I came across a video on YouTube of the incredible Norah Jones singing from her house on a spinet piano a Hank Williams tune. Now Hank wrote a lot of great music, a lot of beautiful music with lyrics that are as beautiful and somber as the music that accompanies them are. Hank was special.
I thought to myself, this has GOT to be one of the greatest songs of the modern era, and posted it on Facebook relaying my feelings. I then got to wondering if I could possible come up with a list of the greatest songs that I am familiar with. It would have to be more than just the music and more than just the lyrics. It would have to contain both to qualify. Beautiful lyrics and beautiful music. A list of perfect songs. I am going to try to make it a list of twenty of songs that I am familiar with. I am sure that there are many songs out there that I have not heard yet and I would welcome suggestions of songs so that I can expend my music knowledge. So let's give this a shot.
I tried to keep it to a list of ten songs but that proved to be impossible. There have been so many wonderful songs over the years that I eventually decided on keeping the list to thirty with some honorable mentions plus a separate list of my favorite hymns. A lot of the hymns are pretty old and may not fit into the modern era category. The criteria I used was a two prong test. Fifty percent of the score would be based on the music and fifty percent on the quality of the lyrics. Any song that uses "YEAH YEAH YEAH" probably wouldn't qualify (sorry John and Paul) Another thing to keep in mind when looking at this list is the mood I was in while searching out these songs. Chances are you won't find any distorted guitars on the list or pounding drum solos. The list of songs are not necessarily in a particular order from best to worst. It was hard enough narrowing the list down to thirty without then trying to decide which was better than another.
SO ... here are thirty songs that to me, are masterpieces that are timeless. These songs have stood the test of time for the most part.
01. O Holy Night - Adolphe Adam
02. I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry - Hank Williams
03. Run For The Roses - Dan Fogelberg
04. White Christmas - Irving Berlin
05. Forever Young - Bob Dylan
06. Am I Blue - Harry Akst; Grant Clarke
07. Danny Boy (Londonderry Air) - Frederic Weatherly (Lyrics)
08. The Very Thought Of You - Roy Noble
09. Something - George Harrison
10. Send In The Clowns - Stephen Sondheim
11. We'll Meet Again - Ross Parker, Hughie Charles
12. Come Rain Or Come Shine - Harold Arlen; Johnny Mercer
13. Tears In Heaven - Eric Clapton
14. Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain - Fred Rose
15. Faded Love - Bob, John and Billy Jack Wills
16. Will The Circle Be Unbroken - Ada R. Habershon; Charles H. Gabriel
17. In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning - David Mann; Bob Hilliard
18. Time In A Bottle - Jim Croce
19. Crossroads - Don McLean
20. Yesterday - John Lennon; Paul McCartney
21. The Wayward Wind - Stanley Lebowsky; Herb Newman
22. Dream - Johnny Mercer
23. Christmas Time Is Here - Lee Mendelson; Vince Guaraldi
24. How Great Thou Art - Carl Boberg
25. Where Or When - Richard Rodgers; Lorenz Hart
26. You Don't Know Me - Cindy Walker; Eddy Arnold
27. Somewhere Over The Rainbow - Harold Arlen; Yip Harburg
28. What A Wonderful World - George David Weiss; Bob Thiele
29. Crying - Roy Orbison; Joe Melson
30. Chances Are - Robert Allen; Al Stillman
I think this is a pretty impressive list. Remember the lyrics have to be as great as the music is and these songs have words that will tear at your heart. I love these songs. Some of you might scoff at Bob Dylan making this list but his "Forever Young" has a beautiful melody if you can get past his vocals and the lyrics are very inspirational.
There are a lot of songs that just didn't quite cut into the top thirty. A big reason they may have not made the list is that they are still relatively new songs in the history of music. Here are a few of them.
01. Both Sides Now - Joni Mitchell
02. Remember When The Music - Harry Chapin
03. I Only Have Eyes For You - Harry Warren; Al Dubin
04. When I'm Gone - Sandra Emory Lawrence
05 All Or Nothing At All - Arthur Altman; Jack Lawrence
06. Bridge Over Troubled Water - Paul Simon
07. The Summer Wind - Heinz Meier; Johnny Mercer
08. He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother - Bobby Scott; Bob Russell
09. Song For You - Leon Russell
10. But Not For Me - George Gershwin; Ira Gershwin
Of course, the list could go on and on and on. These are special. These songs all have played a role in my life at one time or another. I hear these songs and some can make me teary as they take me to places my mind has been. The newest song of these forty listed is in the honorable mention but I am sure will move into one of the all time greats. It is a song introduced to me by friends and family at the time of Barbara's death. "When I'm Gone" was recorded by Joey + Rory and it means the world to me because of the time in which it entered my life. Music is such a wonderful gift that God has given us.
Now for a small list of hymns that have been a part of my life as long as I can remember. These hymns bring out emotions in me as I listen to the words and how they express the love of God and all that He has done for us. How God carries us through difficult times and how we can depend on God to follow through with His promises that He gave us. I am not even going to put a number next to them. All of the lyrics to these songs are equally important and meaningful.
Amazing Grace
Holy Holy Holy
In The Garden
It Is Well
Just A Closer Walk With Thee
Just As I Am
When I Survey The Wondrous Cross
Were You There...
