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The White Doves of Yuma
Yuma, Arizona- Friday, January 25, 2013
by:Michael Townsend

Every morning from the window of my desert home, I see a flock of white doves heading east into the rising sun. At sunset the doves overfly Yuma once more heading west, flying into the most beautiful sunsets I have ever witnessed. It is the desert air and clear sky that provide the background for this canvas, this daily flight of perfectly white doves. The doves seem to love this watercolour vista as much as me, as they experience it from on high for as long as possible. They never seem to tire of the wonder, drawn by the twice daily beauty of the spectacle. But where do they go during the bright light of day and when darkness falls at night?

This painting represents to me something ominous in America. Peace, which is sought by most Americans, seems as fleeting and over passing as the white doves. The beauty of America is overshadowed by the horror of the mass killing of children and theatre goers. And these traumatized people see no external enemy that can be the focus of the usual crazed military intervention. The enemy lies within and the failure to recognize it results in a failure to seek a rational solution.  

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A neighbour and I went out to pick oranges. He, I thought, was one of the rational Americans (is that an oxymoron?). I brought up the subject of the NRA's response to Newtown, putting armed guards in every American school. This, in his opinion, was a stroke of pure genius. He then droned on about their 2nd Amendment right to bear arms and the conversation deteriorated to the usual American bull shit that clouds every conversation that deals with guns. The Easter-ham glaze, that came over his eyes while explaining to me a plan to arm every American, was terrifying.

There was a gun show in Yuma recently. It was reportedly one of the best attended ever, with purchases exceeding all previous years of the show. I am keeping a psychological barometer tuned to the locals in Yuma and the US populous in general. The readings on this barometer are based on things I talk about with Americans I see on a regular basis. Latest prognostication; an intense high pressure system followed by an anxiety filled low, leaving a perpetual state of fear and loathing.

An armed, angry populous does not spell safety for anyone, man or beast. As so many Americans live in a past that glorifies the gun fights and mentality of 'Ol' Dodge City'  it may be time to get outta this Western nightmare, take my dog and never return, leaving the White Doves of Yuma to make their eternal flight unnoticed. 

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