THE BLUE ANGEL

Marlene Dietrich is singing a lament
for mechanical love.
She leans against a mortarboard tree
on a plateau by the seashore.

She’s a life-sized toy,
the doll of eternity;
her hair is shaped like an abstract hat
made out of white steel.

Her face is powdered, whitewashed and
immobile like a robot.
Jutting out of her temple, by an eye,
is a little white key.

She gazes through dull blue pupils
set in the whites of her eyes.
She closes them, and the key
turns by itself.

She opens her eyes, and they’re blank
like a statue’s in a museum.
Her machine begins to move, the key turns
again, her eyes change, she sings.

—you’d think I would have thought a plan
to end the inner grind,
but not till I have found a man
to occupy my mind.

  — Allen Ginsberg (1926 - 1997), American poet

NEW PORNOGRAPHERS - THE LAWS HAVE CHANGED

It was crime at the time
but the laws, we changed ‘em
Though the hero for hire’s
forever the same one

Introducing for the first time
Pharaoh on the microphone
sing all hail
what’ll be revealed today
when we peer into the great unknown
from the line to the throne?

Awakened to cheers after years on the fault line
we are shocked to be here
in the face of the meantime
Pharaoh, all your methods have taught me
is to separate my blood from bone

It will all fail
feeling what I feel today
when we peer into the great unknown
from the line to the throne

Form a line through here
Form a line to the throne

Alone in the chain
it remains to be seen how
How well you can play
when the pawn takes a queen now

It was crime at the time
but the laws have changed
Yeah

Edwards endorses Obama

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards endorsed Sen. Barack Obama on Wednesday at a campaign event in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

“The reason I’m here tonight is because the Democratic voters have made their choice, and so have I,” he told the boisterous crowd.

“There is one man who knows and understands that this is a time for bold leadership. There is one man that knows how to create the change, the lasting change, that you have to build from the ground up,” Edwards said. “There is one man who knows in his heart there is time to create one America, not two … and that man is Barack Obama.”

Extremely good news for Barack Obama, as the endorsement from John Edwards should help Obama with the demographic that is currently legitimately supporting Hillary Clinton. Please make note of the use of the word “legitimately” …

In other news:

Clinton: It’d be ‘terrible mistake’ to pick McCain over Obama

(CNN) — Hillary Clinton on Wednesday reiterated her vow to stay in the Democratic presidential race, but she said it would be a “terrible mistake” for her supporters to vote for John McCain over Barack Obama.

“Anybody who has ever voted for me or voted for Barack has much more in common in terms of what we want to see happen in our country and in the world with the other than they do with John McCain,” Clinton said on CNN’s “The Situation Room.”

“I’m going to work my heart out for whoever our nominee is. Obviously, I’m still hoping to be that nominee, but I’m going to do everything I can to make sure that anyone who supported me … understands what a grave error it would be not to vote for Sen. Obama.”

Clinton was responding to a question from a CNN iReporter who asked why she thought so many of her supporters would choose McCain over Obama.

Now, back to that word “legitimately” … keep in mind many Republicans are crossing party lines to vote for Hillary Clinton in the Democratic Party’s open primaries; these are people who have NO intention of voting for a Democrat in November, and are voting currently as part of Rush Limbaugh’s “Operation Chaos”, and amount to as much as 20% of Clinton’s vote totals in many states.

With that in mind, it’s really hard for me to take anything Hillary Clinton says seriously at this point … tick tock tock tock tick tock …

GOSPEL NOBLE TRUTHS

Born in this world        Sit you sit down
You got to suffer        Breathe when you breathe
Everything changes        Lie Down you lie down
You got no soul        Walk where you walk

Try to be gay        Talk when you talk
Ignorant happy        Cry when you cry
You get the blues        Lie down you lie down
You eat jellyroll        Die when you die

There is one Way        Look when you look
You take the high road        Hear what you hear
In your big Wheel        Taste what you taste here
8 steps you fly        Smell what you smell

Look at the View        Touch what you touch
Right to horizon        Think what you think
Talk to the sky        Let go let it go slow
Act like you talk        Earth Heaven & Hell

Work like the sun        Die when you die
Shine in your heaven        Die when you die
See what you done        Lie down you lie down
Come down & walk        Die when you die

New York Subway, October 17, 1975

  — Allen Ginsberg (1926 - 1997), American poet

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Note those first three words in the Preamble to the Constitution, quoted above. “We the People” … we, the people of the United States of America … the people. That’s us. That’s all of us. It’s you, it’s me … it’s Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton; it’s John McCain, and unfortunately, it’s also George W. Bush, who has done his best over the past 7+ years to take America out of the hands of the People, and concentrate it in the hands of the few.

This election cycle is about so much more than race, than the war in Iraq, than the economy. It’s about the people of the United States, people who are desperate for change; people who need change.

And the only way to help ensure change is to participate; to get active … to speak your mind … and to vote.

Tomorrow (Tuesday) is the next major primary, which could ultimately decide which Democratic candidate gets the nomination. It’s do-or-die for Hillary Clinton, because right now Barack Obama what seems to be a commanding lead, if not in delegates, then in the support of the people …

But what is still most important … no matter which candidate you support, you must get out and vote.

Just vote.

It’s not just a privilege that we have as Americans, but is truly a duty … one that everyone should do, every opportunity they get; for when the people don’t speak up, how are we to get our government to listen?

PENNYWISE - YESTERDAYS

Up from the ashes and over the hill
We knew more then than we ever will
Back when the days passed by so slow
And now we’ll never know
That sense that tomorrow was far away
And our dreams they will never fade
We never thought the good times could end.

Can we go back to those days—
When everything was simple then?
And nothing could ever change
Can we go back to those days—
We didn’t have a care at all
I wish I could remain—
Back in Yesterday!

Pictures of another place and time
They seem like scenes from a different life
We didn’t notice as the days went past
We knew it couldn’t last
But looking back I wouldn’t change a thing
The memories shared, they’ll always stay with me
We never thought the good times would end.

Can we go back to those days—
When everything was simple then?
And nothing could ever change
Can we go back to those days—
We didn’t have a care at all
I wish I could remain—
Back in Yesterday!

Can we go back to those days—
When everything was simple then?
And nothing could ever change
Can we go back to those days—
we didn’t have a care at all
I wish I could remain —
Back in yesterday!
Back in yesterdays!
Back in yesterdays!
Back in yesterdays!