Help End Rankism With Art

Posted:#N/A

Strength and dignity are her clothing...

Proverbs 31:25

Author's Note: I have been enjoined from sharing the details of my true romance adventure until such time that the other party is prepared to present her perspective on the affair arrangement...

On the second to last weekend of June, 2011, I had joined my fellow naturists at a gathering of the Naturist Society in rural Pennsylvania. The next day I left on a flight for Europe. By the end of the week I had unexpectedly met another naturist, a woman, who was destined to accompany me on a tour of Europe's great naturist resorts.

Though as an artist I had been working on body acceptance since the start of my career, and as a one-time practicing figure model was used to being nude in a social setting, I had been left largely unexposed to the community of naturists and nudists working towards the same goal of promoting the human being. Visiting nude beaches and resorts along the East Coast and participating in events organized around New York by Young Naturists America, I was left hungry for more and had come to Europe to see things from their side of the pond. Margo was my introduction.

I had grown up in America. Land of opportunity. I came of age in the booming 90s when everything was possible. She had grown up in Poland. She had come of age at a time when the Soviets were making sure that there wasn't even anything to eat in the country. I couldn't even properly translate the word "opportunity" into Polish.

Do unto others as you would have done unto you. But how to judge what we would want done to us if we've never been in somebody else's shoes? If we've never been abandoned by our mother, how do we treat somebody who has? Somebody who seems to constantly suffer the repurcussions of it? Margo and I had 46 days and 6,000 miles to try on each other's shoes. We had one car and one tent in which to hear each other's words. We learned to cooperate. We started learning how to listen.

One of Margo's pictures from our trip across Europe. — 6,000 miles across Europe with a complete stranger
**Day 16**
8/4/2011
⚖ 15༛♊²⁵/₂₄♀
Camping Club Léman
Préverenges, Switzerland
THE DISAPPEARING WOMAN, THE DISAPPEARING MAN...
a collection of modern art prints and posters
During our trip across Europe, Margo very bravely opened up to me and to the camera. It was a difficult thing to do considering the scars that she carries. I wanted to share with the world her often joyful, often sad, often angry but always liberating experience except that the Internet is full of pictures of naked women and men and full of trolls who abuse them.
I realized that what I really need to point out is not the openness that Margo and I cultivated between ourselves, but the darkness that continues to surround us. When I censor nudity, I do so in a way that does not compromise the integrity of the human body. In censoring the photographs that Margo and I took during our trip, I was quick to notice that in those pictures where Margo was at her most open, at her most unguarded and most relaxed, in a word, when she was herself and basking in the sun I was forced to blacken her completely.
Why does our society drive people into darkness? Why can we not accept ourselves as we are? Why can we not accept our bodies? Have we truly become eunuchs? Or are we capable of defying the sickness that pits us against each other? Together we could conquer the devils that abuse us.
Whether you enjoy being nude or not, whether you've been photographed nude or not, but especially if, for you, like for Margo, it's something you never thought you would do, consider submitting your own photograph to be published in a censored manner as a form of protest against the ubiquitous presence of the human body on the internet, naked or not, that is published and duplicated ad infinitum without context and without regard for the identity or the needs of the individual being depicted.

Previous Image — 6,000 miles across Europe with a complete stranger
**Day 16**
8/4/2011
⚖ 15༛♊²⁵/₂₄♀
Camping Club Léman
Préverenges, Switzerland
THE DISAPPEARING WOMAN, THE DISAPPEARING MAN...
a collection of modern art prints and posters
During our trip across Europe, Margo very bravely opened up to me and to the camera. It was a difficult thing to do considering the scars that she carries. I wanted to share with the world her often joyful, often sad, often angry but always liberating experience except that the Internet is full of pictures of naked women and men and full of trolls who abuse them.
I realized that what I really need to point out is not the openness that Margo and I cultivated between ourselves, but the darkness that continues to surround us. When I censor nudity, I do so in a way that does not compromise the integrity of the human body. In censoring the photographs that Margo and I took during our trip, I was quick to notice that in those pictures where Margo was at her most open, at her most unguarded and most relaxed, in a word, when she was herself and basking in the sun I was forced to blacken her completely.
Why does our society drive people into darkness? Why can we not accept ourselves as we are? Why can we not accept our bodies? Have we truly become eunuchs? Or are we capable of defying the sickness that pits us against each other? Together we could conquer the devils that abuse us.
Whether you enjoy being nude or not, whether you've been photographed nude or not, but especially if, for you, like for Margo, it's something you never thought you would do, consider submitting your own photograph to be published in a censored manner as a form of protest against the ubiquitous presence of the human body on the internet, naked or not, that is published and duplicated ad infinitum without context and without regard for the identity or the needs of the individual being depicted.

