Dear Nikola

Was mir behagt, ist nur die muntre Jagd (The lively hunt is all my heart's desire), BWV 208.1, BWV 208, also known as the Hunting Cantata, is a secular cantata composed by Johann Sebastian Bach for the 31st birthday of Duke Christian of Saxe-Weissenfels on 23 February 1713. A performance lasts about forty minutes.

From my studies in wikipedia, I infer that Herzog Christian von Saxen Weißenfels was an irresponsible and dissolute potentate of an insignificant 18th century German principality, a man by no means as cruel and destructive as Adolf Hitler, but not an appropriate beneficiary of Bach's genius.  Nonetheless I cite the foregoing birthday cantata as illustrative of the traditional prostitution of art to power, or more accurately, to money. Cujus regio, ejus religio has its cognate: Cujus regio ejus fabrica.  Leni Riefenstahl was an unusually inventive and imaginative cinema photographer. I choose not to hold her responsible for the evils perpetrated by those from whom she accepted money, even when they exploited her artistic skills in the commission of their wrong doing.

I reject the self-righteous slander of guilt by association which has dominated European-American political activity at least since World War II, and presumes to hold me responsible as "co-conspirator" or as "accessory before the fact" or as "accessory after the fact", for the wrongdoing of every person with whom I associate; requiring me to assume the mantle of chief judge of humanity. If I wish to survive in our society, there's no way I can avoid paying taxes to support projects which I believe to be evil.

So much for tonight. More tomorrow if I'm in the mood. Best wishes for everything.

EJM