What A Friend We Have In Jesus
Blessed Assurance
Blest Be The Tie That Binds
Sweet Hour Of Prayer
For The Beauty Of The Earth
I Need Thee Every Hour
So many hymns. Wonderful songs of Praise and Faith. All of those hymns I listed come from my childhood, songs that I was raised hearing every Sunday. Those songs are an integral part of my life. My philosophy on many things in life are grounded in those hymns. These are hymns that generations past of my family have sung and pondered and were comforted by. Hymns are almost magic as they bring us back after wandering afar. I can not imagine music without hymns being a huge part of the discussion.
Well, my purpose in writing this was to lighten up a little for my readers. I hope I accomplished that. I hope you learned why I love music so very much. I hope that if there is a song you are not familiar with, you will go in search for it and listen. Consider it my gift to you to introduce you to something new. You know, something can be 100 years old and still be brand new to somebody.
Thank you for letting me write this to you. Thank you for looking them over. Let me know if there is a song that you think should be one of the greatest ever. I am always anxious to listen to music I may not have been familiar with.
You all take care now. Enjoy some music.
God Bless every one of you.
Bill
Thursday, May 21, 2020
Monday, May 18, 2020
TRYING NOT TO FEEL SORRY FOR MYSELF
If you have been reading me for awhile you know that I have suffered some serious losses in my life. I lost all three of my grandparents who I dearly loved and an Uncle that became a confidant of mine as we grew closer than any Uncle/nephew usually does. These were expected losses though. I knew the last time I saw my grandfather, that it would be the last time. Both of my grandmother's deaths did not really catch me off guard and I had over a year taking care of my uncle as cancer slowly took his life. None of these were a slap upside the head.
But in 2016 there did begin a series of losses that did hit me hard. I lost my sister Carol Jeanne in March of 2016. I lost an extremely close friend in February of 2017 totally out of the blue. Dennis and I had been almost like brothers since we first met in December of 1979. He suddenly died of a heart attack in his sleep. Then of course came 2018. In the last six months of that year I lost my wife of 42 years in July. In August I lost a neighbor and very good friend of over 40 years, Jim. Then September found us in shock and stunned as Jim's daughter, Lori, took her own life. October arrived and just as I was preparing to make my fall visit to Alabama to see my dad and mom, my sister and the rest of the family, my dad died suddenly. Later that year I lost my Uncle Dale. Five funerals, not only funerals but important funerals in less than six months.
On December 31, 2018 I sat and pondered the events of the previous six months of my life. I had spent Christmas and the week following alone by myself. I searched for answers. I asked God for answers. It seemed like 2018 was aimed at me and I began to lose my motivation. I lost any semblance of meaning in my life. I wasn't angry, but I was hurt. I was sad. I was confused. Since then I have come to realize that I need to keep moving forward. I am striving to get my motivation back, both at the office and the house. I am working very hard on it and I am making progress.
Today a new thought has entered my mind. The thought is that I am just me and yes, 2018 was rough, but I know of so many others who are hurting and with far more reason than I have. What triggered this thinking this weekend was a dear friend of mine. Today she is marking eight years since she lost her husband. She still hurts from it and she always will. I know what it is like losing a lifetime spouse now. But she has more pain than I will ever know. In a short period of time not only did she lose her husband, but she lost her father and her youngest son. I can not imagine the hurt that she must feel on a daily basis. Yet, she continues on keeping herself on track as she takes care of others in her family as well as herself. I admire her strength. I wish I had that kind of strength but I do not.
My thinking goes to Alesia and Rachel. I have written extensively about these young ladies who passed away all too soon, much too young. I can look at their parents and I know that they hurt with a hurting I will never be able to understand. I pray that I don't have to understand their pain. But I watch these two couples over the years and watched them continue to push on. Yes they hurt on a daily basis with a hut like no other. Losing a child has got to be the deepest pain imaginable. I admire these parents. I admire their strength. It would be so easy to lie down and let life run them over but they don't. I look to them for inspiration and there is plenty of it there in their hearts.
I think of a niece of mine who lost her husband at an extremely young age. I did not know her at the time, I would not know her for several years after that when she married into the family by way of my nephew. The strength that she has had to find to get to the point of keeping going must have been tremendous. Yet she has and I admire her so very much because of it. I love her. I admire her. I admire her strength.
Then I think of an old classmate of mine who I only recently reconnected with. We share much the same story. He lost his love at an early age as well, and still mourns the loss. He will for a long time as I will. He keeps going somehow. He mentions his partner often and relates memories he has of him. I admire him. I admire his courage and his strength. I can relate to the pain he suffers on a daily basis. But he moves forward as difficult as that might be. I admire him and his strength. His ability to talk about his loss with love and a thankfulness that he had that love, even if just for a short period of time.
And now, I think of my cousins. They lost their son at the beginning of this COVID-19 shutdown. They have more strength than anyone I have ever known I think. They have not been able to have a memorial service or really anything to mark the passing of their son. They won't be able to take this important step of honoring him and remembering him with friends and family that everyone else seems to have around for support. I hurt for them as I imagine having to work through something like. It will be another month before we are able to gather to remember him. Before we are able to show the love we had for him and the love we have for my cousins as they try to deal with all of this. I do so admire their strength. Never have I ever wanted to just hug two people so very badly as I do them. They are special to me and it pains me to think of the hurt they are going through over the last couple of months. I love them so much.
