnaround from just 3-4 years ago. Suddenly, and within the last few years those on the left have now thrown away their anti capitalist anti corporate ideals, now proclaiming "Big business is great!, as long as it's big business that completely squashes and eradicates the free speech of those I disagree with! Awesome!"

Just a few years ago Democrats were still protesting "Down with the Man!" meaning down with the evil government leaders and bureaucrats and the military industrial complex they saw as wicked oppressors and war mongers. Now, Suddenly, Democrats are no longer screaming "Down with the man!" They ARE THE MAN.

Now that Democrats ARE THE MAN and in charge of big government and the millions of beauracrats like the 87 thousand new IRS agents that they want to hire and arm, suddenly it's "Hey! We need those thousands of Tax collectors to catch and arrest all the tax scofflaws!" Not to mention raid all the thousands of small businesses that we don't like! Arrest those Ruffian law breakers!" 

Hey, If they can raid the former presidents house what else can they get away with?

We won't mention that just two years ago during the height of the pandemic,  Democrat politicians like Pelosi, Maxine Watters, AOC or Others were saying " Oh those rioters in Kenosha and L.A. are just blowing off steam, I don't know why there aren't more protesters in the streets!" 

It's like Democrats core beliefs and ideals are completely fungible, able to change according to whether their politicians are in charge at the moment...

Or maybe they don't actually HAVE any core beliefs and ideals...but that's another blog...

Don't shoot me I'm just the Sax player...

We need to talk about Depression...

We need to talk about depression...

I've endured it several years ago (2007-2009)

It's like a gigantic black hole or cave that has no end, it's definitely real... Those who've never been in clinically diagnosed depression have no idea...

It's as real as your daily life or world, and to those in it they feel as there's no escape. Some are lucky enough to get a type of help that actually helps, I was one of those.

A Christian nurse I was pointed to by a counselor at a church I once played for, at the first meeting I had with her put me on different medications, that within 2 days made the black hole of depression nearly disappear. I also started sleeping again, which hadn't happened for 2 years...Is there some side effects to medication? Yes, but compared to the never ending black hole it's like waking up out of the worst nightmare you've ever had...

People around me ( Some) said I was making up clinical depression, that it was all in my head...even a doctor at my huge HMO said it was all in m head, with my relative agreeing with him while we were sitting in his office, in the same room...I guarantee you it's not all in your head.

As a Christian, I think there's a spiritual aspect to depression, or what the Bible calls "A spirit of heaviness" (Isaiah 61:3) because that's exactly what it feels like...

Thankfully I was able to pull out of clinically diagnosed depression with the help of a Christian nurse who was extremely wise, knowledgeable, and perceptive.

Unfortunately not everyone does...and a few get to the point where they see no way out.

If you feel like there's no way out...that the black tunnel will not end there's help. Try a different doctor, or a different therapist, or try a different medication because they are not all the same. You have to find what medication works for you...

If people around you are saying it's all in your head you should probably get away from them, at least for awhile, because they are not helping in any way, and in fact may be making it worse...

And Yes, pray like crazy and get around people who will pray with and for you, because it could be your life. Thanks.                 

I'm just the Sax Player...

The life and Career of a professional musician is something like this...

    If a working musician is really good... they'll have a ton of gigs or music performances in their lifetime, even thousands, especially when they're in their 20's, 30's and 40's and even up into their 50's or 60's, but they will also most likely be teaching students in some form. Whether it's at a school music dept., a College, or private lessons. There's a real possibility they'll also have a day job of some kind, say, bus driver, or website builder, or a computer graphics designer, or maybe on staff part time at a church playing every weekend.

If They're REALLY good and get lucky, they may be in a band that's touring and playing gigs in front of a lot of people and be fairly well paid for it, at least for awhile, but even those musicians have to find some sort of work when the Rock and Roll tour ends for the season and they're back home for 4 months.

Even those who get very lucky and land those coveted touring gigs where you're traveling all over the country (and out of the Country) those situations don't last forever...a player may have a touring job with a well known artist or band for maybe 4-6 years unless you're playing for the Rolling Stones, but even those touring situations end at some point...

Then the Band breaks up, or the artist that writes most of the songs gets a big head and breaks up the band and moves to Nashville or L.A. to be a rock star with no notice, and you are left floundering trying to find work...Or 2 members of the band can't get along and decide they want to do their own thing and so the band breaks up, and there goes the touring gigs with an almost steady paycheck coming in but not quite...

