The Many and the Few is a Woody Guthrie song that tells the Chanukkah story. It has been covered by The Klezmatics. It is also a great reminder of how different a song can be when it’s done by different artists. The arrangements are different, but seemingly not that different. Woody Guthrie performs the song…
I had an interesting thought, or at least a thought that I found interesting. I realized that virtually everyone has said the phrase, “a partridge in a pear tree,” more times than they’ve said, “two turtle doves.” And they’ve said, “two turtle doves,” more than they’ve said, “three French hens.” And they’ve said, “three French…
In the wake of George H.W. Bush’s death there has been a lot of nice things said about him. That’s to be expected. It’s what people do when a person dies. What has been less expected, although not totally unexpected, is the reaction of many people on the political left. They have been posting a…
Like everyone, I’ve consumed a lot of comic book properties throughout my life. I’ve usually enjoyed them, from Super Friends when I was little right up to the latest Marvel movie. I’m not picky, I enjoy DC and Marvel pretty much equally. And I’m just realizing that if I had to pick a favorite comic…
I have a general belief that Americans make better music than other people, and that black Americans specifically make the best music. If one were to ask me what kind of music I like to listen to, the easiest answer is what Nicholas Payton refers to as Black American Music or #BAM. I love blues,…
Last December, I made a post a day for the month. I decided to try it again this year. And the good news is that Jamil is going to try to join me. I’m not as confident this year as I was last year. Last year we had a new Star Wars movie to generate…
A little while ago, I was watching a Baltimore Orioles game with my mom. The camera cut to a picture of the flags waving in the breeze. The Maryland state flag was among them, and before I knew it, I was asking, “How on Earth did Maryland wind up with such an ugly flag?” “It’s…
I’m an optimistic person. I’m not unrealistic, but my natural assumption is that things will work out OK in the end. I don’t deny the bad things that happen, I just feel like we’ll be able to work through or past them. It works for me. It keeps me hopeful and looking forward. It extends…
Here we are again, about a week from a big election. So, here I am again, encouraging everyone who might read this to vote. It’s taking more effort than usual to write this little plea. I’m seeing a lot of pieces out there lately that are rationalizing people’s decision to forgo voting. They range from…
