B#&*h., by Whitney Farmer – Un Pop Culture

July 29, 2010 Whitney Farmer 12 Comments

Whitney runs a rock music venue on the beach in L.A. The show last night set a club record.

The culture of Spartacus: Blood and Sand has conquered the club.  When a partner issues an order, we respond by saying “As you will, Dominus”. I call my security guards gladiators, and they like it. The slave haircuts reminiscent of Steve McQueen in The Getaway or George Clooney in the second E.R. series are worn by all contenders in our mosh pits. And women have been doing their hair with more rolling and braiding which is reminiscent of the Roman gentry – and Star Trek. When the lead actor in Spartacus… Andy Whitfield was diagnosed with cancer which necessitated a hiatus from filming for life-saving treatment, all sentient fans spent time meditating on what is most important and most commonly neglected in their own lives.  When Andy was interviewed at 2010 Comic-Con, the breathless crushing reporters were given some remarkable observations and wisdom from this glorious male. I guess I’m crushing, too…

Two topics were particularly intriguing in Andy’s interviews. The first was commenting that he now is fearless.  This seems to be more active than simply having no fear.  There was a sense given in his comments that he will be racing towards challenges and accomplishing goals that might not have been possible before simply because of the constraints put on him by his imagination. Perhaps that is what faith is.

And he also spoke of what he admired about the man Spartacus who had led a slave revolt of hundreds of thousands that nearly overturned an empire before vanishing into history. Toussaint L’Ouverture, who led the successful revolt of the enslaved population against French Imperialism in Haiti, was called Black Spartacus. The name speaks to an impossible stand for a lost cause. Justice against power. A free death rather than an ignoble life. Andy stated that Spartacus – a name that the character in the biopic at first despises because it was forced on him and then embraces – was a ‘…beast of the heart’. He made choices from his emotions, but he ruled over them and balanced his choices with the wellbeing of those around him. There came a time when he could shout, “I AM SPARTACUS!”

We did a type of house cleaning at the club last week while Comic-Con was drawing the eyes of Western Civilization to San Diego. The short version is that the owner decided to go in a different direction strategically. This meant many people going their separate ways.

I’ve been quiet for the better part of the last year. The exceptions to my quietness have been actions that have violated issues of law or put people at risk. Part of my responsibility has been to protect the interests of the owner and to protect those who fall under my authority.  Over the last month, some troubling events occurred that required me to act in an appropriate and protective way.  Honestly, if one employee physically assaults another on-site during a show, WWJD? Exactly.

Battle lines were drawn because of this. Sometimes I was quietly grateful for the wise and kind gladiators who watched over me. And I prayed. And my parents prayed. And then the owner moved. And now it’s okay.

I have heard a rumor that somewhere in the city there is a gathering of refugees at a dinky bar, bonded in their hatred of me.  I know that they aren’t straight with each other why I took a stand against them in their individual acts. The last thing that most people want in drinking buddies is for them to know what you have done. What you want is to cluster together and give new names to whoever has said “No” to you.

I have been given some new names. They are unspeakable in the presence of those who love me. At first they hit their mark, then the sting fades as I recall why I made a stand. And I still do stand in this territory. My God doesn’t say, “Peace at all costs.” He says, “Wherever possible, be at peace with others.” Then, my job is to speak the truth in love. Then I do my job.

“I am B#&*h.”

Quote of the Blog from Leonidas, King of Sparta, taken from the transcripts of the court scribe during the Battle of Thermopylae when told that the sun will be blotted out by the arrows of the Persian forces: “Then we will fight in the shade. “