Showing posts with label what I like. Show all posts
Showing posts with label what I like. Show all posts
Friday, September 15, 2017
Sunday, September 1, 2013
A Profile by Maureen Dowd
I love when Maureen Dowd profiles people who we would not know about unless she told us about him/her.
Her column in Sunday's paper about the Washington DC Chef of Police is a perfect example.
Her column in Sunday's paper about the Washington DC Chef of Police is a perfect example.
Sunday, July 28, 2013
Reading is Fundamental
Found this on line - not sure where this store is. The owners are my new hero's.
Loving reading and loving books is a sign of superior intelligence! And, their generous spirit and faith in humanity is something to be admired and appreciated.
Well done you? Book Store Owners
.
Loving reading and loving books is a sign of superior intelligence! And, their generous spirit and faith in humanity is something to be admired and appreciated.
Well done you? Book Store Owners
.
Thursday, June 27, 2013
Moscato
This is one of the stories that I love NPR for. Moscato is the new drank of choice
http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2013/06/27/196210549/MOSCATO
http://www.npr.org/blogs/codeswitch/2013/06/27/196210549/MOSCATO
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Reading Mary McGory
Yesterday I was visiting a local hospital and in their cafeteria they have a little charity book shop. A person could either read the book there like a library or buy one on the honor system. Hard backs were 75cents. I am a sucker for used book stores or even just a couple of shelves of them. You never know what little piece of brilliance you will find. I was down to the last shelf and about to give up, there were mostly romance novels and murder mysteries and other stuff I don’t read.
Then I found The Best of Mary McGory; A Half-Century of Washington Commentary.
Mary McGory was a Washington based journalist and institution. She was of that generation who could be friendly with the people she covered and yet still be honest when writing about them. She was a volunteer at an orphanage and every year she would gather all the children and a few DC most important names and host a swim party at Ethel Kennedy’s pool. Presidents, Princes, Senators and anyone else hoping to be accepted in Washington DC courted her. People knew they made it when they were invited to one of her legendary Sunday brunches.
When she began her career in the newspaper business women were relegated to the book review section and Ms. McGory was no exception. Her editor was so impressed with her writing and analysis skills that he sent her to the Army-McCarthy hearings and had her report back her observations. A star was born. Most of her career was spent at the Washington Star and when the paper folded she moved to the Post. In 1974 she was the first woman to win a Pulitzer Prize for her columns on Watergate and Richard Nixon.
I was familiar with Mary McGory from her many appearances on Meet the Press and through interviews but I had never read her columns. Leafing through the book I found her column remembering Tip O’Neal after his death and I was blown away by not only what she had to say but how she wrote it. Her remembrance of Thurgood Marshall was equally good and before I knew it I had read about 10 columns. Then I read the jacket flaps and then the table of contents. I had pretty much decided to pay the 75 cent tab for the book when I flipped one more page to a preface written by Maureen Dowd, I clutched my heart, gasped for air and threw a dollar in the money box. It turns out Ms. Dowd was mentored by Mary McGory early in her career.
I have put Don Lemon’s memoirs on the back burner so I can read more of Mary McGory’s columns because Maureen Dowd would expect no less of me.
Monday, July 25, 2011
Spend a Little of Your On-Line Time With These Folks
Update on some of the blogs that I read;
Lehigh Valley Independent has gone away and it's a good thing. The chief creative officer of that blog realized he was doing all the work so he closed it and began JonGeeting.net. Same genius, same clarity and same thought provoking commentary but now Jon will get all the credit he deserves.
Tightly Wound Mom of Twins and Todd Dietrich are participating in the 90 posts in 90 days adventure. I said I would participate as well. I lasted 5 days. What does that say about me?
Life of M. R. Sack This guy is the son I never had but no doubt would have deserved. Mike is a smart young man recovering his life and he has invited us along this difficult but essential journey.
There was a time when many of our conversations would start like this.
Me "What the fuck were you thinking? Oh now wait you weren't thinking were you. You never fucking do"
Mike "umm hi Dad"
Our conversations are much more interesting now and we both talk and we both listen. Thanks Son.
Joan Walsh - From time to time this smart, witty and wonderful journalist engages in a Twitter conversation with me. Joan is a leading opinion maker her appearances on MSNBC are always spot on in their clarity and forthrightness. And, she reads this little blog. Ask my guy about my reaction when Ms. Walsh contacts me. (Hint: 13 year old girl sees Justin Bieber in the mall)
Martin on Main - Quickly becoming the little jewel of the summer festival season. Visit the web site but more importantly attend the event. I will see you there. (some volunteer opportunity are available)
Click through my links on the side and expand your world a little bit.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Gail Collins in The NYT Had This to Say
I could not sum this week up any better than this.
Department of Good News
By GAIL COLLINS
Published: April 27, 2011
Well, I just don’t see how things can get better than this when it comes to current affairs. Prince William is about to get married and President Obama has released his long-form birth certificate.
Earl Wilson/The New York Times
Gail Collins
All we need now is for the House speaker, John Boehner, to follow through on his call for the oil companies to pay their fair share of taxes. Then, really, I think we could go into the weekend with a true feeling of closure.
Boehner, you may remember, told ABC News that big oil companies don’t need the oil depletion allowance and that Congress “certainly ought to take a look at” the tax breaks our energy mega-firms enjoy.
What a great guy John Boehner is! You may not remember, but there was a time when Democrats hatedhatedhated him. That was before the House Tea Party Republicans started giving him so much misery. Now you have Howard Dean calling him a “reasonable person” and the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, offering to him “a bouquet.” Everyone loves a winner, except in Washington where losers are so much more attractive.
However, as soon as the Democrats started applauding the oil-company interview, a Boehner spokesman issued a clarification, which said that the House speaker “is opposed to raising taxes.” Obviously, when he said that we should look at things like the oil depletion allowance, he meant “look” in the same way that we are going to look at the royal wedding. It was not an invitation to join the buffet line.
Unlike the John Boehner Oil Tax Loophole Closing Bill, the wedding is definitely coming off, allowing the entire planet to bask in the aura of a fairy-tale moment before moving on to pregnancy rumors. And about time. The world cannot keep generating more than 100 million William/Kate-related blog postings a day for all that much longer.
I got that figure from Trendrr, which also reported that 40 percent of the English-language wedding Twitter messages originated in the United States as opposed to only 31 percent in the United Kingdom.
To which we can only respond: Well, there are a whole lot more of us. Also, as a nation, we pride ourselves on our Twittering. America intends to be the world leader in all things twit-related. Soon, there will be a ninth-grade proficiency test on it, and teachers whose classes perform badly will be fired.