So we come back to me. Yes I had a few rough years. Yes 2018 seemed like a total disaster for me and that year will always be in my mind because of all the loss I suffered. Since July of 2018 I have tried to continue to write, not only for you but for me as well. Every one of the writings I have done has mentioned Barbara along with some other tragedy that hit me. That was a rough year. I realize I will always be effected by it. I realize that the pain I feel from those six months will not leave me. But I also realize how blessed I am, in spite of that year.
These others that I have talked about today have much more reason to hurt than I do. The losses they have suffered through are very real and each one of them hurt on a daily basis. i admire and respect every single one of these people. I look up to them for guidance, as an example of courage and strength that I feel I lack.
For the last year and a half, all I have been able to write about is Barbara. Even when writing about dad, I am writing about Barbara. I wrote about my first girlfriend in an attempt to give my readers a break from reading about Barbara, but I wrote about her still even in that piece. I WANT to write about Barbara, my dad and my sister. I think that it is a good sign that I at least have been able to write something lately. It does not come easy.
I imagine that these people that I wrote about here, look at my writings over the last year and a half and think about how lucky I really am and don't realize it. Trust me my friends, I realize how lucky I have been. I was lucky I was to have Barbara for those 42 years. I was extremely lucky for my dad to live into his 90's. I was lucky to have such a good neighbor and friend as Jim for all those years (side note on me and Jim; our friendship did not start out very well but as time wore on the bonding became very real and he was like a second father-in-law to me). I realize how lucky I was to have Lori around to take care of Barbara, and to help her on a day to day basis. I realize how lucky I was to have an uncle like Dale, who I watched change from a slightly bitter man (he had lost two sons while I was growing up) into a loving, caring patient man who thought about others so lovingly. I never knew my Uncle Dale very well, but when my mom visited him towards the end of his life he had love for me and my family that I didn't truly realize as he asked mom how I was doing since Barbara died. He cared.
I do know I have been lucky in life but it is hard to reconcile that with the losses. I kind of think it is because time goes by so fast. Life is so short but we don't realize it until death touches us. On a daily basis I think of all of you and try to understand your pain. I will never be able to accomplish that.
The important thing about all of this though. is this. These people who I have outlined their stories to you about. These people who are hurting beyond my comprehension. Every single one of them have been there for me, giving me support. Giving me encouragement. Listening to me as I work through my own pain. They set theirs aside just for a bit to help me with mine. That, my friends, is strength and love that I never expected nor do I think I deserve from these wonderful friends and family. Yes I have been so very lucky.
I admire all of you. I look up to all of you. I pray for all of you.
May God bless each and every one of you.
But in 2016 there did begin a series of losses that did hit me hard. I lost my sister Carol Jeanne in March of 2016. I lost an extremely close friend in February of 2017 totally out of the blue. Dennis and I had been almost like brothers since we first met in December of 1979. He suddenly died of a heart attack in his sleep. Then of course came 2018. In the last six months of that year I lost my wife of 42 years in July. In August I lost a neighbor and very good friend of over 40 years, Jim. Then September found us in shock and stunned as Jim's daughter, Lori, took her own life. October arrived and just as I was preparing to make my fall visit to Alabama to see my dad and mom, my sister and the rest of the family, my dad died suddenly. Later that year I lost my Uncle Dale. Five funerals, not only funerals but important funerals in less than six months.
On December 31, 2018 I sat and pondered the events of the previous six months of my life. I had spent Christmas and the week following alone by myself. I searched for answers. I asked God for answers. It seemed like 2018 was aimed at me and I began to lose my motivation. I lost any semblance of meaning in my life. I wasn't angry, but I was hurt. I was sad. I was confused. Since then I have come to realize that I need to keep moving forward. I am striving to get my motivation back, both at the office and the house. I am working very hard on it and I am making progress.
Today a new thought has entered my mind. The thought is that I am just me and yes, 2018 was rough, but I know of so many others who are hurting and with far more reason than I have. What triggered this thinking this weekend was a dear friend of mine. Today she is marking eight years since she lost her husband. She still hurts from it and she always will. I know what it is like losing a lifetime spouse now. But she has more pain than I will ever know. In a short period of time not only did she lose her husband, but she lost her father and her youngest son. I can not imagine the hurt that she must feel on a daily basis. Yet, she continues on keeping herself on track as she takes care of others in her family as well as herself. I admire her strength. I wish I had that kind of strength but I do not.
My thinking goes to Alesia and Rachel. I have written extensively about these young ladies who passed away all too soon, much too young. I can look at their parents and I know that they hurt with a hurting I will never be able to understand. I pray that I don't have to understand their pain. But I watch these two couples over the years and watched them continue to push on. Yes they hurt on a daily basis with a hut like no other. Losing a child has got to be the deepest pain imaginable. I admire these parents. I admire their strength. It would be so easy to lie down and let life run them over but they don't. I look to them for inspiration and there is plenty of it there in their hearts.
I think of a niece of mine who lost her husband at an extremely young age. I did not know her at the time, I would not know her for several years after that when she married into the family by way of my nephew. The strength that she has had to find to get to the point of keeping going must have been tremendous. Yet she has and I admire her so very much because of it. I love her. I admire her. I admire her strength.
