In Review

Counting Coup

When my pencil meets the paper, I find myself unconsciously referring to human nature
Obvious to me, it's part of everyone and behind "why" in every instance

The Plains Indian Tribes had warred against each other longer than their final struggle to survive a European invasion

On horseback, a young warrior would ride toward the enemy to touch a rival warrior with some kind of coup stick
A bloodless victory of honor

In the 1990s, the warriors of youthful rebellion and social arnachy had their own decade of cultural ride against rival warriors

My teenaged son was the drummer for a punk band "PUKEORAMA"
They decided to leave the Kansas City area to see what it was like in rural Missouri
Bringing urban enlightenment to the rural kids of Springfield, MO

Springfield probably named for some sweet spring water, but as they found that sweetness over time had worn off, leaving the sour southern inbred attitude of reliving forever their daddy's southern woes and their ignorance of progressive MTV reality

The boys played with a five piece thrash-metal fury
It wasn't their music, but it was the mixed race bass player that caught the knuckle dragging attention of these rural kids
The band was booed, cursed at, cussed at
Eventually, after many vociferous exchanges and some minor violent contact, there existed a stand-off
The band was not paid but was escorted out of town by several pickup trucks as well as one local police officer who joined in the fun
The N word was used as a last sing along by these poor mannered and frustrated confederates

Like counting coup
These young warriors in their righteous might living out loud with their rebellious ideals and brave enough to fly in the face of conventional wisdom
Adhering to their honor as artistic free Americans making a defiant statement in, as they soon found out, KKK country
Realizing what they should have expected
Acceptance denied

Counting coup without fast horses
They touched them and they were also touched......a coup, a battle?
A challenge, how cultural changes painfully and in an ugly ill-advised manner eventually occur

The bands way of living on the edge was very gutsy, but they were just kids

My thanks to MTV, the friend and teacher no school or parent could ever be
It's their world now
My parents never thanked the Beatles, but they should have
My son today is an experienced adult
As a teenager, he never knew how much hard work he was actually doing, perfecting the music they wrote to rant against everything they didn't like
Youth is a great time to prove to oneself who and what they are and what they want if allowed to do so

20 years later, he paid his parents' way to New York, where we all celebrated John Lennon's birthday in Central Park, then visited CBGB's his mecca
A successful ex-punk with successful parents that learned acceptance and understanding, which have a priceless reward
Acceptance, although bumpy, can be a healthy road toward understanding others' complex behaviors and lifestyles
These punks had the right to defy the KKK
Kids in Springfield, MO had the right to hate
Even in a democracy a civilized coexistence is a hard battle to win

The constant state of counting coup