top of page

Sheltering Walls

Bare Trees in Fog
Schonhaussen Palace, East Berlin
Schonhaussen Palace, East Berlin

Art lives in our hearts and souls, ears, eyes, mind, and body. . . it is the heartbeat of a civilized society.


Cherished for all time, art lives well beyond one culture, time, and place. It never dies...yet, some try to kill it, or keep it for themselves.


That's what the Nazis did in Germany by labeling art pieces as "degenerate"* in order to remove them from the public and private collections around Berlin.


I visited Schonhaussen Palace in 2023 located on Tchaikovsky Strasse, far from the city center. It was completely spared the WWII bombings due to how far off target it was, making it the perfect hiding place for stolen art!

The Nazi's sold that art stolen for profit outside their country, or claimed it for themselves.**


There is more than one way to steal art!

The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts
The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

When was the last time you listened to live music or walked through an art museum or saw a film on the big screen? Imagine if your favorite venue closed?


That day is here with the two-year closure of the world-famous performing arts center in the capital city of the USA on July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence!***


Independence raises up art and music without which a country is robbed of its soul.


The Nazis stole more than art from its people and we would do well to remember that lesson. Robbing the people of its own culture by closing down the creative arts is one more way that authoritarians steal everything that makes a country great.



**The Air Bridge Between Berlin & Me by Lance Carden https://wipfandstock.com/9798385229536/the-air-bridge-between-berlin-and-me/



 
 
 

The National Basketball Players Association said it could no longer remain silent. “Now more than ever,” it said, “we must defend the right to freedom of speech and stand in solidarity with the people in Minnesota protesting and risking their lives to demand justice. The fraternity of NBA players, like the United States itself, is a community enriched by its global citizens, and we refuse to let the flames of division threaten the civil liberties that are meant to protect us all. The NBPA and its members extend our deepest condolences to the families of Alex Pretti and Renee Good, just as our thoughts remain focused on the safety and well-being of all members of our community.”



. . .In Little Village, Chicago, a man by the name of Baltazar Enriquez wakes up before sunrise on school day mornings because he has an unofficial bus route. He drives his own van that he calls his “Magic School bus.” Baltazar and other volunteers escort more than 60 students to school each morning. These are students from families who emigrated to the U.S.; some have green cards and some even have citizenship, but with the risk of unlawful detention at an all time high, standing at a bus stop is simply not safe for many parents.*




“Our country’s moral role in confronting evil around the world, sustaining the right to life and human dignity, and supporting religious liberty are all under examination,” said a joint statement from Blase Cupich, Robert McElroy and Joseph Tobin, respectively the archbishops of Chicago, Washington DC and Newark, New Jersey.

“And the building of just and sustainable peace, so crucial to humanity’s wellbeing now and in the future, is being reduced to partisan categories that encourage polarization and destructive policies,” it added.

“We seek a foreign policy that respects and advances the right to human life, religious liberty, and the enhancement of human dignity throughout the world, especially through economic assistance.”**


Last but not least, just days before Prime Minister Mark Carney delivered his powerful speech in front of the whole world, I said,

"Tank Man" Tianenman Square, China
"Tank Man" Tianenman Square, China

we need just ONE person to tell the truth.

In case you missed it, or want to hear it again, here is both the video and the full transcript of the historic speech written by Canada's leader: https://www.weforum.org/stories/2026/01/davos-2026-special-address-by-mark-carney-prime-minister-of-canada/


----------------------------------------------------------




 
 
 
bottom of page