The Silent Guns

Cannons; old and silent; 

just as they should be,

pointed only at the sky,

for old folks memories.

Or pounded into plowshares,

as foretold in days of yore;

relics of a remedy 

we don't use anymore.

The flashing of exploding shells,

the whistles and the thuds,

have all been replaced by fireworks;

the only tragedies being the duds.

Ah! If dreams were but reality,

and it were up to me?

There'd be no guns pointed at them,

and none pointed back at we!

Photo by Tina Weil Lampropoulos

Veteran's Day - This Little Pin

A very “Happy Veterans Day” to all who have served in the Armed Forces of the United States; whether in times of War, or in times of Peace. There are no "good" wars. But there are "just" wars, in which man is pitted against his fellows for a legitimate cause; although usually by others who seem to never have to serve.

This is my Discharge Pin. It represents not only the 4 years that it took me to earn, but all of the sacrifices made by the many; over the years; in defense of something greater than themselves. Today is their day and this is their pin. I am just privileged enough to be able to wear it.

"Isn't It a Pity"

Isn't it a pity,

Now isn't it a shame?

How we break each other's hearts

And cause each other pain.

How we take each others love,

Without thinking anymore.

Forgetting to give back,

Isn't it a pity?

Somethings take too long

but how do I explain?

That not too many people

Can see we're all the same.

And because of all their tears

their eyes can't hope to see

The beauty that surronds them,

In't it a pity?

Isn't it a pity,

Now isn't it a shame?

How we break each other's hearts

and cause each other pain.

How we take each others love,

without thinking anymore.

Forgetting to give back

Isn't it a pity?

George Harrison - 1970

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2_Mq9gNaEM

Happy Birthday Ringo Starr!

Happy 74th to Ringo Starr. He has kept that back beat for along time, providing the pulse to our lives along the way. It's down to him and Paul McCartney now to keep the legacy of the Beatles alive. Paul does his thing and Ringo his, but there are always Beatles songs included in both their sets. How could it be otherwise?

Here Ringo performs a very heartfelt tribute to George Harrison, his dear friend and band mate for so many years, who had just passed away from cancer at the all too young age of 55. It was actually George who brought Ringo into the band just in time for their first record, "Love Me Do", in the fall of 1962. The irony was that Ringo never got to play on that record. I believe they used a session drummer named Allan White.

Ringo has always gotten short shrift for his accomplishments with the Beatles. But he's the one responsible for all the malapropisms such as "A Hard Day's Night", "Tomorrow Never Knows", "Eight Day's A Week", and the title for the album "Rubber Soul", along with quite a few others. A very witty man, Ringo is.

His wife, Barbara Bach; along with Olivia, the widow of the late George Harrison; have both been the driving force behind a project in Romania which has been going on since the days after the fall of the communists. They have sponsored orphanages for the children of rape; most of whom had AIDS. Some of those children are now alive and disease free due to the work of these two remarkable women and the support of their husbands.

Ringo Starr is still performing his summer concerts with the ever changing "All Star Band". If you've never been to one of those concerts you're missing out. Happy Birthday Ringo- with a little help from your friends...

April - History's Busiest Month

April is one of the most active times of the year historically. There is reason for this. In the past, before airplanes and other modern conveniences became available, April marked the end of winter and the roads became passable. New conflicts arose and old ones resumed. Just look at our own American history; which is fairly recent in the grand scheme of things; and you will see the pattern.

The Revolutionary War began in April, with the landing of the Kings troops in Boston and the Battle of Lexington and Concord. Our Civil War may have technically begun in January, but it wasn’t prosecuted in full until the Battle of Bull Run in the spring. The war also ended in April, just in time for General Lee’s troops to return home and try to coax a harvest out of their war ravaged land.

The picture above is “April”, or “Avril” from “Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry”, which is translated as The Very Rich Hours of the Duke of Berry.” I ran across this beautiful collection of French Gothic Art while looking up some information for this post. The complete work consists of 12 panels, each one representing a month of the year. This panel shows a couple exchanging rings.

Now, I could continue on with what would be a very boring piece about the importance of the weather in history; which is what makes April so significant in regards to the amount of historical events contained in any single month. Or, I can tell you about these new paintings I just “discovered.” I’ll take the latter option.

Apparently, at the dawn of the 15^th Century; about 1400 A.D.; there was a Frenchman who had some money and wanted to chronicle the months of the year in paintings which also represented his lifestyle. To that end he commissioned the Limbourg Brothers to create a 12 panel set. The work was begun in 1412 but by 1416 the two brothers; as well as the Duke of Berry; were all dead. The paintings then passed on to his relatives, where it languished for several decades.

