Enjoy these rousing fanfares and marches from centuries ago: Symphonies And Fanfares For The King's Supper - performed by the Collegium Musicum De Paris, Roland Douatte, conductor. J. J. Some of the tunes no doubt will be familiar to you:
Index for the above pieces:
J.J. Mouret 1632-1738): Fanfares For Violins, Oboe, Bassoons, Trumpets And Percussion
Somewhat, a break from politics. I use the word somewhat because many politically-oriented words have been co-opted over the past several decades. Before expounding upon the changes in politically-oriented words, please watch the video below, which offers some interesting observations about words which have changed meanings over the centuries:
Now please provide your observations as to how politically-oriented terminology has been co-opted by the opposition and thus reduced "the conversations" to blather.
Police have confirmed that the driver who is held in the death of Indianapolis Colts linebacker Edwin Jackson and Uber driver Jeffrey Monroe was an undocumented immigrant who used a fake name and has been deported twice in the past.
Indiana State Police detectives have determined the driver was 37-year-old Manuel Orrego-Savala, a citizen of Guatemala. He gave police the alias Alex Cabrera Gonsales after the early Sunday crash that killed Jackson and Monroe.
"Orrego-Savala is in the United States illegally and has previously been deported on two occasions, in 2007 and again in 2009," Sgt. John Perrine said in a statement. "State police investigators are working with U.S. Federal Immigration Officials and they have placed a hold on Orrego-Savala."
This is the truck that the illegal alien was driving:
One example of the "fascination with all things Araby"* during the Romantic Period, Alexander Borodin's haunting tone poem In the Steppes of Central Asia:
Could this be true? If so, the federal bureaucracy has become rogue agencies and, possible, traitors in that they broke their oaths to uphold the Constitution of the United States (hat tip to Infidel Bloggers Alliance for the short video below):
.@MonicaCrowley: "This is the first of several memos. As bad as bad as this memo might be, my understanding is that there is worse coming down the pike." pic.twitter.com/yeZxHEKBJQ
The minute that any member of any branch of our gubmint doesn't want WE THE PEOPLE to have access to something, WE THE PEOPLE should demand to have access to that something. After all, all of our elected gubmint officials are supposed to be the elected public servants of WE THE PEOPLE.
Update:
The memo's text is HERE. So far, that site hasn't crashed. HERE is the Scribd link, which stays up or goes down according to how busy the traffic is.
‘We have a big challenge now to integrate those with permission to stay in Norway to make sure they respect Norwegian values,’ she says. ‘Freedom to speak, to write, to believe or not to believe in a god, how to raise your children.’
Understanding
‘Much of the Middle East and Africa is fragile. People have difficult lives but can see via mobile phones that life in the West and in Europe is quite different. So I understand why they would like our life, our kind of standards. But it’s not sustainable to integrate so many.’
Morality
‘For me it’s a moral issue as well. You can’t just help the ones you see. You have to think about the millions you don’t see and that have a very difficult life in the world.’
'...for the price of helping 3,000 young people here, we could help 100,000 children in other parts of the world.’
Refugee Crisis Human Trafficking
‘But when people travel through 20 countries to come to a safe haven, I think people can see that this is not right. You could have a safe haven in your neighbouring country, so why go so far?’
‘Why should we have a system that works for the people who have money [to pay for the journey] while the rest of the refugees and people in need don’t have the money to go?’
Much of the world is broken. What is the best way to help people?
In an article in The New Yorker in December 2002, music critic Alex Ross discussed the use of Tabula Rasa in palliative care for AIDS and cancer patients facing the end of their disease. Caretakers working with the AIDS patients would often be asked to play the "angel music," which was the dying patients’ name for the second movement of Tabula Rasa, "Silentium"]
So the gap in Strzok-Page texts begins right after their "secret society" discussion and ends just as Robert Mueller is being appointed Special Counsel. I'm sure it's nothing.
