Let me begin by saying that I am normally not a big fan of print cartoons which appear in daily newspapers throughout this country. However, there is one created jointly by John Deering and John Newcombe featured in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette that has recently caught my fancy, thanks to my wife. For one, it is centered around a dog named Cagney who, as anyone familiar with the breed will attest, is no ordinary dog. In fact Cagney is America's one and only home grown breed, a Boston Terrier. Not only have Mr. Deering and Mr. Newcombe created a story line filled with humor and relevance, they are spot on in their depiction of the true personality of this breed. As my wife and I have learned over the years, they are smart, independent, insightful and very demanding, all characteristics that allow Cagney to be the inspiration for today's blog.
It all started at the end of last year when Cagney decided to start a blog. In the canine world the medium was naturally a fireplug, recognized universally as the prototype place where dogs best express themselves by leaving their well-known scents. Just like one would expect in the real world, Cagney's first post was met with criticism from one of his fellow pooches followed by negative comments from other "uninvited bloggers". With his feelings duly hurt by these initial responses, Cagney decides to take his blog down by covering the fireplug up with some new fallen snow. However, he is soon confronted by some other pooches who want to post a comment on his blog, so upon Cagney's advice they proceed to dig out the snow from around that fireplug. Postings resume, one being that rather than using their conventional method of posting maybe they should "just shake paws instead". Cagney questions the fun in that method and seeks guidance from his master who, while in the middle of watching a television program, quickly dismisses Cagney. Naturally, this rebuff causes Cagney to feel "no one ever listens to me", and then conclude "No wonder I feel the need to blog".
Well, there you have it, the essence of why many of us may "feel the need to blog". It's more of being a personal catharsis than being alluded into thinking that our commentary will have any meaningful impact on what family, friends, casual acquaintances or unknowns think, much less affect public policy in any substantive way. And that's what makes it worthwhile. Another John Deering cartoon entitled Strange Brew summed it up beautifully last April when a young son lamented to his father who obviously was admonishing him that he could be anything he wanted to be in life by responding "I don't really care whether anybody in America could grow up to be president. We can all have blogs!"
What's left out of this conversation is something I never really thought about until a friend posed the question to me recently about the range of audience reached by my blog. Yes, I wrote about the power and influence of the Internet last week as witnessed first in Tunisia and now in Egypt, but frankly, I had just assumed that "In My View...." was pretty much confined to a very small group of family and friends who for whatever reason chose to read my weekly posts. Well, much to my surprise I discovered that it has been viewed by every conceivable browser and operating system all over the continental United States and Alaska plus nine foreign countries including Canada, United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, France, Netherlands, Australia, Ireland and Latvia. So, unlike Cagney's localized fireplug, in the real world of blogging one never knows where this stuff will end up, which further emphasizes the absolute need for a rational and civilized message. To that end I hope Cagney and I have been true to our mission.
Oh, yeah. My heart is with the Packers, but my mind says the Steelers by three.