Then I think of an old classmate of mine who I only recently reconnected with. We share much the same story. He lost his love at an early age as well, and still mourns the loss. He will for a long time as I will. He keeps going somehow. He mentions his partner often and relates memories he has of him. I admire him. I admire his courage and his strength. I can relate to the pain he suffers on a daily basis. But he moves forward as difficult as that might be. I admire him and his strength. His ability to talk about his loss with love and a thankfulness that he had that love, even if just for a short period of time.
And now, I think of my cousins. They lost their son at the beginning of this COVID-19 shutdown. They have more strength than anyone I have ever known I think. They have not been able to have a memorial service or really anything to mark the passing of their son. They won't be able to take this important step of honoring him and remembering him with friends and family that everyone else seems to have around for support. I hurt for them as I imagine having to work through something like. It will be another month before we are able to gather to remember him. Before we are able to show the love we had for him and the love we have for my cousins as they try to deal with all of this. I do so admire their strength. Never have I ever wanted to just hug two people so very badly as I do them. They are special to me and it pains me to think of the hurt they are going through over the last couple of months. I love them so much.
So we come back to me. Yes I had a few rough years. Yes 2018 seemed like a total disaster for me and that year will always be in my mind because of all the loss I suffered. Since July of 2018 I have tried to continue to write, not only for you but for me as well. Every one of the writings I have done has mentioned Barbara along with some other tragedy that hit me. That was a rough year. I realize I will always be effected by it. I realize that the pain I feel from those six months will not leave me. But I also realize how blessed I am, in spite of that year.
These others that I have talked about today have much more reason to hurt than I do. The losses they have suffered through are very real and each one of them hurt on a daily basis. i admire and respect every single one of these people. I look up to them for guidance, as an example of courage and strength that I feel I lack.
For the last year and a half, all I have been able to write about is Barbara. Even when writing about dad, I am writing about Barbara. I wrote about my first girlfriend in an attempt to give my readers a break from reading about Barbara, but I wrote about her still even in that piece. I WANT to write about Barbara, my dad and my sister. I think that it is a good sign that I at least have been able to write something lately. It does not come easy.
I imagine that these people that I wrote about here, look at my writings over the last year and a half and think about how lucky I really am and don't realize it. Trust me my friends, I realize how lucky I have been. I was lucky I was to have Barbara for those 42 years. I was extremely lucky for my dad to live into his 90's. I was lucky to have such a good neighbor and friend as Jim for all those years (side note on me and Jim; our friendship did not start out very well but as time wore on the bonding became very real and he was like a second father-in-law to me). I realize how lucky I was to have Lori around to take care of Barbara, and to help her on a day to day basis. I realize how lucky I was to have an uncle like Dale, who I watched change from a slightly bitter man (he had lost two sons while I was growing up) into a loving, caring patient man who thought about others so lovingly. I never knew my Uncle Dale very well, but when my mom visited him towards the end of his life he had love for me and my family that I didn't truly realize as he asked mom how I was doing since Barbara died. He cared.
I do know I have been lucky in life but it is hard to reconcile that with the losses. I kind of think it is because time goes by so fast. Life is so short but we don't realize it until death touches us. On a daily basis I think of all of you and try to understand your pain. I will never be able to accomplish that.
The important thing about all of this though. is this. These people who I have outlined their stories to you about. These people who are hurting beyond my comprehension. Every single one of them have been there for me, giving me support. Giving me encouragement. Listening to me as I work through my own pain. They set theirs aside just for a bit to help me with mine. That, my friends, is strength and love that I never expected nor do I think I deserve from these wonderful friends and family. Yes I have been so very lucky.
I admire all of you. I look up to all of you. I pray for all of you.
May God bless each and every one of you.
Tuesday, May 12, 2020
YOU AND ME AGAINST THE WORLD BUDDY
This began a short tradition of mine. Well, not short as far as time is concerned but short in the number of dogs this tradition effected. Milhous was eventually poisoned and died from internal organ damage at the hands of some unstable neighbors. I mourned the loss of Milhous. My first pet was gone. Barbara worked on talking me into getting another dog. We eventually did get a pup that would become a Christmas present for the family. I named him "Rudolph" or Rudy for short. It fit well because it was Christmas time and I could tell Brett he was named after Santa's reindeer but in reality he was named after President Ford, whose middle name was Rudolph. The tradition had begun. We were on a path of naming our dogs after Republican Presidents which left my mother very confused as to why I would do such a thing and cause my grandfather to further worry about me and my philosophy. It was fun.
Rudy and I were nearly inseparable. We went walking every weekend no matter the weather. He rode with me on rides everywhere I went almost. Rudy knew his limits but pushed them as far as he could. Sometimes he would slip out the front door and take off running. Luckily Rudy loved all our neighbors and when he got out all that had to be done was one of the neighbors to call to him and he would go to their house to get petted and wait for me to arrive to take him home. If it happened that none of the neighbors were out, Rudy would take off running down the street. I would casually walk into the house and get the car keys to drive down the street about eight houses where Rudy would be sitting on the curb waiting for my arrival. When I got to him I would open the car door and he would casually get into the car and get a ride around the block, which thrilled him. Rudy had a good life but as is the case in many retrievers, his hips eventually wore out due to joint displacement. He could no longer pull himself up from when he was lying down. Wherever he lay down, he was stuck until I came along to pick him up. He was in pain and did not have a great quality of life and so we made the painful decision to let him go. Barbara could not even go into the room where Dr. Lyle was going to give Rudy the shot. Brett stayed for a few minutes but then he had to leave. In the end it was just me and Rudy along with the Doctor as he slipped off. I had slept on the floor with him the night before and now I was lying next to him the next morning so he would not be alone. Once again I mourned and once again Barb worked on talking me into getting a third dog.
