


		"I, I can remember (I remember) Standing, by the wall (by the wall) And the guns, shot above our heads (over our heads) And we kissed, as though nothing could fall (nothing could fall) And the shame, was on the other side Oh we can beat them, for ever and ever Then we could be Heroes, just for one day" - David Bowie For this month's editorial, I am handing over the soapbox to a deputy mayor, Michael Farahay, who wrote in response to my April posting. In light of recent events, I wonder if some of the observances Michael shares with us has changed in Charlotte, and indeed throughout the USA. - Sandman, Mayor October 11, 2001 I would be snide and say, "Well, dahhh...." but the facts are; Charlotte is the City of churches, a retirement community for the military, spawning right-wing racist with gay, liberal children, harboring physically and economically suppressed less educated, poor of diverse racial mixes, and last but not least, insulating some very, very wealthy white with the power and abilities to manipulate community events and values! I was paroled from Harnett County prison, (breaking, entering, larceny and receiving to the tune of three, three year consecutive sentences... I was a young, yankee on an old "Southern" chain-gang), somewhere around 62/63 and hired "out to" and on by Lloyd Advertising. They were located on East Morehead, known as Insurance row. They, the powers to be at Lloyd's, were impressed with my artistic abilities. Samples of my work in prison, mainly ball-point pen portraits of other prisoners' girlfriends and families, were copied and forwarded to potentially interested parties. I was very lucky in this way, but others, I consider more talented than myself, were definitely not... In fact I was even punished for fraternizing(mainly playing ball) with the fellow inmates of darker complexions... Sometimes by the ruling powers, and sometimes by the bigot racist from the extremes of either side! What Charlotte was then, as I feel it probably is still, was very liberal for the private lives of some wealthy white, while some horror stories were being lived-out for others less fortunate. There was an awkward movement from within some of the artistic communities, probably, if not gay oriented, certainly, gay tolerant cliches, trying to be more in seeking an open tolerance for themselves! I consider myself very fortunate to have survived through my experiences in both places there. I was on the "Gang" clearing fence-row along a highway, when the news came across the "Captains" radio that, President Kennedy had been shot. I will let you imagine what was said from each of the prisoners working on either side of me that day... I can tell you, I "went off"; but I continued to hear it paraphrased in many an exclamation through all of Charlotte's "diverse" social camps... for I was there. I played and worked the extremes; like at the Charlotte Memorial Country Club on a continuous "Guest Membership" from my landlord, Marguerite Stoltz, God Bless her soul; while after the hours at Lloyd's, I worked the transport docks at night for extra cash. I drank the blues, danced with nurses, played bridge from Papasses to Bartels, and got, I feel, a pretty broad perspective of all the current events. Still, I feel Charlotte was a beautiful city... many were good to me; but not unlike the hardcore racist cancers still thriving in some individuals hearts throughout this wonderful Country, there are those who would rather, just kill than be kind. You know, I could never understand some peoples' explanation of where their hate generates from. I think I pre-empted many of my conversations leading into racial discussions with questions like; "Hey, what's your favorite colors... sometimes of furniture, sometimes of cars, (you get the drift, I am sure,) and almost every time it was various shades of brown, like in walnuts and cherry, etc., or even black, specially in cars. I think the hate comes from fear of competition, ignorance, and a false feeling of superiority that, it leads people of weaker character into the odious, animal instinct of a predator after a lesser advantaged prey. My opinion of the best, all around solution just mirrors many, many others... EDUCATION! Knowledge grows intelligence for people to cultivate the practice of making wiser choices. It's a fact in this man's book that, if you help to improve the environment around you of people, places and things, then your own situation can not help but flourish and blossom with the rest... But education is not a simple solution when you have so many advantaged folk unwilling to part with their money... some, even to the extent of not being willing to help, (give back), to either the communities, programs or folk that, once, help them! We all need the "EDUCATION"! As for the bible belt... why is it when someone has something, even a religion, they claim it as unique, become jealous when others would like a part of it, and continually emphasize the differences rather than the things they share in common... addressed in, "...seeking "SOMEONE", below my PS. Hey, thanks for your writing. It stirred me... PS: here I am, again falling into the trap of my own character flaws by jiving it up over spilt milk answering da-mails when I promised myself I'll get the work done that needs to be done on my own sites! I would like the proverbial "SOMEONE" to take the writings of all the great and even lesser prophets, religions, Gods, decrees of commandments and writings of the sages to guide folks lives... Compare them all to each other and put out a definitive work emphasizing what they all have in common... I think, it just may be a desire for people to be joyful through sharing, and caring for more than just ourselves... m.l.farahay 6/13/01

To find out how you can become a member of the City Council and a contributor to the reviews and articles at the dreaming city, contact the Sandman at: thedreamingcity@carolina.rr.com

Got some extra time on your hands? We've archived the The Mayor's addresses. See below.

