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Defining our democracy

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“The good things in our nation did not come about by chance, and they will not be preserved by indifference.”

The Rev. Dr. Deborah Meister

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Keeping a democracy takes work.

Disuse of democracy by a careless majority is cause enough for worry in a world of constant struggle between tyranny and freedom. But when that indifference is coupled with a deliberate effort by a wealthy minority to undermine the public good for private gain, we find ourselves at a point where Americans are in danger of having government by the people smothered by an oligarchy focused on the enrichment of the few and the repression of those who disagree with them.

America as an idea is a work in progress, with an eye on the prospects for the future. At our best, we are always growing, always becoming, as we move toward that more perfect union. But we are not always at our best. The history that really happened, as opposed to the history we’ve told ourselves for much of our existence, is that we have not always had the full flowering of democracy that we so proudly celebrate here in America.*

That’s true in part because the presiding oligarchy has never wanted one and has worked to align their personal goals with false definitions of what government by and for the people entails. Those who favor authoritarianism and hierarchy — who favor an America that privileges only those who support their point of view, be it economic or theological — have certainly been working overtime for more than 400 years to institute their vision. If we are to keep government by the people alive in this country, it is important to understand how that minority defines and frames issues as they work to undermine pluralistic democratic rule.

When we think of what use to be called the commonweal, or the good of the people, our mind conjures up liberty, freedom, rights, the public good, and truth. Yet in recent decades, each of those words and phrases has been redefined in ways that denigrate the core concept of community obligations and beliefs so critical to the American experiment.

Let’s begin with liberty.

In a comment to last week’s post, my friend Deborah Meister suggested that, “’Liberty’ used to mean ‘liberty for… [something]’ —- something like, freedom to develop one’s gifts and then to offer them in helping to shape a society.” But today, after a long effort by the oligarchy to move beyond the concept of a common good, liberty is generally understood in our culture as “‘freedom of choice’ (by which its proponents mean freedom of consumer choice) and freedom from constraint. There is a world of difference,” Deborah adds, “between liberty to choose one’s obligations and liberty to ignore them all in favor of an existence centered on self or, at most, on self and family.”

Which leads us to rights.

In a true pluralistic democracy, rights come with responsibilities and are generally practiced with some sense of empathy for fellow travelers in the world. At the very least, rights with responsibilities are seen as the price of citizenship. But with a selfish world-view focused on anti-science, racism, and patriarchy, many of those fortunate enough to live at the top of the pyramid, generally through an unearned privilege such as the accident of birth or race, do not see it as their responsibility to use their rights to show empathy and concern for others. Hierarchy, in this case, suits their purposes just fine.

Some wonder why evangelicals and other conservative Christians support the wealthy oligarchy so passionately. Part of the reason is that evangelicals often believe in a hierarchy of 1) God, 2) man, 3) woman, and 4) child in that order. Some who hold such beliefs easily fall into the trap of believing that giving rights to “others” such as women, people of color, or LGBTQ individuals, takes away their rights and position on the pyramid. This is why those religious communities don’t have any problem with Donald Trump. His enemies are their enemies. His hatred is a feature, not a bug.

That point-of-view clearly confuses the general population. Most of us believe that to be Christian is to “love your neighbor as yourself” with a broad — some would say Christ-like — definition of neighbor. Having grown up in a region where neighbor, for many Christians, had a much more narrow focus, I am here to tell you that what most of us know just ain’t so. Religious rights are seen by these groups as theirs to define, along with the ability to interpret how “others” fit into that worldview.

From a distortion of religious rights, it is a short jump to the contortions around religious freedom.

Similar to the redefinition of “rights”, some evangelical Christians have also reshaped the concept of “freedom” to fit their purposes. When White Evangelical Christians talk about becoming a minority, they believe it creates a universe where there is more for “the others” or “them” and less for “us.” So they talk about Donald Trump restoring their “freedom.” Writing on Religion Dispatches, John Stoehr rightly calls out that type of thinking for what it truly is: utter nonsense.

“What they’re really saying is that the president will prevent people lower down the order of power from achieving more freedom and equality, ‘violating’ their ‘freedom.’ He must do that by any means, even if he confiscates kids from their mothers, bans a world religion, or commits treason. None of that matters as much as maintaining the supremacy of a religious identity…”

Oligarchs and their supporters have also worked to twist the meaning of public and private.