In 1845 an heir of the Dukes decided to have the work completed. He chose Jean Colombe to finish the set. Though his paintings are in many ways distinguishable from the original ones completed by the Limbourg Brothers, the spirit of the project remains wholly intact. Upon first viewing it would appear that these paintings were the result of one unbroken effort on the part of the Limbourgs, rather than a project which was completed years later by another artist.

You can see all of the paintings; as well as read about them here;

http://www.saylor.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Tres-Riches-Heures-du-Duc-de-Berry.pdf

This is one of the best things about blogging. I am always learning things. When I look up one thing I bump into another. It’s endless; underscoring just how much there is to learn in the short time which we are given to learn anything at all. Now, that’s a sobering thought…

As far as my post about April; there was one part in which I was going to explain how the name represents an “opening”, or “blooming” of a new season. Also, in many Asian countries April 15 is celebrated as the New Year, which coincides with the spring planting. There were lots of other boring things I was going to relate; like the Titanic going down, etc.  But they all paled in comparison to these wonderful paintings which I had never seen before.

"Into the White" with Stig Henrik Hoff, David Kross and Lachlan Nieboer (2012)

On April 27, 1940 two enemy planes; one British, one German; fought in the skies over Norway. They shot one another down and crash landed miles from anywhere. The Germans left their plane and spent the night in the snow. The British spent the night in their plane. What happened next is one of the most extraordinary set of events to arise out of the Second World War.

Within days of the shoot down, the two crews; 3 Germans and 2 Englishmen; find themselves vying for control of the same rustic hunting cabin. They must come to terms with one another and learn to work as a team or they will die. It’s that simple. Florian Lukas is convincing as the German Lieutenant Horst Schopis, and Lachlan Nieboer is equally effective as RAF Captain Charles P. Davenport. The two struggle at first to keep their respective subordinates in line, while struggling with their own doubts and fears.

 

At first tempers flare and the men all struggle for control of the 3 weapons which the German flyers possess. The balance of power shifts back and forth in this amazing and true story. The Germans have the upper hand at first, but as the captors they must provide for the captives. This grows old fast. And when the guns change hands the British flyers find that they cannot care for their captives as well as the Germans had cared for them; albeit unwillingly at first.

Soon, reality sets in and the men realize that they must discard their petty differences or they will never make it until the spring thaw. At this point they begin to understand the futility of the war they have been fighting and even contemplate remaining where they are for the duration.

When the Norwegian Patrol gets word that someone is living at the cabin they set off to capture the men; whom they believe to be German. When they find the two enemies living in harmony they are incensed. While they understand that the Germans had the guns they cannot understand why the British did not kill them when the guns changed hands. It appears that the British are going to be charged with collaborating with the enemy.

The Germans are led away to a POW camp for the duration, while the 2 RAF flyers are returned to duty, where they are shot down and imprisoned for the rest of the war. In 1977 Captain Davenport of the RAF called Lt. Schopis and invited him to London where the 2 former enemies finally became friends.

This movie is a real statement about war and human nature. Tersely directed so that you feel every moment of the cold and indecision, the film invites you to think about the difference between blind duties and simple humanity. That is a bold statement in and of itself.

Election Day - "For What It's Worth"

Today is Election Day and I truly hope that you will all get out and vote. Every 4 years you are told that “this is the most important election in a lifetime.” I got news for you; they’re all important. Even if you don’t like the candidates for the highest offices, at least make your choices known on the local level. And, when the day is done, and the votes all counted, let’s try to act like civilized people and accept the new President; from whatever party prevails; and unite as Americans to get something done in the next four years. This bickering along party lines has got to stop in order for the country to move forward. That means we have to respect the system and the outcome of the election.

There is much work to be done, and flapping jaws won’t cut it. Vote, and then let your Congressional Representatives and Senators know what you expect of them, regardless of who wins the Presidential race.

I have always loved the sound of this song, as well as the message it carries. The video; courtesy of You Tube; is from the Hollywood Palace TV show in 1967.

"All You Need Is Love" - 45 Years Later

It was 45 years ago  yesterday that the Beatles broadcast “All You Need Is Love” for the first time on a show called “Our World.” This was the very first worldwide live satellite television broadcast. There were no politicians allowed on the show, which was broadcast from 19 different countries on 5 continents. It took 10,000 technicians to produce the show using a myriad of satellites, including Intelsat II and an array of ATS-1’s. The only country to pull out of the project, at the last minute, was the Soviet Union, which did so as a protest against the recent Israeli victory during the 6 Day War with Egypt.