...[T]he reality is this: if FBI agents collaborated to fabricate or exaggerate allegations about Donald Trump and/or tried to bring down his Presidency through partisan motivations, it is game over on the republic. If the civil institutions we have put in place to ensure law and order apart from politics are infiltrated by politics, there really is no turning back. We are already at a "they started it" mentality in our politics and this will just escalate the breakdown. We have already seen this in the IRS twice in the past fifty years, first with Nixon then with Obama, and the second time was largely given a pass by press.
There are now real and troubling allegations stemming from text messages that include agents meeting to discuss an "insurance policy" and agents meeting in a secret society. There are possible missing or willfully deleted text messages.
To be sure, and this is very important, there is also a lot of partisan exaggeration by people trying to protect the President. There is a lot of conflation. But there are serious allegations and there is enough evidence now that we need an investigation. I do not believe we need a special counsel as it would only serve to undermine the existing special counsel and would be seen as such. The Department of Justice should investigate and fully and publicly release its findings.'...
What say you about "the insurance policy," over 50,000 missing text messages, and a "secret society" — all within the FBI — and apparently related to the 2016 Election?
...[I]ntentionally misleading news has been around since before the invention of the printing press. In fact, our Founding Fathers grappled with this very issue when they created our system of government. They saw that while it was tempting to censor fake stories, ultimately, the truth was more likely to be abused by an all-powerful government arbiter than the filter of unimpeded popular debate. Attempts to weed out factually incorrect news reports can quickly morph into fact-checking and manipulating differences in opinion....
Some musical beauty for this weekend. Close your eyes, and listen:
About this performance of Ralph Vaughan Williams's Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis:
The BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Andrew Davis at Gloucester Cathedral, where in 1910, it was played and conducted for the first time by composer Ralph Vaughan Williams.
After Hollywood's Girl Power orgy of lectures and flamboyant virtue signaling at the Golem Globs, some sanity from France:
"Rape is a crime, but trying to seduce someone, even persistently or cack-handedly, is not -- nor is men being gentlemanly a macho attack," said the letter published in the daily Le Monde.
"Federal immigration agents targeted nearly 100 7-Eleven stores across the nation for audits and inspections Wednesday, including several locations in Los Angeles, as the Trump administration ramps up workplace raids to punish employers hiring people who are in the country illegally."
Here’s the money quote, provided by “Imelda Vargas, who works for the dry cleaner across the street,” and “said it wasn’t right for immigration agents to target the store’s workers.”
“Everyone has the right to be here, to work,” she said in Spanish.
Why would this woman believe and espouse such an absurd statement that has no basis in law or fact?
We shelter the poor and unfortunate and give billions to help people around the world. We offer “temporary protection,” and instead of being thanked, we are assaulted with howls of indignation and condemnation when someone in the Trump Administration announces the program is ending and the people need to go home.
* 60,000 Haitians reside here temporarily because of an earthquake in 2010.
* 200,000 Salvadorans have resided here temporarily since 2001! “Temporary” programs with durations of eight years and 18 years! I didn't spend 18 years in my parents' home I grew up in.
Only dysfunctional DC could produce such pathos-drenched cluster-kludge kabuki over a "crisis" provoked by a "temporary" program ending. Most "refugees" and protected status individual snuck in here illegally and skipped over multiple nations to get here. Mexico's not good enough? Sly operatives in the Government-sponsored Human Trafficking Complex knew they could put on the puppy dog eyes via the Infotainment Media Complex to play on our sympathies when it came time for these poor unfortunates to go.
This is a grotesque, operatic abuse of the generosity of taxpaying Americans.
If we can’t send people back home after 18 years of a temporary program, when can we? Why not be honest and say, “Never!”
When will the Isle of Perpetual Misery known as Haiti ever be recovered enough to send these people home? By definition, “Never.”
The 200,000 Salvadorans here have produced 192,000 American citizens...
...the first wave of whom are becoming eligible to vote. Who’s up for deporting the parents of these US citizens?
