Op-ed special report: Remembering in #thesetimes #LawrenceFerlinghetti (1919 - 2021): a builder of spaces for freedom

📍https://www.agos.com.tr/tr/haber/ferlinghettis-legacy-the-freedom-outside-echo-chambers-25656

Lawrence Ferlinghetti, who passed away at the age of 101 on February 22, 2021 in San Francisco, built a #bookstore and #independent publisher, taking #poetry outside the academic #ivorytower and helping to #democratize American #literature. He defended the right to freedom of expression, and framed poetry as an insurgent #art; poetry had to be lived!

Political #theory 101 and #unpacking #thesetimes:

Hegemony is not the same as #oppression — the oppressed in the former (hegemony) consents, partly or fully, to the oppressor, whereas in the latter (oppression) the oppressed is poised to #dissent and #resist and seek #liberation, and might oppose not only individual powerful actors but also epistemological, #structural and historical injustices.

#hegemony #unpacking

Whether we #exercise adequately, matters for health. But our health is also embedded in unchecked politics, class struggle, patriarchy and #global #inequalities every day. Erosion of #democracy by mass #surveillance technologies disguised as 'innovation', and unchecked #biopolitics, are affecting our health, #physiology, and well-being.

Politics of planetary health matters in #thesetimes of polycrisis because health, prescriptions, #drugs, and #innovation are inherently #political.

🎵 Cliff's Song of the Day 🎵

Link to post: https://app.crucialtracks.org/profile/cliff/20250531

"These Times" by SafetySuit

Listen on Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/these-times/1442941714?i=1442942123)

Today's song is a song that's been stuck in my head most of the day for no real reason. Just a song I really like and discovered it and the band due to going to go see Daughtry in concert several years ago. The song is These Times by Safety Suit.

The second I heard them play it in concert, I was instantly hooked. I had never heard of the band until that night, and was instantly hooked by their energy and of course their great sound. Sadly, they don't make any new music any longer, though I wish that would change. I also got the pleasure of meeting the entire band that night and sitting at the bar and having a couple of drinks with them. An experience I'll never forget.

[Verse 1]
These times will try hard to define me
And I'll try to hold my head up high
But I've seen despair here from the inside
It's got a one track mind
And I have this feeling in my gut now
And I don't know what it is I'll find
Does anybody ever feel like
You're always one step behind?

[Chorus]
Now I'm sitting alone here in my bed
I'm waiting for an answer I don't know that I'll get
I cannot stand to look in the mirror
I'm failing
I'm telling you these times are hard
But they will

[Verse 2]
And I know there's someone out there somewhere
Who has it much worse than I do
But I have a dream inside, a perfect life
I'd give anything just to work
It's like I'm only trynna dig my way out
Of all these thing I can't

[Chorus]
And I am sitting alone here in my bed
I'm waiting for an answer I don't know that I'll get
I cannot stand to look in the mirror
I'm failing
I'm telling you these times are hard
But they will pass
They will pass
They will pass
These times are hard
But they will

#CrucialTracks #Music #SafetySuit #TheseTimes

View Cliff Wade's Crucial Tracks profile (https://app.crucialtracks.org/profile/cliff)

DAVID MALLETT
"VITAL SIGNS"
Mastodon Post

Evidently "Vital Signs" is the David Mallett fan favorite. It starts strongly with "Midnight Madness" and ends with "Highways," which, according to an apparently knowing Amazon customer comment, was often a very big number in concerts. Side One's "April" and the title track are spoken of favorably by Mallett's followers. The first side ends with one of Mallett's best known songs, "Red Red Rose," which was covered to perfection by Emmylou Harris. It is surprising how many covers and interpretations of David Mallett songs closely follow the original arrangements. This may be seen as a testimonial to the production.

"Vital Signs" is notable for the team effort - from piano to drums - of the players, with each contributing catchy riffs.

"Vital Signs" is something like David Mallett's forbidden fruit album. It has never been reissued; and, as far as I am aware, it does not stream. (Some re-recordings do.) A track that once was posted to YouTube has been removed. Evidently the label, Flying Fish Records, made a mistake on the cover which is mirrored on the LPs label, crediting all words and music to Mallett. Judging by the publisher credits, the first song on the second side, "(Coming Apart) At the Seams," appears to be an exception. Evidently pianist Chris Neville claims a co-writer credit. The album got locked up by a lawsuit. Vinyl LPs and at least one cassette can be had online and, one would imagine, in used record stores.