Meanwhile, on behalf of all of us Yanks, let me say: Good luck, Kate and William!
Most of us have only been paying attention to you for a week or so, but, still, we have come to know you well. “Kate oozes refinement — her friends wear pearls while hunting,” Time magazine reported. That tidbit alone has kept me engrossed all day. Do you think Time meant fox hunting? A lot of bouncing around in fox hunting, and if the pearls broke I guarantee you that you would never, ever find them. Perhaps the Friends of Kate hunt ducks. Or squirrels. Nothing like a tasty squirrel stew, served to people sporting really expensive neckwear.
Estimates of the cost of the upcoming nuptials range from $34 million to more than $7 billion, depending on whether you factor in the bill for giving an entire nation a day off work. Either way, this is Kate’s special day and you cannot possibly put a price on that. Plus, there is nothing like a wedding to raise the national spirits. Who among us can ever forget the way the national psyche soared when Tricia Nixon tied the knot?
But I digress. In the other important, chapter-closing news of the moment, President Obama has released the long-form version of his birth certificate in an attempt to quell the unflaggable “birther” movement and get the news media to notice when he names a new secretary of defense.
Donald Trump immediately took credit. “Today I am very proud of myself,” he said. This is in contrast to normal days, when Trump is continually walking around in an existential funk, asking himself why he was ever born.
Our next question is how far the closure extends. Will the birthers who have been demanding to see that long-form certificate since 2008 now throw in the towel and move on to other important issues, such as whether the rapture will occur on May 21?
Emily Ramshaw of The Texas Tribune quickly tracked down the state representative who’s sponsoring the Texas version of the birther bill and found him — surprise! — unconvinced. Among other things, she reported, Representative Leo Berman wants to know why the hospital where the president was allegedly born doesn’t have a “plaque on the door” commemorating the event.
The more things close, the more they open
.
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Bono Remembers Sargent Shriver
OP-ED GUEST COLUMNIST
What I Learned From Sargent Shriver
By BONO
Published: January 19, 2011
¶The Irish are still mesmerized by the mythical place that is America, but in the ’60s our fascination got out of hand. I was not old enough to remember the sacrifices of the great generation who saved Europe in the Second World War, or to quite comprehend what was going on in Vietnam. But what I do remember, and cannot forget, is watching a man walk on the moon in 1969 and thinking here is a nation that finds joy in the impossible.
¶The Irish saw the Kennedys as our own royal family out on loan to America. A million of them turned out on J.F.K.’s homecoming to see these patrician public servants who, despite their station, had no patience for the status quo. (They also loved that the Kennedys looked more WASP than any “Prod,” our familiar term for Protestant.)
¶I remember Bobby’s rolled-up sleeves, Jack’s jutted jaw and the message — a call to action — that the world didn’t have to be the way it was. Science and faith had found a perfect rhyme.
¶In the background, but hardly in the shadows, was Robert Sargent Shriver. A diamond intelligence, too bright to keep in the darkness. He was not Robert or Bob, he was Sarge, and for all the love in him, he knew that love was a tough word. Easy to say, tough to see it through. Love, yes, and peace, too, in no small measure; this was the ’60s but you wouldn’t know it just by looking at him. No long hair in the Shriver house, or rock ’n’ roll. He and his beautiful bride, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, would go to Mass every day — as much an act of rebellion against brutal modernity as it was an act of worship. Love, yes, but love as a brave act, a bold act, requiring toughness and sacrifice.
¶His faith demanded action, from him, from all of us. For the Word to become flesh, we had to become the eyes, the ears, the hands of a just God. Injustice could, in the words of the old spiritual, “Be Overcome.” Robert Sargent sang, “Make me a channel of your peace,” and became the song.
¶Make me a channel of your peace:
¶Where there is hatred let me bring your love.
¶Where there is injury, your pardon, Lord,
¶And where there’s doubt, true faith in you.
¶Oh, Master grant that I may never seek,
¶So much to be consoled as to console.
¶To be understood as to understand,
¶To be loved as to love with all my soul.
¶Make me a channel of your peace,
¶Where there’s despair in life, let me bring hope.
¶Where there is darkness, only light,
¶And where there’s sadness, ever joy.
¶The Peace Corps was Jack Kennedy’s creation but embodied Sargent Shriver’s spirit. Lyndon Johnson declared war on poverty but Sarge led the charge. These, and the Special Olympics, were as dramatic an incarnation of the ideas at the heart of America as the space program.
¶Robert Sargent Shriver changed the world more than a few times and, I am happy to say, changed my world forever. In the late ’90s, when the Jubilee 2000 campaign — which aimed to cancel the debts that the poorest nations owed to the richest — asked me to help in the United States, I called on the Shriver clan for help and advice. What I got were those things in spades, and a call to arms like a thump in the back.
¶In the years since, Bobby Shriver — Sarge’s oldest son — and I co-founded three fighting units in the war against global poverty: DATA, ONE and (RED). We may not yet know what it will take to finish the fight and silence suffering in our time, but we are flat out trying to live up to Sarge’s drill.
¶I have beautiful memories of Bobby and me sitting with his father and mother at the Shrivers’ kitchen table — the same team that gazed over J.F.K.’s shoulder — looking over our paltry attempts at speechifying, prodding and pushing us toward comprehensibility and credibility, a challenge when your son starts hanging round with a bleeding-heart Irish rock star.
¶Toward the end, when I visited Sarge as a frailer man, I was astonished by his good spirits and good humor. He had the room around him laughing out loud. I thought it a fitting final victory in a life that embodied service and transcended, so often, grave duty, that he had a certain weightlessness about him. Even then, his job nearly done, his light shone undiminished, and brightened us all.
By BONO
¶The Irish are still mesmerized by the mythical place that is America, but in the ’60s our fascination got out of hand. I was not old enough to remember the sacrifices of the great generation who saved Europe in the Second World War, or to quite comprehend what was going on in Vietnam. But what I do remember, and cannot forget, is watching a man walk on the moon in 1969 and thinking here is a nation that finds joy in the impossible.
¶The Irish saw the Kennedys as our own royal family out on loan to America. A million of them turned out on J.F.K.’s homecoming to see these patrician public servants who, despite their station, had no patience for the status quo. (They also loved that the Kennedys looked more WASP than any “Prod,” our familiar term for Protestant.)
¶I remember Bobby’s rolled-up sleeves, Jack’s jutted jaw and the message — a call to action — that the world didn’t have to be the way it was. Science and faith had found a perfect rhyme.