Progressive pick-pockets are inviting guests to expensive banquets at our expense, branding them with Democrat party logos, and lapping up the votes.
This. Must. End.
No more bringing people into this nation to create little anchor citizens. When disaster strikes in a foreign land, we roll in, create camps with food, clean water, sanitary facilities and even schools for the displaced children. We feed and house them safely and humanely and even help rebuild devastated communities.
No more US-sponsored Hunger Games where we reward the survivors who treck across multiple nations to break our borders and live an un-earned existence as a de facto self-made US citizen.
It is also time for some harsh fact-facing
Mexico and Central America are lands of many blessings, but they are ravaged by official corruption and criminal gangs. The United States must be a partner in helping our neighbors to the south, but we must also stop being the safety valve. At some point, people in those lands need to get their shit together, demand more from their governments and clean up their act.
We have to end this cynical game played by progressives and globalists. Immigration, yes! But on our terms, not dictated by heartstring-plucking exploiters, political criminals and cynical manipulators.
Think I’m being cruel?
Read this story and weep. US Government bungling has created in the leafy neighborhoods of this nation the heartbreaking scenario of Central American immigrant families menaced by the very gangs they thought they had escaped.
For your listening pleasure this weekend, enjoy 25 Preludes, Opus 31 by Charles-Valentin Alkan (1813-1888), performed by the award-winning Finnish pianist Olli Mustonen:
Book I
1. Lentement (Slowly), C major
2. Assez lentement (quite slowly), F minor 1:55
3. Dans le genre ancien (In the ancient genre), D-flat major 3:50
4. Prière du soir (Evening prayer) , F-sharp minor 5:59
5. Psaume 150me (Psalm 150), D major 7:23
6. Ancienne mélodie de la synagogue (Ancient melody of the synagogue), G minor 9:42
7. Librement mais sans secousses (Freely but without bumps), E-flat major 13:41
8. Le chanson de la folle au bord de la mer (The song of the insane woman by the sea), A-flat minor 15:17
9. Placiditas (Gently), E major 18:11
Book II
10. Dans le style fugué (In the fugue style), A minor 20:00
11. Un petit rien (A little nothing), F major 21:12
12. Le temps qui n'est plus (Times that are no more), B-flat minor 22:22
13. J'étais endormie, mais mon cœur veillait (I was asleep, but my heart was awake), G-flat major 23:43
14. Rapidement (Quickly), B minor 26:15
15. Dans le genre gothique (In the gothic genre), G major 28:19
16 Assez lentement (Very slowly), C minor 30:12
17. Rêve d'amour (Dream of love), A-flat major 31:20
Book III
18. Sans trop de mouvement (Without too much movement), C-sharp minor 33:03
19. Prière du matin (Morning prayer), A major 35:52
20. Modérement vite et bien caracterise (Moderately fast and with spirit), D minor 36:28
21. Doucement (Gently), B-flat major 37:50
22. Anniversaire (Anniversary), E-flat minor 39:15
23. Assez vite (Quite fast), B major 41:41
24. Étude de velocite (Velocity study), E minor 43:05
25. Prière (Prayer) , C major 45:02
[more information about the composer and these preludes HERE at Musical Musings and HERE at Wikipedia]
Warren Buffett’s Time Essay gives us the most accurate and concise explanation of the economic miracle known as the United States of America. It is a message of hope that the greatest economic powerhouse the world has ever known will continue its unprecedented championship run.
“Two words explain this miracle: innovation and productivity. Conversely, were today’s Americans doing the same things in the same ways as they did in 1776, we would be leading the same sort of lives as our forebears.
“To all this good news there is, of course, an important offset: in our 241 years, the progress that I’ve described has disrupted and displaced almost all of our country’s labor force. If that level of upheaval had been foreseen–which it clearly wasn’t–strong worker opposition would surely have formed and possibly doomed innovation. How, Americans would have asked, could all these unemployed farmers find work?
“We know today that the staggering productivity gains in farming were a blessing. They freed nearly 80% of the nation’s workforce to redeploy their efforts into new industries that have changed our way of life.”