Definition of Guns

Guns are artifacts that don't decide to kill people, even though they do kill people on a fairly regular basis whether or not that was the intention of the person nearest to one at the time of its discharge, the discharge being a powerful fuel for the creation of other fuels, especially security and especially in the wild, leading many to fetishize guns as being able to control wilderness when in fact this is an illusion. Only humans can control the wilderness within them.

Common use of guns in illustrative example sentences

Guns don't kill people. Governments kill people.
Audio of me saying the sentence:
Nobody's coming to take away your guns, you hillbilly.
Audio of me saying the sentence:
I have yet to come up with a third sentence using the word guns.
Audio of me saying the sentence:
I have yet to come up with a fourth sentence using the word guns.
Audio of me saying the sentence:
I have yet to come up with a fifth sentence using the word guns.
Audio of me saying the sentence:
I have yet to come up with a sixth sentence using the word guns.
Audio of me saying the sentence:
I have yet to come up with a seventh sentence using the word guns.
Audio of me saying the sentence:

Usage of Guns in Michal's Fiction Corpus

Michal's Fiction Corpus of Acceptance Literature (FiCAL) is presented under the Bare Bottom imprint. It is currently comprised of six bodies of work, each representing a different pillar of culture and incorporating a wide variety of writhing styles.

If you're wondering...

How do I use this?

Just click on a title to see examples of the word "guns" being used in a particular work. You'll stay on the same spot on the page, only the Table of Contents will disappear. To get back to the Table of Contents just click next to the image of the Bare Bottom imprint where it says "Back to Usage of Guns: Table of Contents."“And...?”

The Table of Frequency and the Table of Collocation provide numerical information about how many times the word guns appears in its original or modified form and with which words. It can help to give you an idea of how a word is used and in what contexts.“Ok.”

Why a Fiction Corpus?

The popular understanding of the word "fiction" and its complement "non-fiction" is a reflection of the cultural influence of a classification system. The Dewey Decimal System is responsible for separating "fiction" from all other work and categorizing it by author's name. This has influenced the popular idea of fiction as a narrative that tends to be "untrue" and the product of an individual's fantasy, a bias compounded by modern art's century-long obsession with abstraction, surrealism and self-expression.“So...?”

My idea of fiction rests on the idea that art doesn't have to be factual to be a true reflection of our existence. Adam and Eve didn't have to exist as two individuals 700 generations ago for them to be true portraits of two human beings trying to work together.“And...?”

The Bible is a Fiction Corpus. It is a body of writing that isn't overly concerned with facts and yet its words carry weight. It was written by many different authors living in different places with different audiences in mind, yet everyone gleans something from it.“Right...”

In preparing my fiction corpus, I have striven to see the world through the eyes of others. Through the eyes of my Adams and Eves I hope that you too will glean some truth about our existence. At the very least you will learn some more about how one man can use the English language.“Ok.”

Who are you, Michal?

I'm just a guy who makes art. And if you're interested in making a solid investment in an aesthetic that supports our present and future welfare, then I will help you look for something that you can buy.“How...?”

Everybody makes. Everybody sells. Some people know how to protect their interests. Some better than others. Few people know how to listen. Listening to somebody means considering their interests as if they were your own. Going out and doing something to satisfy another person's interest is how we build a strong economy. Without a strong economy, democracy collapses.“And...?”

Buying 4Occupy is buying for democracy. Don't give your money to somebody who's ruining it. There's no such thing as cheap democracy, quick democracy, or easy democracy. There's good, solid, complete democracy and the tyranny of feudalism. Let's not mix the two. Let's not buy everything on the cheap. Let's not create another tyrant and enslave ourselves because it was easier not to think about what we were doing. Let's protect our interests. Let's listen.“Ok.”

Who's really behind this site?

Have you ever been to one of those post-it-yourself retail websites where there's a really attractive top-seller ready to give you tips on how you can be a top-seller too?“Uh...”