Emporia, Kansas was where our next dog hailed from. He was a pure bred Golden Retriever and a member of the American Kennel Club. His official name on the papers is "Clark's Ronald Wilson "Dutch" Reagan". Obviously I had high expectations from this dog. Dutch latched onto Barb from the early days as she trained him and got him prepared to be a dog that stood to my expectations. She was pleased with how Dutch would snuggle up with her instead of me and I predicted to her that he might be your pup, but he is going to be my dog. That prediction played out and I reminded Barbara of it plenty of times as the years passed. Like his predecessors, Dutch goes for walks and car rides with me as often as he can. He minds very well, even taking his medicine without protest. He still stuck close to Barb though. As Barb's health began to falter she spent more time at home alone with Dutch. They were together practically 24/7 for over two years. Dutch slept on the floor next to Barb. During this time I was Dutch's play mate while Barb was the comforter and nourished him. He went to her for petting and loving and to me for throwing balls and running around.
Then came July of 2018. Dutch had not seen much of me for a week. I would leave early in the morning before sunrise and come home late at night to let him out, feed him and then go to bed. He was getting needy I think. He had grown accustomed to not being alone in the house for such long periods of time. On that Monday though, I arrived home around five in the afternoon. He met me at the door and started pushing himself into my leg to indicate he wanted to be petted, which I did. I let him outside and filled his water and food bowls for him before letting him back in and going to my room to take a nap. He did not follow me.
When I got up a couple of hours later I found him lying next to the couch. Over the time him and Barbara had spent so much time together, that had become his place to sleep. Barb slept on the couch, and he slept next to her on the floor. As I walked into the living room he sat up and looked at me. His eyes followed me as I went to sit in my chair.I sat in my chair thinking about the days events. My life would never be the same. Neither would his. I looked over at the couch where he was sitting up just staring at me. It was as if he knew that things had changed. He stood up and walked over to me and gently laid his head in my lap and we petted for quite a while. I couldn't take my eyes off of him. He was very calm, more so than usual.
I finally found some words to say to him. "It's just you and me buddy" I said as I rubbed his chest and he looked at me. Maybe it was just my mood but his eyes seemed very sad to me. As we sat there quietly a song from long ago filtered into my head. "You and Me Against the World" by Helen Reddy. Beautiful song and the words seemed to fit this quiet time so well. From now on it would be me and Dutch together making our way through life.
That night as I wandered off to bed, Dutch stayed at his station next to the couch where Barbara was supposed to be. Her arm was suppose to be reaching down petting him on the head as they both fell asleep. Even though it had been a week since he had felt that comfort, he stayed next to the couch as if she were there. It was where he was suppose to be come night time.
Dutch slept next to the couch for three or four months, expecting Barbara to suddenly appear and pet him to sleep. As was also his custom he would get up at half past five and come to my room to wake me up for work. I took a trip to Alabama to see mom, dad and my sister and to try to get myself use to the new life I would be facing while Dutch spent some quality time with his brother, Bernard, at my cousins.
Me and Dutch have been getting accustomed to the new reality that we face. He now comes into my room with me when I go to bed and sleeps on the floor there. He still wakes me up at five or so every day, including Saturday and Sunday (sigh). The routine has changed a bit for both of us but we have established one that works for each of us. He still misses Barbara though. I can tell. He comes to me for his petting now but I am sure that in his head he is thinking it isn't the same. Dad just doesn't do it as comforting as mom did.
Dutch is getting old now. He has put on weight. His joints are starting to give him trouble. He is slow to lie down and slow to get up. He brings me his ball when it is time to play and lays his head in my lap when it is time to cuddle. He walks over to the back door and looks back at me over his shoulder when it is time to go outside. We communicate very well I think.
I dread the day when Dutch is no longer here. Right now we comfort each other. We help each other through everyday. I need Dutch and Dutch needs me. We are best friends in it together and we keep trying to move forward together.
Yes I do fear the day when I will lose him but for now, "it is you and me buddy". We will get through as much of this as we can ... together ... as a team.
I love you Dutch.
Friday, May 1, 2020
SINCERE CONCERN FOR VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN
I want to talk about Vice President Biden for a little bit. I do not want to weigh in on the recent harassment allegations against him except maybe in how his party may approach the situation. What I want to talk about is the changes that the Vice President has seemed to be going through during this campaign season. It may not be a popular writing with some of my readers because of what is coming to light about the Vice President. Let's try anyway.
Pre-accusation feelings on Mr. Biden. I respect the man. I have watched him in the Senate for many years and I feel like he had an air about him as a fair minded, bipartisan politician who tried to sincerely do what was best for our country.
I have been following national politics closely since the Presidential election of 1968 when President Nixon defeated Vice President Humphrey. With the arrival of cable television and the creation of the C-SPAN network that televised the House of Representative and later expanded to broadcast the Senate live as well, I was able to witness these politicians and decide for myself what kind of people they were instead of taking my grandfather's word for it. It was eye opening as I grew older and came to understand the working of the government better.
