We don't need another hero We don't need to know the way home All we want is life beyond the thunderdome (Tina Turner, "We Don't Need Another Hero") As a folklorist and a folk historian, I've found myself often in the role of folk anthropologist. While I definitely have a "niche" of people who respect what folk music is as an art form, the general responses I get when I tell people of my avocation are an assortment of screwed up faces and a comment or two analogizing the music to some bac...

I am currently watching "V for Vendetta", a movie that I must admit I've pretty much loved since   I first watched it, entirely in spite of its politics, not because of it. While we could get into the discussion of the politics of the movie, that's irrelevant to the subject I have chosen. I merely made mention of it to paint the backdrop for the discussion and to introduce you to the thought processes that inspired it. I am a fairly rational mind and not prone to conspiracy theories. But...

As we come into yet another Presidential race, we're again going to be pressured to choose between candidates from one party or another to represent us in leadership. As a techie, I can't help but think of how this is oh-so-similar to the O/S wars, which I see played out on the forums all the time. How are you supposed to choose between two options when they BOTH suck? As in politics, computer manufacturers have long been able to get away with offering limited options and features. As the ...

On another blog, a blogger stated that "their God" loves gays. Besides wondering if they have little wooden tiki guys they worship, that allow them to definitively state what their God does and doesn't like (eg: "God likes broccoli", "God likes to watch Wapner at 7"), I have to wonder why they would think God loves gays, when nature clearly does not. See, the ultimate goal of a species in regards to natural selection is its own advancement. This can only happen when people are procreating (I ...

"Ever'body might be just one big soul Well it looks that a way to me. Everywhere that you look in the day or night That's where I'm gonna be, Ma, That's where I'm gonna be. Wherever little children are hungry and cry Wherever people ain't free. Wherever men are fightin' for their rights That's where I'm gonna be, Ma. That's where I'm a gonna be. "Tom Joad", Woody Guthrie The illegal immigration debate is nothing new. In fact, the debate about illegals destabilizing the ...

We have a new guest in our house. Bobomono. See, Quinn's thre now, and he's all boy. He and Lani, our five year old, have the kind of relationship I have ONLY heard of twins having. They share a secret language, and each is automatically in tune with the other's feelings. They look out for each other pretty diligently, and they share a number of "inside" stories and jokes that they leave the rest of us out of. And so, a few weeks ago, when "Bobomono" (pronounced "Bob-oh-moan-oh") came on t...

I want to preface this article by stating very clearly that much of the following does not apply to all of the left. Or even all of the left's lunatic fringe. But I was very specifically called out with some very specific allegations by one particular representative of the left's lunatic fringe (who, I would hope, would be regarded by most libs as an embarassment to their ideology). Because of the response of the individual, I am not going to let sleeping dogs lie, nor let bygones be bygones. ...

On Friday, August 10th, 2007, Lt. Col. James Henry Ayres will be laid to rest in Pampa, Texas. What makes this special and of note are the circumstances behind this. Lt. Col. Ayres was born on June 30, 1937, and was commissioned into the US Air Force on Jan. 25, 1960. on January 3, 1971, his plane went down over Laos during a night time strike. Last Friday, the Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office positively identified the remains of Ayres and Lt. Col. Charles W. Stratton of ...

Early on in my JU experience, I wrote a blog on hate, and how I refuse to hate. The Emperor of Ice Cream rebutted me, saying that we all hate, and that I should embrace it (rough, ROUGH paraphrase!). As with many of Emp's views, it was cynical, but had a ring of truth to it. Because if you believe in an absolute good and an absolute evil, then there are things that it is virtuous to hate. I try to define myself as a man of peace for many reasons. I've seen more conflict than most, and I've se...

I marvel at the definition too many people have of hard work. They look at the construction worker, the roofer, the plumber, mostly blue collar trades. And to so many others, they turn their nose up at what they're doing. Doctors, lawyers, and white collar workers are often loathed because people see the fine trappings (the nice clothes, houses, cars) as evidence of a life of leisure, a life they somehow didn't earn. And don't get me started on the attitude towards our athletes. Yet, who work...

OK, despite the fact that I am not convinced that mankind (especially in the United States) is the significant cause of global warming, I am among those who take environmental stewardship seriously. So I decided to check out yahoo!'s new "green" category, and take their little carbon footprint calculator ( http://green.yahoo.com/?q=calcResults ). What a load of baloney that was. In the first place, I've taken other, better carbon footprint calculators, and the difference between theirs and ya...

(should be posted in "Writing", but nobody actually READS those posts!). Backstory: My song "Easy Annie" opened up the floodgates. I put together three songs in the last 24 hours. These are still "baby songs"; they ain't learned to walk yet, but I'm proud of them. This is the third of that series (I'll post the second if this actually gets read). For those who don't know, Okemah, Oklahoma was Woody Guthrie's birthplace: I was just 18 years old On a hot and dry Kansas road Carrying a heav...

This one needs a little background: A friend of mine came over to see the Woody Guthrie Center. It's been a great week on the creative front, being able to work together on artistic ideas. We collaborate well together, which is something I have needed for a long time. Someone to drive me musically, to feed my muse. The other night we headed out for drinks. Being how yet another friend was buying, we drank red bar (which, we decided, only needed cheese to suffice as "liquid pizza"), and san...

OK, I'm tired of this. Sometime ago I was challenged by a certain individual on the text of the second amendment. I contend that it reads as follows: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. This particular individual contends that it is much longer, and that all texts available on the Internet are wrong and that we have been duped by a government that will not allow us access to o...

Last October, when we re-upped our cell phone contract, we opted for the emergency roadside assistance on one of our phones. We figured that it was worth it to have that extra safety net when we are on the road. This past weekend, we went to Okemah, Oklahoma, and the big Woody Guthrie Festival there. On the way home, we were stricken with a case of car-wouldn't start-itis. First in OKC, but as we lumbered out, the alternator was working, albeit intermittently. We were hoping it would be just ...