A Lion In Winter

Watching a Frontline episode on the current state of the media. Must remember to show this to students next year in government class. Fascinating. Go to the program's website and watch the show on line.

Barack having a good day today here. However, what we're watching unfold is a desperate Republican Party grasping at straws to hurt the Democratic Party and Senator Obama. Senator John McCain is erasing his entire senatorial career in his quixotic quest for the White House; he can't help but contradict himself daily when discussing Iran, foreign policy in general, economic policy or what have you. My support for Obama needs to do nothing but grow simply by shaking my head at the hypocrisy of the McCain campaign. History will show that the Republican Party platform is nothing now but a litany of fear mongering tactics. I believe that intelligent Americans will agree come November.

A sad day in the Senate. Senator Edward Kennedy being an icon of liberal values, has created a history greater than either of his brothers in public office. He will be long remembered as one whose values are those of the majority of Americans. Attack him for whatever reason that one will, Kennedy, in his ensconced position in Boston, has used most of his career for the good of the nation. Not too many others one can say that, especially of a forty-plus year career.

Check this out. Cruising through this, I was proud this morning to say that I have twenty of these albums and another twenty by the artists, just not those listed. I've been listening to jazz non-stop, especially after last week's NY'er article on Schaap and his passion for Charlie Parker. The jazz I purchased in the last couple of weeks has been spinning non-stop. The Art Farmer classic hard bop is wonderful. The Horace Silver is quite amazing. The Tyner record now seems to be a document of the '06 Yoshi's run, though it isn't hitting me between the eyes like the first two performances I caught in the previous two years' runs.
I forgot to mention that I finally found an album I've written about previously, only at my loss. Levon Helm's Dirt Farmer is a simple treasure. A record of standard Americana records and a couple of modern country songs, Helm's Dirt Farmer captures the same emotions that The Band's music did nearly forty years ago. Some songs, in fact, sound like outtakes from the group's second record. Helm's voice, bedraggled and weary, is as timeless as his old band's music is; it is also a testimony of perserverance and time. Helm takes us back decades to older, slower and in many ways, truer times of balladry. Basic humanity sung in three and a half minutes with wooden instruments and no flash: sheer beauty, American Beauty. The last song, a cover of a Steve Earle tune, maybe now in my top ten songs I want played at my funeral. This record won't be remembered as a classic; in fact, it will probably be forgotten quite quickly. At our loss.

The A's are slipping. They were in first and now two games back. Maybe I'll have the chance to catch a couple of games as soon as school gets out. ? Fingers crossed...

Off to bed. Tomorrow, we are checking our oldest child into his new nursery school for the fall. My children continue to amaze and humble me. How can I parent and discipline and lead other humans into, hopefully, making good decisions and into becoming good people? I still tremble at my responsibility. I pray nightly for my success...