ARTISTS
Laura Raborn at http://paintingsofhome.com and http://claygifts.com
Jim Johnson at http://yessy.com/jimjohnson/gallery.html
Russ Powell at http://powellphotos.com
Linda Flake at http://lindaflake.com
Tom Herrin at http://tommysart.blogspot.com
Matt McLeod at http://matt@mattmcleod.com
Artists Registry at http://www.arkansasarts.org/programs/registry/default.aspx
Sandy Hubler Fine Art at http://sandyhublerfineart.com
George Wittenberg at http://postcard-art-gallery.com
Will Barnet at http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,17315,23628,23670,24472,25834,26095,26328,26562,26637,26761,26790,26849,26992,27095,27126,27139,27147,27178&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=will+barnet&cp=9&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=xpfETMT1O4L6lwf66ugE&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=2&sqi=2&ved=0CEkQsAQwAQ&biw=1350&bih=501
Barry Thomas at http://barrythomasart.com
Sherry Williamson at http://meowbarkart.com
Julie McNair at http://juliemcnair.com
GALLERIES
Local Colour Gallery at http://localcolourgallery.com
Chroma Gallery at http://chromagallery.com
Cantrell Gallery at http://cantrellgallery.com
Greg Thompson Fine Art at http://gregthompsonfineart.com
Red Door Gallery at http://reddoorgalleryonline.com
M2 Gallery at http://m2lr.com
UALR Gallery Program at http://ualr.edu/art
Gallery 26 at http://gallery26.com
Boswell Mourot Fine Art at http://boswellmourot.com
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
The Era of Faceless Revolutions
While definitely alarming for many reasons, it is also fascinating to watch the latest of four upheavals of long time dictatorships in the Middle East in just this month of January. First, there was Tunisia, then Lebanon, then Yemen and now Egypt, with at least the first and last sharing the common aspects of being totally fueled by the Internet in the absence a central figure or force driving them. Martin Indyck, former U.S Ambassador to Israel and now Foreign Policy Director for the Brookings Institute labeled it on Meet the Press this morning as a "21st century revolution" in which it is impossible for existing regimes to suppress the will of their people. In that segment he also referenced the Tweet Deck visual that depicted the real time exchange of the thousands of those very Internet messages that are sustaining the current uprising in Egypt. You can go to Tweetdeck.com, sign up and see for yourselves.
Interestingly, just last week Alec Ross, senior adviser for innovation to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, gave a compelling presentation on this very same subject entitled "Diplomacy in a Digital World" at the Clinton School of Public Service here in Little Rock. In his capacity Mr. Ross is responsible for monitoring Secretary Clinton's 21st Century Statecraft initiative at the State Department which employs the latest technology in American diplomacy around the world. Watch his entire program at http://www.clintonschoolspeakers.com/lecture/view/diplomacy-digital-world/, and you will get a much better sense of just how important these new-found revolutions are to our national security. Since our track record has not been all that great in the past (remember Iran in 1979?), maybe by being fully engaged into the very cutting edge technology which is driving these tectonic political changes in that part of the world where we have so many vital interests, as well as huge investments in American lives and treasure, we will be more successful in this new era of revolutions. In the words of Thomas Friedman, even though we have conflicting objectives as they relate to Egypt and its president, it is absolutely imperative that we be on the right side of this conflict this time, as they are the current lynch pin of stability in that region.
As a post script to last week's blog about Teach for America, interestingly Mr. Ross first became enthused about the power of technology while working for Teach for America. And just this past week it was announced in two separate articles that TFA was the beneficiary of a $100 million endowment, its first ever, from three separate national charitable foundations, as well as a $25,000 local contribution from Pine Bluff Cable Television and the Trinity Foundation to add teachers to the Pine Bluff School District. You may remember that is the Arkansas city where the young TFA teacher from Ohio mentioned last week was assigned. To echo a point made in that blog, the Superintendent of the Pine Bluff Schools, Mr. Frank Anthony, originally very skeptical of the program, was quoted as saying " He quickly realized we had struck a gold mine with the six we got. Their knowledge, ability, desire and professionalism were all there." Enough said.