At approximately 9:30 PM London time, the Beatles; with a live orchestra and some very prominent guests; began their now iconic anthem. The show was live, and that meant that although it was 9:30 PM in London, it was 4:30 PM in Brooklyn. The show was to be broadcast; in black and white; on Channel 13, part of the National Educational Television group, which eventually became todays Public Broadcasting Service.

400 million people watched this 2 hour event, starring such luminaries as the Beatles in England; Maria Callas broadcasting from Greece; Pablo Picasso coming from Spain; and others. In London, seated on the floor as the Beatles performed were Keith Richards, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, Graham Nash and Keith Moon.

There was a portion of the backing track which was pre-recorded, but the band was live, as was the 13 piece orchestra and the Beatle’s vocals. I had to hurry home from whatever I was doing that afternoon after school in order to catch the broadcast.  Since I did see it, I can only assume that I beat the clock. I remember watching it on the television, possibly with my Mom. (Originally, I remembered watching this in the middle of the night, but that is geographically impossible. In addition, further examination has shown me that June 25th, 1967 was a Sunday; so  my recollection of coming home from school is also incorrect!)

The record would not be released until July 7th, some 2 weeks away, after some slight alterations of the original master recording. So, along with the rest of the world, I had never heard this recording before, but even the limited scope of a 13" black and white screen  TV set which only received in mono could not mask the majesty of the song, or the message.  That message still rings today.

Happy Birthday John Lennon!

This is one of my favorite videos of "Imagine" by John Lennon. It shows John, with Phil Spector, and Yoko Ono, as they record the iconic song that would become attached to his name. The recording process, for even such a simple ballad as "Imagine", is fascinating to watch, especially when it involves John Lennon and Phil Spector.

There is an earlier version of this song, recorded by John, on a Sony Walkman, in the "white room" of his apartment at the Dakota in New York City, which was apparently where he first wrote it. But this version, a few weeks later, really captures the creative process of this beautiful ballad. Alan White, a session drummer the Beatles used in 1965, when Ringo had his tonsils removed, and Klaus Voorman, an old friend from the Hamburg days, who played bass with Manfred Mann in 1966, and designed the cover for the Beatles album "Revolver", are also both on hand.

"Bleed Red" by Ronnie Dunn

Ronnie Dunn, of Brooks and Dunn, one of Country Music's hottest duos of the last 20 years, released his first solo record this past week. The first track released was the stunningly appropriate "Bleed Red", which coming, as it does, amidst all the chaos unfolding in Egypt, and across the Middle East, renders an even deeper meaning to these already powerful lyrics.

"Bleed Red" by Ronnie Dunn

Let’s say we're sorry, before it’s too late, give forgiveness a chance
Turn the anger into water; let it slip through our hands.
We all bleed red, we all taste rain, all fall down, lose our way,
We all say words we regret, we all cry tears, we all bleed red.

If we’re fighting, we’re both losing; we’re just wasting our time
Because my scars, they are your scars and your world is mine.
You and I, we all bleed red, we all taste rain, all fall down, lose our way
We all say words, we regret, we all cry tears, we all bleed red.

Sometimes we’re strong, sometimes we’re weak, sometimes we’re hurt and it cuts deep.
We live this life, breath to breath, we’re all the same; we all bleed red.

Let’s say we’re sorry…. Before it’s too late….

We all bleed red, all taste rain, all fall down, lose our way,
We all say words we regret, all cry tears, we all bleed red.
Sometimes we’re strong, sometimes we’re weak; sometimes we’re hurt, it cuts deep;
We live this life breath to breath; we’re all the same; we all bleed red.

This Little Pin - Veterans Day

Happy Veterans Day to all who have served, in times of War, as well as in times of Peace. There are no "good" wars. But there are "just" wars, in which man is pitted against his fellows for a good cause, usually by those who will never have to serve.

So, this little pin represents, not only the 4 years that it took me to earn it, but it represents all of the sacrifices made by the many, over the years, in defense of something greater than themselves. Today is their day.

Thank you.

John Lennon at 70 - Imagine!

This photo was taken by my late friend Michael Held in the spring of 1974. It was the March of Dimes Concert in Central Park. Michael and I had gone to volunteer and help move some sound equipment around. Michael, as always, had his camera with him, and took this great shot of John, along with Harry Nilsson, just as they took to the stage. They did not perform, just spoke to the crowd. They had been watching the crowd enter the Park from Lennon's apartment in the Dakota, on Central Park West, and on a whim, decided to go down and "have a look."

