Ain't this America?

Here we are on the downside of 2022, essentially at the speartip of all human knowledge and progress to this very moment in time and space, and yet, I can't believe in this country:

• That we are still talking about banning books. According to PEN America, 1,145 titles – an historic high – have been banned by school districts across the nation between July 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022. I'm guessing you can add several more books to the list since March.

But in a country that likes to pride itself in the First Amendment and the expression of free thought, the very idea of banning any book for any reason should be anathema. It reeks of Nazism and fascism. It brings to mind those old newsreel clips of Hitler's Nuremberg torchlight parades of the 1930s that culminated in fevered book burnings.

When you start banning books, it becomes easier to ban anything.

• That vaccinations are a point of contention. History should be all the proof you need that vaccinations are essential to the general welfare of the public. George Washington, fighting for this country's very independence and personal freedoms, demanded that his troops be vaccinated against smallpox. This wasn't a needle – it required offering a live culture to an open wound. So who's afraid of needles now?

Even current history offers us an example. Vaccinations for Covid-19 clearly offered protection from the disease as those people requiring ventilators declined. But Covid became a pandemic of the unvaccinated as many people who refused to get a shot became sick. Many died, often while trying to stubbornly take a deadly political stance.

Don't tread on me, indeed.

• That guns permeate our society like never before. Just what in the hell are we afraid of? Do we distrust our neighbors so much that we have to arm ourselves to the teeth with military style weapons? This is when I like to pull out that quaint evangelical nugget, "What Would Jesus Do?" I'm pretty sure he wouldn't shoot you.

• That we can lose a Constitutional right after 50 years of settled law.

• That white grievance seems to be the subtext for just about anything in this country. The current outrage for many Republicans is the forgiveness of student debt from oppressive federal loans (even though I bet many Republicans have taken out student loans). Granted, the issue is complicated and complex, but then the fairness issue crops up. Fair to whom? Minorities, who statistically have the greatest debt, might benefit the most from this forgiveness.

One argument is that those not going to college will be paying the debt by shifting tax responsibility. That may be true, but then, what's fair? Kim and I don't have children, yet we've been paying school taxes for as long as I can remember. What's fair about that? Not much, I guess, but we understand the investment we make in our country's future by paying school taxes.

• That we are still talking about voting rights. Why is the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act so difficult to pass? Who doesn't want to expand voting rights? We pride ourselves in our democracy, yet we can't find it within ourselves to make sure everybody has equal access to the polls. And don't get me started on gerrymandering districts.

But, hey, ain't this America?

Eleanor's got it covered

Whenever Eleanor Underhill sets her mind on a project – whether it be musical, literary or even graphically artsy – it's probably best to let her follow her muse and simply tag along for the adventure. That's because she reveals remarkable talents in all of these right-brained (or is it left-brained?) hemispheres.

A case in point is the recent release of her latest CD, Got It Covered, in which she offers us her interpretation of 16 – that's right, folks, count 'em, 16 – favorite songs written by other artists.

Eleanor Underhill and friend.

 Those who know Eleanor (I've known Eleanor for nearly 10 years now, so I feel somewhat free to call her by her first name whenever I write about her) probably know her best as the banjo-playing half of the Americana duo Underhill Rose. She and singing partner Molly Rose Reed often appeared at High Rock Outfitters in Lexington and wowed us with their harmonies and comfortable stage presence.

But then the pandemic came and changed a lot of things. Furthermore, Molly and her husband, Tyler, have twice become parents over the past five years. Consequently, Underhill Rose found its touring schedule limited and confined mostly to the Asheville area, where they live.

But Eleanor couldn't stand still. I figure there's a sentient motion sensor embedded somewhere in one of her cranial hemispheres. In 2018, she released her first solo CD, Navigate the Madness, which gave her an opportunity to explore more eclectic musical paths other than folk and Americana, complete with songs that she herself composed. Doors opened and the well-received Land of the Living was released in 2020.

Now, prodded (her word) by her fans to do some cover work, she's come out with Got It Covered. 

Before I get into the song list, let me note that as talented as Eleanor is with the banjo, she is equally adept in the studio. In this instance, the album was produced in her home studio performing not only with her signature open-back banjo, but also piano, synthesizers, percussion, trumpet and trombone. Whew. Makes me wonder if she had time to feed her cat between producing and engineering this CD.

She also gets accompaniment from Zack Page on bass, Silas Durocher on acoustic and electric guitar, Jacob Rodriguez on sax, Will Younts on drums and Jane Underhill (her mom) on autoharp.

As for the songs, well, Eleanor runs the gamut, from a haunting "Eleanor Rigby" (The Beatles) to "Midnght Train to Georgia" (Gladys Knight), from "Boys of Summer" (Don Henley) to "Stand By Me" (Ben E. King). The song choices are so diverse that it really makes sense for this collection.