¶In the background, but hardly in the shadows, was Robert Sargent Shriver. A diamond intelligence, too bright to keep in the darkness. He was not Robert or Bob, he was Sarge, and for all the love in him, he knew that love was a tough word. Easy to say, tough to see it through. Love, yes, and peace, too, in no small measure; this was the ’60s but you wouldn’t know it just by looking at him. No long hair in the Shriver house, or rock ’n’ roll. He and his beautiful bride, Eunice Kennedy Shriver, would go to Mass every day — as much an act of rebellion against brutal modernity as it was an act of worship. Love, yes, but love as a brave act, a bold act, requiring toughness and sacrifice.
¶His faith demanded action, from him, from all of us. For the Word to become flesh, we had to become the eyes, the ears, the hands of a just God. Injustice could, in the words of the old spiritual, “Be Overcome.” Robert Sargent sang, “Make me a channel of your peace,” and became the song.
¶Make me a channel of your peace:
¶Where there is hatred let me bring your love.
¶Where there is injury, your pardon, Lord,
¶And where there’s doubt, true faith in you.
¶Oh, Master grant that I may never seek,
¶So much to be consoled as to console.
¶To be understood as to understand,
¶To be loved as to love with all my soul.
¶Make me a channel of your peace,
¶Where there’s despair in life, let me bring hope.
¶Where there is darkness, only light,
¶And where there’s sadness, ever joy.
¶The Peace Corps was Jack Kennedy’s creation but embodied Sargent Shriver’s spirit. Lyndon Johnson declared war on poverty but Sarge led the charge. These, and the Special Olympics, were as dramatic an incarnation of the ideas at the heart of America as the space program.
¶Robert Sargent Shriver changed the world more than a few times and, I am happy to say, changed my world forever. In the late ’90s, when the Jubilee 2000 campaign — which aimed to cancel the debts that the poorest nations owed to the richest — asked me to help in the United States, I called on the Shriver clan for help and advice. What I got were those things in spades, and a call to arms like a thump in the back.
¶In the years since, Bobby Shriver — Sarge’s oldest son — and I co-founded three fighting units in the war against global poverty: DATA, ONE and (RED). We may not yet know what it will take to finish the fight and silence suffering in our time, but we are flat out trying to live up to Sarge’s drill.
¶I have beautiful memories of Bobby and me sitting with his father and mother at the Shrivers’ kitchen table — the same team that gazed over J.F.K.’s shoulder — looking over our paltry attempts at speechifying, prodding and pushing us toward comprehensibility and credibility, a challenge when your son starts hanging round with a bleeding-heart Irish rock star.
¶Toward the end, when I visited Sarge as a frailer man, I was astonished by his good spirits and good humor. He had the room around him laughing out loud. I thought it a fitting final victory in a life that embodied service and transcended, so often, grave duty, that he had a certain weightlessness about him. Even then, his job nearly done, his light shone undiminished, and brightened us all.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Shop Online and Help Meals on Wheels
Do you shop online? Of course you do. Now you can shop online and benefit a very important charity.
Meals on Wheels of Northampton County.
When you shop at the more then 700 stores on www.iGive.com/MOWNC a portion of your sale will go to Meals on Wheels of Northampton County. It is free for you and does not cost MOWNC. You don't pay any more than you normally would and with so many online companies offering free shipping this is an offer you can't refuse. No lines, no parking problems and no time at the mall.
iGive.com also has a lot of great money saving coupons.
Some of the participating merchants are: Gap, Nordstrom, Best Buy, Office Depot, Expedia, The Home Depot, Amazon.com and nearly 700 more.
Remember there is no extra cost to you.
Fun Fact: You are not just benefiting Meals on Wheels of Northampton County but also the Lehigh County and Monroe County programs. The kitchen at the Northampton County site provides all the meals for the other two county branches.
Meals on Wheels is truly one the best charities you can support. They feed hundreds of seniors and home bound folks everyday.
I know you are going to shop online this holiday season, so why not support Meals on Wheels.
www.iGive.com/MOWNC
Meals on Wheels of Northampton County.
When you shop at the more then 700 stores on www.iGive.com/MOWNC a portion of your sale will go to Meals on Wheels of Northampton County. It is free for you and does not cost MOWNC. You don't pay any more than you normally would and with so many online companies offering free shipping this is an offer you can't refuse. No lines, no parking problems and no time at the mall.
iGive.com also has a lot of great money saving coupons.
Some of the participating merchants are: Gap, Nordstrom, Best Buy, Office Depot, Expedia, The Home Depot, Amazon.com and nearly 700 more.
Remember there is no extra cost to you.
Fun Fact: You are not just benefiting Meals on Wheels of Northampton County but also the Lehigh County and Monroe County programs. The kitchen at the Northampton County site provides all the meals for the other two county branches.
Meals on Wheels is truly one the best charities you can support. They feed hundreds of seniors and home bound folks everyday.
I know you are going to shop online this holiday season, so why not support Meals on Wheels.
www.iGive.com/MOWNC
Fighting Cancer While Eating Wings and Chili
Q: What are you doing on Sunday, December 19, 2010?
A: Tasting wings & chili, watching the Eagles vs Giants game and fighting cancer.
My friends at the Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce are sponsoring their;
A: Tasting wings & chili, watching the Eagles vs Giants game and fighting cancer.
My friends at the Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce are sponsoring their;
3rd annual Chili & Wing Cook Off Competition
Hampton Inn on Route 248 - Easton/Nazareth
The event benefits the American Cancer Society
- Doors open at 12:00 and the event goes through out the game.
- $15 per person
- Cash bar
- Raffles
- If you don't like Chili or Wings other restaurants will be providing pizza, snacks and other tasty treats
- Professional massage sessions are available
- You will be able to vote for the best chili and wings
- Wear your best Eagles, Giants or any other sporting team gear
- For last minute holiday gifts a last minute shopping area will be set up
We are still looking for food vendors both for the chili & or wings and for side dishes and snacks. Please contact either myself or the Nazareth Chamber @610-759-9188 or 610-759-5262.
This really is a great time and even my friends who could care less about football come and enjoy the food. We have some great caterers and restaurants participating. I will publish that list once it is finalized.
If you want tickets please contact me or call the numbers listed above.
I hope to see everybody there.
Friday, October 29, 2010
Marcia Hahn
The other night at a Nazareth Chamber of Commerce function I kissed a Republican and quite frankly I liked it.