Writing in 2015 about the huge growth in wealth inequality that the gaming of the system has permitted over the past 40 years, social critic Lewis Lapham asks his readers to consider…

“…reversal over the past half century of the meaning within the words ‘public’ and ‘private.’ In the 1950s, the word ‘public’ connoted an inherent good (public health, public school, public service, public spirit); ‘private’ was a synonym for selfishness and greed (plutocrats in top hats, pigs at troughs). The connotations traded places in the 1980s. ‘Private’ now implies all things bright and beautiful (private trainer, private school, private plane), ‘public’ becomes a synonym for all things ugly and dangerous (public housing, public welfare, public toilet).”

This use of words to shape a viewpoint that is authoritarian and against a pluralistic democracy brings us to truth.

We find ourselves at the end of September 2020. Slightly more than a month out from the election. The day before the first presidential debate. A day after details from the president’s long-withheld tax returns came out in a front-page story in the New York Times. And a week after the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Trump’s nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to fill her seat.

With all of that before us, it is well to remember how the oligarchy attempts to define right and wrong, true and false. It is important, I suggest, to take back the words and narrative of democracy.

The Senate Majority Leader could barely wait an hour after Justice Ginsburg’s death before assuring us all that his lying would ensure that he would attempt to rush through a nomination for a new justice before the end of the Senate’s term on January 3rd and perhaps before the election. And Donald Trump, who has his own issues with the truth, promised to put forward a nomination immediately, which he has now done for Judge Barrett.

It was predictable that Trump and McConnell would move forward with barely disguised glee. They both have long track records proving they don’t truly believe in democracy, only power for the powerful. And they twist words to fit their lies. To understand our true position in this fight, we need to resist against charges of fake news and the manipulation of facts.

One way to take back the narrative is to remind ourselves that the Majority Leader is not so much a hypocrite but rather a bald-faced liar. He is hiding the truth behind his motives. What he really wanted four years ago was to keep President Obama from nominating a third Supreme Court justice, so he made up some bogus argument — twisted words defining a new Senate “tradition,” if you will — to lie about his true intentions. What he really wants in the next two months is for the Republicans to select their third justice to the court in a little under four years, so he makes up another bogus argument to lie about his true intensions. He isn’t being hypocritical as much as he is lying with words whose meaning he changes to fit his purpose of covering up what he really wants to do.

And here at the end of September, we can look at how words are changed to fit a political purpose by considering the president’s twisted explanations and logic around election security. When you are down an average of more than 7% in the national polls, want people to stop talking about your disastrous pandemic response, are captured on tape lying to Americans about the virus, saw the majority of your party in the House of Representatives disappear in a blue wave in 2018, and have driven unemployment to Great Depression levels, what do you do to change the conversation from all your losing?

You do what Donald Trump has done his entire life. You “create a fiction: You tell the world that you are not losing, the other side is cheating, and you will not allow it.” Trump is working, by changing the meaning of words and concepts we all understand, to hijack the conversation. So many gullible Americans bought into his fiction that he was a rich, successful businessman when the first details of his tax return tell us otherwise. And he wants Americans to believe he can strongarm his way into staying in office indefintely.

And that, dear readers, puts us in a very difficult place as the oligarchs who now control a once-great party are seeking to smother democracy.

The response to Donald Trump’s fictional strongman routine or the nonsense of the religious right is not to run around with your hair on fire or to get depressed and not vote. No, the response is to see clearly what Trump, McConnell, and their supporters in the government, right wing media, white evangelical community, and Russia are trying to do. And then you get to work, doing whatever is within your power, to help keep our democracy.

More to come…

DJB

*Yes, I know the difference between a republic, a pure democracy, and a representative democracy.

Image by UnratedStudio from Pixabay.

The warm, intimate, and compelling music of Watchhouse (fka: Mandolin Orange)

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UPDATE: On April 21, 2021, Mandolin Orange sent out an email to their fans to let everyone know that the band’s name had changed to Watchhouse. It is a thoughtful report on how a year in pandemic led to introspection as to where they were as a band and where they were going.

I first heard the North Carolina folk duo Mandolin Orange at the 2014 Red Wing Roots Music Festival and was instantly smitten. I wrote then that singer-songwriter Andrew Marlin and multi-instrumentalist Emily Frantz “crafted songs that were  simple yet compelling.” Over the years the band has continued to produce warm, intimate music even as they became more widely known and played larger venues such as Red Rocks in Colorado and The Ryman in Nashville. Their most recent studio project, Tides of a Teardrop, debuted at #1 on four different Billboard charts ( Heatseekers, Folk / Americana, Current Country Albums and Bluegrass) with Top 10 entries on 5 additional charts. Clearly, Mandolin Orange has a passionate following.

When asked about the band’s unusual name, Emily told an interviewer in 2015, “It’s basically a play on Mandarin Orange, but when we first started playing, Andrew had this little beater, a mandolin that was orange, and I think one day we just sort of thought of that and it stuck.”