Have you ever been to a "job" interview where you sit in a line, walk through one door, get hired as a contractor and walk out another door, so that the other applicants don't realize that everyone's getting "hired" to work in the same market?“Maybe...”

The internet is full of people who are ready to exploit your ignorance. They are people who want to make money at the expense of our economy. They are cheats.“And...?”

I, Michal, am behind this site. Not some fat plutocrat exploiting my image. I like to do things the right way. I like to work with people who take the time to do things right.“Why...?”

I used to work for a company that didn't do things the right way. My labor was exploited because of mismanagement. That company was the United States Postal Service, an independent agency of the United States Government that is ultimately controlled by Congress. I'm mad because if the Federal Government can exploit labor, who is going to stop every other cheat from doing it?“Labor Unions...?”

Don't say labor unions. I went to my labor union and they did nothing. They ignored me because labor unions aren't democracies. Holding a free and fair election for a "representative" once in a blue moon does not equal people ruling. Democracy means open government. It means we the public need to accept the hard work. It's the only way to secure liberty and equality.“Ok.”

What's the difference between use and usage?

Definition-wise, not much. But the -age suffix is ultimately French in origin and with most things French, at least in American eyes, the immediate thought is that of something precious and arcane whose value should be judged very carefully. This is in contrast to the word France, which is associated with a beautiful place. Thus people in France or from France are beautiful, warm, kind people. Generous even. Unlike French people who suck. Unless you're frenching, in which case you're only sometimes sucking.“And...?”

Along those lines, usage means you're in bed. Use means you're just heavy petting. Also notice that common people, like common words, get used...whereas "proper" things make "appearances." Whether or not you are being exploited is a different story. Exploitation is what happens when somebody uses you or your property without listening to you. Listening is what happens when you consider another person's needs as if they were your own. You don't have to satisfy those needs. All you need to do is consider them. So many of us can't even do that.“So...?”

Help stop exploitation. Buy 4occupy. Buy a better world. Whether or not you feel you can afford to buy art, consider joining my protest. I want to guarantee every working man and every working mother on this planet a 15-day universal holiday. But I can't. Only we can do that. We have to work together. We have to accept the idea that everyone deserves time for himself and we need to build that time into a new kind of calendar. We have to give peace it's own day. We have to make love something you can't avoid. We have to make even the most miserly cold-hearted capitalist among us say that he cashed his check on Love Your Neighbor Day. There won't be any other way to say it once the Acceptance Calendar is widely adopted.“Ok.”

Back to Usage of Guns: Table of Contents

Guns, a morphological approach

I have yet to make a morphological analysis of the word guns.

That doesn't mean it's not high on my list.

Table of Frequency for the Word "Guns."
This table lists in descending order the total number of times that the word gunsand any of its morphological derivations appears in the Fiction Corpus, along with a breakdown of frequency by title, the respective rank of each word in the complete list of all words in the Corpus, as calculated both densely and competitively, as well as the percent increase in frequency of the word over the frequency of the next lowest rank in the complete list.
Percent Increase over next rank	RANK		WORD	Frequency
	RANK			TOTAL # of occurences	MCDONALDS	JESUS	SEX	TSIGA	JACKSON	DINGBATS
	dense	competitive		TOTAL # of occurences	modern/sloppy	biblical/terse	poetic/high-brow	hard/fast	talky	mixed salad
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
I have yet to publish the table of frequency for the word guns, but I will get to it shortly. -Michal

Back to Usage of Guns: Table of Contents

Usage of Guns in Death to McDonalds

An aerial view of Dodger Stadium in the foreground, with an imaginary partially submerged Los Angeles behind — A story bible for a comic book series set in a post climate-change California narrated by eight characters who live through a natural disaster that sinks Los Angeles and triggers a war with an expansionist Mexican government covertly supported by China.

Frame #132

jayce - the guns are underneath the clothes. you need to dig deeper. i would think you would know that. considering your tastes.

Justin Bieber

27 July, 9:46 AM

Frame #6172

im on modjeska street. i see the boat. it looks like a medium.sized inflatable. people are climbing aboard. men with guns.

Sprint "Iphone" Case

23 December, 8:07 AM

Frame #5503

if we can see the mainland. they can see us. if nobodys been able to swing by. its cause rail guns are on the bay. covering both sides.