I have voted for Republicans before. This may be a surprise to some but there comes a time when good government matters more than party. I can’t imagine a time that I would ever vote for a Republican for President but I have voted for Republicans for Governor and I may have voted for John Heinz for the Senate but I am not quite sure my memory serves me correctly.
I never voted for Bob Casey Sr. The year he was elected Governor I voted for Billy Scranton (in the primary I helped lead the Rendell campaign in the area) and when he was re-elected I voted for Barbara Hafer. It did not stop from attending the inauguration parties but I never voted for the man.
I voted for Bob Casey Jr only once but my other choice was Little Ricky Santorum. In all other Bob Casey Jr elections I could not vote for the Republican so I would write in Artquest President Jeff Parks. In 2006 I knew I had to vote against Santorum and did not want to risk the chance that my vote would allow that moron to stay in office so I held my nose and for the first time voted for a Casey. I am glad I did. Bob Casey Jr has turned out to be an admirable Senator and someone I will actively support in 2012.
2009 was an awful year for Northampton County Democrats; we lost control of County Council. Of the contested races I only had 3 winners and two of them were Republicans, Judge Michael Koury was the only Democrat to win. My other winners were County Council Woman Peg Ferraro; who I have been a supporter of for many years and Judge Craig Dally, a former State Representative. Peg is someone who has been able to transcend parties and work for what is best for the county. Craig Dally has been a Republican who thrived and succeeded in a district that should have been represented by a Democrat and when he ran for judge his Democratic State House Colleagues supported him.
Judge Dally was succeeded in the State House by former aide Marcia Hahn. I have gotten to know Rep. Hahn over the past few years and if lived in her district not only would I vote for her but I would be out campaigning for her. I may not agree with her on some of the broader political issues and her Republican philosophies may often oppose my views of the world but I really like her.
Rep. Hahn is committed to constituent services; she is committed to working with her Democratic colleagues for what is best for the region and she is committed to making government more open, more transparent and more about the people.
The State House opens every daily session with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, Rep. Hahn makes a point to attend each opening because she believes it is an important symbol and she believes it is the right message to send. There are times when she finds herself there with few other Representatives but it is important to her to honor the traditions. This helps her to keep focused on the reasons she ran for office in the first place. Locally there have been other staffers who have succeeded their bosses in office and have become imperious and cocky, Marcia Hahn is determined to not allow that to happen to her and I am convinced she will remain accessible and constituent focused no matter how long she chooses to stay in office.
The people of the 138th District are lucky to have Marcia Hahn as their State Representative; she is smart, she has great sense of humor, she is warm and personable, she has a firm grasp of the issues and she really cares about the people she represents. She is the embodiment of what a Representative should be. Charlie Dent should use Marcia Hahn as a role model to find his way back home.
Rep. Hahn has captured both the Republican and Democratic nominations for office and she deserves it. If I lived in the Slate Belt I would be proud and honored to cast a vote for Marcia Hahn.
I have voted for Republicans before. This may be a surprise to some but there comes a time when good government matters more than party. I can’t imagine a time that I would ever vote for a Republican for President but I have voted for Republicans for Governor and I may have voted for John Heinz for the Senate but I am not quite sure my memory serves me correctly.
I never voted for Bob Casey Sr. The year he was elected Governor I voted for Billy Scranton (in the primary I helped lead the Rendell campaign in the area) and when he was re-elected I voted for Barbara Hafer. It did not stop from attending the inauguration parties but I never voted for the man.
I voted for Bob Casey Jr only once but my other choice was Little Ricky Santorum. In all other Bob Casey Jr elections I could not vote for the Republican so I would write in Artquest President Jeff Parks. In 2006 I knew I had to vote against Santorum and did not want to risk the chance that my vote would allow that moron to stay in office so I held my nose and for the first time voted for a Casey. I am glad I did. Bob Casey Jr has turned out to be an admirable Senator and someone I will actively support in 2012.
2009 was an awful year for Northampton County Democrats; we lost control of County Council. Of the contested races I only had 3 winners and two of them were Republicans, Judge Michael Koury was the only Democrat to win. My other winners were County Council Woman Peg Ferraro; who I have been a supporter of for many years and Judge Craig Dally, a former State Representative. Peg is someone who has been able to transcend parties and work for what is best for the county. Craig Dally has been a Republican who thrived and succeeded in a district that should have been represented by a Democrat and when he ran for judge his Democratic State House Colleagues supported him.
Judge Dally was succeeded in the State House by former aide Marcia Hahn. I have gotten to know Rep. Hahn over the past few years and if lived in her district not only would I vote for her but I would be out campaigning for her. I may not agree with her on some of the broader political issues and her Republican philosophies may often oppose my views of the world but I really like her.
Rep. Hahn is committed to constituent services; she is committed to working with her Democratic colleagues for what is best for the region and she is committed to making government more open, more transparent and more about the people.
The State House opens every daily session with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, Rep. Hahn makes a point to attend each opening because she believes it is an important symbol and she believes it is the right message to send. There are times when she finds herself there with few other Representatives but it is important to her to honor the traditions. This helps her to keep focused on the reasons she ran for office in the first place. Locally there have been other staffers who have succeeded their bosses in office and have become imperious and cocky, Marcia Hahn is determined to not allow that to happen to her and I am convinced she will remain accessible and constituent focused no matter how long she chooses to stay in office.
The people of the 138th District are lucky to have Marcia Hahn as their State Representative; she is smart, she has great sense of humor, she is warm and personable, she has a firm grasp of the issues and she really cares about the people she represents. She is the embodiment of what a Representative should be. Charlie Dent should use Marcia Hahn as a role model to find his way back home.
Rep. Hahn has captured both the Republican and Democratic nominations for office and she deserves it. If I lived in the Slate Belt I would be proud and honored to cast a vote for Marcia Hahn.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Voices You Should Know
In my last post I wrote that the only voice speaking truth to power on this whole sordid Shirley Sherrod affair was Anderson Cooper. I was watching Anderson at the time I wrote the post and watching Anderson in that tight black tee shirt of his forced all other thoughts out of my brain. Don't judge me, even the straight guys out there are envious of the way Mr. Cooper can wear a tee shirt. I would like to apologize to all of the people out there on TV, Radio and on-line who added their wise voices to the chorus of truth tellers. Those who know me are well aware that Rachel Maddow, Keith Olberman and Chris Matthews are an essential part of my information gathering process. The people I want to give props to are not as well know but they should be.
These are folks who I have come to depend on to clarify my thinking and provoke me to expand my view of the world around me. I have mentioned some of these big thinkers in the past but I want to give them their due. I have added some new links on this side where you can find them after you are done with me.
