I Should Dust More Often

I've been away for a bit getting a handle on thigns I'm not comfortable writing about here just yet. But, having basked for three days now in the afterglow of a monster performance by the Del McCoury Band at the Old Town School Friday night I will. Rather than get into the habit of posting for the sake of posting I opted to stay away for a spell.

Anyhoo, I'm reading the news reports of the Republican Hun invasion of Mahattan, trying to convince people as to why their vote matters, and seething at how John Kerry's Vietnam service has turned been into a campaign issue by a group of men who either skipped military service or never even served in the military. Then I found this and cracked up. Rolling Stone also has a wonderful article about the draft dodging prowess of Dick Cheney. Read it at the newsstand- there are more fun ways to piss away four bucks.

I picked up the new Steve Earle record last week. Even Steve knows he's preaching to the converted on this one, but it's still an admirable task to get this out amidst the political debate. It also rocks real hard. Interested parties should also check out his show Sunday nights at 9 p.m. CST on Air America Radio. Last night Steve's guest was John Sayles. They talked about the current political climate while spinning Townes Van Zandt and Lila Downes back-to-back. Why can't 'XRT do that?

Steve Earle is a keen motherfucker. He's one of the four people who make up the foundation by which I live (the others being Nelson Mandela, Malcolm X, and Spider-Man.) He's aware that one of the main issues in this election is overcoming voter apathy. If we can get a fraction of voters who don't think their vote matters to the polls in November, we won't need to worry about four more years of this frightening Presidency. The Press Release to Earle's "The Revolution Starts Now" begins, "It doesn't matter who you vote for. Just Vote!" This is a softer version of his liner notes from 1988's "Copperhead Road": "If you don't vote, don't bitch."

Truer words have never been spoken.