Let’s begin our look at their music from those earlier years with the 2014 video of Hey Adam, from the album This Side of Jordan, filmed amidst the evocative artwork and spaces at MassMOCA in North Adams, Massachusetts.

That Wrecking Ball is from the band’s second album on Yep Roc Records, Such Jubilee, released in 2015. For two musicians so young (they are both 32), it is a thoughtful tune about aging and the push back against the ravages of time.

“I’ve just seen that rock of ages
I’ve just held my savior’s hand
We danced on the water with my head on her shoulder
She swore to never let me fall
And wouldn’t time seem so kindly
if every bright eyed girl could be more like you
and shelter me from that wrecking ball
That wrecking ball“

Andrew and Emily played a well-received Tiny Desk Concert last year, with songs from their two most recent studio recordings. Golden Embers and The Wolves are from 2019’s Tides of a Teardrop while Wildfire is from 2016’s Blindfaller. By the time this was recorded, they had been playing together for ten years, recorded six albums, gotten married, and started a family. As Bob Bollen wrote on the Tiny Desk posting, ” “The Wolves is a story song that, for me, tells a tale on an older woman’s life, the “hard road” she’s taken and that feeling of wanting to howl at the moon when all is finally right.” To me, the song and lyrics of Wildfire seem just so right for our times of troubled racial injustice.

“Civil war came and civil war went
Brother fought brother, the south was spent
But its true demise was hatred passed down through the years
And it should have been different, it could have been easy
But pride has a way of holding too firm to history
Then it burns like wildfire”

In their cover of Bob Dylan’s Boots of Spanish Leather, they show the beauty of simplicity. I love their version of this Dylan masterpiece.

While the band has been on a touring hiatus given the pandemic, they released a live album of a February 2020 recording from Austin City Limits earlier this summer. So we’ll end with Hey Stranger from that album, which has, once again, a message for our troubled times.

“Hey stranger, if ever you decide
Giving in to the bottom will ease your worried mind and heavy heart
You’ll see in time
There’s no burden greater in life”

Mandolin Orange is live streaming from their home base on a regular basis, so if you like what you hear in their music, check them out.

Enjoy!

More to come…

DJB

Keeping a democracy takes work

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Author, educator, and lawyer Teri Kanefield writes very smart posts about the law, books, and politics on her Teri Kanefield blog.* This morning she posted thoughts on why those who believe in democracy need to educate themselves on what it takes to keep that system of government. To use one of my favorite baseball metaphors, she hits it out of the park.

I’m working on a post that looks at different aspects of our history, but that makes essentially the same point as Kanefield:

“Many liberals and Trump critics have the idea that the United States has always been a liberal democracy — and then along came Trump, pulling the wool over his followers’ eyes and battering our democratic institutions.

In fact, America didn’t start to move toward a true liberal democracy until Brown v. Board, the 1954 Supreme Court case that declared racial segregation unconstitutional. Brown sparked the modern Civil Rights Movement, which in turn gave rise to the women’s rights movement. Liberals cheered these changes. Many did not.

Trump is riding the backlash from those changes.

For most of U.S. history, Americans lived in a hierarchy. Think of slavery, Jim Crow, and women’s place in the home. Until the modern Civil Rights movement, what we now call voter suppression was legal. For most of our history, only white men voted.

A person on Twitter told me, “Things have never been this bad.” People who think, “Things have never been this bad,” have probably never imagined what life was like for an African American woman in 1850. She didn’t even own her own body. Literally. So yeah, for a lot of Americans, things have been much, much worse.”

Kanefield’s entire post builds on the “what you know that just ain’t so” point of view of American history…but she aims her fire for those who believe in democracy. As she says so eloquently, what many see as an arc of history that is always rising, is instead, as illustrated above, a much more “two steps forward, one step back” arc.

Just go read her post. And if you are worried about the peaceful transfer of power next January, I also recommend her take on that issue in The Strongman Con.

Kanefield’s writing ties in well with what journalist and social critic Lewis Lapham wrote back in 1990:

“If the American system of government at present seems so patently at odds with its constitutional hopes and purposes, it is not because the practice of democracy no longer serves the interests of the presiding oligarchy (which it never did), but because the promise of democracy no longer inspires or exalts the citizenry lucky enough to have been born under its star.  It isn’t so much that liberty stands at bay but, rather, that it has fallen into disuse, regarded as insufficient by both its enemies and its nominal friends.  What is the use of free expression to people so frightened of the future that they prefer the comforts of the authoritative lie?”