ARTISTS
Laura Raborn at http://paintingsofhome.com and http://claygifts.com
Jim Johnson at http://yessy.com/jimjohnson/gallery.html
Russ Powell at http://powellphotos.com
Linda Flake at http://lindaflake.com
Tom Herrin at http://tommysart.blogspot.com
Matt McLeod at http://matt@mattmcleod.com
Artists Registry at http://www.arkansasarts.org/programs/registry/default.aspx
Sandy Hubler Fine Art at http://sandyhublerfineart.com
George Wittenberg at http://postcard-art-gallery.com
Will Barnet at http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,17315,23628,23670,24472,25834,26095,26328,26562,26637,26761,26790,26849,26992,27095,27126,27139,27147,27178&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=will+barnet&cp=9&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=xpfETMT1O4L6lwf66ugE&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=2&sqi=2&ved=0CEkQsAQwAQ&biw=1350&bih=501
Barry Thomas at http://barrythomasart.com
Sherry Williamson at http://meowbarkart.com
Julie McNair at http://juliemcnair.com
GALLERIES
Local Colour Gallery at http://localcolourgallery.com
Chroma Gallery at http://chromagallery.com
Cantrell Gallery at http://cantrellgallery.com
Greg Thompson Fine Art at http://gregthompsonfineart.com
Red Door Gallery at http://reddoorgalleryonline.com
M2 Gallery at http://m2lr.com
UALR Gallery Program at http://ualr.edu/art
Gallery 26 at http://gallery26.com
Boswell Mourot Fine Art at http://boswellmourot.com
Interestingly, just last week Alec Ross, senior adviser for innovation to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, gave a compelling presentation on this very same subject entitled "Diplomacy in a Digital World" at the Clinton School of Public Service here in Little Rock. In his capacity Mr. Ross is responsible for monitoring Secretary Clinton's 21st Century Statecraft initiative at the State Department which employs the latest technology in American diplomacy around the world. Watch his entire program at http://www.clintonschoolspeakers.com/lecture/view/diplomacy-digital-world/, and you will get a much better sense of just how important these new-found revolutions are to our national security. Since our track record has not been all that great in the past (remember Iran in 1979?), maybe by being fully engaged into the very cutting edge technology which is driving these tectonic political changes in that part of the world where we have so many vital interests, as well as huge investments in American lives and treasure, we will be more successful in this new era of revolutions. In the words of Thomas Friedman, even though we have conflicting objectives as they relate to Egypt and its president, it is absolutely imperative that we be on the right side of this conflict this time, as they are the current lynch pin of stability in that region.
As a post script to last week's blog about Teach for America, interestingly Mr. Ross first became enthused about the power of technology while working for Teach for America. And just this past week it was announced in two separate articles that TFA was the beneficiary of a $100 million endowment, its first ever, from three separate national charitable foundations, as well as a $25,000 local contribution from Pine Bluff Cable Television and the Trinity Foundation to add teachers to the Pine Bluff School District. You may remember that is the Arkansas city where the young TFA teacher from Ohio mentioned last week was assigned. To echo a point made in that blog, the Superintendent of the Pine Bluff Schools, Mr. Frank Anthony, originally very skeptical of the program, was quoted as saying " He quickly realized we had struck a gold mine with the six we got. Their knowledge, ability, desire and professionalism were all there." Enough said.
ARTISTS
Laura Raborn at http://paintingsofhome.com and http://claygifts.com
Jim Johnson at http://yessy.com/jimjohnson/gallery.html
Russ Powell at http://powellphotos.com
Linda Flake at http://lindaflake.com
Tom Herrin at http://tommysart.blogspot.com
Matt McLeod at http://matt@mattmcleod.com
Artists Registry at http://www.arkansasarts.org/programs/registry/default.aspx
Sandy Hubler Fine Art at http://sandyhublerfineart.com
George Wittenberg at http://postcard-art-gallery.com
Will Barnet at http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,17315,23628,23670,24472,25834,26095,26328,26562,26637,26761,26790,26849,26992,27095,27126,27139,27147,27178&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=will+barnet&cp=9&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=xpfETMT1O4L6lwf66ugE&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=2&sqi=2&ved=0CEkQsAQwAQ&biw=1350&bih=501
Barry Thomas at http://barrythomasart.com
Sherry Williamson at http://meowbarkart.com
Julie McNair at http://juliemcnair.com
GALLERIES
Local Colour Gallery at http://localcolourgallery.com
Chroma Gallery at http://chromagallery.com
Cantrell Gallery at http://cantrellgallery.com
Greg Thompson Fine Art at http://gregthompsonfineart.com
Red Door Gallery at http://reddoorgalleryonline.com
M2 Gallery at http://m2lr.com
UALR Gallery Program at http://ualr.edu/art
Gallery 26 at http://gallery26.com
Boswell Mourot Fine Art at http://boswellmourot.com
Sunday, January 23, 2011
Sargent Shriver Would Be Proud
This past week the nation mourned the loss of R. Sargent Shriver, who first answered the call in 1961 for national public service from the then President of the United States, who just happened to be his brother-in-law, by becoming the founding director the Peace Corps which will this year have nobly served the needy of this world for a half a century. Throughout his remarkable life he championed public service in many forms and was one of its most ardent solicitors for participants, particularly from the younger generation that was so energized by the famous words of President Kennedy in his inauguration speech "...ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country".
