Powerful wind shakes the house as white-capped waves pound relentlessly against the shore. I give thanks for a moment of quiet reflection. Perilous times try our patience, exacerbating universal anxiety. Humankind, in all its wisdom, is clever enough to circle the moon but somehow lacks incentive to prevent our own demise as a result of climate change.

This was preventable but it seems we value money more than the opinions of mad scientists. Instead we thrust self-serving mad men into power, who rob from the very people they are meant to serve and protect. We have the power to thrive but instead we hand the keys over to the least qualified to drive. It's a position most sane people don't aspire to. 

I have never abandoned my teachers, like Winston Rodney, who chants “teach me, teach me, teach me, teacher”. Artists like Frankie Paul remind me to “Keep The Faith”, while bands such as Third World, Steel Pulse and Toots and the Maytals prompt tough questions like “Who shall save the human race”? 

Some argue that we are destined to perpetuate eternal conflict as a result of “human nature”; that humans “have always been this way”; intolerant of our differences.

We are mired in economically motivated warfare, resulting from systemic racism, sexism, homophobia and corporate greed. It is apparent that the patriarchy is marked by fear of other-ness, of those who do not look or sound like the so-called “ruling class”. It is painfully disparaging to watch people suffering; to observe the “haves” steal the lives of the “have nots”, at their own discretion. How do these murderous war mongers sleep at night, under the guise of “liberating the people”? The repressive socio-economic divide can only be healed by removing the bad apples from the bushel, before rot spreads throughout. 

These are the times in which we live. The oligarchs hoard wealth at alarming rates to the detriment of citizens' health and welfare, as if wealth will somehow save them from their own demise. 

We the people of the World have had enough. It is time to topple the patriarchy. Once the wealthy pay their taxes the hungry will be fed, the homeless will be housed and healthcare will be universal.

Keep the faith. We are our brothers' and sisters' keepers and it is our collective responsibility to fight the power, side by each, until equity is achieved. 

Stay tuned. A new album is in production, filled with inspiration to persevere. Guidance and protection until such time ~ Andru Branch & Halfway Tree