A Little Camper Humor
There are few darker subjects than terrorism, which is acting out rage against innocents because you cannot or will not act it out against what actually inspires it. It’s beating up your neighbor’s kid and proudly running away, when you know you don’t stand the wisp of a chance against your neighbor himself. It’s passive-aggressive behavior – an avoidance of direct confrontation – on steroids. It’s a weird combination of murderous anger, helplessness and hopelessness. It is a psyche inspired by bloodshed and violence, fired by a perception of injustice that seemingly can only be repaid with more injustice. It can be a contribution to the betterment of mankind gone horribly askew, but in most cases, is simply a way to earn a living that feeds one’s love of hate. The psychopathic serial killer, utterly devoid of empathy, is the amateur hobbyist version, while the terrorist is one turned pro. Rallying under banners of religion or politics or activism is mere window dressing, an attempt to make one’s personal hatred gain some legitimacy or productivity. It is the dark side of purpose and accomplishment, in the belief that there will be no time of personal accountability.
Vintage black humor. You can click on this to see a larger version. The original caption text referred to a prescribed policy of giving groups of four terrorists proper identity documents, clothing, $50 in cash, a vehicle for transportation to their next destination, and an appropriate departure, duly observed for the record. Goodbye, and think well of us, friends!
Since there isn’t much that the ordinary person can do besides avoiding designated gun-free zones and passing restrictive laws in the vain hope that would-be terrorists and their minions can somehow be made to respect those laws, a little humor sometimes breaks out here and there as an expression of defiance to helplessness, a way of diffusing the subconscious unease a little.
In that spirit, the moment I competed cleaning and waxing the exterior of the FWC Grandby truck camper, I performed the first modification to it that initiates its transition from mere Grandby to its new definition. I placed a sticker onto its rear door window. Behold, I present to you the Mighty Intrepid.
…In all her resplendent beauty.
Strolling Amok 
Can’t read the sticker from here but I’ll keep my eyes peeled in case the next time I see a red Ford truck with a popup camper on the back is indeed you!
See what happens when you start reading as an email & come to the blog down into the story? You miss the top photo & that was the the story for today…
I thought is was the bumper sticker on the door …
Gee, I had no idea that the notification that WordPress sends out is the post itself apparently missing the lead photo(?), and that clicking on the link positions the article to continue such that the lead photo is then out of view. That’s too bad, since the lead or title photo is always the most significant of the bunch.
Excellent.
Dealing with death of any kind is a difficult subject. Dealing with outright murder and torture is a nightmare. You did an excellent job of talking about a difficult subject and yet managing to allow the humor to peek through.
Dealing with difficult subjects, with humor, is one way to get through this crazy life. I think it’s the preferred way. I often wonder if that’s not an innate gift that the good Lord gave us. I do think that sticker is appropriate for these times, in some respects it should be taken quite seriously. Of course, that is why, it is funny. 🙂
P.S. I can see the photo of the sticker right at the top of the post where it should be.
Good, thank you, Rachel.
I like your description of what terrorism is. Helps me understand it in a new way–bullying on a large scale, acting from impotence, etc. Thanks for helping me think about this. But, it feels to me like your bumper sticker is a prime example of the problem–get them before they get you? Sort of funny but also scary.
Such symbology can be unsettling, since humor can often be based on the tension of placing together or merging two unrelated things in a way that is clearly ridiculous. However distasteful, when push comes to shove I find the idea of “getting them before they get you” to be preferable to the only alternative. Not everyone wants to give peace a chance.
I understand what you are saying. The difference between us may be that I feel I’ve done everything I wanted to do with my life. Taking someone else’s life has never been on my OK to do list so at this point in time I’d rather give them mine than have to live with myself after taking theirs.
Commendable. I suspect that no one who’s comparatively normal fails to be kind of traumatized at taking a life regardless of circumstance, though much of the time the goal is to simply stop the person, but eventual death results. Does your preference also apply when the life to be given/affected is not yours, but instead someone you care deeply about? People that you see but do not know? At what point will a person be motivated to violate their personal values in order to defend another?
Congratulations on the new addition. Sorry to hear about your solar conundrum. I’ve been reading the numerous comments and can’t find anything to suggest, other than an aluminum heatsink underneath it. Which made me wonder (and likely already discussed), whether your rooftop might yield better results than fiberglass.
Thank you, Jim. It’s only a conundrum until I make an informed decision and/or run out of money. I think even something as simple as a sheet of aluminum foil or real duct tape on the backside would likely help a little, if only to reflect roof heat away from it as long as there is an air gap of some kind below. The roof material thing is hard to say. I’ve got white aluminum, which will be better than just about anything else for temperature in full sun.
I was thinking (which I pbly should not do) about your solar panels, and what about some kind of extended metal mesh, kinda like the stuff on screen doors? There’s also plastic, like the grid used on florescent ceiling lights, but I don’t think that would stand up to heat/sun very well.
Since I drive a semi for a living (can’t live on SS), I have time to contemplate the great mysteries of life, such as… how to mount inflexible sorta heavy panels on a semi rigid surface, and how to use circular knitting needles instead of straights to knit overalls for a knitted doll I made to avoid sewing seams. I also excel at run-on sentences!
Merry Christmas!
Many of us like to think we’re living on the road, Mary, but you’re making a living on the road! Yep, reader Ming has mentioned using expanded aluminum or steel mesh to support a flex panel on a rack, though not as an attached backing per se. I think about things on the road, but only when it’s a no-brainer drive. Too easy to miss exits, even when the GPS is squawking at me. As I’m sure you’ve noticed I enjoy a good run-on sentence, but I also like to mix it up with plain bad grammar and punctuation to keep any perfectionists entertained. I think it’s worth the extra effort. 😉 Merry Christmas