Besides his known work with the Peace Corps, Shriver also notably worked on President Johnson's 1964 War on Poverty by serving as the first director of the Office of Economic Opportunity which spawned such programs as Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA), Community Action Program (CAP), Jobs Corps, Head Start and the Neighborhood Youth Corps; served as ambassador to France from 1968-1970; founded the Congressional Leadership for the Future (CLF); was actively involved in a variety of political activities; ran as George McGovern's vice president in 1972; and in the 1980s and 90s served as Chairman of the Board of Special Olympics International. What is less known about Sargent Shriver was his public service in education in the 1950s by directing the Catholic Interracial Council, which was established to desegregate the schools, as well as serving the Chicago Board of Education.
It is that last attribution that brings me to why I think he would be most proud today. Specifically, we continue to struggle nationally to improve public education systems all over America that produce a large percentage of graduates who need remedial courses in college before they can even enroll in courses for credit (55% in Arkansas in 2009) and 25% of whom cannot even pass the Army's basic entry exam. Some of the more popular programs to address these problems, as discussed in the recent documentary movie Waiting for "Superman", include among others merit pay, charter schools, longer school days and years, a variety of student assessment programs, and teacher accountability. However, there is one public service program devoted to education that is actually making a real difference now where it is needed most and that is Teach for America. Learn more about this amazing organization at http://teachforamerica.org.
As showcased just today in our Sunday edition of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, this marvelous program melds perfectly with Sargent Shriver's repeated calls for public service to the youth of our nation 50 years ago with a current systemic and measurable need. In our state we hired 169 of these young people this school year who commit two years of their lives to go into mainly impoverished areas sorely in need of teachers to augment their existing staffs. More times than not these young people lack any formal teaching education, for which they more than compensate with their intellect, as many come from elite universities, and enthusiasm to help others and make a difference. Teach for America is so popular that they are able to hire only 10% of those who apply (4,500 out of 46,000 applicants in 2010). More importantly, and maybe just because of their lack of traditional training, these teachers incorporate many new and innovative ideas and concepts into their teaching methods that excite the students and get overall classroom participation. Learn the full story of how "fears turned to hope" for the school superintendent and principal in one of our Arkansas cities in need thanks to a committed young lady from Ohio who works for Teach for America at http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2011/jan/23/program-filling-gaps-thin-teacher-ranks-20110123/?subscriber/arkansas.
One amazing fact that you will also learn from that article is that our state Department of Education contributes only $3,000 per teacher for up to 100 such teachers from this program while our old nemesis Mississippi contributes $13,000 per teacher from Teach for America! Does "Thank God for Mississippi" have any relevance in our world today? One superintendent in our Delta region, where teacher salaries are only 72% of what is paid in the larger metropolitan school districts in Arkansas, is so impressed with the results they have experienced that she has created a "retention plan" to keep these Teach for America teachers in her community. In short, this program is to be commended and rewarded with our full support both morally and financially.