More to come…

DJB

*Kanefield notes that for the past few decades, “I’ve mostly written for two audiences: Appellate justices and young readers (middle to high school). Most recently I’ve written political and legal commentary for NBC Think Blog, CNN, Slate Magazine…and  a six-book series of biographies (middle grade)….Writing for young readers is much like writing for appellate justices. I know that sounds a joke, but appellate justices want everything broken down and digestible. I won’t carry the comparison too far: Ninth graders are usually more open minded than appellate justices, and a lot more fun.“

A righteous warrior to the end

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Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg — who passed away Friday on Erev Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish High Holy Day commemorating the beginning of the new year — was a trailblazer, role model, force for the rule of law, truth teller, believer in democracy, and warrior for gender equality. By any standard, hers was a remarkable life.

Many accounts of Justice Ginsburg’s passing noted that, according to Jewish tradition, one who dies on Rosh Hashanah is a tzaddik, a person of great righteousness.* That seems so right when applied to Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Supreme Court justices can be the most isolated and aloof members of our governing elite. But it was not that way with Justice Ginsburg. Her humanness was on display in many ways and in different places, not just in her majority opinions and in those famous dissents for the court. Stories abound of interactions with her, large and small, that had profound impacts on those in her presence. She became “a feminist icon in her octogenarian years for millions of little girls around the world,” a truly remarkable achievement. I was never fortunate enough to meet Justice Ginsburg in person, yet I do recognize how she touched and blessed my life — and the lives of every American — over the years.

There are wonderful tributes in the media and on the internet, and I encourage you to learn more about this remarkable person who helped change the world. If you have the time, stream both the documentary R.B.G. and the biopic On the Basis of Sex. Both films, for me, capture much of why her life matters so much to so many people and to the country at this point in time.

In fighting for gender equality, Justice Ginsburg believed that men as well as women benefited when equal protection under the law applied equally to all Americans. Having been the beneficiary of the work, support, collaboration, and guidance of many women who were able to rise to embrace their talents and make the world a better place in part because of Ginsburg’s landmark legal efforts for gender equality, I recognize and am extremely grateful for that often unrecognized part of her legacy.

Of course, not every man sees it this way, and I’m thinking of two in particular. But men like the top leaders of the Republican party are not interested in gender equality, they are interested in power and patriarchy. So arguments are created by men that attempt to keep women in special roles, to dilute their power and ability to effect change. As two of her former law clerks wrote in the New York Times, “equality did not mean special­ — she would say “pedestal” — treatment for women. Equality meant the same treatment for women and men.” 

“She often used male instead of female plaintiffs to show sex discrimination prevents all people from realizing their full potential. Why shouldn’t a man, for example, receive the same Social Security benefits a woman would receive, so he could stay home to care for his child after his spouse died? She successfully brought that question to the court in the 1975 case Weinberger v. Weisenfeld. She has said in interviews: ‘The aim was to break down the stereotypical view of men’s roles and women’s roles.’”

Ginsburg’s remarkable life and legacy didn’t happen because she was the loudest voice in the room or through cynicism about the world. As her clerks noted, that legacy was shaped “through a remarkable legal intellect, an incomparable work ethic and a powerful vision of what justice and equal treatment for men and women mean in reality.” Her legal impact touched every part of life while she lived her vision of equality “through every aspect of her personal life, too.”

Those of us who believe in equality for all have much work left to do. She showed all of us important ways to achieve those goals. As Steve Schmidt, one of the co-founders of The Lincoln Project, has written in a remarkably frank tribute to a person whose ideas his party battled for many years, “A great champion of freedom has arrived in heaven. Her work is done. Her burden is now ours. Let us honor her legacy by doing our duty.”

Rest in peace, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. May we all be willing to follow the example of your remarkable life and leadership to fulfill the American “dream that the dreamers dreamed.”**

More to come…

DJB

*A reader and friend who is Jewish sent me a couple of suggestions to ensure that my first two paragraphs were correct. I appreciated the education and thought I’d pass along the information to all my readers..

First, when I originally noted that RBG died on the Eve of Rosh Hashanah, he suggested it would appropriate to name that time as “Erev Rosh Hashanah.” An explanation that he supplied from the internet noted that Erev means evening in Hebrew. Days in the Jewish calendar begin as the daylight leaves — as opposed to other calendar systems where a day begins at midnight or sunrise (as it becomes light).

“Because of the intent to make sure some things are done or not done on certain days, there are various ways of measuring or defining when evening has arrived: sunset or the visibility of three stars in the night sky. So, if you want to make sure you do not do something on a certain day, like work on Shabbat, you should stop doing those things as the sun sets. But if you want to make sure the day has arrived, you should wait for three stars.

