The Beginning and Ending of Revolution in America (Prince and the 2016 Election)

Hi guys - I have a new post on Preaching Politics, and believe it may be the best thing I've ever written so I hope everyone will check it out:

The Beginning and Ending of Revolution in America (Prince and the 2016 Election)

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Tuesday, Pennsylvania held its primary and though I’ve been a poll worker for several years, and know some of what occurs behind the scenes, this was an exercise in the surreal. I’ve never seen anything like it before, and I don’t believe I’ll see it again after this election cycle. Our precinct was one of the first to report, but later I learned that what I’d witnessed wasn’t limited to us alone.

Thinking about it when I returned home from my 15 hour day, although it was exhausting, it also was so unreal that I couldn’t sleep for a long time. After our last election in November 2015, I’d walked away so depressed over how apathetic and unknowing voters were that I had to repent for my state of mind and subsequent actions. See that former article: “What Does it Take to Wake Up the American Electorate?”

But this time, it was entirely different. The electorate has begun to awaken.

They aren’t there yet and a lot of ignorance and misunderstanding about how the process actually works is evident, but a revolution is stirring. I don’t know how others function, but in order to create anything meaningful, I need a shot of powerful emotion, whether good or bad, to inspire me. It appears to be the same for most people, even in areas as seemingly mundane as going to the polls.

But before getting to what I actually witnessed, I’d like to mention another event that happened in the last week, because although these two incidents may seem unrelated, for me, there are several powerful connections. Prince was found dead.

Prince rose to my notice with “Purple Rain.” His band was called The Revolution, and that’s what his music inspired at the time. He was an incredible prodigy, playing 27 different instruments; on his first album he played everything himself. In the 1960’s graffiti began appearing claiming that guitar virtuoso Eric “Clapton is god.” Asked by a reporter how it felt to be the world’s greatest guitarist, his response was that he didn’t know – they should ask Prince

His was a rare talent, not only because he wrote numerous hit songs for himself and others. His life was filled with awards and acclaim; he won 7 Grammy awards, being nominated 30 times, and “Purple Rain” was voted the number 1 song of the 1980’s. He gave what many consider to be the definitive half-time performance at the Super Bowl in 2007, singing “Purple Rain” as the skies opened and rain drenched him during the performance. His career was a monumental achievement, and very different from the created, disposable, mediocre “stars” that dominate airwaves and television screens today. Yet Hollywood gossip says that he was unpopular and disliked by the industry...

This primary saw more than double the amount of voters from the last general election. That alone is significant because primaries generally see only a small minority turn out, yet this time we often had to deal with lines, and crowds awaiting their turn at the machines. But beyond that, the anger was palpable.

Many came in and wanted to change their party affiliation, but when told that in Pennsylvania, this had to be done at least 30 days before voting, some merely grumbled and walked out without voting at all. Others filled out the forms right then in anticipation of the next election. By days’ end, we had a stack to submit.

But this wasn’t what really told the story. Running the tapes and totals, then opening absentee ballots at the end, I was incredulous. We registered an unprecedented number of write-in votes, not just for presidential candidates but for senatorial and house elections, where only one candidate appeared on the ballot. In many of the races, we recorded votes made out of frustration: for the late Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Bobo the monkey, Mickey Mouse and for individual voters or their relatives, among others, as well as for legitimate candidates from another party. It was apparent that voters want someone different – anyone who isn’t part of the current system.

In my precinct, which is heavily Democratic, Hillary squeaked out a bare win over Bernie Sanders but had this been a general election, Trump would have mopped the floor with both. When the write-ins and absentee ballots were added together with the Republican votes cast, Trump trumped them all, while Cruz received only 29 votes and Kasich a mere 20...

Watching the film with him on his bike, riding with Apollonia down country roads to a lake, along with scenes of the dysfunction that we all desperately were trying to escape even then, brought reminiscences about my own life. I realized how cynical and depraved the nation has become in the intervening years, and how that has affected my own perspective.

America has become a harder, colder, older place to those of us who remember, but have had those memories pushed out of consciousness for so long. And yet, for many of us, it also has become a nation where truth is starting to be a formidable influence, as the falsehoods of our youth are being exposed.

Viewing Prince again, I recall riding down similar country roads with the scenery racing by, the wind in my face, and playing beside lakes and streams with the man I eventually married. A geologist rather than a rock star, the new wave/punk revolution still left its mark, on us and on the nation. And the nostalgia for that excitement and freedom has caused me to reassess much lately...

https://vimeo.com/164823178

Sorry - this site won't let me embed the video I made for the article, so you'll have to click on the link to watch it there...

Never really cared much for Prince or his music. I think I'm in the minority about that though. Oh - and I possess the magic embed wand. I was able to embed the video below - Purple Rain.

Song Clip from Georgann Ryan on Vimeo.

I'm a record collector and I only own one Prince record, a 45rpm picture disc of Little Red Corvette and only because it's so unusual. Pics below for anyone interested. It's apparently pretty rare.

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That is magic indeed! Please, tell me how to embed vimeo...

You know what they say, "I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you".  

Follow along the screen shots below. Works for almost all sites, not just Vimeo,  that provide an embed code. Just copy and paste the embed code and you are in business.

I thought your analysis was pretty thorough, though as I don't know much about Prince I can't really comment more about it.

The you tube/video is not showing for me...here in down under.....no matter though, I'm like you researcher, not terrible interested in him, but I don't know if any one else can see the video/youtube? The first one you posted.

Very well written blog post, IP.  Nice style.   True content.
Funny.  The only thing the title "Purple Rain" ever made me think of was acid. 
Each decade has it's own voice of nostalgia, I guess.  A longing for innocence resurrected.

I just happened to reread my post.  Clearly LSD is not the 'innocence' or nostalgia that was in my mind!  Just that there must have been an acid that had 'purple' as part of it's street name...oh boy..

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there must have been an acid that had 'purple' as part of it's street name...

Indeed there was. I remember hearing about the ones called "purple double domers" though there were "purple hearts" and other myriad names with purple in them as well. And no, I never took LSD. Missed out on all that but I do remember some of the weird names from back then.

Don't let Psychedelic Cat see that picture!  It's too dizzying for an avatar!

And thanks for the info-confirm Researcher...I cheer on all memory cells of mine that manage to still work, no matter how faulty or inept.  LOL.

And thanks to my coinkydink factor being in high gear these days, here's a link
to a series on improving memory:

(I did pay attention to the info from the other day!  I just don't see an
embed code offered for this series.)

http://kwiklearning.com/memory-series/fix-forgetfulness-fast.php?inf_contact_key=e5d8ccee6baff1e7f639813d305bf6551f1b2dbea87cc29ef38cd4f164b14654

http://www.dailycrow.com/nyquist-purple-rain-and-the-trojan-horse/

Dove wrote:

Don't let Psychedelic Cat see that picture!  It's too dizzying for an avatar!

*... too late!

spring2 wrote:

http://www.dailycrow.com/nyquist-purple-rain-and-the-trojan-horse/

Thank you Spring!
My gosh!  That's an amazing piece of work. 

I'm pretty focused these days on this piece of info:
“Trojan Nation” began #1 and ended #16.