"Nothin' burns like an effigy" -Homer Simpson

That is right, folks. Guy Fawkes Day is upon us again. I thought it appropriate to remember a little "Gunpowder Treason and Plot" in light of recent political events in our own country. I may have blogged about Mr. Fawkes before, but why not once again. Essentially Mr. Fawkes was a Catholic in England when things were dangerous for Catholics and Protestants alike depending upon the whims of their current monarch. Fawkes wandered here and there basically fighting as a mercenary until he came back to England and became infamous for trying to blow up parliament.

Why do I discuss this now? Well, I am a Guy Fawkes sympathizer and always have been. Wrong place, wrong time... that is what I say. He wasn't the originator of the plot; he wasn't even a very powerful figure. He was basically elected watchmen over the explosives because he had been in the military.

Not that I am FOR blowing up buildings, governmental or otherwise, but I wonder what the world would have been like if the plot had succeeded (do I smell movie???). Britain's power hadn't been firmly established, and perhaps the British Empire would not be what it came to be. Their political systems were fractured, and the potential impact of 'the plot' would have had serious consequences.

Alas, we'll never know... but tonight, in honor of my friend Guy, I will light a tiny bonfire in my roommates BBQ and pay homage.