ARTISTS
Laura Raborn at http://paintingsofhome.com and http://claygifts.com
Jim Johnson at http://yessy.com/jimjohnson/gallery.html
Russ Powell at http://powellphotos.com
Linda Flake at http://lindaflake.com
Tom Herrin at http://tommysart.blogspot.com
Matt McLeod at http://matt@mattmcleod.com
Artists Registry at http://www.arkansasarts.org/programs/registry/default.aspx
Sandy Hubler Fine Art at http://sandyhublerfineart.com
George Wittenberg at http://postcard-art-gallery.com
Will Barnet at http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,17315,23628,23670,24472,25834,26095,26328,26562,26637,26761,26790,26849,26992,27095,27126,27139,27147,27178&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=will+barnet&cp=9&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=xpfETMT1O4L6lwf66ugE&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=2&sqi=2&ved=0CEkQsAQwAQ&biw=1350&bih=501
Barry Thomas at http://barrythomasart.com
Sherry Williamson at http://meowbarkart.com
Julie McNair at http://juliemcnair.com
GALLERIES
Local Colour Gallery at http://localcolourgallery.com
Chroma Gallery at http://chromagallery.com
Cantrell Gallery at http://cantrellgallery.com
Greg Thompson Fine Art at http://gregthompsonfineart.com
Red Door Gallery at http://reddoorgalleryonline.com
M2 Gallery at http://m2lr.com
UALR Gallery Program at http://ualr.edu/art
Gallery 26 at http://gallery26.com
Boswell Mourot Fine Art at http://boswellmourot.com
Besides his known work with the Peace Corps, Shriver also notably worked on President Johnson's 1964 War on Poverty by serving as the first director of the Office of Economic Opportunity which spawned such programs as Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA), Community Action Program (CAP), Jobs Corps, Head Start and the Neighborhood Youth Corps; served as ambassador to France from 1968-1970; founded the Congressional Leadership for the Future (CLF); was actively involved in a variety of political activities; ran as George McGovern's vice president in 1972; and in the 1980s and 90s served as Chairman of the Board of Special Olympics International. What is less known about Sargent Shriver was his public service in education in the 1950s by directing the Catholic Interracial Council, which was established to desegregate the schools, as well as serving the Chicago Board of Education.
It is that last attribution that brings me to why I think he would be most proud today. Specifically, we continue to struggle nationally to improve public education systems all over America that produce a large percentage of graduates who need remedial courses in college before they can even enroll in courses for credit (55% in Arkansas in 2009) and 25% of whom cannot even pass the Army's basic entry exam. Some of the more popular programs to address these problems, as discussed in the recent documentary movie Waiting for "Superman", include among others merit pay, charter schools, longer school days and years, a variety of student assessment programs, and teacher accountability. However, there is one public service program devoted to education that is actually making a real difference now where it is needed most and that is Teach for America. Learn more about this amazing organization at http://teachforamerica.org.
As showcased just today in our Sunday edition of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, this marvelous program melds perfectly with Sargent Shriver's repeated calls for public service to the youth of our nation 50 years ago with a current systemic and measurable need. In our state we hired 169 of these young people this school year who commit two years of their lives to go into mainly impoverished areas sorely in need of teachers to augment their existing staffs. More times than not these young people lack any formal teaching education, for which they more than compensate with their intellect, as many come from elite universities, and enthusiasm to help others and make a difference. Teach for America is so popular that they are able to hire only 10% of those who apply (4,500 out of 46,000 applicants in 2010). More importantly, and maybe just because of their lack of traditional training, these teachers incorporate many new and innovative ideas and concepts into their teaching methods that excite the students and get overall classroom participation. Learn the full story of how "fears turned to hope" for the school superintendent and principal in one of our Arkansas cities in need thanks to a committed young lady from Ohio who works for Teach for America at http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2011/jan/23/program-filling-gaps-thin-teacher-ranks-20110123/?subscriber/arkansas.
One amazing fact that you will also learn from that article is that our state Department of Education contributes only $3,000 per teacher for up to 100 such teachers from this program while our old nemesis Mississippi contributes $13,000 per teacher from Teach for America! Does "Thank God for Mississippi" have any relevance in our world today? One superintendent in our Delta region, where teacher salaries are only 72% of what is paid in the larger metropolitan school districts in Arkansas, is so impressed with the results they have experienced that she has created a "retention plan" to keep these Teach for America teachers in her community. In short, this program is to be commended and rewarded with our full support both morally and financially.
