The John Adams Society |
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Gregory F.E.C Wersal
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Melvin R. Welch
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G. Larry Colson, Jr.
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Josh Regnier
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December 2011
May no such storm / Fall on our times, where ruin must reform. / Tell me (my Muse) what monstrous dire offence, / What crimes could any Christian king incense / To such a rage? / Was't luxury, or lust? / Was he so temperate, so chaste, so just? / Were these their crimes? they were his own much more, / But wealth is crime enough to him that's poor.
- Coopers Hill, Sir John Denham
RISE UP O' COMRADES, and menace with scarred and manacled hands your gluttonous master! Oh how the Tyrants’ bonds choke and chafe and throttle the life breath of the 99%. Your existence and needs demand satisfaction from bondsman and banker! Therefore, let not shame turn you from prosperous ends! Let us then occupy their heart, their hearth, theirs the homes of capitalistic captivity - The North Pole!
The seductive opiate of consumerism ever served ribald appetites; now it threatens your sons and daughters. Nevermore shall Santa slay the children's purity. Tiny helpers? Subversive giants! Flying Reindeer? Corporate-military complex pollution bombs . . . of the heart and minds of our most susceptible, our most exposed, our most innocent: the hopes and dreams of the morrow. Hear the clarion call on the tundraic wind - of truth and liberty for all!
ON THE OTHER HAND, what does that even mean? With shame we hope our silence is recognized for admitted ignorance and not confused with approbation of this madness. Do they decry the disrespect to which our – or any – labor is subjected? Do they abjure greed and its ill effects on luminous minds and virtuous dreams? Who is it, other than obligor or obligee, that ought to bear these burdens of debt? How can one begin to intuit the path to verdant meadows from the maelstrom of their purified "Human Rights?" Better to occupy a comfortable chair at a job, or at home with The Classics.
THE CHAIRMAN, whose holiday spirit has sunken to Tartarean levels due to poor present-wrapping abilities, has called a debate to settle the question:
RESOLVED: Occupy The North Pole!
The Debate will be held on Wednesday, December 21, 2011 at the University Club, 420 Summit Avenue, in Saint Paul. The Chancellor will preside over drinks beginning at seven o'clock p.m. The debate will begin at half past seven. While there is no dress code for attendance, gentlemen who wish to speak must wear a tie; ladies should adhere to a similar sartorial standard. For those gentlemen who arrive tieless yet wish to speak, fret not: the Purveyor of Ties will keep on hand at least one of his quite remarkable ties for just such an eventuality. Questions about debate caucus procedures or about the John Adams Society itself may be directed to the Chairman at (612) 701-9623 or the Secretary at (612) 220-7586.