Page 39 - Black Velvet Issue 87

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ture that says that gays should be stoned to mainly just for show anyway to make us feel has been here for millions of years, how do
death or thrown off the top of buildings, and safe. These measures like listening to our we know what the perfect temperature is?
women shouldn’t be allowed to drive cars or phone conversations and reading our Like, ‘We’ve cut two trees in Canada and
be educated; how do you even address that? emails, all this surveillance stuff that’s going we’ve tested the tree rings and we’re getting
I’m not painting with a broad brush I’m just on. It’s crazy in the States, they have access hotter,’ hotter than what?!” Rich laughs in
saying there’s a percentage of the world that to everything and yet we still have the at- animated exasperation. “Is this tree like,
believes that. How can that be negotiated tacks, so what’s the point? If you have all eighty million years old? What do you know?
with? I don’t even know where you start. It’s this information and you’re collecting all of Like, we’re just so arrogant, right? BUT as
going to have to be a strong force of military this data and you are still not stopping soon as we’ve figured it out we want every-
and that’s the only thing you can do, and them,” Rich says bewildered. “I believe in one else to follow! You’re bad, you’re a flat-
hopefully as few people will die as possible. freedom; I love the idea that governments earther or you’re anti-science if you don’t
But, I don’t want to… I mean this is not slow- shouldn’t tell me what to do unless it nega- follow this – until the science changes,” he
ing down, right?” tively affects someone else. I’ve never laughs. “Argh, it’s just crazy, drives me
The message that ‘Fear doesn’t stop smoked marijuana in my life but I think any- nuts! I’m an environmentalist, like I’m big
death, it stops life’ is something that we all one should be allowed to do so; not drive a into recycling, I want to do my part but I do it
should remember every day. “We get torna- car, but if they want to do it in their house, because it’s the right thing. My problem is
dos where I live and people die, but I never fine, what business is it of mine? You could the idea that we can do these big things to
live in fear,” Rich states. “I used to when I drink two bottles of Jack Daniels and be fix it and yet the flip side is we could just be
was younger. When I was single and stupid I worse off than doing, you know?” making it worse, we just don’t know, right?
used to carry a gun because I was scared. I Rich goes on to tell us about an article Because in our evolution we’re just… I mean
lived in a violent city and I knew other people he was reading recently about the high rate our phones, [takes his phone out of his
had guns that could hurt me, so I armed my- of car crash fatalities in the United States. pocket] thirty years ago can you imagine,
self to protect myself when I walked. I just re- “We have these CAFE [Corporate Average this thing would’ve cost a million dollars
alised one day that I was just nervous Fuel Economy] standards and the CAFE thirty years ago! In twenty years we’ll know
enough that maybe I would pull it and shoot standards means that the cars have to get more and it’ll change and what we think we
and end up hurting myself or somebody better gas mileage. So, instead of coming up know now will change. So, I’m just going to
else. I’m just not that scared anymore. I still with engines that make better gas mileage, love my wife and love all my band and love
have a gun at my house and I keep it locked they make the cars lighter, so the cars are all my fans and try to be the best guitar
up, for my wife more than anything, to pro- made of these flimsy materials now, plastics player I can and you know, try to leave small
tect my family. But when it comes down to it, and stuff. Rather than having a steel car footprints, except for I want them to be
you can’t stop things and I’m just going to when you are in an accident and you’re HUGE!” he laughs.
enjoy life; have great concerts and be the pretty safe, now you have flimsy materials There is no doubt that Rich will try his ut-
best I can be. I’m not going to worry about it. and some air bags and people just die; it’s most to achieve his ambition. Fozzy’s foot-
I don’t look around the plane and profile peo- the unintended consequences. You know, prints may have taken a while to grow but
ple; I don’t because I’m on the plane al- we think we have all the answers. In the they are getting bigger with every album they
ready!” Rich laughs, “What’s going to 1970’s it was global cooling and now in the make. As work begins on their next studio ef-
change? Am I going to jump on him or her, 2000’s it’s global warming, and we think fort we can look forward to seeing those
or frisk them or something? It’s life. But you we’re geniuses and yet tens of thousands of footprints going further in 2016.
see what we go through at the airports; years ago there were no glaciers on the Visit www.fozzyrock.com for more info.
they’ve [terrorists] caused that. I don’t want planet. We just think we’re so smart, but
to live like that. The security at the airport is what is the perfect temperature? The earth Words By Penny & Sam Gower
Rich Ward Live Photo By Carissa Thorne
FOZZY