Gimme Some Truth - Protest Songs FV

Gimme Some Truth. Another mix of protest songs from albums in my collection. The war continues based on more lies, corruption and stupid fantasies. 

Gimme Some Truth - Protest Songs

1. Gimme Some Truth – John Lennon
2. 20th Century Man – The Kinks
3. Question – The Moody Blues
4. Fresh Air – Quicksilver Messenger Service
5. Nature’s Way – Spirit
6. Take The Star Out Of The Window – John Prine
7. To Susan On The West Coast Waiting – Donovan
8. We Seek No Wider War – Phil Ochs
9. War Song – The Fugs
10. Hey, Mr. Draft Board – David Peel & The Lower East End
11. Draft Resister – Steppenwolf
12. Who’s Gonna Win The War? – Hawkwind
13. The War – Lee Michaels
14. Draft Morning – The Byrds
15. Talking World War III Blues – Bob Dylan
16. If I Had A Hammer (The Hammer Song) – Peter, Paul & Mary
17. Guantanamera – The Sandpipers
18. Peace Will Come (According To Plan) – Melanie
19. War In Peace – Skip Spence
20. Love, Peace and Happiness – The Chambers Brothers
21. Let’s Work Together – Canned Heat
22. He’s Misstra Know It All – Stevie Wonder
23. Wake Up Everybody – Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes
24. Buffalo Soldier – Bob Marley & The Wailers

3001: The Final Odyssey

Today I finished reading Arthur C. Clarke's fourth and final science fiction book in the Space Odyssey series that began with 2001: A Space Odyssey in 1968. I had read the other two novels of the series when they came out in when they came out in the 1980's. The last book in the series was published in 1997 but somehow it was off my radar although I had read his 3 volume series Time Odyssey in the late 2000's. 

I started reading 3001 just last week on March 3rd. So it took me six days to read this book. It was amazing and I don't know why it took me almost 30 years to get to it. 

I wrote about Clarke and his position in my Authors List here. This is now the 12th book of his that I've read.

Classic Blues - Kitchen Listening

I played some classic blues this morning from my collections of albums from the Smithsonian Folkways series of recordings. It went on for several hours and included such classic blues artists as Big Bill Broonzy, Leadbelly, Sonny Terry, Brownie McGee, Elizabeth Cotton, Memphis Slim, Willie Dixon, Son House, Josh White, Lightnin' Hopkins, Victoria Spivey, and on and on.

This music made for a very pleasant morning and was much better than having any news on the TV. I have many more albums from this Smithsonian Folkways series and looking forward to playing more later.

H.G. Wells - The Authors List

H.G. Wells was a big influence in my lifelong love of science fiction both for reading his novels and seeing the movies based on his books. I read 9 of his books that included 8 novels and a collection of short stories.

The first book of his I read was The Time Machine as a teenager in the mid-1960's along with a few other of his novels. Then I read them again in the 70's along with some others. I read The Time Machine and War of the Worlds again just a few years ago. 

I saw the movie of the Time Machine in our neighborhood theater when it came out in 1960. I was 9. It was a double feature with the previously released War of the Worlds.

H.G. Wells books I've read:

• The War of the Worlds, 1898
• The Invisible Man, 1897
• The Island of Dr Moreau, 1896
• The First Men in the Moon, 1901
• The Food of the Gods and How It Came To Earth, 1904
• The Sleeper Awakes, 1899
• The War in the Air, 1908
• The Shape Of Things To Come, 1933
• The Country of the Blind and Other Selected Stories, 1911

There Is A War - Protest Songs FV

There Is A War and I'm still putting together mixes of protest songs from albums in my collection. The war is dragging on for a week now and there are more and more anti-war demonstrations across America and the world.

There Is A War - Protest Songs

1. There Is A War – Leonard Cohen
2. On The Border – Al Stewart
3. Hoist That Rag – Tom Waits
4. When The Battle Is Over – The Levon Helm Band
5. Love Vigilantes (El-P Remix) – Duncan Sheik
6. Line In The Sand – Lucy Kaplansky
7. Holy War – Willie Nile
8. War Zone – Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr.
9. Warhead – Section 25
10. Leaders Of The Free World – Elbow
11. Lovers In A Dangerous Time – Bruce Cockburn
12. Present For The End Of The World – Good Old War
13. Chicago – Sleepy Sunday
14. War – The Jam
15. Melt The Guns – XTC
16. Warning Sign – Talking Heads
17. War Crimes (The Crime Remains The Same) – The Specials
18. Meet The Boys On The Battlefront – The Wild Tchoupitoulas
19. Stop The War Now – Edwin Starr
20. War – Lenny Kravitz
21. Rumors Of War – Peter Tosh
22. Blowin’ In The Wind – Stevie Wonder
23. Imagine – John Lennon

Tana French - The Authors List

Tana French is next on my Authors List and I've read 9 of her novels. I discovered her in 2014 at a time when I was reading a lot of crime novels. She had been writing her own series of crime novels from her home in Dublin. The first book of hers that I read was In The Woods which only took me a week to get through and then I continued to read a couple more books in her Dublin Murder Squad series. Eventually I've read every novel she has written and look forward to a new one to be released later this month.

