STATE OF THE UNION

To be a young American with high aspirations is to ask to be financially dumped upon by mountains of debt. Education is a basic human right, and in the "wealthiest" nation upon earth those with the fortitude to apply themselves to the pursuit of higher learning can achieve it, though not without a trail of debt that will follow them to the grave. This is the state of my union. I struggle each day to pursue a graduate degree with no guarantee that I can repay the loans and interest that is ever compounding. I do not seek guarantees in life...only possibility, though now even the possibility is becoming less and less probable.

In many respects the struggle of American College and Professional Students is like that of the country as a whole, Landfills of Debt without many possibilities for repayment. Where will it all end? When will we all Default? Can our Union at last vanquish our cannibal-capitalistic ways and follow the foresight of our European Brothers towards socialist peace?

The Very Future of our Planet rests in the hands of my generation and yet our parents have allowed policies to be put into place that handicap us in ways that may prove to be insurmountable. I do pray our knowledge will save us...I do hope our determination for a Government Of the People, For the People and By The People will be reborn and we will be the generation that screams from every mountain "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! GIVE ME LIBERTY OR GIVE ME DEATH!"

Our Founders would not accept this Government....should we?

The Pursuit of...?

A boy is born. He is nurtured. He is loved and provided for. He is schooled and taught to participate within the best society the world has ever created. He participates with utter exuberance and vivacity. His education continues within the confines of Academia, and with time the shiny surface of this "grand" society begins to tarnish before his eyes. The patina spreads across the entire length and width of the two-dimensional system. His society is flat and as rigid as steel, its' procedures upheld even in the face of human strife. The boy is now a man and continues onward with education, for at least the pursuit of knowledge above that of wealth gives him the comfort of sleep at night. Though, no longer can he participate whole-heartedly within the two-dimensions provided by the mass governance of his world, for the pursuit of knowledge has made him a multi-dimensional man. He longs for the freedom to reject this system, yet to do so is a guarantee of homelessness and poverty. On a night like any other in America, he witnesses two men upon an average city street. One man steps out of an expensive car with bluetooth in ear talking of bids with gluttony and greed dripping from his mouth, the other sits upon the wet concrete sidewalk with a sign in hand that reads " I have an able body and mind. I do not drink or use drugs. I have a bachelors degree. I will work for anything." The mens' eyes do not meet , for they must both know they have no use for the other. We say these men are equal though clearly they are not. One was lucky or intelligent or greedy enough to acquire many sheets of green paper and the other was not. Simple. The boy who became a man has no desire to fight and struggle for paper, yet no desire to be forgotten or wet or lonely upon the bitter streets of this bitter world. Though, he has no desire to live in a palace while others have nothing either. This is the dilemma of critical thought and that is why we accept this system. For critical thought has been abandoned by most, and upheld by a few labeled radicals.

It seems to the boy who became a man that we have the right to life and liberty only if we first pursue money.

What is your idea of the pursuit of happiness, is it even possible without money? If not, is our economy even constitutional?

RIDICULISM

Born of the Mind of the American Artist

Richie Fine

January 2009

Chicago, Illinois

World-Premiere Ridiculist Exhibition

The Grace Teshima Gallery

August 2009

Paris, France

The First American Ridiculist Auction

Knock-Knock Trading Post

February 2010

Portland, Oregon

Ridiculism- An Art movement that focuses upon the absurd nature of existence within Contemporary Capitalistic Society, and strives to unveil the grand inequalities that such an economic and social structure perpetuates. The work produced under the umbrella of Ridiculism scorns the system contemptuously, yet is ever mindful of the power of banter and buffoonery to open the eyes of the masses to the irrational, unmanageable and unsustainable state of contemporary society. Art is the last weapon in the arsenal of the revolutionary and in order for humanity to prevail we must sacrifice our comforts and live each day focused not upon our own needs and desires but rather the rights of our posterity.

The Chief Principles of Ridiculism

1. EVERY-HUMAN IS AN ARTIST! EVERY STROKE IS SACRED! EVERY MOMENT IS HISTORY! EVERY STORY IS WORTH BEING TOLD! ALL OF THE FLORA AND FAUNA OF THE EARTH WILL ALWAYS HAVE GREATER INHERENT VALUE THAN THE DISADVANTAGEOUS AND WRETCHED PAPER CURRENCY WE ALL MUST SLAVE TO OBTAIN.

2. The rejection of conceptual art that is devoid of skilled and crafted technique. If an artist has an idea and does not have the technical expertise to execute that idea, it is his or her responsibility to learn said technique. We must maintain our tactile abilities and improve them while simultaneously advancing technologically.

3. To approach Life and Art through the lens of humor. For through true laughter and constructive satire we can perhaps unlock the door to our global interconnectivity. Thus offering insight to humanities daunting obstacles.

4. Ridiculism sets out to ridicule the overwhelmingly serious tone that dominates contemporary Art at this time. There is an urgent need for the resurgence of meaningful critical discourse within society. Therefore, we must deride the social systems that enslave us before all knowledge of another way of life is lost. There is Hope, yet this very moment must be defined by action! There is no time to whine or make blame, and there is little time to debate. Can humanity overcome self-interest, the thing that has driven our species for millennia and toil rather for the betterment of all humanity?

5. In an age when Billions struggle for basic subsistence, is it not ridiculous that Artists dead and alive merit millions of dollars for rectangles of wood, covered in fabric and lathered with viscous pigment? DOWN WITH CAPITALISTIC ART THAT IS PRODUCED SOLEY FOR THE MARKETS! Capitalistic art is mere decoration, and its influences are diluting the power of Art and the aesthetic sensibilities of the populous. If an artist is fortunate enough to gain great financial success it is the responsibility of the artist to aid in the success of other unknown artists. The life of the artist should be filled with freedom but also a sense of great responsibility, for Artists are the archivists of the past and architects of the future.

6. Art should be accessible to all people, regardless of their economic status. To use Art as a means of reinforcing one's place on the ladder of wealth is to reinforce ancient monarchical mentality. This mindset cannot endure, for it is stifling billions of their basic human right to the pursuit of happiness, and causes a cycle where billions cannot escape the doom that is daily existence under such perverse and unnatural restraint. We must use the power of Art to further enlighten our species and lead us to a new way of life that is in tune with nature and most importantly each other.

7. Ridiculism is ever changing. As each artist takes up the call to arms of Ridiculism, he or she should add their own sensibilities and knowledge to the collective concepts. This is the way of liberty, and therefore it is the only way to pursue true freedom before it is only a memory in the minds of those already gone.

RISE RIDICULISM RISE!