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Hey! Good Evening!
Tonight's music was inspired by finding a bunch of videos from a mid-1960's teevee show featuring Freddie King and Clarence "Gatemouth' Brown on Youtube. It's great stuff, check it out!
Freddie King + Clarence Gatemouth Brown - Shuffle
Texas Radio And The Big Beat
I wanna tell you about Texas Radio and the Big Beat
Comes out of the Virginia swamps
Cool and slow with plenty of precision
With a back beat narrow and hard to master
Some call it heavenly in it's brilliance
Others, mean and rueful of the Western dream
I love the friends I have gathered together on this thin raft
We have constructed pyramids in honor of our escaping
This is the land where the Pharaoh died
The Negroes in the forest brightly feathered
They are saying, "Forget the night.
Live with us in forests of azure.
Out here on the perimeter there are no stars
Out here we is stoned immaculate."
Listen to this, and I'll tell you 'bout the heartache
I'll tell you 'bout the heartache and the loss of God
I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night
The meager food for souls forgot
I'll tell you 'bout the maiden with wrought iron soul
I'll tell you this
No eternal reward will forgive us now for wasting the dawn
I'll tell you 'bout Texas Radio and the Big Beat
Soft drivin', slow and mad, like some new language
Now, listen to this, and I'll tell you 'bout the Texas
I'll tell you 'bout the Texas Radio
I'll tell you 'bout the hopeless night
Wandering the Western dream
Tell you 'bout the maiden with wrought iron soul
-- lyrics by Jim Morrison
News
Reckoning With Torture - Moyers & Company
U.S. Army Vets Join with Afghans for Peace to Lead Antiwar March at Chicago NATO Summit
Bradley Manning lawyers charge Army with withholding evidence
Bradley Manning, the soldier accused of being behind the biggest leak of state secrets in US history, is being denied a fair trial because the army is withholding from him crucial information that might prove his innocence or reduce his sentence, his defence team is arguing. ...
Manning’s main civilian lawyer, David Coombs, has filed a motion with the military court in Fort Meade, Maryland, that sets out a catalogue of delays and inconsistencies in the army’s handling of the case.
In particular, he claims the government has failed to disclose key evidence that could help Manning defend himself against the charges.
Almost two years after Manning was arrested, the military has not yet completed a search even of its own files to see if there is any material beneficial to the defence – as it is legally obliged to do.
DNC Chair: ‘There Aren’t Going To Be Any Repercussions’ If Walker Wins In Wisconsin
Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz has said Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s “attacks on workers’ and women’s rights are the definition of a fireable offense” and that recalling him would “[send] a powerful message to the far-right extremists.” But on Friday she downplayed expectations for her party if Walker stays in office. In an interview Friday, Wasserman Schultz said “there aren’t going to be any repercussions,” nationally if Wisconsin voters decide to stick with Walker. ...
Wasserman Schultz made an effort to keep the national presidential race separate from the Wisconsin race, which is set to be decided in under two weeks. And there’s a reason for that — Walker has an enormous cash advantage, and has led Democratic challenger Tom Barrett in polls for more than a month, even in surveys commissioned by Democrats.
“It’s an election that’s based in Wisconsin. It’s an election that I think is important nationally because Scott Walker is an example of how extreme the tea party has been when it comes to the policies that they have pushed the Republicans to adopt,” Wasserman Schultz said. “But I think it’ll be, at the end of the day, a Wisconsin-based election, and like I said, across the rest of the country and including in Wisconsin, President Obama is ahead.”
All pain, no gain: the Irish backlash that could mean a 'No' to Europe's austerity plans
With Ireland the only country in the 17 member eurozone to be putting the fiscal treaty to a popular vote, this week's referendum is seen as a key test for the viability of the Europe-wide belt-tightening package, which needs the backing of at least 12 nations to go through.
Treaty supporters say there is actually no real choice to be had - Ireland must balance its books anyway, and besides, only by signing it will Dublin have access to the EU's new emergency assistance fund, the European Stability Mechanism, should it need a second bail-out in the tough times ahead.
But after three grim years as the "poster child" for austerity measures - unlike Greece, Ireland has not baulked at painful cost-cutting programmes - there is already a growing sense of all pain and no gain. The recent election of anti-austerity parties in Greece and the socialist Francois Hollande as French president has further boosted a Left-driven "no" campaign, to the point where the referendum is no longer the certain "Yes" that the government had hoped.
Turkey Indicts Israel's IDF Officials for Gaza Flotilla Killings
A Turkish court today officially pressed charges against senior Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) officials over the Gaza Flotilla attack that resulted in the killing of nine activists aboard a Turkish ship headed for Gaza in 2010. The Istanbul court unanimously approved an indictment that had been finalized Wednesday by Turkish prosecutors.
Turkish judges approved a demand for a combined 18,000 year sentence for former IDF chief of staff Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, along with the former heads of its navy, air force intelligence, and military intelligence, Eliezer Marom, Amos Yadlin, and Avishai Levi. The accused face nine consecutive life terms in prison for "inciting to kill monstrously, and by torturing".
Obama Administration Doubles Down for Indefinite Detention Authority
Earlier this month, Manhattan federal court Judge Katherine Forrest, sided with plaintiffs who filed suit as journalists and political activists against provisions in the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), arguing portions of the law were vaguely worded and an encroachment on their right to free speech, overstepping constitutional authority.
“The government was unwilling or unable to state that these plaintiffs would not be subject to indefinite detention under [Section] 1021,” Judge Forrest said in her earlier ruling. “Plaintiffs are therefore at risk of detention, of losing their liberty, potentially for many years.”
But the prosecutors on Friday double-down on behalf of the executive branch, saying that indefinite military detention without trial is justified in some cases involving militants or their supporters. But Forrest's previous argument, was that the government had not adequately addressed the concerns of the plaintiffs who said that they, too, because of their activities as political advocates or as journalists interacting with various 'potentially targeted' parties, could also be swept up. Also, arguing against "promises" of restraint by the Obama Justice Dept., the plaintiffs said there were no guarantees that future administrations wouldn't apply the statute more broadly.
Blog Posts of Interest
Here are diaries and selected blog posts of interest on DailyKos and other blogs.
Memorial Day Thoughts on National Defense Spending by Robert Reich
A Last (Chemical) Gasp for Bees? Colony collapse disorder threatens food crops valued at $15 billion a year. New research says farm chemicals put our food system at risk.
A Little Night Music
Clarence Gatemouth Brown - Okie Dokie Stomp
Freddie King - She Put the Whammy On Me
Freddie King + Clarence Gatemouth Brown - Papa's Got A Brand New Bag
Clarence Gatemouth Brown - Have You Ever Been Mistreated
Freddie King + Clarence Gatemouth Brown - Funny Bone
Freddie King + Clarence Gatemouth Brown - I Love The Woman
Freddie King - Sittin On The Boat Dock