Joan Walsh can be found over at Salon. She is not on TV nearly enough and whenever she is on she speaks with such clarity that most of her opponents wither in her presence. Recently she gave a colleague a history lesson. The topic turned to the battle for the soul of the Republican Party and the other commentator said that parties tend to swing to extremes from time to time but then usually find their way back into the center, no argument there. Then, he went on to give the nomination in 1984 of Walter Mondale as an example of the Democrats nominating someone from their radical side. Joan's response was fast and furious and she gave a history lesson that brought me to my feet in my living room. Ms. Walsh's writing over the last few days has been nothing short of brilliant. Her Tweets are all over the map which makes her even more interesting and I always feel so honored when she takes the time to respond or comment on my Tweets.
Over at the Washington Post and on MSNBC you can find editorial writer Jonathan Capehart and Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Eugene Robinson. As with Joan Walsh these two men are always calm voices during the shout fests that MSNBC can sometimes become.
Mr. Capehart is young, stylish, witty & urbane. He wears the best ties on TV and they are always perfectly knotted. He is quickly becoming the voice of his generation on matters of race, sexual politics and any other issue he decides to speak/write about. He is the voice of the Washington Post but I suspect he will soon rise above that lofty position to become one of the go to and essential voice of our times. Another great Tweeter and he often responds back to my Tweets.
Eugene Robinson is a no nonsense yet poetic columnist. I always think I am smarter and better informed after reading him. His thoughts on race, politics, war and any other topic should be a must stop along the way to enlightenment. He writes with great clarity, humor and a forthrightness that we can all benefit from.
From The Nation you can find 3 writers and pundits who are quickly becoming favorites of mine. Christopher Hayes, Melissa Harris Lacewell and Katrina vanden Huevel. All three spend quality time in academia so they come at issues in a very thoughtful manner, Ms. Harris Lacewell is a Professor at Princeton. I am new to these three but I have found them to be very clear voices in the debates of the day and their honest defense of the left will prove them to become the leaders of the of progressive thought for years/decades to come. Mr. Hayes is great on Twitter but Ms. vanden Huevel Tweets on everything; we watch football games; reality shows and the Tony Awards together via Twitter.
Give these folks a chance to inform, enlighten and entertain you. If you have some suggestions for me please leave a comment and I will check him or her out and let you know what I think.
These are folks who I have come to depend on to clarify my thinking and provoke me to expand my view of the world around me. I have mentioned some of these big thinkers in the past but I want to give them their due. I have added some new links on this side where you can find them after you are done with me.
Joan Walsh can be found over at Salon. She is not on TV nearly enough and whenever she is on she speaks with such clarity that most of her opponents wither in her presence. Recently she gave a colleague a history lesson. The topic turned to the battle for the soul of the Republican Party and the other commentator said that parties tend to swing to extremes from time to time but then usually find their way back into the center, no argument there. Then, he went on to give the nomination in 1984 of Walter Mondale as an example of the Democrats nominating someone from their radical side. Joan's response was fast and furious and she gave a history lesson that brought me to my feet in my living room. Ms. Walsh's writing over the last few days has been nothing short of brilliant. Her Tweets are all over the map which makes her even more interesting and I always feel so honored when she takes the time to respond or comment on my Tweets.
Over at the Washington Post and on MSNBC you can find editorial writer Jonathan Capehart and Pulitzer Prize winning columnist Eugene Robinson. As with Joan Walsh these two men are always calm voices during the shout fests that MSNBC can sometimes become.
Mr. Capehart is young, stylish, witty & urbane. He wears the best ties on TV and they are always perfectly knotted. He is quickly becoming the voice of his generation on matters of race, sexual politics and any other issue he decides to speak/write about. He is the voice of the Washington Post but I suspect he will soon rise above that lofty position to become one of the go to and essential voice of our times. Another great Tweeter and he often responds back to my Tweets.
Eugene Robinson is a no nonsense yet poetic columnist. I always think I am smarter and better informed after reading him. His thoughts on race, politics, war and any other topic should be a must stop along the way to enlightenment. He writes with great clarity, humor and a forthrightness that we can all benefit from.
From The Nation you can find 3 writers and pundits who are quickly becoming favorites of mine. Christopher Hayes, Melissa Harris Lacewell and Katrina vanden Huevel. All three spend quality time in academia so they come at issues in a very thoughtful manner, Ms. Harris Lacewell is a Professor at Princeton. I am new to these three but I have found them to be very clear voices in the debates of the day and their honest defense of the left will prove them to become the leaders of the of progressive thought for years/decades to come. Mr. Hayes is great on Twitter but Ms. vanden Huevel Tweets on everything; we watch football games; reality shows and the Tony Awards together via Twitter.
Give these folks a chance to inform, enlighten and entertain you. If you have some suggestions for me please leave a comment and I will check him or her out and let you know what I think.
Monday, February 1, 2010
Check Out These Folks 2
Greetings
Hope everyone enjoyed the Grammys last night. My fingers are sore from all the live tweeting. I have added a few new links to some wicked good websites / blogs. Please check them out. You may just learn something I know I do every time I read them.
Hope everyone enjoyed the Grammys last night. My fingers are sore from all the live tweeting. I have added a few new links to some wicked good websites / blogs. Please check them out. You may just learn something I know I do every time I read them.
Sunday, January 3, 2010
The Chicest Person On The Planet
''The chicest man on the planet today is the new president of Afghanistan, whose look is very elegant and very proud,'' So said American fashion/style guru Tom Ford in January, 2002 about Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
At the time all the worlds hope rested in the stylish shoulders of Mr. Karzai and I for one hoped that I could have pulled off one of his hats. Well, Mr. Karzai's star has faded both politically and now even his look is getting a little tired. I wonder who the elegant Mr. Ford would pick this year?
Since I have not come across any new comments from the stylish Houston native, I am going to make my choice for the chicest person on the planet. Most fashion/style icons either come from the worlds runways or the worlds film business. My choice is not Cate Blanchett nor George Clooney nor the fabulous Mrs. Tom Brady (Giselle). No smart readers the chicest person on the planet last year comes from Washington DC by way of Chicago. No, not him - her.
First Lady Michelle Obama is quickly becoming a fashion and life style icon. What she wore on inauguration day was far and away the hottest First Lady look since Jackie. Every time Michelle goes out in public she looks completely pulled together yet comfortable, she looks natural & simple but always sophisticated and tasteful. When she is planting in the garden she looks looks ready to work but not sloppy, when she is talking to school children she looks approachable but not like a school librarian. And, those arms. When have we had a First Lady that so many women want to dress like? Many women can dress like her because she wears so much off the rack clothing that any woman can buy in any mall in American. With that piece of arm candy she is frequently photographed with she has become the total American style package. Michelle Obamas main rival in the hot First Lady competition is a former super model / pop star and our First Lady came out on top when they last met. Viva Michelle!