Following popular concert attractions "Good Times" and "These Times," the album ends with Mallett's re-recording of "Highways," which first came out on the live "Hard Light" album. Mallett's singing here on "Highways" is so different that it ought to be considered as a rearrangement.

Jim Rooney did his usual excellent job with this production. David Mallett's home, Sebec, Maine, shares a town line with my old hometown, Milo. For me, then, it is more than a little ironic that Jim Rooney got his start performing on Boston's WCOP Hayloft Jamboree for Nelson Bragg, "The Merry Mayor of Milo, Maine."

A clean burn of the vinyl LP keeps me happily listening. Anyone who has read this far may want to hunt up a copy of the vinyl album. If you are a devoted singer-songwriter fan, chances are good that you have a friend who has burned it. A reissue would have been ideal but ways still exist to enjoy what may very well have been David Mallett's most popular record release, "Vital Signs."

Here are two of the best covers of David Mallett songs:

Summer Of My Dreams
Kathy Mattea - Topic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzFUG4zQWGU

Red Red Rose
EmmyLouharris

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmL0QSPJhTo

And one by David Mallett:

David Mallet - Summer Of My Dreams
from Live At The Iron Horse Vol. 1 by Signature Sounds Recording Inc.

https://signaturesounds.bandcamp.com/track/summer-of-my-dreams

Music Museum of New England (MMone) Jim Rooney article

https://www.mmone.org/jim-rooney/

:

#april #bostonmusic #chrisneville #comingapartattheseams #davemallett #davidmallett #emmylouharris #flyingfish #flyingfishrecords #goodtimes #hardlight #hayloftjamboree #highways #jimrooney #kathymattea #mainemusic #merrymayorofmilomaine #midnightmadness #mmone #music #musicfeed #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #nelsonbragg #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #redredrose #sebec #sebecmaine #singersongwriter #summerofmydreams #thesetimes #vitalsigns #wcop #wcophayloftjamboree

:::

DAVID MALLETT
"VITAL SIGNS"
Mastodon Post

Evidently "Vital Signs" is the David Mallett fan favorite. It starts strongly with "Midnight Madness" and ends with "Highways," which, according to an apparently knowing Amazon customer comment, was often a very big number in concerts. Side One's "April" and the title track are spoken of favorably by Mallett's followers. The first side ends with one of Mallett's best known songs, "Red Red Rose," which was covered to perfection by Emmylou Harris. It is surprising how many covers and interpretations of David Mallett songs closely follow the original arrangements. This may be seen as a testimonial to the production.

"Vital Signs" is notable for the team effort - from piano to drums - of the players, with each contributing catchy riffs.

"Vital Signs" is something like David Mallett's forbidden fruit album. It has never been reissued; and, as far as I am aware, it does not stream. (Some re-recordings do.) A track that once was posted to YouTube has been removed. Evidently the label, Flying Fish Records, made a mistake on the cover which is mirrored on the LPs label, crediting all words and music to Mallett. Judging by the publisher credits, the first song on the second side, "(Coming Apart) At the Seams," appears to be an exception. Evidently pianist Chris Neville claims a co-writer credit. The album got locked up by a lawsuit. Vinyl LPs and at least one cassette can be had online and, one would imagine, in used record stores.

Following popular concert attractions "Good Times" and "These Times," the album ends with Mallett's re-recording of "Highways," which first came out on the live "Hard Light" album. Mallett's singing here on "Highways" is so different that it ought to be considered as a rearrangement.

Jim Rooney did his usual excellent job with this production. David Mallett's home, Sebec, Maine, shares a town line with my old hometown, Milo. For me, then, it is more than a little ironic that Jim Rooney got his start performing on Boston's WCOP Hayloft Jamboree for Nelson Bragg, "The Merry Mayor of Milo, Maine."