Erev also has a meaning that is less common these days. In this older meaning it refers to the time before the holiday has actually begun. During this time, one can still do the things that are forbidden or need to be done before the holiday in preparation. In this meaning, it can refer to the day before the holiday or event.“

Second, he noted that while my use of the term “tzaddik” was correct in referring to a person of great righteousness, if I was referring specifically to RBG the correct term would be “tzaddika” or “tzaddikah” because nouns in Hebrew are typically either masculine or feminine depending on the reference. In this case, my reference was more general, so I left it as I had it originally, but appreciated the information.

**Langston Hughes

The acoustic side of Chris Stapleton

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Readers who follow country music know the singer, songwriter, and guitarist Chris Stapleton. But I enjoy seeing those from other genres hearing his “brown liquor” voice for the first time and recognizing both a unique talent and a kindred spirit with whatever type of music they love.*

Born into a Kentucky coal-mining family, Stapleton absorbed a variety of musical influences growing up, including from the incomparable Aretha Franklin who he described as “the greatest singer that ever lived.” That tells you right from the beginning that his tastes are excellent and his standards high. Stapleton toiled in the Nashville song-writing business for more than a decade while also fronting one of my favorite bluegrass bands, The SteelDrivers, from 2007 to 2010. In 2015 he broke through as a solo performer with the award-winning album Traveller, was featured at the 2015 CMA Awards show in a breakout live performance with Justin Timberlake, and hasn’t looked back.

Stapleton’s voice is a treasure, but his songwriting and guitar playing are also top notch. In this edition of the Saturday Soundtrack, I want to focus on the acoustic side of his work, where all three elements of this unique performer shine.

We will begin this Saturday Soundtrack with a SteelDrivers favorite, If It Hadn’t Been for Love, pushed along by Stapleton’s urgent vocals and the terrific fiddle and harmonies of Tammy Rogers. And yes, this is the tune Adele covered in her Live at the Royal Albert Hall DVD. 

Drinking songs have always been a core part of the storytelling appeal of bluegrass and country music, and Stapleton’s time with The SteelDrivers produced several good ones, none better than Drinkin’ Dark Whiskey (as in “Drinkin’ dark whiskey / tellin’ white lies / one leads to another / on a Saturday night.”)

When Stapleton went solo, his wife Morgane joined him as the harmony singer, and their voices are beautiful together. This live version of Fire Away from Traveller is a great acoustic version featuring just Chris and Morgane and a guitar.

NPR’s Tiny Desk concert captured them that same year in an intimate acoustic setting where Stapleton featured two of his electric hits, When the Stars Come Out and More of You in acoustic versions. These are really lovely, and the interplay of the Stapletons’ voices is pure country gold. More of You may be close to a perfect country love song.

I’ll end with what may be my favorite Chris Stapleton tune, Whiskey and You. His voice is perfect for this story of loss and pain. The guitar accompaniment is simple yet haunting. And the writing by Stapleton doesn’t get any better.

“There’s a bottle on the dresser by your ring

And it’s empty so right now I don’t feel a thing

And I’ll be hurting when I wake up on the floor

But I’ll be over it by noon

That’s the difference between whiskey and you

Come tomorrow I can walk in any store

It ain’t a problem they’ll always sell me more

But your forgiveness

Well that’s something I can’t buy

There ain’t a thing that I can do

That’s the difference between whiskey and you“

And then there’s the killer line.

“I’ve got a problem but it ain’t like what you think

I drink because I’m lonesome and I’m lonesome cause I drink“

Followed by the aching chorus.

“One’s the devil one keeps driving me insane

At times I wonder if they ain’t both the same

But one’s a liar that helps to hide me from my pain

And one’s the long gone bitter truth

That’s the difference between whiskey and you“

Does it get any more basic than love, loss, soulful reflection, and hopeful redemption — all wrapped up in that voice? Enjoy.

More to come…

DJB

*Search “Chris Stapleton Reaction Tennessee Whiskey” in You Tube and see all the different singers, vocal coaches, and commentators from hip hop to r&b to soul share their first reactions to hearing Stapleton sing, especially from his live performances. Those reactions are priceless.

Photo of Chris Stapleton by Becky Fluke

The struggle between tyranny and freedom

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America faces great challenges in 2020. It is even tempting to call these times unprecedented, but they are not. Harry Truman, of course, made this point in very plain language:

“It was the same with those old birds in Greece and Rome as it is now. . . . The only thing new in the world is the history you don’t know.”

