~moonfier~
Dear POAAFA members,
If you read this I want to say to you please don't ever give up on fighting for your rights. Individuality is one of the greatest gifts we can have. Don't let anyone make you feel ashamed of who you are. Don't get mad, get even, as the saying goes. Don't use violence - it's just not worth losing your life over. If you know that people are wrong for taking your rights away, don't resort to unintelligent means to get them back. All that does is prove them right about you. The best thing you can do is rise above it and show the world what a spectacular person you are. I don't believe in that "I always have to be cranky and down on myself" attitude that a lot of people have these days. You can still be a Manson fan, or a goth or an artist without acting like you're prozac-deprived. Yeah, life sucks sometimes. But that doesn't mean you can't win.
When you joined the POAAFA, what was it that drew you towards it? Was it Manson? Was it the idea of fighting for your rights? Were you just trying to be a part of something? Did the POAAFA change your thinking at all? Did you realize that the power was in your hands? Are you fighting for your rights every time they are threatened?
No matter what your reason is for joining, undoubtedly you know that the POAAFA does not do the work for you. You have probably found that there is some hard work involved. If you have joined in on some of the hard work, then you know it can actually be fun. You also know that when you fire off a letter to a senator who wants to limit your rights, that you get a feeling of liberation and strength as you do so. You know that you have done your part, and that part will have more of an effect on things than if you didn't. Sometimes, you find out that you actually helped open or change someone's mind, and that is the ultimate feeling.
If you haven't done any work, or it has been a long time since you have, it's not too late. You are an important person, you have to remember that. The more you do to help our cause, the more you will help yourself, and make sure that your rights and future is secure. The more you do things to fight for your rights, the more you help others and give them a little bit of hope that they can do the same.
So it doesn't matter if you have been sitting in the POAAFA for a month or two not knowing what is going on. All it takes is a change of heart and mind. All you gotta do is care about yourself and your rights. The things the POAAFA does should be pretty easy. We all send out e-mail just about every time we come online, whether its once a day, or once a month. If you sent out just one e-mail warning five people of a certain event that might alter their rights, and you ask them to send it to five people, and so on, before you know it, thousands of people know. Even that is doing your part. If you write one letter and send it to 10 senators, one of them is bound to listen to what you have to say, as long as you think about it first, and treat them with respect and intelligence. If you make one web page, telling the world that your rights have been utterly stomped on by a certain government, or your school, or whatever you have experienced (I don't mean minor common sense rules), if you have seen a band you like censored and treated unfairly, and you write about it, exposing the persons responsible for it, you have done your part. You are showing people you are not afraid to tell the truth and expose hypocrisy for all that its worth. You are thereby inspiring people to take action of their own, and expose their agressors as well. You'd be surprised at how many people will say "oh wow, I can't believe they could actually get away with something like that," and ask you how to help. Just try some of these things. You will get somewhere. No one said you had to have a site as big as the international one, or the perfect web site overnight. It's all when you can do it. But don't let your opinions and life's experiences go to waste.
Fight now, because a year from now, you will find that it is going to be increasingly harder to find the music you love, and in some places, it might even be illegal to buy it. It won't be very fun on a Saturday night when your favorite band comes to town, and you have to sit home because no one under 18 is allowed to see a band that has "parental advisory" warnings on their cds. Think about it. How many bands do you know have that sticker? It's almost part of every cd case. That's something to consider, before you sit back and forget what I just said. If you'r over 18, this might not matter to you but you will have to deal with being "carded" to buy certain cd's just like buying alcohol or cigarettes. That may be just a minor annoyance, but as the list of "unhealthy" things grows, in this country, the more fascist and controlling this government becomes. We are the ones to blame when we let our rights slip through our fingers like eroding soil.
So do something now! Realize the fact that the picture the government is painting right now is a very ugly one. We, the people will not be able to do much of anything without government consent. Do something. The worst thing you can do is put it out of your mind. The problem will only get worse. You have to care now before it's too late!! Use your mind, use your voice! Use everything you've got, and refuse to become a mindless drone of the new millenium! Now get out there and write some letters!! Make some phone calls!! Refuse to be ignored!! Expose them for what they are, and let the world know, before its too late.