At the time all the worlds hope rested in the stylish shoulders of Mr. Karzai and I for one hoped that I could have pulled off one of his hats. Well, Mr. Karzai's star has faded both politically and now even his look is getting a little tired. I wonder who the elegant Mr. Ford would pick this year?
Since I have not come across any new comments from the stylish Houston native, I am going to make my choice for the chicest person on the planet. Most fashion/style icons either come from the worlds runways or the worlds film business. My choice is not Cate Blanchett nor George Clooney nor the fabulous Mrs. Tom Brady (Giselle). No smart readers the chicest person on the planet last year comes from Washington DC by way of Chicago. No, not him - her.
First Lady Michelle Obama is quickly becoming a fashion and life style icon. What she wore on inauguration day was far and away the hottest First Lady look since Jackie. Every time Michelle goes out in public she looks completely pulled together yet comfortable, she looks natural & simple but always sophisticated and tasteful. When she is planting in the garden she looks looks ready to work but not sloppy, when she is talking to school children she looks approachable but not like a school librarian. And, those arms. When have we had a First Lady that so many women want to dress like? Many women can dress like her because she wears so much off the rack clothing that any woman can buy in any mall in American. With that piece of arm candy she is frequently photographed with she has become the total American style package. Michelle Obamas main rival in the hot First Lady competition is a former super model / pop star and our First Lady came out on top when they last met. Viva Michelle!
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Snark Alert!
The year end review begins tomorrow!
Who is the worst Republican?
Who is the best Republican?
Who is the best Democrat?
Who should be driven from the Democratic Party?
What is the #1 political story of the year?
What is the #1 news story of the year?
Best / worst TV show?
Best / worst movie?
Best / worst work of fiction?
Best / work work of non-fiction?
Best / worst celebrity?
Best / worst pundit TV/Radio?
Best /worst pundit print?
Best Obama appointment?
Worst Obama appointment?
Occasional surprise guest opinions!
Best / worst public appearance?
Best / worst musical act?
Twitter vs Face book?
Best / worst non-American leader?
Predictions for 2010?
Hopes and wishes for 2010?
What did I learn?
What will I miss about 2009 and the entire decade?
Thank god this year / Decade is over!
And many more thought provoking pearls of wisdom.
Your suggestions and advise will be very much appreciated.
In the mean time check out the link below for View From the Third Floor for the definitive list of our nations greatest and worst Presidents.
Doris Keans Goodwin has nothing on me.
Thanks
Who is the worst Republican?
Who is the best Republican?
Who is the best Democrat?
Who should be driven from the Democratic Party?
What is the #1 political story of the year?
What is the #1 news story of the year?
Best / worst TV show?
Best / worst movie?
Best / worst work of fiction?
Best / work work of non-fiction?
Best / worst celebrity?
Best / worst pundit TV/Radio?
Best /worst pundit print?
Best Obama appointment?
Worst Obama appointment?
Occasional surprise guest opinions!
Best / worst public appearance?
Best / worst musical act?
Twitter vs Face book?
Best / worst non-American leader?
Predictions for 2010?
Hopes and wishes for 2010?
What did I learn?
What will I miss about 2009 and the entire decade?
Thank god this year / Decade is over!
And many more thought provoking pearls of wisdom.
Your suggestions and advise will be very much appreciated.
In the mean time check out the link below for View From the Third Floor for the definitive list of our nations greatest and worst Presidents.
Doris Keans Goodwin has nothing on me.
Thanks
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Football, Food & Curing Cancer - This Sunday
I am attending/volunteering at the 2nd Annual Chili & Wing Cook off to benefit the local chapter of the American Cancer Society.
The event is a presentation of the great people with Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce.
Watch the Eagles VS Giants game and eat some great food.
Local restaurants and caterers will be offering up some of the tastiest grub you will find anywhere. Sam’s Club will be providing the extra large screen TV’s
Why: Benefit the National Cancer Society
Where: Hampton Inn Easton – Route 248 between 25th ST/22 and route 33.
When: This Sunday, November 1 - doors open noon – game starts @ 1:00
Cost: Only $15.00 / Cash Bar / Pizza, snacks, energy drinks
Details: Prizes for best team spirit – best chili – best wings – there will be exciting raffles
Special Souperbowl Rematch
Meals on Wheels is making Seafood Chowder / North Star Adventure is making Cream of Crab Soup
For more details on buying tickets or to become a chili or wing vendor
Contact the Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce
610-759-9188 or 610-759-5262 or contact me
The event is a presentation of the great people with Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce.
Watch the Eagles VS Giants game and eat some great food.
Local restaurants and caterers will be offering up some of the tastiest grub you will find anywhere. Sam’s Club will be providing the extra large screen TV’s
Why: Benefit the National Cancer Society
Where: Hampton Inn Easton – Route 248 between 25th ST/22 and route 33.
When: This Sunday, November 1 - doors open noon – game starts @ 1:00
Cost: Only $15.00 / Cash Bar / Pizza, snacks, energy drinks
Details: Prizes for best team spirit – best chili – best wings – there will be exciting raffles
Special Souperbowl Rematch
Meals on Wheels is making Seafood Chowder / North Star Adventure is making Cream of Crab Soup
For more details on buying tickets or to become a chili or wing vendor
Contact the Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce
610-759-9188 or 610-759-5262 or contact me
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
Bravo Musikfest - Say it ain't so Nazareth
Another Musikfest has come and gone and again we all bask in the glow of this great event. It is the single most anticipated, talked about, reported on, blogged about, twittered event in the entire Lehigh Valley and beyond.
The growth in Musikfest is a testament to visionary leadership, loyal and dedicated volunteers and a grateful and supportive community. From it's humble roots, it is now an event that covers all the worlds music. It's has performances on more than just the downtown stages, I look forward to when it expands well into the South Side and onto the BethWorks area. I look forward to watching this greatest of events for our area become one of the must be at events in the nation.
I hope all who live here understand the growth that events like Musikfest and the other festivals in Bethlehem have done to benefit the Bethlehem economy. Not just during the days of the events but by the people who return again and again during the year because they are so impressed with our city and treated so well by it's businesses and citizens.