One of the many beauties of our nation is how our economy does organically “redeploy” workers to “new industries;” indeed that is one sign of a healthy, robust economy. Easy to do in boom times, but bad times leave cast-off workers mired in unemployment and despair. We are entering boom times, and we can’t allow all the hoopla to drown out the forgotten people.
Buffett closes his short essay with an optimistic challenge:
“The market system, however, has also left many people hopelessly behind, particularly as it has become ever more specialized. These devastating side effects can be ameliorated: a rich family takes care of all its children, not just those with talents valued by the marketplace.
“In the years of growth that certainly lie ahead, I have no doubt that America can both deliver riches to many and a decent life to all. We must not settle for less.”
I agree. How do we do this?
How do we "ameliorate" the "devastating side effects" and help those left behind catch up?
How do we build an America that will “deliver riches to many and a decent life to all?”
The above was posted by one of my former homeschool students. Today he is an accomplished pipe-organ musician and composer — with a doctorate in Musical Composition. He observed as follows:
love the reference to the Waldstein Sonata in the Beethoven section.
For those unfamiliar with the Waldstein Sonata, that work is below the fold.
Unless you've been living under a rock, you've heard about Michael Wolff's Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House, already a bestseller before its release date of January 9, 2018.
Additional reading: criticism of author Michael Wolff, including In its review of Wolff's book Burn Rate, Brill's Content criticized Wolff for "apparent factual errors" and said that 13 people, including subjects he mentioned, complained that Wolff had "invented or changed quotes" (Wikipedia)
(Originally posted on "Longrange" for Christmas 2004)
4:00 am 12/24/04
There was a knock on my front door which startled me awake. My dogs were barking which required my dire threats to quieten them as I answered the door.
Maybe you have heard of our weather and the unusually cold temperatures and large amount of snow that has fallen in the last 24 hours. I live just south of Interstate 64 in Southern Indiana and you may have seen the news about the closed Interstate and stranded motorists on the national news.
A man in his early fifties, about my own age, stood at the door. He was wearing tennis shoes, jeans, a field jacket and sock hat. His glasses were frosted and his pale white hands and reddened knuckles gave witness that he wore no gloves.
He told me he was lost and asked for directions to a certain address. I told him that he missed his mark by a mile and a half and asked him where his car was. He said he was walking.
I invited him in and sat a chair for him by the warm air from the furnace vent. He was shivering uncontrollably and a faint whiff of alcohol was on his breath. I asked if I could fix him something to eat but he refused and accepted a hot cup of coffee.
My wife talked to him as he warmed himself and I could hear him speaking as I prepared his fresh coffee.
My son heard his voice and came into the living room to sit and listen, and to watch, just in case.
How about some easy listening? Here is The Dean Martin Christmas Album in its entirety (Reprise Records, 1966; reissued, Sony Music CMG CD, 2017):
All the tracks in order: "White Christmas," "Jingle Bells," "I’ll Be Home for Christmas," "Blue Christmas," "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!", "Marshmallow World," "Silver Bells," "Winter Wonderland," "The Things We Did Last Summer," and "Silent Night." Of these selections, "Silver Bells" is my personal favorite.
About this album from the blog I Love Dino Martin, a blog site to which I occasionally contribute as a guest blogger.
There are several ongoing narratives. In the 2012 video below, Bill Whittle explains the Marxist background behind the ongoing narratives pushing the world to the Left:
Note that, since this video was first posted, how some of the mentioned narratives are now accepted as infallible truths — even by those who pride themselves on not falling for false narratives.
.@DaveWeigel@WashingtonPost put out a phony photo of an empty arena hours before I arrived @ the venue, w/ thousands of people outside, on their way in. Real photos now shown as I spoke. Packed house, many people unable to get in. Demand apology & retraction from FAKE NEWS WaPo! pic.twitter.com/XAblFGh1ob
Pastorius commented as follows when he posted the above at Infidel Bloggers Alliance in a blog post entitled "A New Yorker Expresses Real Man-On-The-Stree Outrage At Yesterday's Jihad Attack":
Thanks to the Duke of Pedalonia, who left this comment at this blog post by FreeThinke — and thereby called to the attention of readers at that thread just how drastically our pop culture has changed and is still changing.