ARTISTS
Laura Raborn at http://paintingsofhome.com and http://claygifts.com
Jim Johnson at http://yessy.com/jimjohnson/gallery.html
Russ Powell at http://powellphotos.com
Linda Flake at http://lindaflake.com
Tom Herrin at http://tommysart.blogspot.com
Matt McLeod at http://matt@mattmcleod.com
Artists Registry at http://www.arkansasarts.org/programs/registry/default.aspx
Sandy Hubler Fine Art at http://sandyhublerfineart.com
George Wittenberg at http://postcard-art-gallery.com
Will Barnet at http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,17315,23628,23670,24472,25834,26095,26328,26562,26637,26761,26790,26849,26992,27095,27126,27139,27147,27178&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=will+barnet&cp=9&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=xpfETMT1O4L6lwf66ugE&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=2&sqi=2&ved=0CEkQsAQwAQ&biw=1350&bih=501
Barry Thomas at http://barrythomasart.com
Sherry Williamson at http://meowbarkart.com
Julie McNair at http://juliemcnair.com
GALLERIES
Local Colour Gallery at http://localcolourgallery.com
Chroma Gallery at http://chromagallery.com
Cantrell Gallery at http://cantrellgallery.com
Greg Thompson Fine Art at http://gregthompsonfineart.com
Red Door Gallery at http://reddoorgalleryonline.com
M2 Gallery at http://m2lr.com
UALR Gallery Program at http://ualr.edu/art
Gallery 26 at http://gallery26.com
Boswell Mourot Fine Art at http://boswellmourot.com
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Healing of the Heart and Cleansing of the Soul
In the wake of the Arizona tragedy and on the eve of celebrating Martin Luther King Day, all of the apparent conciliation, cooperation and toning down of political rhetoric seems to be an appropriate and welcomed tack for this country to be taking. Time will tell if ill winds return and blow us off course to possibly achieving some badly needed bi-partisan results for our country.
On this positive note it also seems that now would be an excellent time to admit to the root causes of all the anger and mistrust that has built up over the past few years. In the view of many renown spiritual leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Dr. King and Rev. Billy Graham among others, the true reason for our feelings goes much deeper than the external forces with which we are all familiar (e.g. recession, economic disparity, war, unemployment, global competition, immigration policy, etc.). In short, it goes straight to the human heart which is affected by a multitude of stimuli and emotions including greed, ego, pride, hate and revenge which all tear at the fabric of our soul. Each of us in our own way knows how our conduct is influenced by these spiritual flaws and recognize that it takes an act of personal redemption to restore faith in ourselves as the first step in collectively restoring the spiritual well-being of mankind as a whole. Once that "healing of the heart" has taken place, it might be helpful to then embrace the message of that well-known Serenity Prayer which begins:
"God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference."
But, please go to http://www.cptryon.org/prayer/special/serenity.html to read it in its entirety.
And, finally, let me suggest that one way we could practice another important admonition in that prayer of "Enjoying one moment at a time" is by taking advantage of the wonderful world of art that is open to all of us on so many levels including painting, music, plays, movies, etc. and at so many venues. In that regard I am pleased to add to my list of studio artists, Julie McNair, whom I was privileged to meet a year ago this past September in Telluride, Colorado while attending their film festival. As a direct result of that chance encounter, Julie was invited to participate in Little Rock's annual Sculpture in the River Market event last October. Like all of the others listed, she is a truly talented artist whose work I find unique and sometimes with a whimsical flair that I find most enjoyable and uplifting. Go to her website at http://juliemcnair.com and see for yourself.