Last week I posted about how great Martin on Main was in Nazareth. I have heard disturbing reports that some downtown merchants were upset about the event. This is an event that brings in 4,000+ people for one day to walk past local merchants doors. How long days it take to get 4,000 people to walk through the downtown Nazareth business district? This event is an opportunity for local business owners to put out the welcome sign and invite new people into their establishments. If they did not capitalize on it, shame on them.
If the Martin company wants to move the event to my neighborhood, downtown Bethlehem, we would love such a classy, upscale event honoring an icon of American music. Ask the leaders of Easton, Bangor, Bath, Pen Argyl if the would welcome this event. I am certain not a no would be heard. Martin on Main can do for Nazareth what Musikfest has done for Bethlehem if it is managed right, marketed correctly and supported by the good people of Historic Nazareth.
The growth in Musikfest is a testament to visionary leadership, loyal and dedicated volunteers and a grateful and supportive community. From it's humble roots, it is now an event that covers all the worlds music. It's has performances on more than just the downtown stages, I look forward to when it expands well into the South Side and onto the BethWorks area. I look forward to watching this greatest of events for our area become one of the must be at events in the nation.
I hope all who live here understand the growth that events like Musikfest and the other festivals in Bethlehem have done to benefit the Bethlehem economy. Not just during the days of the events but by the people who return again and again during the year because they are so impressed with our city and treated so well by it's businesses and citizens.
Last week I posted about how great Martin on Main was in Nazareth. I have heard disturbing reports that some downtown merchants were upset about the event. This is an event that brings in 4,000+ people for one day to walk past local merchants doors. How long days it take to get 4,000 people to walk through the downtown Nazareth business district? This event is an opportunity for local business owners to put out the welcome sign and invite new people into their establishments. If they did not capitalize on it, shame on them.
If the Martin company wants to move the event to my neighborhood, downtown Bethlehem, we would love such a classy, upscale event honoring an icon of American music. Ask the leaders of Easton, Bangor, Bath, Pen Argyl if the would welcome this event. I am certain not a no would be heard. Martin on Main can do for Nazareth what Musikfest has done for Bethlehem if it is managed right, marketed correctly and supported by the good people of Historic Nazareth.
Saturday, August 1, 2009
Martin On Main
Having recently just posted about how much I like Musikfest and how it is the biggest event of the year here in the Lehigh Valley this post may seem like a contradiction, but it is not.
I served on the Martin on Main committee via my involvement with the Nazareth Chamber of Commerce. This was the second year for this event honoring all things Martin Guitar in the borough where they are made, Nazareth, PA. The event began last year to celebrate the 175 anniversary of the company. It was so successful that people wanted it to become an annual event.
Oddly enough this year was better than the anniversary year. We had more food vendors and more crafts people. The downtown restaurants all had outdoor cafe seating and the Allentown/Bethlehem Brew Works created a blonde ale just for the event, Martin Summer Strummer. I spent a few hours pouring beer and it was a great success and a tasty one two. The Fegley family run a great civic minded business and if you have not been to one of their three Brew Works locations get thee to the brewery and support this local family venture.
There was a main stage with Martin devotees from across the planet each performing 3 song sets (there were so many of them) and some big name act, who I never heard of but people were all abuzz about him, he was quite good. The music was mostly acoustic and very folk oriented.
If I heard one more song about a dust bowl surviving Irish nun who was an outlaw murderer who lost his job and tried to feed her family on a farm in the middle of Kansas City during the time of the great potato famine brought on by a callous big business man whose wife left him for a leper living in San Jose but wanting to hitch hike to Memphis, I was going to scream and then someone saved the day by playing a little Dylan followed by a James Taylor cover. There were also a few small stages through out the area where people could jump on and play. The entire event was about a block and half long plus the main stage area in the center square of town. There were also lot's of young guys just playing wherever they could find an audience and the cute factor was really quite high.
It was bloody hot but a really great day. Hopefully this really will continue as an annual event and I hope I get to be asked to be on the planning committee again. I think Musikfest missed out on a great cross marketing opportunity. They were approached but never responded. Next year I will be more aggressive in my follow up. This was a really great celebration of an international icon that is made here in the Lehigh Valley. I hope that Martin On Main will grow to have the same economic impact on lovely downtown Nazareth that Musikfest has had on my downtown.
I served on the Martin on Main committee via my involvement with the Nazareth Chamber of Commerce. This was the second year for this event honoring all things Martin Guitar in the borough where they are made, Nazareth, PA. The event began last year to celebrate the 175 anniversary of the company. It was so successful that people wanted it to become an annual event.
Oddly enough this year was better than the anniversary year. We had more food vendors and more crafts people. The downtown restaurants all had outdoor cafe seating and the Allentown/Bethlehem Brew Works created a blonde ale just for the event, Martin Summer Strummer. I spent a few hours pouring beer and it was a great success and a tasty one two. The Fegley family run a great civic minded business and if you have not been to one of their three Brew Works locations get thee to the brewery and support this local family venture.
There was a main stage with Martin devotees from across the planet each performing 3 song sets (there were so many of them) and some big name act, who I never heard of but people were all abuzz about him, he was quite good. The music was mostly acoustic and very folk oriented.
If I heard one more song about a dust bowl surviving Irish nun who was an outlaw murderer who lost his job and tried to feed her family on a farm in the middle of Kansas City during the time of the great potato famine brought on by a callous big business man whose wife left him for a leper living in San Jose but wanting to hitch hike to Memphis, I was going to scream and then someone saved the day by playing a little Dylan followed by a James Taylor cover. There were also a few small stages through out the area where people could jump on and play. The entire event was about a block and half long plus the main stage area in the center square of town. There were also lot's of young guys just playing wherever they could find an audience and the cute factor was really quite high.
It was bloody hot but a really great day. Hopefully this really will continue as an annual event and I hope I get to be asked to be on the planning committee again. I think Musikfest missed out on a great cross marketing opportunity. They were approached but never responded. Next year I will be more aggressive in my follow up. This was a really great celebration of an international icon that is made here in the Lehigh Valley. I hope that Martin On Main will grow to have the same economic impact on lovely downtown Nazareth that Musikfest has had on my downtown.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Welcome Musikfest
Another year has passed and it's time for Musikfest. The biggest and best event of the year here in the Lehigh Valley. I know you Allentowners think the Allentown Fair is the premier event but please - The Allentown Fair has it's charm but it is hardly the cultural event that is Musikfest. A redneck wonderland vs bringing the worlds music to Bethlehem. Musikfest may get a few stupid, sloppy drunks (how can they afford it) but I can almost imagine the meth dealers in the shadows behind the sheep cages. The Red Elvises vs rhubarb pie bake off, the demolition derby that occurs after a night at Musikfest is free and due to stupid people with out a designated driver, at the Allentown Fair you are charged admission to see car accidents.