Tana French books I've read:

• In The Woods, 2007 - Feb 2014
• The Likeness, 2008 - Apr 2014
• Faithful Place, 2010 - May 2014
• The Secret Place, 2014 - Mar 2015
• The Trespasser, 2016 - Jan 2017
• The Witch Elm, 2018 - Nov 2018
• Broken Harbor, 2012 - Dec 2018
• The Searcher, 2020 - Jan 2021
• The Hunter, 2024 - Jun 2024
  

Lives In The Balance - Protest Songs FV

Lives In The Balance. More war and another mix of protest songs from albums in my collection. A week of war, of lies and misinformation. Pathetic bullshit coming from a fascist regime of dumb ass hate filled incompetence. Hate & War.

Lives In The Balance - Protest Songs

1. Lives In The Balance – Jackson Browne
2. After The Garden – Neil Young
3. Empty Sky – Bruce Springsteen
4. Put Down That Weapon – Midnight Oil
5. Between The Wars – Billy Bragg
6. No More Losing The War – Half Moon Run
7. Draft Daughter’s Blues – The Be Good Tanyas
8. War Makes War – John Gorka
9. No Man Can Find The War – Tim Buckley
10. War Crime Blues – Chris Whitley
11. Copperhead Road – Steve Earle
12. World Leader Pretend – R.E.M.
13. Lovers In A Dangerous Time – Bruce Cockburn
14. (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding – Matthew Sweet
15. People Got To Be Free – The Rascals
16. 1984 – Spirit
17. The War Drags On – Donovan
18. Foxhole – Television
19. Hate & War – The Clash
20. Living Through Another Cuba – XTC
21. Sunday Bloody Sunday – U2
22. Everybody Wants To Rule The World – Lucius
23. Nuclear War (Version 2) – Yo La Tengo
24. Masters Of War – Anika

Dinner @ Shango

Becky and I had a wonderful dinner tonight at Shango. An amazing crispy catfish fish fry sitting on a pile of delicious French fries. Becky had a nice shrimp po'boy. And of course I started things off with a cup of gumbo.

The service was great as usual. We also very much enjoyed the music on the sound system which was blues oriented and we especially liked hearing some Nina Simone. The restaurant was a little chilly when we first got there and we were sat along the front window which most of the year is a very nice table. However, we asked to have a table in a booth which of course they gave us right away and then they turned up the heat which made the waitress very happy. 

I had a nice glass of hefeweizen wheat beer Weisse from Grimm Artisanal Ales Brewery from Brooklyn NY. Actually two.

Robert A. Heinlein - The Authors List

Robert A. Heinlein - The Authors List. I read 11 books by this classic science fiction writer that included nine novels and two collections of short stories. The first book I read was Stranger In A Strange Land in 1975. Grok. It was a controversial book because of the free love and communal living situations. It was excluded from many school reading lists and banned from many school libraries.

I read 8 of these books during the period 1975-1976. The last book of his I read was in 1992.

The books of Robert A. Heinlein I've read:

• Stranger In A Strange Land, 1961 - Apr 1975
• The Past Through Tomorrow, 1967 - Jun 1975
• Starship Troopers, 1959 - Aug 1975
• Time Enough For Love, 1973 - Nov 1975
• Glory Road, 1963 - Sep 1976
• I Will Fear No Evil, 1970 - Oct 1976
• Farnham's Freehold, 1964 - Nov 1976
• The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress, 1966 - Dec 1976
• Methuselah's Children, 1958 - Sep 1987
• The Green Hills Of Earth, 1949 - Nov 1987
• The Puppet Masters, 1951 - Dec 1992

Markwayne at DHS

So who is this Markwayne guy that trump just appointed to head the Department of Homeland Security after he fired that puppy killer. Now we have the cabinet member Secretary of Homeland Security named Markwayne Mullin.

Here is a photo of him cowering in fear of the magas who attacked Congress on January 6th and trying to break into the hall where he was hiding.

Here are some other things about him...

He's the only senator in America without a college degree. No law degree.

He challenged a union leader to a fistfight during a Senate hearing. On camera.
In the United States Senate. Bernie Sanders had to tell him to calm down and act like an adult.

In one year while serving in Congress his personal wealth jumped $45 million.
One year. Forty-five million dollars. While making our laws.

He believes abortion should be illegal even if you were raped. Even if your life is at risk. He has said on the record that even if his own wife were dying in a pregnancy, neither of them would want an abortion. Now he gets to make that call for every woman in America now.

He found out he got the job on social media. Trump's announcement called him "a MAGA Warrior and former undefeated MMA fighter." That's the qualification. He hits people. No national security experience. No law enforcement background. No security, intelligence or emergency management skills. He never served in the military although he likes to talk about what "war" is like as if he experienced it. I guess he watched too many war movies on TV.

He now runs:
- ICE
- FEMA
- The Coast Guard
- The Secret Service
- Counterterrorism