AMP: Artists' Meeting Place and Resource Collective

It's hard to believe that someone who thinks that Ralph Nader and the Green Party are a little conservative would attend a military event but this Saturday I went to the Joint Service Open House (JSOH) Air Show in Maryland. I’ve always liked air shows ever since I was a kid watching Blue Angels at the El Toro airbase with my dad. Even though the pilots are doing loops and barrel rolls in billion dollar machines built for war and killing, there is something so innocent about it. When I look up to the heavens at the winged bird I realize the magnificence of nature and when I see a jet propelling a man higher than the clouds and faster than sound I am amazed by the progress of modernity and the courage of the human spirit. I remember watching a show on American and Russian fighter planes and in it one of the people said, “Pilots on both sides are the same – they just want to fly the most hi-tech, exhilarating airplanes and if they were to ever meet in a dank tavern they would probably drink and talk for hours as comrades because of their love for flying.” Indeed when the airplane was first used in World War I, it was used for reconnaissance and when enemy pilots would meet each other in the air they would wave in excitement to each other because they were so thrilled just to be flying. Another quote I remember in a movie is, “Grandpa always told me that flying boat pilots are the greatest bunch of guys there are. He said it’s because the sea and the sky purify their hearts. So flying boat pilots are much braver than sailors and much prouder than ordinary pilots.” I would like to have that kind of braveness and pride so one of the things I have to do before I die is fly an airplane – even in the post 9/11 world, it’s not too hard to schedule and only costs about $75 for an introductory flight lesson. If I see you in the sky, be sure to wave at me!