Jon Stewart “Remember that time we invaded Iraq to remove the threat of the world’s most dangerous people using the world’s most dangerous weapons and it turned out that the threat wasn’t there.  Well, good news, the threat’s there now, in some measure due to the destabilizing effect of our intervention.  And, you’ll never guess what the people who hyped the original plan, would like to do now.”

Sen Mitch McConnell (R-KY) June 17, 2014 “We must grapple with how best to help Iraq meet this threat.”

Rep Pete King (R-NY) June 22, 2014 “It is absolutely essential that we stop Isis from gaining this foothold in Iraq.”

Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC) June 15, 2014 “We need air power immediately to stop the advance.”

Sen John McCain (R-AZ) June 18, 2014 “We have to act.  We must act.”

Stewart “We must, act.  Well, if we do, I think you’re going to need acting lessons, but I do look forward to you and your friends starring in a new play called ‘A Streetcar Named We’re Always Wrong.”

 

http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/y54hug/priority-fail

 

Jon Stewart “You know, there’s all kinds of reasons why Republicans believe domestic spending is folly.”

Sen John Cornyn (R-TX) Jan 29, 2014 “Big Government doesn’t work.”

Sen Marco Rubio (R-FL) Feb 17, 2014 “massive government spending, particularly debt spending, is not the solution.”

Sen Bob Portman (R-OH) Feb 9, 2014 “the last thing we want to do is add to the debt and deficit.”

Sen Ron Johnson (R-WI) June 6, 2014 “negative unintended consequences of our good intentions..”

Sen Mitch McConnell (R-TN) Dec 1, 2009 “The rampant waste, fraud and abuse.”

Rubio Oct 11, 2013 “we need to make sure our government programs encourage work, not dependence.”

Sen Jeff Sessions (R-AL) April 1, 2014 “For our policy cannot be to simply relegate more and more of our citizens to dependence on the government.”

Stewart “By the way, has out of control government spending had the same corrupting effect on non-Americans?”

Pres. George W Bush September 9, 2008 “America’s goal in Iraq was to help the Iraqi people build a democratic nation that can govern itself.”

Sen Roy Blunt (R-MO) Feb 17, 2011 “create a real democracy for people who want it.”

Bush “…help Afghans begin to build a new democracy….build their economy, and provide basic services and expand health care as well as open up schools.”

Rep Louie Gohmert (R-TX) “..and allowing for freedom to spread around the world.”

Stewart “So basically, when we give other countries government assistance, they handle it great, but when we get it ourselves, we bleep it all up.  Why is it you don’t seem to care about unintended consequences, waste, fraud, abuse and cultural dependency when it comes to the unlimited checkbook we have for foreign military adventures?”

McConnell “Of course the war has been costly, but we have been protected from attack here at home.”

Stewart “Putting aside the questionable contention that the wars in Iraq have kept us safe here at home, you do know terrorism isn’t the only thing Americans would like to be protected from?”

Reporter 1 “The American Society of Civil Engineers gives America’s crumbling infrastructure a D+”

Reporter 2 “The VA says at least 23 people have died waiting for care.”

Reporter 3 “Fifty million Americans, living below the federal poverty line.”

Reporter 4 “Temperatures could go up by 9 degrees this century and sea levels could rise an extra 10 to 21 inches.”

Reporter 5 “30 Americans die from gun violence in this country every single day.”

Stewart “But, none of it is terrorism, right?  “Cause, then we’d have to do something about it.  If there was one man who embodied the ethos of the Republican party, in this regard, I’d have to say it’s our old friend Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama, never met a war appropriations bill he didn’t like, happy to spend the money overseas.”

Sessions March 17, 2013 “We made a commitment to our troops…and they’re prepared to put their lives at stake for us, and I don’t think there ought to be the slightest suggestion in any way, that we’re not going to honor that commitment.”

Stewart “Who do I make the check out to sir?  And of course, he’s not too worried about how it’s going to work out.”

Reporter talking to Sessions Dec 14, 2005 “So you have faith that the cost of this war in casualties and the cost of like a half a trillion dollars…and risks in terms of people in the world not liking what we’re doing, which is fairly obvious..is all worth it, because if we do fail, things fail, and we come home, and after we come home it fails over there, they go back to some military coup, isn’t that a danger that we can’t change the course of a country if we’re only going to be there for a limited amount of time?”