I am coming off as a snob here but so be it. Only the truth is spoken here.
Some of the townies here in the Christmas City, the naysayers, complain about Musikfest and wish it would go away. To those sad sacks I say get over it, get a grip and get real. There are hundreds of towns and cities in this country that would kill to have something like this to attract thousands of people to it's central business district(s) every day for ten days. The economic benefits to this city from Musikfest are countless. People who come here for these ten days will come back in more quiet times to eat at our restaurants, shop at our stores and put quarters in our parking meters. Note the success of downtown Bethlehem vs the other downtown's in the area.
Speaking of which, I look forward every year to reading the letters to the editor in the Morning Call from people who received a parking ticket complaining about how rude the city was for giving them a ticket. Of course they are so self absorbed that it does not occur to them that had they not parked illegally they would not have received a ticket.
It will be interesting to see this year if both the Sands and Musikfest benefit from each other.
Welcome Musikfest I am glad your here and I am even gladder that I can come home from work, park my car in our off street parking, put on some shorts and sneakers and mosey the three blocks I have to walk to get to AmericaPlatz.
I am coming off as a snob here but so be it. Only the truth is spoken here.
Some of the townies here in the Christmas City, the naysayers, complain about Musikfest and wish it would go away. To those sad sacks I say get over it, get a grip and get real. There are hundreds of towns and cities in this country that would kill to have something like this to attract thousands of people to it's central business district(s) every day for ten days. The economic benefits to this city from Musikfest are countless. People who come here for these ten days will come back in more quiet times to eat at our restaurants, shop at our stores and put quarters in our parking meters. Note the success of downtown Bethlehem vs the other downtown's in the area.
Speaking of which, I look forward every year to reading the letters to the editor in the Morning Call from people who received a parking ticket complaining about how rude the city was for giving them a ticket. Of course they are so self absorbed that it does not occur to them that had they not parked illegally they would not have received a ticket.
It will be interesting to see this year if both the Sands and Musikfest benefit from each other.
Welcome Musikfest I am glad your here and I am even gladder that I can come home from work, park my car in our off street parking, put on some shorts and sneakers and mosey the three blocks I have to walk to get to AmericaPlatz.
Friday, June 26, 2009
MJ & Me
Last night we were walking into the restaurant for dinner and as we passed through the bar area to get to our table I caught the TV @ the bar. I caught the headline on the TV that Michael Jackson was rushed to the hospital and the word was it was his heart. My first reaction that it was just another Michael Jackson drama, something to get headlines leading up to his concerts in London. About 20 minutes later my niece texted that he was dead. We were with my sister and brother in law. The four of us just sat there for a few seconds, a little shocked and with a sudden sense of sadness. At first I thought how silly, why be sad over the death of Michael Jackson. I had stopped being a fan about 20 years ago and in fact was quite disgusted by his actions and behavior.
Michael and I grew up together, the same way I grew up with Prince Andrew, JFK Jr, Donny Osmond & Ron Howard. We are (were) all about the same age. Michael Jackson was part of my life for as long as I can remember. In sixth grade we were all bused for the first time. To kill the time we copied the lyrics to Jackson 5 songs and sang them over and over again. It was bonding and a great distraction for me, I forgot about the potential beating I was going to get once we got off the bus. Tough kids versus geeky, nerd boys.
Flash forward a few years and Michael Jackson has become a young man, just like me. His look and sound matured and he showed the world that he was a real talent. A few more years we continued to mature but Michael did not. He became this weird man /child. His face changed, his hair changed, his skin color changed but his talent did not. A few years later he had physically changed so much he no longer looked like Michael Jackson he looked like an odd white transgendered person. If you did not know it was Michael Jackson and you saw him on the street you would not have been sure which way he/she was transitioning.
A few more years later he just became really weird and his talent went away too. The stories of the animals, boys, booze & drugs ruined what ever good memories I had of the man/boy I grew up with. I no longer had any interest in anything he did and yet I followed all of it's sordid details with a growing level of disgust and yet a little sadness.
What happened to this enormous talent? What did his father do to him? What did fame do to him? Why did the other famous peers I mentioned earlier turn out all right and Michael Jackson became such a freak show?
Today the sadness that I felt for him became even more real with the knowledge that what ever information comes out now about his life and death will no doubt be so sordid, sick and repulsive that many of us will have a hard time remembering the bright talent that was Michael Jackson. In an interview today Liza Minnelli said she was glad we have some time to celebrate him before all the stuff comes out.
After JFK died a book came out titled "Johnny We Hardly Knew Ye", unfortunately for Michael Jackson we will know way too much about him.
Michael and I grew up together, the same way I grew up with Prince Andrew, JFK Jr, Donny Osmond & Ron Howard. We are (were) all about the same age. Michael Jackson was part of my life for as long as I can remember. In sixth grade we were all bused for the first time. To kill the time we copied the lyrics to Jackson 5 songs and sang them over and over again. It was bonding and a great distraction for me, I forgot about the potential beating I was going to get once we got off the bus. Tough kids versus geeky, nerd boys.
Flash forward a few years and Michael Jackson has become a young man, just like me. His look and sound matured and he showed the world that he was a real talent. A few more years we continued to mature but Michael did not. He became this weird man /child. His face changed, his hair changed, his skin color changed but his talent did not. A few years later he had physically changed so much he no longer looked like Michael Jackson he looked like an odd white transgendered person. If you did not know it was Michael Jackson and you saw him on the street you would not have been sure which way he/she was transitioning.
A few more years later he just became really weird and his talent went away too. The stories of the animals, boys, booze & drugs ruined what ever good memories I had of the man/boy I grew up with. I no longer had any interest in anything he did and yet I followed all of it's sordid details with a growing level of disgust and yet a little sadness.
What happened to this enormous talent? What did his father do to him? What did fame do to him? Why did the other famous peers I mentioned earlier turn out all right and Michael Jackson became such a freak show?
Today the sadness that I felt for him became even more real with the knowledge that what ever information comes out now about his life and death will no doubt be so sordid, sick and repulsive that many of us will have a hard time remembering the bright talent that was Michael Jackson. In an interview today Liza Minnelli said she was glad we have some time to celebrate him before all the stuff comes out.
After JFK died a book came out titled "Johnny We Hardly Knew Ye", unfortunately for Michael Jackson we will know way too much about him.
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