ARTISTS
Laura Raborn at http://paintingsofhome.com and http://claygifts.com
Jim Johnson at http://yessy.com/jimjohnson/gallery.html
Russ Powell at http://powellphotos.com
Linda Flake at http://lindaflake.com
Tom Herrin at http://tommysart.blogspot.com
Matt McLeod at http://matt@mattmcleod.com
Artists Registry at http://www.arkansasarts.org/programs/registry/default.aspx
Sandy Hubler Fine Art at http://sandyhublerfineart.com
George Wittenberg at http://postcard-art-gallery.com
Will Barnet at http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,17315,23628,23670,24472,25834,26095,26328,26562,26637,26761,26790,26849,26992,27095,27126,27139,27147,27178&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=will+barnet&cp=9&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=xpfETMT1O4L6lwf66ugE&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=2&sqi=2&ved=0CEkQsAQwAQ&biw=1350&bih=501
Barry Thomas at http://barrythomasart.com
Sherry Williamson at http://meowbarkart.com
Julie McNair at http://juliemcnair.com
GALLERIES
Local Colour Gallery at http://localcolourgallery.com
Chroma Gallery at http://chromagallery.com
Cantrell Gallery at http://cantrellgallery.com
Greg Thompson Fine Art at http://gregthompsonfineart.com
Red Door Gallery at http://reddoorgalleryonline.com
M2 Gallery at http://m2lr.com
UALR Gallery Program at http://ualr.edu/art
Gallery 26 at http://gallery26.com
Boswell Mourot Fine Art at http://boswellmourot.com
On this positive note it also seems that now would be an excellent time to admit to the root causes of all the anger and mistrust that has built up over the past few years. In the view of many renown spiritual leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, the Dalai Lama, Dr. King and Rev. Billy Graham among others, the true reason for our feelings goes much deeper than the external forces with which we are all familiar (e.g. recession, economic disparity, war, unemployment, global competition, immigration policy, etc.). In short, it goes straight to the human heart which is affected by a multitude of stimuli and emotions including greed, ego, pride, hate and revenge which all tear at the fabric of our soul. Each of us in our own way knows how our conduct is influenced by these spiritual flaws and recognize that it takes an act of personal redemption to restore faith in ourselves as the first step in collectively restoring the spiritual well-being of mankind as a whole. Once that "healing of the heart" has taken place, it might be helpful to then embrace the message of that well-known Serenity Prayer which begins:
"God grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can;
and wisdom to know the difference."
But, please go to http://www.cptryon.org/prayer/special/serenity.html to read it in its entirety.
And, finally, let me suggest that one way we could practice another important admonition in that prayer of "Enjoying one moment at a time" is by taking advantage of the wonderful world of art that is open to all of us on so many levels including painting, music, plays, movies, etc. and at so many venues. In that regard I am pleased to add to my list of studio artists, Julie McNair, whom I was privileged to meet a year ago this past September in Telluride, Colorado while attending their film festival. As a direct result of that chance encounter, Julie was invited to participate in Little Rock's annual Sculpture in the River Market event last October. Like all of the others listed, she is a truly talented artist whose work I find unique and sometimes with a whimsical flair that I find most enjoyable and uplifting. Go to her website at http://juliemcnair.com and see for yourself.
ARTISTS
Laura Raborn at http://paintingsofhome.com and http://claygifts.com
Jim Johnson at http://yessy.com/jimjohnson/gallery.html
Russ Powell at http://powellphotos.com
Linda Flake at http://lindaflake.com
Tom Herrin at http://tommysart.blogspot.com
Matt McLeod at http://matt@mattmcleod.com
Artists Registry at http://www.arkansasarts.org/programs/registry/default.aspx
Sandy Hubler Fine Art at http://sandyhublerfineart.com
George Wittenberg at http://postcard-art-gallery.com
Will Barnet at http://www.google.com/images?hl=en&expIds=17259,17315,23628,23670,24472,25834,26095,26328,26562,26637,26761,26790,26849,26992,27095,27126,27139,27147,27178&sugexp=ldymls&xhr=t&q=will+barnet&cp=9&um=1&ie=UTF-8&source=univ&ei=xpfETMT1O4L6lwf66ugE&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&ct=title&resnum=2&sqi=2&ved=0CEkQsAQwAQ&biw=1350&bih=501
Barry Thomas at http://barrythomasart.com
Sherry Williamson at http://meowbarkart.com
Julie McNair at http://juliemcnair.com
GALLERIES
Local Colour Gallery at http://localcolourgallery.com
Chroma Gallery at http://chromagallery.com
Cantrell Gallery at http://cantrellgallery.com
Greg Thompson Fine Art at http://gregthompsonfineart.com
Red Door Gallery at http://reddoorgalleryonline.com
M2 Gallery at http://m2lr.com
UALR Gallery Program at http://ualr.edu/art
Gallery 26 at http://gallery26.com
Boswell Mourot Fine Art at http://boswellmourot.com
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