Monthly Archives: January 2026

Get ’em out by Friday

human rights, music, politics

The news cycle moves to fast for me these days. But, I can’t let this one go: Brooke Rollins, Secretary of Agriculture, announced last week that after thousands of simulations, the government determined that Americans could eat a piece of chicken, a piece of broccoli, a corn tortilla and one other thing as a meal that is inexpensive ($3) and meets the new food pyramid guidelines that were recently released.

I will leave it to others to critique this suggested “meal.” All I could think about is a song from the progressive rock band Genesis that seemed dystopian when it came out in 1972. “Get ‘Em Out By Friday” tells the story of corporate greed and government corruption working against human beings in tragic and drastic ways with greedy landlords leading the way. Set in the present, it ends in 2012 with this vision:

This is an announcement from Genetic Control
It is my sad duty to inform you of a four foot restriction on
Humanoid height

I hear the directors of Genetic Control have been buying all the Properties that have recently been sold, taking risks oh so bold
It’s said now that people will be shorter in height
They can fit twice as many in the same building site
They say it’s alright.

The song features multiple voices as part of the story. Since everyone is quoting George Orwell these days, I thought I would add Genesis to the mix. Dystopian vision or potential reality?

I Tried, I Really Did

music,

Charli xcx has written the soundtrack for the new Wuthering Heights movie. Two tracks have been released on Apple Music, and in an effort to be more connected to contemporary music, I clicked on the first track, “House.” Atmospheric, electronic music with voices, presumably of Heathcliff and Cathy, woven throughout. I am sure others will find it appealing and intriguing in its edginess. I did not. But I am old and a fan of Kate Bush. Her song, “Wuthering Heights,” came out in 1978 and has been part of my life ever since. The whole album, The Kick Inside, is worth at least one listen.

RIP

music, politics, thinking out loud, , ,

Renee Nicole Good was murdered by an agent of the federal government and a fellow human being as she drove in a car with her dog, her wife standing by, having just dropped her child off at school. In the last image we have of her, she seems almost perky as she engages with the agent who will kill her just seconds later.

There were lots of options here for the officer from letting her drive home to recording her license plate to shooting a tire. It takes a lot of raw anger to point a gun in the face of another human being and pull the trigger, only to follow up with a horrible expletive as she lays dying. I heard an adminstration official say that we couldn’t know what was in his mind. I don’t think it’s hard to tell at all what is in his head and his heart.

It takes even more anger and arrogance to immediately blame the dead woman and warn that these kinds of extrajudicial killings might be expected going forward. But, here we are.

Just comply, and you will be fine. Tell that to the many people, mostly black men, who have died because they complied. I think any woman would have hesitated to get out of her car even with friendly folks nearby. She was surrounded by aggressive, heavily armed, masked men. Not a recipe for safety and why many women would choose the bear.

I am tired and angry, feeling helpless and hopeless.

While it is less important in the larger scheme of things, we also lost an icon of the 60s, Bobby Weir. The Grateful Dead has been part of my life and many others for their unique blend of folk, country, rock and psychedelic music.

I wrote about the Dead before, describing their other unique practice of allowing taping of their live shows. Weir discussed it as part of a longer interview with Dan Rather:

The New York Times and Rolling Stone posted their favorite Weir songs. I think I will go with “Cassidy,” his ode to a crew member’s baby named Cassidy and the beat icon, Neal Cassady.

“Fare thee well now
Let your life proceed by its own designs
Nothing to tell now
Let the words be yours, I’m done with mine.”

Lean Toward the Light

Life, thinking out loud, ,

I don’t seem to have the energy for long form writing these days. But it doesn’t mean my mind isn’t churning. So, I am going for short takes, often accompanied by a picture.

Lean Towards the Light

I snapped this picture this morning as the sun rose over the woods. The whole plant seemed to be glowing and leaning toward the light.

The more important lesson of this photo, however, is the dirty window. I knew that, by the time I got the tools and cleaned the window, the moment would be gone. I could wait to capture it again tomorrow, but that didn’t seem to be in the spirit of living in the present. So, I snapped it, posted it, and am now sharing it with this bit of advice: no matter how much we try to control life, we will fail. There will be perfect moments when all the pieces seem to fit together. Learn to see and embrace them.

However, after more than six decades in this world, I can tell you that there will be plenty more moments more like my photo: nearly perfect. In those moments, we need to decide how we are going to react. What will we see? what we will embrace? This morning, I decided to embrace the light.