Sessions “Well, I don’t believe that’s going to happen.”

Stewart “Oh, he doesn’t believe it.  What?  Unlimited money to go over there, I don’t think anything bad is going to happen, well how about spending some money on cleaning up the mess you made here at home for the veterans?”

Sessions Jun 11, 2014 “We need to resist the temptation to create more entitlements and more entitlements which is one of the reasons that we’re heading recklessly to a fiscal crisis… but I don’t think we should create a blank check, and unlimited entitlement program now.”

Stewart “I’m worried.  I’m really worried about the Republicans.  Their inability to wean themselves off military intervention.  They have, a culture of defendency, if you will, and I believe it’s turned them all into warfare queens.  And, I think we need to cut them off, for their own good.”

http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/y54hug/priority-fail

 

WBKM CREW

 

http://wbkm.org/

I just got back from my local music radio show on internet only Wbkm Dot Org. Black Rabbit released a great new EP on Saturday and I featured a few songs. I used that to create a set of really rocking music!

Song before: Prisoners Of Rock And Roll – Neil Young And Crazy Horse

promo

intro

From our small city to the great big world, these are the Sounds Of Burlington. I’ve got some great new music to play tonight but I want to start with a song I heard at Signal Kitchen a couple of weeks ago, that I keep listening to again and again. This is The Globe by Landlady on WBKM, and this is Burlington’s Kind Of Music.

1.) The Globe – Landlady
2.) Blue Light Shines – The Dwellers
3.) Despite The Rain – Starlight Conspiracy

Great song from Brad Searles and friends. I love the dwellers song and Gabrielle Douglas‘ voice. There is a new The Cush streaming, but I don’t have a copy to play yet. I will, the moment I do. I love the Globe. On Saturday Black Rabbit released a killer 6 song EP. This one rocks!

4.) Tarpaulin – Black Rabbit
5.) You Want It All – When Particles Collide
6.) The New Super Heroes – Lindy Pear
7.) Cats Were Born – And The Kids

Last Friday, I went to The Monkey House to see Phil Yates and the Affiliates, and The Mountain Says No. The show was over early enough to run to Radio Bean and catch And The Kids. They played a great show and that song jumped out at me. Thanks to Joe Adler for organizing the Burlington-North Hampton band exchange. Lindy used to always be the second band on at the Radio Bean Birthday party, and always rocked! Great song from road warriors When Particles Collide. Songs like Tarpaulin keep me going to see Black Rabbit again and again. Well, last week I played the last song on Dancing With The Big Guy. It’s time to start playing a new album all the way through, song by song, week after week. This is another classic Burlington album. This is the first song from Ninja Jane.

8.) Ninja Jane – Zola Turn
9.) Throw Me Away – Spill
10.) Null – Five Seconds Expired
11.) Carnage – Black Rabbit

Another great song that I’ve loved for a while, that is now recorded. Yea. Killer song from FSE, one of the heavy rock bands from the ’90’s. Same with the Spill song. Zola were always there rocking , when I needed a band. It will be fun to play the full album all the way through. I think this next song is misnamed and is really a cover.

12.) Violence – Peg Tassey and Proud Of It
13.) That’s When I Reach For My Revolver – Ninja Custodian
14.) The Invisibles – Black Rabbit.

Great song from Rabbit. Great Mission Of Burma cover by Ninja, and I think the Peg Tassey MUSIC song was really Is It My Body by Alice Cooper. I hope you enjoyed checking out the music of our town, let’s do it again next week, shall we?

outro

promo

Song After: Innocent Party – Fish

 

Dick Cheney June 17, 2014 “The policies of the last six years have left America diminished and weakened…Iran is marching toward a nuclear weapon, Al Queda is resurgent, establishing new safe havens across the Middle East, including in Iraq where President Obama withdrew all American forces with no stay behind agreement. ”

Jon Stewart “…You know what?  Here’s what’s upsetting about this guy.  Bleeping guy acts like we were 20 seconds away from total victory in Iraq when suddenly Obama just gives it away at mid-field and then Osama Bin Laden crosses it and Isis heads it home, God, how did we blow that game?  By the way Mr Cheney there, who was it that negotiated withdrawal of American forces with no stay behind agreement, and in fact, bragged about it in 2009?”