Joe Biden stood out to me. As I watched the Senate there were many Senators that I just could not bring myself to have much respect for. Among those were Senator Leahey, Senator Durbin, and Senator Kennedy (Edward) among others on both sides of the aisle. However there were many Senators that I felt were doing the best they could for their states and their constituents as well as the country. These Senators also covered both sides of the aisle and one of those was Joe Biden.
Joe Biden had my respect pretty much the whole time that I was aware of him and who he was. The thing that really won my respect for him though was when he was Chairman of the Judiciary committee. He presided over the extremely controversial confirmation hearings of Clarence Thomas to be placed on the Supreme Court. Justice Thomas underwent accusations almost parallel to the hearings that we just watched Justice Kavanaugh go through. There was an accuser. The Democrats smelled blood in the water and the Republicans wanted the accusations to be proved beyond a shadow of a doubt. It was ugly. It was nasty. It brought out an angry Justice Thomas that accused the process of being a "high tech lynching". Senator Biden, as I mentioned, was the chairman of the committee. What I saw Biden do during that 2 weeks of accusations, fighting, arguing presenting to the American people the United States Senate at it's worse, was a man who tried his very best to keep things in order.
Joe Biden tried, and I believe succeeded, in keeping the hearings fair and under control. He chastised both Republican Senators as well as Democratic Senators during that time. He gave and took on both sides. It was probably the most fair hearings I have ever seen coming out of the Senate (except for the Soto-Mayor and the John Roberts hearings maybe). Joe Biden stood tall. Joe Biden kept to his plan on how to handle the hearings. Joe Biden came off as a fair and honest man in my mind and he earned my respect during that time.
Since then, I feel like he continued to do an admirable job as a Senator. When he was chosen by President Obama to be his running mate, I was pleased. It made my decision on who to vote for in those two elections pretty difficult. I was not enamored with Mitt Romney and so that was probably the second toughest decision I had ever made in a Presidential election. The other one was in 1976 When President Ford was challenged by President Carter. I voted for Carter in 1976 and even though his administration can be seen fairly easily as a failure, he did some very good things as President. I was not, and still am not questioning myself on voting for Carter that year.
I did not vote for President Obama however. At the time I felt like Obama was too inexperienced to hold the office of President. He was a one term Senator with little, if any, other experience in National politics, particularly foreign policy. That was what threw me over to vote for Romney. I believe a President's number one responsibility is that of foreign policy and it just wasn't there with Obama. Even as Obama ran for a second term, his opponent Senator McCain was much more proficient in foreign policy than the President was. Through all of that though, I still held my respect for Joe Biden. Biden did know foreign policy. In my mind Biden was still that hard nosed Senator from years ago who was bi-partisan and honest and sincere. I still feel that way about the Vice President. (current allegations withstanding).
So that is my background concerning Joe Biden. I do feel like during his eight years as Vice President he became a little more partisan but over all still a fair, sincere man. That brings us to what my concern with the former Vice President is and what this entry is meant to be about. Most important about Biden was that he never seemed to jump on the "Hate President Trump At All Cost" bandwagon.
When we entered the current campaign season it was fairly obvious that the Democrats were going to have some bloody moments on the road. It seemed that the party was fractured widely between moderates and, well about as far left as you can get on a piece of graph paper ... maybe even off the paper. But then came Joe Biden into the mix. Now I can't say I agree with him on policy or really much of anything as it seems that Biden, as well as myself, have changed over the years. Still, I could see Joe Biden as that same man I saw at the Thomas hearings. He was an arbitrator early in the campaign. He would answer questions quick, straight and hard nosed. You didn't have to wonder where Biden stood on things and it began to appeal to the Democratic party.
Something began to happen though during the primary season. It wasn't easy to notice at first. Biden began to hesitate just a little before giving an answer. The pause began to grow as the weeks went by. Then Biden began to get words turned around now and again but was quick to correct himself. After that little anger burst began to come from somewhere deep inside him and a few times he threatened democratic supports and challenged them to what appeared to be fist fights out in the parking lot. Then it got worse and I began to really get concerned about Joe Biden as a man, as a human being. Joe was slowing changing into a Joe Biden that I did not recognize.
Over the past few weeks, the Vice President has begun to slur his words a little. His thought processes have begun to be disjointed. He forgets words entirely and can not correct himself. He seems to not be aware of where he is or sometimes what he is doing. During one campaign speech he announced that he was "Joe Biden and I am running for United States Senator". This was the point when I was convinced that early onset dementia was starting to effect Joe Biden.
I have no proof of this. There have not been any medical examinations or anything of the sort to confirm what I feel I see in the man. But I do see it. I watched my father slowly slip into dementia and what I saw in Biden was almost a mirror as to what I saw in my father. It continues to get worse in my eyes as the days go by. He looks old. He looks tired. His wife, Jill, has had to walk him off the platform a few times. He has wondered off camera. One night with the camera on him, he turned and talked to the wall with his back to the camera. He stops mid sentence constantly now trying to remember what his train of thought was. Personally, I see the dementia growing almost daily.
It is sad. I am sincere in saying that. It is sad to see any person slip into dementia especially when you have seen them with a sharp mind and very capable of taking care of themselves. It truly is sad to see Biden go through this. What I do not understand, what I can not understand, is how the Democratic Party puts him through this. It is becoming more obvious by the day that if he were to be elected, he would not be able to serve the country the way we deserve to be served. He would not be capable of carrying out his duties, of upholding the Constitution without the danger of being led by people who could be of questionable character talking him into making decisions that the Joe Biden of past years would never make.