Sprint "Iphone" Case

23 November, 2:25 PM

Frame #5916

im heading up to the river. i need to make sure we cant salvage the lost canoe. it was full of guns and ammo.

Justin Bieber

14 December, 3:55 PM

Frame #4216

all of a sudden im not sure i want to get on board the wells fargo. guns dont scream for help. sometimes women do. with bad consequences.

Sprint "Iphone" Case

29 September, 2:45 PM

Back to Usage of Guns: Table of Contents

Usage of Guns in The Gospel of Jesus H.

A picture of the planet Mars — An experimental science fiction Christology that makes Jesus the hard boiled narrator of his own early years on a bizarro earth made dark by volcanic ash and informally ruled by a man from Mars who sells bottled air.

For the pirates to abandon their way of life, they would have to change their language. They would have to change the word 'despot' to mean 'Supercapitalist,' 'despot's mistress' to mean 'mid-level manager,' and so on. They would have to trade in their guns and bullets and bombs for water-cooler conversations, wage cuts, and pink slips. That's what they abandoned in the first place; they turned to piracy for lack of apparent options. You have to crush pirates by speaking their own language, using words and ideas and gestures that pierce flesh, tear apart limbs, and decapitate. To the extent that the forces of Good refuse to do this, they fail. Cruelty is the only thing the cruel understand.

– Verse 3 from the chapter called Bohemia

In those days, out of all the member states of the European Union, Poland had the strictest gun control laws. It was hard to get any kind of firearm, but even handguns took two years of paperwork. They were expensive, and thank God I bought a stolen one for four hundred dollars from my friend. That was a gift, even if the numbers were scratched off.

– Verse 763 from the chapter called Adolescence

"We need arms," said Jesus. "And I know where to get them. We need bridges; we need to secure every checkpoint around the Old Town - but first, we go north: to Sand Island. That will be our headquarters. We go north, penetrate the southern part of Center City, get to the armory, then bring those weapons back down to the Island. We secure the whole perimeter by converting every checkpoint to our cause - by force if we have too. Then, at dawn, you'll have your proof. We've got lots of work to do - lots of terrorists to kill. Kula, Nitka, Laska, Flak: you're in charge of weapons. Kula: you've got ammunition. Nitka: you're in charge of armor. Laska: shoulder weapons. Flak: the big guns. Stalin: you're with me. Stolarksi: you've got to secure every bridge coming out of Sand Island. Got it?"

"Got it!"

– Verses 396-397 from the chapter called Arms

When the terrorists invaded Poland, they proved just as practical as the Germans. They brought machine guns, grenades, mortars, and assault rifles. They brought swords for beheading hostages, not for any romantic reason, but because they wouldn't have to waste ammunition that way (they didn't bring enough of it). In fact, they didn't bring anything with them from space: that would've been impossible. They had to buy everything they needed on location. In Poland, in the city of Wroclaw, one of their main suppliers happened to be none other than Baron Cohen-Krupnik, the man who, once upon a time, had sold Jesus silk stockings in bulk every Monday at eight o'clock in the morning. Heroin was a rather lucrative trade in peacetime; in times of war, however, arms were more like it.

– Verse 9 from the chapter called Arms

The missile has always been the weapon of the weak. David slew Goliath by shooting a stone from a sling. In later years, missiles became the infantryman's defense against a new kind of Goliath: tanks of steel armed with seventy-five millimeter guns, then eighty-eight millimeter guns, until finally they were armed with guns of a hundred and twenty-eight millimeters - but nothing could stop a shape-charged missile from penetrating its two hundred and fifty millimeters of steel-plated armor and wounding the cowards within.

– Verse 5 from the chapter called Arms

Back to Usage of Guns: Table of Contents

Usage of Guns in Sex for Children

A drawing of a man between a woman's legs in front of another man in a hospital bed — A literature book narrated by a pair of siblings on either side of the Atlantic whose profoundly weird sexual experiences pose a serious challenge to their traditional understanding of mathematicians, marriage, gay young men and God.

"Guns" does not make an appearance in Sex For Children.

- Michal Slaby

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Usage of Guns in Tsiga Tsiga Tsiga

Bullets whizzing by a statue of Nikola Tesla — A collection of stories featuring a sexy Parisian ghost, a spooky Moon base full of vagina-faced aliens, a policeman with an Irish name, a truck full of watermelons, a flautist, and a man who has to see another man about a diseased horse.