...Let’s put aside the fact that in an era when women don’t cotton to the term girls, we really are discussing female juveniles: our daughters, or perhaps our past selves. In fact, as we watch Chevalier stroll through the sumptuous sets of the Bois de Boulogne, the Alan Jay Lerner lyrics are even worse than I remember: “Each time I see a little girl; Of five or six or seven; I can’t resist a joyous urge; To smile and say; Thank heaven for little girls.” Just wow – and how can this guy sing and smile at the same time? Pedophilia has never looked, well, so gleefully appealing.
Because let’s face it, the musical, based on the Colette novella, centers on the unsettling practice of grooming....
Before commenting, please pause for a moment to consider this about the film Gigi:
A 1958 musical film version, starring Leslie Caron in the title role, with a screenplay by Alan Jay Lerner and a score by Lerner and Frederick Loewe won the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Consider again the essay to which the Duke of Pedalonia linked at FreeThinke's blog....
Should classic cinema productions of yesteryear be judged by today's "more modern and more enlightened standards" and, therefore, become films, parsed to that point that these films can no longer be enjoyed?
Please opine on the topic of your choice according to the parameters below:
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Note: comments consisting of blog gossip or promoting blog feuds will be deleted as soon as an administrator of this blog becomes aware of such comments.
Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello last month asked federal taxpayers to shell out $94 billion to pay for the territory’s recovery from Hurricane Maria — then turned around and paid out about $100 million in Christmas bonuses to government employees on the island.
[...]
“Puerto Rico has demonstrated time and time again that its government is incapable of responsibly handling its finances. This is yet another such instance,” said Rep. Tom McClintock, California Republican and a member of the House committee with oversight on Puerto Rico.
Now, there is no doubt that Puerto Rico suffered massive hurricane damage this year. But for the Puerto Rican government to take a rake-off at this time is the very definition of government corruption, which deserves not to be assisted in any way, shape, or form.
I see that my friend Pastorius of Infidel Bloggers Alliance has an interesting post about the topic of this blog post here at AOW. Excerpt:
Sen. Graham: N. Korea ‘Miscalculating President Trump,’ Will Destroy N. Korea If Necessary
I am very ambivalent about our leaders making these kinds of statements.
On one hand, I would like us to rain fire on Kim.
On the other hand, the people of North Korea do not deserve to be punished for their leaders insanity. And the people of South Korea, and the people of Japan would likely suffer very terribly also.
If we were to rain fire on North Korea, obviously this could lead to a wider war, maybe involving China and Russia.
Please watch this short video about one of Roy Moore's accusers, and read the accompanying article "New Court Docs Blow Massive Hole in Moore Accuser’s Story." Excerpt from the latter (emphasis mine):
...One of Moore’s accusers, Leigh Corfman, claims that almost 40 years ago, Moore tried to initiate a sexual relationship with her while she was still a teenager.
Her accusations hinge on two points: First, that she was left alone with the then-32-year-old attorney Roy Moore during a family court case… and second, that she lived with her mother in Gadsden, Alabama, when Moore allegedly harassed her.
Both of those points have now been called into question....
[,,,]
Let’s be extremely clear: We don’t know with certainty whether the claims against Roy Moore are true or not. Neither does anyone else, except the people directly involved.
That is the point: When an accusation is made, the first rule of our society and our laws is that the accused are innocent until proven guilty.
What we do know is that the timing of these accusations is extremely odd. After decades of Moore in the public light, these claims emerged with only weeks left in a key election that the candidate seemed to be winning.
In America, nobody should be tried in the media. Period. Full stop.
Judge Roy Moore is being tried in the media.