I feel that the Democratic Party has to find a new candidate to take Biden's place on the ballot and they need to come out of their convention with a viable candidate. If they put Joe Biden on stage in a debate with President Trump, I do not believe I would be able to watch it. It would be so sad to see that once great man, not able to formulate a consistent argument or sentence without stumbling all over his words and looking tired and old. I would not want to see that. I don't think the American people would want to see that, no matter what your political philosophy is.
Now comes the only time I will bring up the current allegations against Biden. I truly hope that what I am about to say does not come true. My fear is that the party that Biden was a part of and loved for all these years may turn on him. They may use this scandal as the excuse to replace him at the convention putting him and his family through unnecessary turmoil. I think that this could happen to cover up the fact that the Democratic Party were ready to nominate a man who is so clearly unable to carry out the responsibility of the office if elected. This would be about the meanest thing that could happen.
I hope, my fervent hope, is that somebody in the leadership of the party, a few of those people, talk to Jill Biden and get her on board before approaching Joe with what everyone is seeing from day to day. My hope is that they are able to talk to him and make him understand enough to realize that stepping aside is the right thing to do. I have no idea or thought on who could or should replace Biden at the top of the ticket. That is what the convention will be for. My hope is that they treat Joe Biden gently with all the respect he has earned over the decades of serving his country. As far as the allegations, that can be worked out without a President being hampered as President Trump has been since he was elected. The situation can be handled in a just way, in quiet and outside of government.
Joe Biden deserves at least this much respect and decency. I truly believe this. The last time I felt this bad for a Senator that went down was when George McGovern and the democrats embarrassed and shamed my senator from Missouri, Thomas Eagleton in 1972 because it came to light that he suffered from depression and was seeking help for it. I feel like the situation with Biden is much worse than the Eagleton situation.
I am asking the leaders and members of the Democratic Party to please, please give Joe Biden some dignity as his political career comes to a close. He deserves it.
(As an aside, I do not condone any actions that Joe Biden may have done if the allegations are true. At the time of this writing it is reported that 8 women have made accusations in the past against Mr. Biden. This of course, changes my attitude toward him as a man in the overall scheme of things. I also believe he needs to be held accountable after an investigation is conducted)
Pre-accusation feelings on Mr. Biden. I respect the man. I have watched him in the Senate for many years and I feel like he had an air about him as a fair minded, bipartisan politician who tried to sincerely do what was best for our country.
I have been following national politics closely since the Presidential election of 1968 when President Nixon defeated Vice President Humphrey. With the arrival of cable television and the creation of the C-SPAN network that televised the House of Representative and later expanded to broadcast the Senate live as well, I was able to witness these politicians and decide for myself what kind of people they were instead of taking my grandfather's word for it. It was eye opening as I grew older and came to understand the working of the government better.
Joe Biden stood out to me. As I watched the Senate there were many Senators that I just could not bring myself to have much respect for. Among those were Senator Leahey, Senator Durbin, and Senator Kennedy (Edward) among others on both sides of the aisle. However there were many Senators that I felt were doing the best they could for their states and their constituents as well as the country. These Senators also covered both sides of the aisle and one of those was Joe Biden.
Joe Biden had my respect pretty much the whole time that I was aware of him and who he was. The thing that really won my respect for him though was when he was Chairman of the Judiciary committee. He presided over the extremely controversial confirmation hearings of Clarence Thomas to be placed on the Supreme Court. Justice Thomas underwent accusations almost parallel to the hearings that we just watched Justice Kavanaugh go through. There was an accuser. The Democrats smelled blood in the water and the Republicans wanted the accusations to be proved beyond a shadow of a doubt. It was ugly. It was nasty. It brought out an angry Justice Thomas that accused the process of being a "high tech lynching". Senator Biden, as I mentioned, was the chairman of the committee. What I saw Biden do during that 2 weeks of accusations, fighting, arguing presenting to the American people the United States Senate at it's worse, was a man who tried his very best to keep things in order.
Joe Biden tried, and I believe succeeded, in keeping the hearings fair and under control. He chastised both Republican Senators as well as Democratic Senators during that time. He gave and took on both sides. It was probably the most fair hearings I have ever seen coming out of the Senate (except for the Soto-Mayor and the John Roberts hearings maybe). Joe Biden stood tall. Joe Biden kept to his plan on how to handle the hearings. Joe Biden came off as a fair and honest man in my mind and he earned my respect during that time.
Since then, I feel like he continued to do an admirable job as a Senator. When he was chosen by President Obama to be his running mate, I was pleased. It made my decision on who to vote for in those two elections pretty difficult. I was not enamored with Mitt Romney and so that was probably the second toughest decision I had ever made in a Presidential election. The other one was in 1976 When President Ford was challenged by President Carter. I voted for Carter in 1976 and even though his administration can be seen fairly easily as a failure, he did some very good things as President. I was not, and still am not questioning myself on voting for Carter that year.
