People have asked me. "Who are the people on the homepage of the Saganista's Guerrilla Artistry, and why are they there?" They want to know if these are my heroes. They want to know why all the people portrayed are 'white'. The short answer is. "Yes, these are my heroes". But that is only partly true. For instance, I do not know what most of these people were like as individuals. I do not know if they were abusive to their families, or even if they had families. And for me to truly admire someone, first and foremost they must be a parent -- and an excellent one at that. This 'parenting' criterion might actually exclude many of the people from the photo but, for what it is worth, I am certain Robert Ingersoll would not be among them. Also, by this criteria, some of my personal acquaintances would make my list of heroes. But perfect admirability was not my intention -- nor was it to suggest that these people rank in character or accomplishment above people like Gandhi or Martin Luther King, or in social impact as much as people like Malcolm X, or even Jesse Jackson. The real reason the people portrayed on this site are there, is simply because they have written or said things that ring true to me. They have all challenged the status quo of their times, and they have done so with rational, critical thinking, and without invoking a higher power. That's it. These people are non-theistic, humanistic, and mostly socialistic and pacifistic. The reason there are no minorities represented is simply because I am not well-read enough to know of any who are non-theistic pacifists. To sum this up; The people in this photo are the few I have discovered who seem to think and draw conclusions about the world in a way similar to the way I do. Knowing they exist or existed has made me feel less alone. I include myself among them, not because I put myself on par with them, but because I would want to be in a room with them to listen and learn. Ok? So get off my case! |
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