Remember, remember the Fifth of November,
The Gunpowder Treason and Plot,
I can think of no reason
Why the Gunpowder Treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, t'was his intent
To blow up the King and Parli'ment.
Three-score barrels of powder below
To prove old England's overthrow;
By God's providence he was catch'd
With a dark lantern and burning match.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, let the bells ring.
Holloa boys, holloa boys, God save the King!
Most people have heard of Guy Fawkes Night, right? I would hope that people have read the Alan Moore comic series "V for Vendetta", or at least have seen the movie starring the delicious Natalie Portman. The series is set in a near-future England where most of the world has been involved in a nuclear war and the fascist Norsefire party controls everything. The title character, who calls himself 'V' wears a Guy Fawkes mask while plotting revenge on the people who imprisoned and tortured him, and in doing so, brings the fascist government down (we assume). The real Guy Fawkes was a member of a group of English catholic revolutionaries who plotted to blow up the British houses of parliament and to kill King James I of Scotland in 1605. They hoped for an England that would be more "tolerant" of Catholicism. Guy Fawkes was in charge of setting up and detonating 36 barrels of explosives that had been placed in tunnels under the House of Lords. He was discovered before he could detonate the gunpowder, when word of the plot got out to members of the parliament. Guy Fawkes and his fellow conspirators were captured, tortured, tried and executed.
People in Great Britain still celebrate Guy Fawkes day by lighting bonfires, setting off firecrackers and hanging effigies of Guy Fawkes.
My point? Intolerance. California Proposition #8. Racial Profiling. Sexism. Religious intolerance. As uncouth and unprofessional as it sounds, apparently the only to make a point is to light a fire under it. Or at least plot to. Guy Fawkes is remembered 400 years after his death. W will be forgotten on January 21st.
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2 comments:
Amen to that. Proposition 8 will be overturned. You'll see. It was so unconstitutional... But it will be tied up in the Supreme Court for years. Bastards....
Why do religious people always think they are right?
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