"I told you. There's a crackdown. You're not going to find anybody in the cities. This town has one public security bureau. I don't think they have guns."

"What are we going to see around here?"

"There's a monument to Chairman Mao right in front of you. Turn around. There's a post office, a mobile phone center-even an Avon store. Would you like some cosmetics?"

"Do I look like I need some? Point me in the direction of the nearest four-star hotel."

– from “Two Dudes and a Chinese Desert,” a friendship story featuring two thirsty dudes

Somebody fired. The mirror cracked. They were shooting at him. Shephard leaned to the left. Tsiga-tsiga-tsiga! Wisps of sand shot into the air. They were firing sub-machine guns. Shephard went over a ridge. The mosque's towers gleamed in the distance. He was close.

– from “Two Dudes and a Chinese Desert,” a friendship story featuring terrorists who you can root for

"To what?"

"To our own kidnapping. The investigator brought guards from a special armed police unit. They have sub-machine guns."

"How many of them are there?"

"Two. He's got a guy from the local PSB as well. You were wrong about them. They have guns. This one has a nine millimeter."

"Are they looking for me?"

– from “Two Dudes and a Chinese Desert,” a friendship story featuring people who will cut your throat

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Usage of Guns in Sorry Ms. Jackson

Chiseled letters from an ancient stone tablet hanging on a wall — A real play. With drama in it. Talk fast. It takes two hours. Set in a guest house. In a small community. After a murder. Lots of suspicion. The characters learn to listen to each other. It's funny.

"Guns" does not make an appearance in Sorry Miss Jackson.

- Michal Slaby

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Usage of Guns in Miscellaneous Dingbats

The title of the book at the end of a string of miscellaneous dingbats — A story book full of short fiction stories. An interesting bedtime mystery. A fairy tale. Science fiction romance. Adult life. Uninspiring gay fiction. Horror.

The Amazon was called. He decided Orbitz's exchange with the shopkeeper was a kind of code. He ordered that they both be watched. It wasn't hard to do. Orbitz didn't move from his hotel room. The shopkeeper stayed in his shop. Customers came hawking antique ray guns. There were bidets customized for extinct species. A collection of hand-painted mechanical snakes was ruefully turned down. After a few days the members of the surveillance team noticed something strange. The shopkeeper never bargained. If he made an offer to buy something it was invariably albeit grudgingly accepted. The rest of the junk he dismissed even if he liked it. "What a shame," he would say. "I wish I could afford it." In the same hour he would sell something for ten times its cost. He was making piles of money.

– from “The Death and Life of Captain Orbitz,” a science fiction romance based on my affection for Stanislaw Lem, if you know who that is

I guess you can blame the fact that we were two sets of triplets, you know. People thought that was like a sacred thing. A sign from God. Two sets of triplets on opposite sides of the war. Who better to sort out the whole thing. Make it easy. What do they call it. A trial by fire. Fire from our guns. I thought it was an idea. I don't know. It made sense.

– from “The Testament of Publio Orazio,” a horror story without a lot of screaming coming straight out of Roman mythology

A gunshot echoed through the house. Proctor realized he was still alive. He looked up. As Bob fell to the floor he revealed Elizabeth's quivering body behind him. She was holding the gun Proctor had given her. She dropped it. Proctor ran to her. They embraced. Proctor started smothering her in kisses.

"You said you wanted to talk," said Elizabeth. Proctor stopped kissing her. He looked into her eyes. "I thought it was time we did."

– from “We Need To Talk,” a mystery story featuring a pair of cops put in a weird position

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Collocation of Guns in the Fiction Corpus

Table of Collocation for the Word "Guns."
This table lists in descending order of frequency a selection of word pairs that appear in the Fiction Corpus and groups them according to the morphological derivation of the word guns that appears in the pair.
Type	Frequency
	TOTAL # of occurences	MCDONALDS	JESUS	SEX	TSIGA	JACKSON	DINGBATS
	TOTAL # of occurences	modern/sloppy	biblical/terse	poetic/high-brow	hard/fast	talky	mixed salad
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
I have yet to perform a collocation analysis of "guns." I hope I can get it done sometime soon. -Michal