I did not vote for President Obama however. At the time I felt like Obama was too inexperienced to hold the office of President. He was a one term Senator with little, if any, other experience in National politics, particularly foreign policy. That was what threw me over to vote for Romney. I believe a President's number one responsibility is that of foreign policy and it just wasn't there with Obama. Even as Obama ran for a second term, his opponent Senator McCain was much more proficient in foreign policy than the President was. Through all of that though, I still held my respect for Joe Biden. Biden did know foreign policy. In my mind Biden was still that hard nosed Senator from years ago who was bi-partisan and honest and sincere. I still feel that way about the Vice President. (current allegations withstanding).
So that is my background concerning Joe Biden. I do feel like during his eight years as Vice President he became a little more partisan but over all still a fair, sincere man. That brings us to what my concern with the former Vice President is and what this entry is meant to be about. Most important about Biden was that he never seemed to jump on the "Hate President Trump At All Cost" bandwagon.
When we entered the current campaign season it was fairly obvious that the Democrats were going to have some bloody moments on the road. It seemed that the party was fractured widely between moderates and, well about as far left as you can get on a piece of graph paper ... maybe even off the paper. But then came Joe Biden into the mix. Now I can't say I agree with him on policy or really much of anything as it seems that Biden, as well as myself, have changed over the years. Still, I could see Joe Biden as that same man I saw at the Thomas hearings. He was an arbitrator early in the campaign. He would answer questions quick, straight and hard nosed. You didn't have to wonder where Biden stood on things and it began to appeal to the Democratic party.
Something began to happen though during the primary season. It wasn't easy to notice at first. Biden began to hesitate just a little before giving an answer. The pause began to grow as the weeks went by. Then Biden began to get words turned around now and again but was quick to correct himself. After that little anger burst began to come from somewhere deep inside him and a few times he threatened democratic supports and challenged them to what appeared to be fist fights out in the parking lot. Then it got worse and I began to really get concerned about Joe Biden as a man, as a human being. Joe was slowing changing into a Joe Biden that I did not recognize.
Over the past few weeks, the Vice President has begun to slur his words a little. His thought processes have begun to be disjointed. He forgets words entirely and can not correct himself. He seems to not be aware of where he is or sometimes what he is doing. During one campaign speech he announced that he was "Joe Biden and I am running for United States Senator". This was the point when I was convinced that early onset dementia was starting to effect Joe Biden.
I have no proof of this. There have not been any medical examinations or anything of the sort to confirm what I feel I see in the man. But I do see it. I watched my father slowly slip into dementia and what I saw in Biden was almost a mirror as to what I saw in my father. It continues to get worse in my eyes as the days go by. He looks old. He looks tired. His wife, Jill, has had to walk him off the platform a few times. He has wondered off camera. One night with the camera on him, he turned and talked to the wall with his back to the camera. He stops mid sentence constantly now trying to remember what his train of thought was. Personally, I see the dementia growing almost daily.
It is sad. I am sincere in saying that. It is sad to see any person slip into dementia especially when you have seen them with a sharp mind and very capable of taking care of themselves. It truly is sad to see Biden go through this. What I do not understand, what I can not understand, is how the Democratic Party puts him through this. It is becoming more obvious by the day that if he were to be elected, he would not be able to serve the country the way we deserve to be served. He would not be capable of carrying out his duties, of upholding the Constitution without the danger of being led by people who could be of questionable character talking him into making decisions that the Joe Biden of past years would never make.
I feel that the Democratic Party has to find a new candidate to take Biden's place on the ballot and they need to come out of their convention with a viable candidate. If they put Joe Biden on stage in a debate with President Trump, I do not believe I would be able to watch it. It would be so sad to see that once great man, not able to formulate a consistent argument or sentence without stumbling all over his words and looking tired and old. I would not want to see that. I don't think the American people would want to see that, no matter what your political philosophy is.
Now comes the only time I will bring up the current allegations against Biden. I truly hope that what I am about to say does not come true. My fear is that the party that Biden was a part of and loved for all these years may turn on him. They may use this scandal as the excuse to replace him at the convention putting him and his family through unnecessary turmoil. I think that this could happen to cover up the fact that the Democratic Party were ready to nominate a man who is so clearly unable to carry out the responsibility of the office if elected. This would be about the meanest thing that could happen.
I hope, my fervent hope, is that somebody in the leadership of the party, a few of those people, talk to Jill Biden and get her on board before approaching Joe with what everyone is seeing from day to day. My hope is that they are able to talk to him and make him understand enough to realize that stepping aside is the right thing to do. I have no idea or thought on who could or should replace Biden at the top of the ticket. That is what the convention will be for. My hope is that they treat Joe Biden gently with all the respect he has earned over the decades of serving his country. As far as the allegations, that can be worked out without a President being hampered as President Trump has been since he was elected. The situation can be handled in a just way, in quiet and outside of government.
Joe Biden deserves at least this much respect and decency. I truly believe this. The last time I felt this bad for a Senator that went down was when George McGovern and the democrats embarrassed and shamed my senator from Missouri, Thomas Eagleton in 1972 because it came to light that he suffered from depression and was seeking help for it. I feel like the situation with Biden is much worse than the Eagleton situation.
I am asking the leaders and members of the Democratic Party to please, please give Joe Biden some dignity as his political career comes to a close. He deserves it.
(As an aside, I do not condone any actions that Joe Biden may have done if the allegations are true. At the time of this writing it is reported that 8 women have made accusations in the past against Mr. Biden. This of course, changes my attitude toward him as a man in the overall scheme of things. I also believe he needs to be held accountable after an investigation is conducted)
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