As Samuel W. Rushay, Jr. wrote about Truman’s understanding of history and the threats to democracy in the 1940s, “(H)is understanding of history provided him with a wider perspective on communism, whose assault on democracy was, in the words of historian Elizabeth Edwards Spalding, the ‘current form of a timeless struggle on earth’ between the forces of tyranny and freedom.”

We have seen that struggle between tyranny and freedom over and over again here in America.

I was reminded of that feature of American life during my summer break, as I read of one particular moment in that struggle as told in Edward Achorn’s fascinating new book Every Drop of Blood: The Momentous Second Inauguration of Abraham Lincoln. Achorn, the editorial page editor of the Providence Journal, brings a journalist’s eye and a storyteller’s skill to illuminate all the capitol’s “mud, sewage, and saloons, its prostitutes, spies, reporters, social-climbing spouses and power-hungry politicians” that came together on March 3rd and 4th in 1865 when Lincoln began his second term in office. He then showcases the activities of these two days “as a microcosm of all the opposing forces that had driven the country apart.”

When the sun broke through and Lincoln spoke on the afternoon of March 4th, he gave what is rightly considered the greatest inaugural address in the nation’s history, and perhaps the finest single speech in the 244 years since we declared our independence from Britain. When most were expecting celebratory words over the coming end of the war, he spoke instead of that endless struggle between tyranny and freedom. In just 701 words, Lincoln made the case that both sides were wrong, and that all the bloodshed that preceded that day and that was still to come may be God’s judgement for our original sin of slavery. Frederick Douglass, one of several individuals Achorn follows throughout the two days, told Lincoln later that evening in the midst of a crowded reception at the White House that it was “a sacred effort.”

Achorn takes the reader through the events of the inauguration, and how it set the stage for Robert E. Lee’s surrender to U.S. Grant on April 9th at Appomattox followed, less than a week later on April 14th, by Lincoln’s assassination on Good Friday. He does this through a group of characters, both famous and unknown. In addition to Douglass, Achorn follows poet Walt Whitman; soldiers’ advocate Clara Barton; Vice President Andrew Johnson, who was famously drunk the day of the inauguration; and Lincoln assassin John Wilkes Booth. Lucy Hale, the daughter of a U.S. Senator from New England and Booth’s lover, is also part of the story, as she inadvertently provided the access for Booth to get into the capitol on March 4th and then, fatally, into Ford’s Theatre six weeks later. Her involvement was covered up, probably beginning on the morning Lincoln died during a private meeting between her father and incoming president Johnson. Achorn captures the frenzy, the turmoil, the excitement, and the despair of that time in a remarkable work.

Few could imagine those events, and the country’s response, on the morning of March 3rd. But that is why history is so helpful. Dealing with crises is serious business, requiring our full attention. But as historian David McCullough reminds us, we have dealt with difficulty before. In fact, almost every era has crises to address.

It is important to remember that as we consider today’s challenges, including:

  • The loss of between 20-40 million jobs*** since the pandemic began; and although some have come back, the economy has not recovered from the Great Depression-level losses earlier in the year;
  • The horrific murder of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man who died in Minneapolis in late May after Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, knelt on his neck for almost eight minutes while he was lying face down handcuffed on the street following a complaint about a counterfeit $20 bill; an action that launched nationwide protests and confrontations focused on 400+ years of systemic racism; and
  • Amidst cries of fraud and cheating, the Republican party’s most respected expert on election fraud, who has worked on every campaign back to the Reagan years, has written that Trump’s ceaseless cries about the election being stolen from him, “has put my party in the position of a firefighter who deliberately sets fires to look like a hero putting them out.”

All these and more require our close attention, hard work, and focus. Yet it is timely to remember that what we face is not unprecedented. This nation has struggled towards freedom, and fought the forces of tyranny since the beginning of its history. Yes, certainly focus on the work ahead to defeat those who would take our freedom away, but also remember that hope, as I am fond of saying, is grounded in memory.

More to come…

DJB

*By the time you read this, those numbers will be out of date (and, unfortunately, higher in both cases).

**If you think that the number of COVID cases and deaths in the U.S. is greatly exaggerated, then I recommend this explanation.

***It depends on how you count, but the range is courtesy of the conservative Wall Street Journal.

Duets: Things go better in pairs

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I love a good country or folk duet. When several surfaced yesterday on Pandora, my assumption was that God was sending a Saturday Soundtrack sign…and I decided to listen to her.