Dick Cheney January 4, 2009 “We’ve now entered into a strategic framework agreement with the Iraqis that calls for ultimately the US completion of the assignment and withdrawal of our forces from Iraq.  Now all of those things, by anybody’s standard, would be evidence of significant success.”

http://thedailyshow.cc.com/videos/5fyk9e/mess-o-potamia—300

 

FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST: But first, here’s my take. To answer the question, what should America do in Iraq, we should try first to understand what’s going on in the region through a broader prism. If you would look to the Middle East 15 years ago you would have seen a string of strikingly similar regimes across the region, from Libya and Tunisia in the west to Syria and Iraq in the east. They were all repressive dictatorships.

They were all secular in the sense that they did not derive their legitimacy from religious identity or authority. Historically they had been supported by outside powers. First the British and French, then the superpowers, which meant that these rulers were more about pleasing patrons abroad rather than carrying favor at home. And they had secure uncontested borders.

Today across the region that structure of authority has collapsed from Libya to Syria, and people are reaching for their deeper, older identities — Shia, Sunni — distrusting that they would be safe under anyone else’s rule.

In Iraq and elsewhere, no amount of American military power can undo this tidal trend and put Humpty Dumpty back together. Why did it happen? The old order was probably unsustainable. It rested on extreme suppression which was producing extreme opposition movements. It also rested on super power patronage. And then one super power collapsed and the others’ support dictators started wavering.

The countries with significant sectarian divides and in which minority groups ruled — Iraq and Syria — became the most vulnerable. The Iraq war was the crucial trigger and the American occupation needlessly exacerbated sectarian identities rather than building national identities. But let’s be honest, Iraq’s Shia, like the Sunni Islamist of Syria had been brutality suppressed by dictators for decades.

It is always going to be hard for them to sign up peacefully to share power with their former torementors. Maliki’s reign of terror against the Sunnis has certainly ensured that the Sunnis will never really trust him and they are likely never to trust the parties he represents to rule over them.

As Washington supports the Baghdad government, it will have to be extremely careful not to be seen as taking sides in a sectarian conflict and to press for political reform and inclusiveness even as it offers Baghdad military support.

But Washington should recognize that national harmony in Iraq, everyone singing Kumbaya, is highly unlikely. It needs a plan B. Call it an enclave strategy. The world might have to accept that Iraq is turning into a country of enclaves and work to ensure that these regions stay as stable, terror free and open as is possible.

The Kurdish area, now bolstered by having captured the vital city of Kirkuk, is already a stable success story. It will be possible to work with countries like Saudi Arabia and Jordan to influence the Sunni groups in the middle of the country and purge them of terrorists and empower moderate Sunnis.

Now there will be enclaves where ISIS and similar groups gain some strength. In these areas Washington will have to use drones, counterintelligence and occasional special forces strikes just as it does in parts of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, and Somalia. To scholar Joshua Landis’ pointed that during the first half of the 20th century, much of Europe, especially Eastern Europe, went from being multi-ethnic to monoethic. One-third of Poland was non-Polish before World War II. One quarter of Czechoslovakia was minorities.

Then there was what Landis calls the great sorting out. The Middle East has been going through its own version of this process. America can’t stop a trend like this. What it can do is try to limit the fallout, support those who believe in reconciliation and protect itself and its friends.

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1406/22/fzgps.01.html

 

WBKM CREW

 

http://wbkm.org/

I just got home from my local music radio show on WBKM.ORG. I played a few new songs, including a song that is quickly becoming a favorite, and some classics. I played some future classics too.

Song before: Never Trust A Stranger – Michael Schenker Group / Temple Of Rock

promo

intro

From our small city to the great big world, these are the sounds of Burlington. On Tuesday, I went to Signal Kitchen to see The Mountain Says No, and ended up loving the other two bands, too. This is the band who played in the middle and is the song they closed with. This is Above My Ground by Landlady on WBKM, and this is Burlington’s Kind of Music.

