Progressing our Hobby
Thanks to Everyone, and Farewell...
To my PSL colleagues and friends. First off, I want to thank all of you who helped to make this event a tremendous success. We raised over $5,000 for the Highland Historical Society (I will have a final count for you as soon as I get it from the HHS), and this really will go a long way in keeping the McDowell Museum open and running. Many of you also made generous donations in excess of the $20 registration fee, and for that we are especially grateful.
Unfortunately, I also must inform you a that I have made a decision to hang up my sword once and for all, and retire from CW reenacting for good. I will probably return for the 150th Anniversary of McDowell, but most likely that will be the only event I will be a part of in the future.
I have come to this decision for various reasons: my age; a long reenacting career (over 20 years); a realization that for many years I have put various aspects of my life on the “back-burner”. But primarily because I find that my philosophical, religious, scientific and political beliefs are vastly at odds with the majority of reenactors. This was made very apparent to me during a rather heated discussion I had with several individuals (who will go unnamed) on Saturday afternoon at the AoA event.
As many of you know, I am a professional geologist and a trained vertebrate paleontologist; I have spent a lifetime studying the earth’s history, prehistoric animals and trying to reconstruct their natural history and environment. I’ve discovered, described and named two new species of animals, and am in the process of describing a new species of carnivorous dinosaur, a diminutive relative of Tyrannosaurus that live in New Mexico about 90 million years ago. Yet, during this discussion, I had to listen to one individual refer to the theory of evolution as “shit”, and was forced to defend my viewpoints to people who obviously had no knowledge of my practice area, or the process of scientific inquiry that has led to the conclusions we have come to over the years. I even was subjected to someone calling evolutionary science a “false religion”.
Well, like Charles Darwin, I am a Christian, and have a deep religious conviction. I hold that the observational sciences (biology, geology, astronomy, etc.), in revealing the wonders of nature, including evolution, only glorifies the mystery and splendor of the almighty Creator. As a Quaker, I am not enslaved by a literal belief in the infallibility of the Bible, which is the real basis of most fundamentalist Christians’ denial of evolution or an ancient earth; therefore I am free to accept evolution as scientific fact, and not in contradiction to my religious beliefs.
I am also a progressive, and to some degree, a leftist. I believe that a certain amount of socialism and government regulation is necessary to maintain a balance with “unfettered” capitalism and the right-wing tendency towards authoritarianism. It has become apparent to me that CW reenacting is clearly populated mostly by conservatives, with whom I share little, and to whom I only serve as a fly-in-the-ointment, and an irritant. I listen to the conversations around the campfires, believe me; and what I hear makes this very apparent to me: If most reenactors knew what my real political bent was, they probably wouldn't want me around. But I can no longer keep my true political leanings a secret; and I refuse to pretend to agree, and nod sheepishly, as other reenactors espouse right-wing or conservative viewpoints with impunity.
Therefore, I must take my leave of you all, and will trouble you no more with my heretical, unpatriotic and “un-American” beliefs.
Your servant, et c.,
Bob D.
Unfortunately, I also must inform you a that I have made a decision to hang up my sword once and for all, and retire from CW reenacting for good. I will probably return for the 150th Anniversary of McDowell, but most likely that will be the only event I will be a part of in the future.
I have come to this decision for various reasons: my age; a long reenacting career (over 20 years); a realization that for many years I have put various aspects of my life on the “back-burner”. But primarily because I find that my philosophical, religious, scientific and political beliefs are vastly at odds with the majority of reenactors. This was made very apparent to me during a rather heated discussion I had with several individuals (who will go unnamed) on Saturday afternoon at the AoA event.
As many of you know, I am a professional geologist and a trained vertebrate paleontologist; I have spent a lifetime studying the earth’s history, prehistoric animals and trying to reconstruct their natural history and environment. I’ve discovered, described and named two new species of animals, and am in the process of describing a new species of carnivorous dinosaur, a diminutive relative of Tyrannosaurus that live in New Mexico about 90 million years ago. Yet, during this discussion, I had to listen to one individual refer to the theory of evolution as “shit”, and was forced to defend my viewpoints to people who obviously had no knowledge of my practice area, or the process of scientific inquiry that has led to the conclusions we have come to over the years. I even was subjected to someone calling evolutionary science a “false religion”.
Well, like Charles Darwin, I am a Christian, and have a deep religious conviction. I hold that the observational sciences (biology, geology, astronomy, etc.), in revealing the wonders of nature, including evolution, only glorifies the mystery and splendor of the almighty Creator. As a Quaker, I am not enslaved by a literal belief in the infallibility of the Bible, which is the real basis of most fundamentalist Christians’ denial of evolution or an ancient earth; therefore I am free to accept evolution as scientific fact, and not in contradiction to my religious beliefs.
I am also a progressive, and to some degree, a leftist. I believe that a certain amount of socialism and government regulation is necessary to maintain a balance with “unfettered” capitalism and the right-wing tendency towards authoritarianism. It has become apparent to me that CW reenacting is clearly populated mostly by conservatives, with whom I share little, and to whom I only serve as a fly-in-the-ointment, and an irritant. I listen to the conversations around the campfires, believe me; and what I hear makes this very apparent to me: If most reenactors knew what my real political bent was, they probably wouldn't want me around. But I can no longer keep my true political leanings a secret; and I refuse to pretend to agree, and nod sheepishly, as other reenactors espouse right-wing or conservative viewpoints with impunity.
Therefore, I must take my leave of you all, and will trouble you no more with my heretical, unpatriotic and “un-American” beliefs.
Your servant, et c.,
Bob D.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Dirk Behana on -
Bob,
Thank you for all you have done for the Hobby. I hope you change your mind and return.
thank you,
Dirk Behana
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Permalink Reply by Bob Denton on -
I may Dirk; perhaps I simply need to take some time off, rest and recoup. AoA knocked the stuffing out of me, and when that happens I get stressed and tend to lose my tolerance to things that annoy me.
I've known for years that many, if not most, reenactors are at the opposite end of the political spectrum from myself; and I've always managed to have civil conversations regarding political, philosophical and religious topics. I reckon part of what's been bothering me was that I got shouted down recently at a Town Hall Meeting by some Tea Party protesters when I simply asked why the country couldn't go to a single payer health care system. I was called a "commie", a "socialist" and an "Obama-Nazi" by these people. You have no idea how angry it made me, because it brought back the memories of when I literally "took one on the chin" for the hobby when Leo Schwartz slugged me at the 2003 McDowell event. You see, Leo's big issue has always been "too much government...". He hated the Highland Historical Society because they accepted government funds and matching grants. He hated us reenactors because our event helped to purchase land around McDowell for preservation, which would eventually become part of the National Parks System (once again, the "evil big government"...).
Understand?
Bob D.
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Permalink Reply by Joe Bordonaro on -
Bob,
You're not alone. I'm so far to the left that I'm almost to the right :)
Stick with the hobby. We can't afford to lose you.
-Joe Bordonaro
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Permalink Reply by Terri Leamer on -
Bob, I don't know you well but am Terri Leamer's husband. I do hope you reconsider your decision, I look forward to becoming more involved in the hobby and you sound like the kind of individual I would enjoy listening to around the fire. I believe this civil tragedy we represent to the public happened at least in part to intolerance. Thanks for initiating a discussion and sharing your personal experience of what I agree appears to be a very socially ethnocentric group, but perhaps it is just because they tend to be the loudest!
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