A clean burn of the vinyl LP keeps me happily listening. Anyone who has read this far may want to hunt up a copy of the vinyl album. If you are a devoted singer-songwriter fan, chances are good that you have a friend who has burned it. A reissue would have been ideal but ways still exist to enjoy what may very well have been David Mallett's most popular record release, "Vital Signs."

Here are two of the best covers of David Mallett songs:

Summer Of My Dreams
Kathy Mattea - Topic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kzFUG4zQWGU

Red Red Rose
EmmyLouharris

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmL0QSPJhTo

And one by David Mallett:

David Mallet - Summer Of My Dreams
from Live At The Iron Horse Vol. 1 by Signature Sounds Recording Inc.

https://signaturesounds.bandcamp.com/track/summer-of-my-dreams

Music Museum of New England (MMone) Jim Rooney article

https://www.mmone.org/jim-rooney/

:

#april #bostonmusic #chrisneville #comingapartattheseams #davemallett #davidmallett #emmylouharris #flyingfish #flyingfishrecords #goodtimes #hardlight #hayloftjamboree #highways #jimrooney #kathymattea #mainemusic #merrymayorofmilomaine #midnightmadness #mmone #music #musicmuseumofnewengland #musicnews #nelsonbragg #nemsbk #newenglandmusic #redredrose #sebec #sebecmaine #singersongwriter #summerofmydreams #thesetimes #vitalsigns #wcop #wcophayloftjamboree

:::

„These Times“-Folge zu den Verhandlungen zwischen Ukraine und USA

Eine dichte Folge des These Times-Podcast zum Hintergrund der Verhandlungen der Ukraine mit den USA (Thompson & McTague, 2025). Besprochen werden das Interesse der USA an den Ressourcen in der Ukraine und vor allem in Russland. Selenskij biete schon länger Abkommen über die ukrainischen Ressourcen an, um nicht nur die USA, sondern auch die EU und Großbritannien für eine weitergehende Unterstützung der Ukraine zu interessieren. Zu diesen Ressourcen zählten auch sehr hohe Speicherkapazitäten für Erdgas.

Trump habe schon in seiner ersten Amtszeit – wenn auch nicht erfolgreich – versucht mit Russland intensiver bei der Erschließung fossiler Energien zusammenzuarbeiten. Deshalb habe er zunächst Rex Tillerson zum US-Außenminister gemacht. Jetzt gehe die Trump-Administration wohl davon aus, dass die USA langfristig auf russisches Öl und Gas angewiesen sein könnten. Russland könne die Vorkommen in der Arktis nicht allein erschließen und hätte deshalb umgekehrt Interesse an einer Zusammenarbeit mit den USA. Die USA gingen von einem langfristig weiter steigenden Bedarf an Öl und Gas aus.

Auch in Europa glaube man nicht mehr an einen Ausstieg aus fossilen Energien bis 2050. Wie wichtig deshalb die Zusammenarbeit mit China bei den Mineralien sei, die für erneuerbare Energien gebraucht werden, sei ungewiss. Es läge jedenfalls nahe, dass sich China Europa als verlässlicher Partner bei Energien anbiete.

Im These Times-Podcast versucht vor allem Tom McTague die einzelnen Ereignisse einem Gesamtbild der geopolitischen Entwicklungen im 21. Jahrhundert zuzuordnen, für das er hier einmal den Ausdruck Great Game verwendet. Diese geo- und energiepolitische Perspektive (bei der allerdings die ökologische und soziale Ebene der Ereignisse kaum erwähnt wird) hilft beim Verständnis vieler Ereignisse, vielleicht weil sie nicht sehr weit von der Perspektive konservativer politischer Handelnder entfernt ist.

(Ich schätze Helen Thompson, die andere Teilnehmerin dieses Podcasts, als Expertin zu Geopolitik und Energie. Eine andere wichtige Analytikerin, die sich viel mit den energiepolitischen Hintergründen des Kriegs gegen die Ukraine beschäftigt hat, sehe ich in Olivia Lazard.)

Quote by J.R.R. Tolkien:

“I wish it need not have happened in my time," said Frodo.
"So do I," said Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us."

#TheseTimes #RepublicanInsanity #TolkienQuotations #Apropos #lgbtq #hatred #EvilPoliticians

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/12357-i-wish-it-need-not-have-happened-in-my-time