1.) Above My Ground – Landlady
2.) Young Vultures – Saint Rich
3.) Statistic – The Mountain Says No

I love that song and can’t wait for a full sounding version of it. They were great at Signal Kitchen and will be at The Monkey House tomorrow. Vultures is the first song that caught me on the St Rich album. I loved their show. It’s summer in Vermont and twilight at quarter after 9. It’s warm and time to head to the beach.

4.) Beach Song – Mr. Ray Fork
5.) Super Sexy Science Party – Wave of the Future
6.) Window’s Down – Lendway
7.) Wiser – And The Kids

I finally bought the ATK ep and Wiser jumped out. On the way down I listened to a bit of a song from a band at Red Square, I think, called 6:19. It looked like Jeremy Gartner from Wave with Matthew Bryan Hagen and Kevin Lynam from Lendway, plus keyboard, and violin. It sounded a bit like if Lendway played a Small Town Movie bluesy The Cush sort of song. Lendway are so cool, and Wave so bouncy and fun. Beach features Raph Worrick and Jane Boxall. Up next, it’s time to finish off Dancing With The Big Guy. This is a rocker!

8.) Las Vegas – Ninja Custodian
9.) Scorned Woman – The Dirty Blondes
10.) Decide – David L. Jarvis

Great rocker from Dave. The Blondes always rock! What a great way to end the album, with the Ninja chant. I think Phil Yates and the Affiliates are playing at the Monkey House tomorrow

11.) Honeycomb – Phil Yates and the Affiliates
12.) Jan Michael Vincent – Chin Ho!
13.) The Globe – Landlady

That song caught me when I saw them and I like it more and more every time I hear it. That was a classic from Chin Ho! I hope you enjoyed checking out the music of our town. Let’s do it again next week, shall we?

outro

promo

Song after: Clock Moves Sideways – Fish

 

 

Militants who seized large swaths of Iraq’s Sunni heartland with lightning advances this week have pushed into an ethnically mixed province and captured two towns northeast of Baghdad, officials said Friday as neighboring Shiite powerhouse Iran signaled its willingness to confront the growing threat.

The fresh gains by insurgents, spearheaded by fighters from the al-Qaida-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, come as Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s Shiite-led government struggles to form a coherent response after the militants blitzed and captured the country’s second-largest city of Mosul, Saddam Hussein’s hometown of Tikrit, smaller communities, as well as military and police bases — often after meeting little resistance from state security forces.

The fast-moving rebellion, which also draws support from former Saddam-era figures and other disaffected Sunnis, has emerged as the biggest threat to Iraq’s stability since the U.S. withdrawal at the end of 2011. It has pushed the nation closer to a precipice that could partition the country into Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish zones.

The assault also threatens to embroil Iraq more deeply in a wider regional conflict, already feeding off the chaos caused by the civil war in neighboring Syria.

Iran’s official IRNA news agency on Friday reported that former members of Tehran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard have announced their readiness to fight in Iraq against the Islamic State, while Iranian state TV quoted President Hassan Rouhani as saying his country will do all it can to fight terrorism next door.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran will apply all its efforts on the international and regional levels to confront terrorism,” the Iranian report said Rouhani told al-Maliki by phone.

http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/sunni-militants-capture-2-towns-near-baghdad

WBKM CREW

 

http://wbkm.org/

I just got home from my local music radio show on internet only WBKM.ORG. I had some brand new music to play, and let rock and country hang out a bit.

Song before: Parisian Walkways – Greg Lake with Gary Moore

promo

intro

From our small city to the great big world, these are the Sounds of Burlington. It was warm and sunny this week, until Wednesday, and some new music has been unfurled in the world. This is from the new album Photoelectric by a band called When Particles Collide. This is a song called Lean In on WBKM, and even though they are from Maine, this is Burlington’s Kind of Music.

1.) Lean In – When Particles Collide
2.) B A Pariah – Endless Jags
3.) Red And Gold – Old Soul

Those three bands are from Maine, and even though I love the music from Vermont, they’ve got some good stuff going on too. I saw Old Soul once at Radio Bean and they were really impressive. Jags and Particles come to town and rock, now and then. Particles released the new album Tuesday and are off and rocking. Now it’s time for the next song on Dancing With The Big Guy. So far on the album there are rap songs, funk, punk and indie rock. Any bet they also have a country song?