I can't imagine what direction Mr. Lennon's music would have taken had he lived past the age of 40. But his message of Peace, though still unfulfilled, resonates as strongly today as it did 30 years ago. When you go out today, do something nice for someone. Say hello to a stranger, give a buck to the homeless guy you usually pass by. I bet that John would love it if you do.

This is the link to John Lennon rehearsing "Imagine" for the first time;


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7-qVFOc404&feature=related

The First Step

When I was 8 years old the world came close to being destroyed in a nuclear confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union. Twice, in as many years, these two superpowers had come face to face with the prospect of all out nuclear war. The first time was during the Bay of Pigs debacle in early 1961, when the Cubans, unbeknownst to our CIA, had tactical nuclear weapons to repel the invasion. Their use would have triggered a nuclear response from the United States, which, in turn, would have put us at nuclear odds with the Soviet Union.

Because of this attempted invasion at the Bay of Pigs, the Soviet Union, by the fall of 1962, was in the process of placing nuclear missles on the island of Cuba. This resulted in the Cuban Missle Crisis, which was the second time. If the United States and the Soviet Union had not negotiated a settlement to that crisis, an estimated 140 million people would have been killed within the first day of fighting, as both sides launched their respective missles.

By the following summer of 1963 President Kennedy, along with Soviet Premier Kruschev, would seek to initiate a treaty to ban all further testing of nuclear weapons. This was the first step in what later became known as "detente."

I was only a small boy at the time, but the stakes were so high that I was literally "riveted" to the news. The fact that I lived in New York City, a prime target for the Soviets should hostilities occur, undoubtedly had an influence upon my interest in the matter. So you can imagine my relief when I came home on the afternoon of July 26th, 1963 to the World Telegram and Sun headline that a test ban treaty had been signed between the two superpowers who held my fate in their hands.

I watched the presidents address to the nation that evening. In it, I was introduced to the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius, who was quoted in the President's address. I memorized that speech and for years afterwards could recite it verbatim. I even clipped a copy from the newspaper and carried it around for months. I still have it. For those who have never heard, or read it, I have printed a portion of it here. 47 years after it was delivered the eloquence of these words has not been diminished by the intervention of time.

Test Ban Treaty Speech

"Yesterday a shaft of light cut into the darkness. Negotiations were concluded in Moscow on a treaty to ban all nuclear tests in the atmospere, in outer space and underwater....

Now, for the first time in many years, the path to peace may be open. No one can be certain what the future will bring. No one can say whether the time has come for an easing of the struggle. But history and our own conscience will judge us harsher if we do not now make every effort to test our hopes by action, and this is the place to begin. According to the ancient Chinese proverb, "A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step."

My fellow Americans, let us take that first step. Let us, if we can, get back from the shadows of war and seek out the way of peace. And if that journey is one thousand miles, or even more, let history recall that we, in this land, at this time took the first step."

Mercury - The Insignificant Planet

Mercury is often called the "most elusive" planet. It appears on schedule, of course, but is not always clearly visible, due mostly to the time it rises or sets. Being one of the dimmer planets makes it fade amongst the myriad of other stars when it appears too long after sunset. So it isn't very often we get to see it this clearly.

And that's what you get for the next 10 days or so. Mercury; the elusive, almost insignificant planet, visible to the naked eye. But to see it, you need to find it first. And it's not that hard. Here's how;

The planet Venus,the brightest of all the planets, is clearly visible as it sets just about an hour or so after sunset. I'm at 35 degrees laitude here, so make your adjustments. But basically you neeed only look to the West about an hour or so after sunset and the first, possibly only, thing you will see is a bright star. That's Venus and it's a planet. It glows with the reflection of the sun, which has already dipped below the horizon. The same phenomenon lights our Moon.

Now, to find Mercury, our elusive, insignificant planet, just look 45 degrees down to the right.(Like the hour hand pointing to three-thirty.) Just above the horizon you will see, hopefully, a small, almost reddish, starlike object. That's Mercury, reflecting the reddish glow from the setting sun.

Now, you're asking, why this is important. Here's why. It reveals to the naked eye and all our senses, just how tiny and insignificant we really are. It calls out, clearly, that " we are but a speck of dust." I don't know who said it. I'd need to look it up. And isn't it written that "What is Man that Thou regardest him... He is but a blade of grass to be cut down, to wither and to die." Again, maybe not word for word, but you see where I'm going with this.

Someday, when we all get beyond our petty differences we will realize the basic truth that is so apparent when you look at Mercury, the "insignificant planet." If we would all just realize how small we are in the grand scheme of things, then we could achieve our greatest goals. It's really that simple.