There ought to be no Kings
In America!

Statue of George Washington
at Federal Hall, New York City,
across from the NY Stock Exchange.

We're praying with you George!
President of Chile
to Speak tonight
at Kennedy School
Well, sometimes you hear about things too late
to do anything about it.  I was reading today about
how Senator Kennedy is receiving an award from the 
government of Chile.  He gets this today from the
president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet.  She will be speaking to night
over by the river (right over the bridge from
Alston) and I imagined that I could go and see this
highly esteemed political celebrity.  However I would have
needed to get a ticket to this event (even though it is a public 
speech) because there is a lot of interest.

Michelle Bachelet’s life story reads like a teleplay soap opera.
Her father was murdered by an illegal government installed
by coup d'état .  Her mother and
she are kidnapped by rouge governmental criminals (from
the illegal regime).
She is tortured.  She and her mother flee to Australia.
They end up in the twilight years of East Germany.  She has
relationships with various men of different political
persuasion.  She becomes a doctor.  She is drafted into the
role of Socialist candidate for president.  She wins the election.
And then Hillary lauds her in Time magazine.

Speeches by presidents of countries are very interesting
to me.  And I don't remember the last time I heard anyone talk live
after Dan Quayle during the first Gulf War (in 1992 or so).  He was
the vice-president and came to Hanscom (where I was working)
to root for the troops and gave a stirring speech of gratitude to
the National Guard who were then leaving on C130's to go far away.

I've gone and listened to Senator Ted a bunch of times (hoping he gets better fast).
His office is always prudent in responding to matters of social concern.  He took
action for the workers at Hanscom to ensure that key research will continue
at Hanscom.  It is my philosopy (and I wrote about this at the time) that laboratory
consolidation doesn’t assure that scientific research and expertise is spread out 
to all of the various parts of our country.  Laboratory consolidation was a very
popular agenda of the Bush and Reagan White Houses.  There were forces
at work in the Air Force to pull huge amounts of money to specific regions of
the country and away from the North East.  If this had succeeded it would have
resulted in research monopolies (or oligopolies) that excluded some regions of
our country (such as the North East).

Once on the street in Boston John Kerry greeted the crowds standing there, one by one, 
and asked him about some issues that were current at the time.
This was before he ran for president.  I photoed a bunch of celeb politicians 
down in Boston one day when I happened upon a statue unveiling (Maybe I'd heard 
about it earlier?).  I got photos of the three living mayors of Boston:  Mr Flynn,
Mr. White and Mr. Menino.
That was the day of the Red Auerbach tribute.  Senator Ted and a bunch of other
folks were there for the celebration of Red's life (with heart felt eulogies by 
friends of Red).

Senator Kennedy eulogizes Red Auerbach
1 November, 2006. At City Hall Plaza in Boston, MA.

The Three Mayors
1 November, 2006. Across from City Hall Plaza in Boston, MA.
at the unveiling of the Kevin White statue
  Sorry, no photos of Dan Quayle.  I do have some of Governor Romney.
Maybe I'll post them on another day.
And as for La Presidenta Bachelet, well, I suppose I could go and do the paparazzi
thing down there at the Kennedy school but I would make sure (and this is a 
photoing tip when you are trying to hover around the famous) that
I make it clear that I am a photographer and that I am there to take pictures,
listen, take notes, etc.
If I don't have a ticket to hear her speak it is probably better
that I stay away as she is a very public figure.  But this is a common place
for me to go and photo.  There are so many beautiful sights down
there at the river.  You can park easily if you don't mind walking.
Or you can alway take the subway to get to Harvard Squard.  
Harvard Square also has good places to buy used books.  And as a photoer
I love having a common place where I frequent to get the scene in different light.
Harvard Square, Harvard Yard, the Swedenborg Church, the Unitarian Universalist
Church, the Revolutionary War grave yard, the place where Washington addressed 
his troops (and where the troops camped) is all right there.
Mr friends were married at the Swedenborg Chappel.  Very nice.  And the reception was
also there (with actual Copley paintings hanging on the wall over the buffet
table covered with plates of orduerves and cheese).

So it wouldn't be un heard of for me to go down there
and take some pictures . . . 
But I would want to go and hear what she has to say.  And since
I don't have a ticket (because I didn't hear about this till today)
and even though technically I could say that I have a website so I am
'press' (do you know who I am?) I'm not really a journalist.

Harvard Yard between semesters
Dec 23, 2006.  
The photo is dark as the EV was set low.
I admit it:  I am not a journalist.
So don't expect objective reporting from me.
I don't like to be biased or bigoted at all, but
sometimes, if you listen to yourself, don't you
hear yourself saying things that are biased?
Or that might seem bigoted?  And as a journalist you
need to he/she it all (to make it PC).  But a blogger,
like my self, the photoing fool, can slink around the
event, as if I'm only there by accident, and I take the photos
that show the people there enjoying themselves.  And I'm not
there with a political agenda but just to document the life
that is the city or venue or mountainside where the event happened.
Like birds flying along a shoreline.  The rare and tortured bird
who flies along the lawn and into the hall.  That bird flutters
there just briefly
in the open air
above the lecturn
and then loops around the
auditorium
and up towards the ceiling, loops around
again,
hangs in the air surveying the crowd,
and then swoops towards the opened doors
pushed open at the front of the hall
to let her escape
to fly away
off towards the regions of light
and love
and doing right
for the world
and not being
selfish
and refusing the crown.

The bright light from the outside
floods the main hall of speaking society.
That rare birds alights 
into the open air
and then soars off
into eternity

(towards the palm . . . at the end of the world . . . but now I'm 
        just apeing Wallace Stevens)


I hope that La Presidenta succeeds in bringing
justice and in coming to meet a better future for not
just Chile but the whole world.  And that we can
celibrate people even when, politically, we might have
issues, might disagree with their views on economics.
We need to have a future free from pograms and 
repressive political kidnapping.
Bachelet, as a survivor, is a demonstration
of hope fulfilled:  the hope for and end to torture
and an end to political repression, and human dignity and
liberty maintained.

And may a day come when what happened to her never happens to
anyone anywhere ever again.  And may that
day be today.


Oh, be done now self!

Billy Perilli

2:50 PM

September 23, 2008