Yeah, I generally keep my picotils to myself (aside from the Obama doll I feature every now and then, but that's much more for comedic effect than to make a statement). I find it repugnant when people just arbitrarily throw around their political views, particularly when they are wildly misinformed.I kinda like the more exotic backdrops I use, but simple backdrops have merit all of their own, I think. They allow the figure to take the focus rather than having the background overwhelm the impact of the image. Plus, I think being able to make a figure look good regardless of the background is an important skill to develop. I've got a , but the practice was still crucial to giving me an understanding of how to light a figure. It didn't matter that the background was my computer keyboard and some figures that I have on my desk; the important thing was getting that practice.