4.) Lucky- Ninja Custodian
5.) Easy Come – Split Tongue Crow
6.) Santa Anna – Hana Zara

I used to play her album all the time. I just pulled it out the other day and just saw the title and had to play Santa. I though Easy Come would work nice with the theme of lucky. I was reading that Robert Gagnon was visiting John Baumann and am hoping for some more Satori Bob. Until then…

7.) Presence – Satori Bob
8.) Coming Down Again – Waylon Speed
9.) Don’t Cough Me Out – Slowdim

I really liked playing that song the other week and wanted to play it again. Nice new song from Waylon’s new album Kin. Up next is a band who are recording a new album. This is a classic Burlington song.

10.) I Am Sunday – The Red Telephone
11.) Chop Wood/Carry Water – Zola Turn
12.) Warm Chills – Persian Claws
13.) Constant Disaster – When Particles Collide

Ending where we began. I had a bit of space in the set so tossed in Warm Chills. Thanks Persian for so many great short songs. Classics from Zola and RT. I hope you enjoyed checking out the music of our town. Let’s do it again next week, shall we”

outro

promo

Song after: Big Wedge (Live – Childhood) – Fish

 

WBKM CREW

 

http://wbkm.org/

 

I just got back from my local music radio show on internet only WBKM,ORG. It’s Jazzfest week, so I highlighted some of our great local jazzish music.

Song before: Breathing – Kate Bush

promo

intro

From our small city to the great big world, these are the Sounds of Burlington. It’s Jazzfest week and there were 4 bands playing on Church street when I walked down, and there’s music in every club in town. With all the flowers out, every time I step outside, it just feels great to breathe! Here’s Rubblebucket on WBKM, and this is Burlington’s kind of music.

1.) Breatherz (Young As Clouds) – Rubblebucket
2.) Breathe – Barika
3.) All About You – Kat Wright & The Indomitable Soul Band

Kat has a great voice and is a true local treasure. She and the band play Radio Bean all the time. That Barika song makes me happy whenever I hear it. Rubblebucket used to play all over Burlington. The last show I went to was Marco Benevento at Radio Bean. The show was recorded and uploaded so I downloaded it. Here’s one of the songs from that show.

4.) Such A Night – Marco Benevento
5.) See Me On My Way – Superhuman Happiness
6.) Killer Bee Bop – Zoot Wilson

Zoot is a legend in this town and I love the sting in the guitar. Superhuman have a great name, and the song makes me smile as much as their name. Killer playing by Marco. Up next let’s rock for a bit. Here is the next song from Dancing With The Big Guy.

7.) Drug Me Up – Ninja Custodian
8.) Lost And Found – Dented Personality
9.) Breathing In – The Hero Cycle

That song just fills me. Dented have changed their name to Better Things and are playing Sunday at Twofourtwo Main with Gorgon. Great song by Ninja. Let’s go back to some more fun with Marco.

10.) Fearless part 1 – Marco Benevento
11.) Benny And The Jets – Marco Benevento
12.) Fearless part 2 – Marco Benevento
13.) Stronger – Belizbeha

Great playing by Belizebeha, even if it’s a bit outside of my comfort zone. I do try and push myself a bit for Jazzfest week. I hope you enjoyed checking out the music of our town. Let’s do it again next week, shall we?

outro

promo

Song after – Jungle Ride (live) – Fish

At the end of the show, Ted Jacobites stopped in and gave me a ride home on the rainy night where I did not bring my umbrella. He asked for a song by Corrinne Bailey Rae.

 

You can listen here for the next week

 

https://soundcloud.com/tim-lewis-60/the-sounds-of-burlington-june-5-2014

 

Stephen Colbert “So, as happy as I am that Sargent Bergdahl is coming home, it also means that five terrorists are free to roam in a treeless desert patrolled only by our predator drones…oh. Well, you enjoy that freedom fellas.”

http://thecolbertreport.cc.com/full-episodes/3cuyeg/june-2–2014—thomas-piketty