Living in Tennessee in the 1960s and 70s, it was easy to hear some of the classic country duet acts on the radio and see them on Nashville’s numerous country music television shows. George and Tammy singing Golden Ring was perfect, because it was a song that matched their tumultuous relationship. Dolly and Porter were big during those years, before Dolly left the partnership some forty-six years ago to become a force of nature all on her own. And of course, at the top of the heap was that duet of country royalty, Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash.

So let’s dive in, beginning with the Johnny Cash tune I Still Miss Someone which I’ve always enjoyed. It is a classic “I’m lonely and miss you” song that Emmylou Harris has recorded in both solo and duet versions. Emmylou can sing a duet with anyone and make them sound great, but when she has a terrific musician such as Elvis Costello as a partner, you get this wonderful live version.

Another exquisite duet singer is the inimitable Nanci Griffith. Her song Gulf Coast Highway, co-written with James Hooker, is a beautiful country duet, which they perform live in this version. Nanci also recorded John Prine’s Speed of the Sound of Loneliness for her Other Voices, Other Rooms album, and performed more than one live version with Prine.

Lyle Lovett is one of those singers who has a style that can’t be matched. He sings a funky version of the Willie Nelson tune, Funny How Time Slips Away with the Rev. Al Green and the inimitable Billy Preston on the Hammond B3 organ. I also recommend his duet with Marty Stuart on the Townes Van Zandt tune Pancho and Lefty. (I would also suggest you hunt down the Emmylou and Willie version, which I love.) Emmylou’s version of the Townes tune If I Needed You with Don Williams was one of the duets that originally sent me on this search.

Dolly Parton has always been the gold standard when it comes to country duets. She has had so many wonderful musical partners through the years, that I could make up an entire (and very long) Soundtrack of Dolly Duets. This haunting one on The Grass is Blue with Norah Jones hints at the broad range of her collaborators.

While we’re on Norah Jones, check out her version of (one of) the Tennessee state songs, Tennessee Waltz, with the one-and-only Bonnie Raitt. And before we leave Bonnie, I just love her take on John Prine’s Angel from Montgomery with Ruthie Foster.

Country duets have gone off in all directions. Chris Stapleton is one of the new crop of country singers I enjoy, and at the 2015 CMA awards, he teamed up with Memphis native Justin Timberlake to bring down the house on a couple of drinking songs.

For folk music, you can’t find a more authentic songwriter than Woody Guthrie. Nanci Griffith, also from the Other Voices, Other Rooms album, sings Guthrie’s Do Re Mi with another songwriter of power, Guy Clark. And while we’re in the folk mode, the duo Mandolin Orange, made up of singer-songwriter Andrew Marlin and multi-instrumentalist Emily Frantz, is an under-the-radar group for many people. Their version of Golden Embers shows why they deserve to be better known.

Clearly, I can go down this rabbit hole all day and all night. So I’m going to end with one of my favorite duets, with two of the most unique and idiosyncratic singers of all time: Johnny Cash and Bob Dylan, singing Dylan’s Girl from the North Country. This song was pivotal in one of my favorite movies of recent years, Silver Linings Playbook, so click on that link if you’d like to hear it while watching a trailer from the movie.

If you have a favorite duet you’d like to recommend, please add it to the comments.

Enjoy!

More to come…

DJB

Choose your leaders wisely

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A poem appropriate for our time, by Octavia Butler.

Choose your leaders with wisdom and forethought.
To be led by a coward is to be controlled by all that the coward fears.
To be led by a fool is to be led by the opportunists who control the fool.
To be led by a thief is to offer up your most precious treasures to be stolen.
To be led by a liar is to ask to be told lies.
To be led by a tyrant is to sell yourself and those you love into slavery.

More to come…

DJB

Image by Mario Aranda from Pixabay

Rest in Peace, The Rev. John D. Lane

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Our dear family friend, John Lane, passed away last Sunday, August 30th, after a courageous battle with lymphoma. We were blessed to know John for more than thirty years, and he will be sorely missed.

John Lane, with his wife Bizzy, daughter Mary, and grandson Will at Ragged, NH in August 2010

As noted in his obituary, John was a Peace Corps Volunteer in Nepal from 1966-1968, serving in the most remote post of that organization, a six day walk from any transportation. This was a life-changing experience that he drew upon in sermons and writings. John was also a proud graduate of Amherst College and General Theological Seminary. Our family came to know John in 1987, when he became rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Staunton, Virginia. Known for his quick wit, sharp intellect, spiritual guidance, loving care, and thoughtful leadership, those were all qualities we had come to appreciate when we asked John to be our Andrew’s godfather. He gladly and enthusiastically accepted that role.