The media in all their various manifestations — more precisely the Enemedia — are engaging in media malpractice.
In a special election to be held in Alabama on December 12, 2017, it is up to the people of Alabama to decide whether or not Judge Moore will serve as a United States Senator. Regardless of the voters' decision, that decision is not adjudication. We must keep in mind that, thus far, the allegations levied against Judge Moore are just that — allegations, not charges.
Do we really want America to be a nation that accepts allegations as facts without adjudication?
(A great big "Thank you!" to Stogie, who, at my request, designed the graphic in this post ub 2012. CLICK HERE to see the Thanksgiving graphic that Stogie created for his own site in 2011)
As most who frequent this blog know, I do a lot of moaning and groaning about the present condition of our nation.
Nevertheless, despite all of the negative things that we bloggers opine about, we Americans have so much to be thankful for! I am ever aware of that fact.
I didn't realize that genetic modification had become so advanced that it is now possible to change your own DNA.
This could be a boon to those suffering from genetic diseases but will it become possible for the freaks that think they're a man trapped in a woman's body to actually become a woman?
What about unintended consequences and mistakes that have the potential to, literally, create monsters? Would it be possible to eliminate or alter the gene(s) that cause the dreaded mental disease known as "Progressivism"?
🆘‼️😬🔥The strongest video! France between yesterday and today. By wrong policy in the downfall. Decide if you want that for your country! pic.twitter.com/kqeP7sOXzR
WARNING PARENTS! DO NOT bring your LITTLE GIRLS to Islamic France...
Due to the escalation of Jihadists raping children in France,
Sharia France is debating dropping the Minimum Legal Age for SEXUAL consent to 13 years-old so they can legalize Pedophilia! pic.twitter.com/bxJqGbjVoq
The Champs-Élysées Christmas market in Paris has been cancelled by City Hall councillors. It is considered the city’s main Christmas market and welcomes 15 million visitors every year.
This crusade is so pervasive and so successful that I do not believe it is possible to return to a time when America was a great place to raise a family.
Minxy is so happy here that she's laughing (yawning)! Photo taken at Mr. AOW's side as he's napping.
What of Amber? She's already accepted Minxy as a member of the family. Maybe because we lost Cameo and Mysti within the last seven months. The obvious fact that Amber has accepted Minxy: last night Amber deliberately left two pieces of kibble for Minxy. Cameo used to do the same for Amber.
When Minxy sleeps with me, like Mysti she grooms my hair.
More photos to come as Mr. AOW and I enjoy Minxy's kittenhood. I'm taking photos like a madwoman, and last night, I upgraded my iCloud storage for my iPhone!
Note: all links in this blog post go to posts at AOWS Photos and feature the kitty whose name is hyperlinked in this blog post.
Halloween turned truly terrifying for students and parents Tuesday when a driver went on a deadly rampage in front of several lower Manhattan schools — right as the afternoon bell rang.
Kids ran screaming down the sidewalk after the killer plowed his van into pedestrians and then emerged waving guns and shouting “Allahu Akbar.”
“Two women and a group of children — maybe 10 children — they’re running towards me. I hear one girls screaming, ‘Someone has a gun!'” said witness John Williams.
Frantic parents feared the worst as they waited to pick youngsters up from Independence Primary School.
[...]
Students from Stuyvesant High School and Borough of Manhattan Community College made it out of class in time to witness the carnage — bodies laying lifeless in the bike lane and victims were trapped inside a mangled school bus....
Over the next few days, we will, once again, see the same pattern: mourning with prayer vigils with candles, the placement of flowers, balloons, and teddy bears — and whatever else.
And, of course, the intoning of "Islam is a religion of peace."
Advice to accept the new normal and the mantra, "If you see something, say something."
In other words, after a few days or maybe a week, a collective shrug.
But I, for one, cannot become inured to all this.
I refuse to become inured to all this.
I must not become inured to all this!
Because, if I do, I surrender my heritage as a Westerner.