April , 2001

"And you stare at me in your Jesus Christ pose, arm held out, like you've been carrying a load. And you swear to me, You don't want to be my slave, but you're staring at me like I need to be saved." - Chris Cornell, Soundgarden

Living in the New South has taken a little adjustment. And of couse
in my expectations about moving into Charlotte, I know there where bound
to be a few. My formative years were spent in the NYC vicinity, where
you can cultivate a fairly broad sense of the world and its diversity.

Which brings us to the main topic. The bible belt. Diversity in this?
Well, hardly in the sense that those living outside of it would consider.
Picture this ... Billy Graham Mermorial highways...side by side GoGo bars.
Well I guess that makes sense - ask Swaggart. But in the 1 year's time
I have lived here I have been noticing a spread of rightwing paranoia
and moralizing. Does that corrolate to the incumbent Republican
President's new office? Probably.

Apparently my inital impression of Charlotte being a
suprisingly diverse collection of ethinic backgrounds and racial
tolerance has been tilted slightly askew by recent signs all
pointing a return to those 1950 Sentor McCarthy times. And it
is the media that has started to reflect these changes. To
to paraphrase Freud, "Media is the mirror of our society." Actually
he said, Music, but I wanted to broaden the scope a bit.
So what are we to think when prime time televisions shows on
major networks are being prempted for a whole week by a decidedly
opinionated fellow like Billy Graham? So much for objectivity. One
wonders at the man's finances to afford such a lucrative spot for
such an extended time. And just recently, Charlotte has joined the
increasing ranks of suddenly prude cities, by deciding to bow to
advertiser's pressure in banning the Howard Stern Radio show.
Despite it having earned tremendously successfull ratings.
So where does all this force feeding of a nations morality end?
How does that environment impact the creative mind...?
We'll see. At the height of the 1950's rock n' roll was born.
I wonder what kind of offspring this part of the wolrd will see?

- Sandman, Mayor

December 12, 2000

"If I had the chance I'd ask the world to dance And I'll be dancing with myself." - Billy Idol

This is the way the world works. Irrationally and impulsively.
At least mine does. From a simple conversation with a
friend at work about various sorts of music, an idea has
blossomed. The original concept of the dreaming city
radio station was initially to offer an introduction to some
of the best talent I have been fortunate to discover.

Now it goes beyond that. Interviews are coming.
A new radio station, specializing in techno and
digital music has been created. There are a lot more
stations to come. The potential is exciting and
the resources offered by the virual cityscape
that is the internet makes it completely
plausible.

So I hope you gentle visitors will come to enjoy
what has been unearth for your consideration
as much I have enjoyed discovering where real
talent resides. Everywhere.

- Sandman, Mayor

December 02, 2000

"Radio, Radio - What does he say?" - Wall Of Voodoo

The Citizens section has been replaced by the new Citizens Radio
page at MP3.Com. We are extremely happy with the custom
look and interface that MP3 allows us to add and it opens
our audience to a large variety of new music.

Meanwhile, this month's featured artist is

Subliminal Gravity is a techno oriented one man
project by Crocodile Shop's vMarkus. vMarkus is a veteran
of the New Jersey/NYC music scene and has
been creating challenging music for quite some
time now. I first met vMarkus in 1990 in
New Brunswick, NJ, just as he and fellow band member
Mick Hale were really taking off with Crocodile Shop.
We'll be catching up with Mick as well in the upcoming
months. (Mick was a contributor to the
pre-dreaming city magazine,
Fusion Creative Media).

- Sandman, Mayor

November, 2000

BIRTHING PAINS

The content and shape of the dreaming city
continue to grow. The site has developed a
vibe to it and becomes more compelling for
your mayor to work with. We think motherhood
suits us, and we are aglow with the potential
we see here.

The art gallery is a vital addition to any city.
With that in mind, we have added the art
gallery section to our Performing Arts Center.
Artwork scheduled at this time includes the city
themes you are already familiar with as well
as new pieces from Allan Bush. We are in
discussions with several artists about adding
their current work to the site.

To keep up with our tourists, we are now
looking at our own bonafide server situation,
being hosted on tripod has been nice, but let's
face it, those pop up advertisements do get
tiresome. And we are looking for a host with
greater speed and more space.

Until the next time, be good to yourselves.

- Sandman, Mayor

October, 2000

Well it has been a wonderful time lately in
the Mayor's Office. Yours truly has made use
of the City Hall and gotten married. As a result,
while I have been in matrimonial bliss in the
last couple of months, the dreaming city has
suffered from a little neglect.

But things are back on track, thanks to the
encouragement of my new wife and the
rest of the City Council.

The dreaming city has been growing -
with more fantastic sights and sounds
for you to consider.

We still have the up coming Urban Abstract
interview on the horizon as well as a new
art feature on Sergey Mantulenko - designer
and sculptor from the Ukraine, now residing
in New Jersey.

As always, feel free to contact us with your
comments and input.

- Sandman, Mayor

December 12, 2000 "If I had the chance I'd ask the world to dance And I'll be dancing with myself." - Billy Idol

"Radio, Radio - What does he say?" - Wall Of Voodoo

BIRTHING PAINS

December 12, 2000

"If I had the chance I'd ask the world to dance And I'll be dancing with myself." - Billy Idol