John Lane (4th from left, in the red vestments) with the other godparents and Andrew and Claire on their baptismal day, May 30, 1993

There was so much about John’s life and work to admire, but I want to focus on his humor and humanity. He showed me how to accept and even indulge the humor that is essential to faith. In sermons, lessons, writings, and conversation, John’s dry wit always came through as an essential part of who he was and what he believed. As someone who has more doubts than may be readily apparent, John gave me permission to look at my own set of beliefs and accept that some things are going to be skewed, off-center, and, perhaps, not understandable. And that’s okay.

John’s humor also came through to make a larger point about what’s important and what is trivial in life. He would enjoy posting articles on his Facebook page to bring that wit and wisdom right out front and in your face. Articles such as Christian: You Are Upset About the Wrong Things which begins with this quote used by sociologist Tony Campola when he spoke with Christian audiences:

“I have three things I’d like to say today. First, while you were sleeping last night, 30,000 kids died of starvation or diseases related to malnutrition. Second, most of you don’t give a shit. What’s worse is that you’re more upset with the fact I just said “shit” than you are that 30,000 kids died last night.”

That sense that the moral outrage of many people of faith is misdirected and focused on the wrong things — told with a bit of humor — was right up John’s alley.

John’s humanity is another part of his life I recall with appreciation and affection. Several of his sermons that were obviously about the illness of his son, Andrew, who passed away in 2007, still remain with me. In those sermons, John was willing to say he didn’t understand and maybe didn’t want to be tested to “be a better person.” John taught me it was okay to be vulnerable, and that part of his humanity, seen again during the past year when his cancer returned, was also something I’ve been thankful to experience.

In his last decade of life, John, along with his wife Bizzy, provided a great example in “how” to retire. Over the past ten years they had fun together, with family and with other couples, in places near and far. Like every other way he lived, this was all part of John’s broad understanding of humanity. The remembrances those friends have posted on John’s Facebook page show the wideness of the impact of that life well lived.

Candice and I were fortunate to see John and Bizzy on several occasions during the pandemic, as they came first to NIH in Washington and then to Baltimore for treatments. We would get together for socially distanced meals and good conversation whenever we could, most recently last month. In those moments, John let us just be his friend and show support, while accepting that love and support unconditionally. Watching John go through this challenge has encouraged me to let go of more.

My favorite picture of the Lane family: Andrew (front), Edward, Mary, John, and Bizzy (l-r)

The last time we spoke with John was on Facetime, the Monday before he passed away. He was entering Hospice care. Candice asked him if he was ready and John replied with his typical sense of humor. He said, “Well, I feel like Woody Allen: ‘I’m not afraid of death; I just don’t want to be there when it happens.'” That was John: helping others laugh, smile, and think until the end.

It isn’t easy getting close to parishioners when you’re the rector, but John was able to manage those types of relationships with a number of individuals. I so appreciated John’s wisdom and guidance to me, given not only as my priest but especially as my friend. Our family treasures the years we knew John, and with his passing our love goes out to Bizzy, Edward, Mary, and their families.

Rest in peace, good friend.

More to come…

DJB

Taking a summer break

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Here in the heat of July, I’ve decided to give the staff at More to Come the rest of the summer off. Yep — all the writers, editors, photographers, graphic designers, and those amazing headline writers — every last one of them will get almost seven weeks off with pay. Wow! What a boss!*

Seriously, this seems like a good time for a break. I’m getting tired of considering all the draws being made on the U.S. Strategic Stupid Reserve, and there doesn’t seem to be any letup in sight. There will be plenty of material, unfortunately, on this topic after Labor Day. Also, there are some other projects calling for my focus, including that long-promised gap year book.

So this is it until the Tuesday after Labor Day (8 September for the international readers). Well, this is it unless the feds in the unmarked vehicles and camouflaged uniforms come and lock me up, then all bets are off.

Should you want to take this time and explore some of the things you might have missed on the blog, here are favorites from 2020 that I can recommend.

And then a couple of oldies-but-goodies that just seem appropriate in the middle of our COVID-19 dumpster fire:

  • Kindness — written after I announced my retirement and was reminded how good it feels to be on the receiving end of kindness (January 2019)
  • History as an antidote to folly — as we struggle to keep our democracy, thoughts on how we got to this point and what we can do to fight back (November 2017)

If these don’t interest you, perhaps you’ll like to see the top 10 posts from the blog in terms of reader views. Or simply feel free to rummage around in the archives. In any event, have a great rest of the summer.

See you in September.

More to come…

DJB

*If you are new to this blog and wonder what the heck all this is about, well there is no staff. Just DJB. And there’s no pay. I do it just for the joy of writing and sharing thoughts with a small community of readers.

Image of pier from Pixabay.