Most musicians don't reach that stage where they get hired by or help found a nationally known band that's doing arena rock gigs, and they'll most likely play thousands of gigs in local situations for several different bands in the same city. These high quality musicians will most assuredly have a teaching job of some sort, a private teaching studio, or some sort of day job as well as performing hundreds of gigs at corporate parties, weddings, clubs, bars, and social events such as summer in the park concerts locally every year.

Many of these musicians may have a steady church gig of some sort that pays them (If they're lucky) that they do after playing a couple late night shows locally in their town, and they will do this week in and week out for many years or even decades, while raising a family performing late night gigs until midnight or 1 am, then playing at church having to be there at 7:00 am (I did this for 20 years myself)

Even Bach had steady Church gigs...

If a musician is exceptionally good, they may make a partial living by playing on other people's records, or by running a recording studio themselves, where other artists pay them to use their recording studio. However, to do that you have to purchase a lot of very expensive professional recording equipment. and keep it updated constantly which is very costly...

In today's digital online virtual world some musicians make money uploading videos and their songs to streaming sites or huge video sites like YouTube. I myself do this and have hundreds of videos on YouTube...But these digital upload sites pay pennies, and I mean pennies for thousands of views or streams...

Some musicians land what's called a steady gig at a resort, restaurant, club, amusement park, or posh hotel where they'll stay employed for perhaps a few years and it will provide a decent living for that few years. But even those players may have to have a second job of some kind especially if they're married and have kids.

There are highly trained musicians that land long time gigs in symphonies or orchestras in the largest cities or for touring shows that come through big cities, but only the best of the best get hired for those big city symphony jobs and they are extremely competitive and not easy to land. Even those highly trained and world class symphony players may have to have a teaching gig or a private studio, or online private lessons to pay rent in expensive big cities like New York or Chicago.

Those who compose music for Movies and TV shows are well paid if they're for network TV shows or large scale Films otherwise the pay may be meager for second rate films.

The reason I'm telling you all this is because a lot of people have no idea how a musician makes a living, and there are some today who think musicians should just play music for free because they download and stream music all day for free or pennies, so why should I have to pay a band or musician anything?

Yes, I've talked to those types over the last 20 years, thankfully most people are not that clueless, but please remember this what I've typed here the next time you want a band or a musician for your company event, party, wedding or social gathering. Thanks. 

I'm Just the sax player...

Why the Climate Justice crowd is dead wrong...

 Everything we use today is made of plastic or something derived from oil... The interiors of cars including electric cars are plastic or a synthetic material derived from oil, the computer screens that are in everything from cars to gamers monitors to iphones and all cellphones, to Macbooks, to the carpet in houses is made from synthetic materials derived from oil. Every drug we take whether prescription or non prescription comes in a plastic bottle that is derived from oil.

Eye glasses lenses and the frames are made from plastic derived from oil, the toothbrushes we use today including the bristles are made of plastic derived from oil, as well as the tubes our toothpaste is encased in. I remember in the 1970s toothpaste came in a soft metallic tube not plastic...the containers of everything from laundry detergent, to peanut butter jars, to quarts of motor oil, to ketchup and mustard bottles, to wrappers of bread keeping bread fresh are made from plastic derived from oil. 

The TV screens these millenials that rant about destroying big oil companies and STOP FRACKING watch Netflix on and the back panels are all made from plastic. The smart devices that millenials love to talk to and that make life so convenient are encased in plastic derived from oil. The tires on their cars are made from rubber and some form of synthetic materials or tar. The roads we all drive on are made from tar derived from oil...The bumpers, fenders and all lights on their Prius' and Teslas are plastic made from oil.

 Vinyl albums that woke climate justice millennials ( and older people) buy are made from oil. I bought many of those same vinyl albums 45 years ago and they were still made from oil back then...Their Bluetooth speakers are mostly plastic as are their blutooth headphones and car speakers are all plastic derived from oil... Their phone plug wires are coated by plastic, the phone plugs are encased in plastic, and the power strips we plug a hundred appliances and computers in are made of plastic...all derived from oil.

Anything we store food in to keep it fresher including refrigerator and freezer doors are plastic derived from oil. The credit and debit cards we're all becoming dependent on are made of plastic as are the card readers...

These climate justice people like AOC and most of that entire generation ( and older people who should know better) are so dependent on plastic derived from oil yet they're so ridiculously ignorant they think it all just appears out of nothing...they will destroy everything including their own standard of living ( and ours) and believe they're righteous and moral doing so...blindingly stupid.