I had several favorites. Radiohead's "Creep" features piano and synth strings to Eleanor's emotive interpretation; The Rolling Stones "Beast of Burden" becomes a totally different song behind a female voice that inquires and promises at the same time; Tina Turner's "What's Love Got To Do With It?" highlights an unexpected banjo plea. And Madonna's "Like A Prayer" marries Eleanor's voice with the sounds of her banjo. It's almost as if they are having a conversation with each other.

But I think my favorite tune is "Waste" by Phish. This song is adroitly arranged with Eleanor turning soulful, maybe even lyrically philosophical, again with strings laying the groundwork. At least, that's what I felt. I wonder if it's her favorite, too?

I'm not a music critic by trade, but I think I know what I like when I hear it. These covers will likely take you to different places in the hemispheres of your own brain, to places where Eleanor herself has visited. I bet you enjoy the adventure.

 

 

 

Presidential despair

Never in my life did I ever expect to hear of the groundwork being set for an investigation of a President of the United States of America for violation of the Espionage Act.

And yet, this is where we are.

Earlier this past week it was revealed that the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the auspices of the Deportment of Justice, conducted a court-approved search for classified documents on the Mar-a-Lago premises of former President Donald Trump.

Yep. That's right. Secret documents. Top secret documents. Documents that could compromise the national security of this nation if delivered to the wrong hands.

Trump apparently had these documents illegally removed from the White House during the fading hours of his presidency in 2020. That would be just weeks after the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol, in case you're keeping a timeline.

The seizure of the documents – some marked as secret, others as top secret, and at least one box of files labeled as TS/SCI (Secure Compartmentalized Information), the highest level of classification there is – raises three critical questions:

1. Why did Trump take the archives in the first place? It's illegal.

2. Why did he not return all of them when he was asked to? At least 15 boxes were returned in February, but apparently 11 boxes remained in the basement at Mar-a-Lago. After lengthy negotiations (huh? Why do you need negotiations?) to return the files, Trump then ignored a subpoena to return the documents, thus necessitating the seizure.

3. And, most importantly, what was he planning to do with the documents? Sell them to the highest bidder? Display them on his office walls? Show them to friends over dinner?

Trump's actions and refusal to initially return the documents has put him in legal crosshairs. He could be in violation of the Presidential Records Act (1978) that mandates the preservation of all records.  

He also could be in violation of the Espionage Act (1917) which states: "Whoever, lawfully having possession of…any document…relating to the national defense which information the possessor has reason to believe could be used to the injury of the United States or to the advantage of any foreign nation…willfully retains the same and fails to deliver it on demand to the officer or employee of the United States entitled to receive it is guilty."

There is speculation that some of those documents contain nuclear secrets. If that is so, then he could be in violation of the Atomic Energy Act (1954).

Good grief.

Almost as a reflexive action, Trump initially denied any wrongdoing after revealing his property was searched by the FBI. Then he claimed President Obama retained sensitive files (false). Then he said the documents were declassified (even if they were, it's still a crime to remove them from the National Archives, no matter what their classification). I guess he's trying to find which excuse sticks best to those food-stained walls where he childishly threw his dinners in fits of pique.

The fact that he kept 11 boxes of files (He implied to the Archives that he has turned in all the boxes, and his lawyers signed off on it. Oh, boy. I hope his lawyers have good lawyers.) now subjects him to obstruction of justice charges. Does that one sound familiar? Echos of obstruction ring all through the Trump administration hallways.

The DOJ apparently learned  of these unreturned files through a mole squeaking at Mar-a-Lago. Now the guessing game is wondering just who the informant is. My top two choices are former chief of staff Mark Meadows or top administration advisor Jared Kushner, both of whom have plenty to lose if they themselves are involved in this mess in any way. Stay tuned.

On the surface, the theft of these documents (what else would you call it?) appears to be extremely stupid. Or else it's extremely sinister, which seems more likely.

If there's one thing more disturbing than a president of the United States neglecting his oath of office to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, it's a Republican Party that mostly has shielded Trump at every turn. It's how he survived two impeachments. It's how this country came up with an immigration policy to separate 5,000 children from their parents at the Mexican border. It's how we watched a bizarre collection of Republicans celebrating the cutting of taxes from the country's richest Americans. It's why there's denial that Jan. 6 even happened.

It's this is why we're even here.

 

More email scrubbings?

Since we last talked two weeks ago, we were astounded that the once sacrosanct Secret Service had deleted agency emails during a scheduled cellphone migration. That was bad enough and perhaps in violation of the Federal Records Act to remove or mutilate government records, but then we found out that the purged messages covered the period of the disgusting January 6 insurrection attempt at The Capitol.

Shortly after that revelation, we learn that the Department of Homeland Security, charged with investigating the scrubbing of Secret Service texts, sat on this information for five months and actually attempted to thwart its own agents from recovering the missing Jan. 6 data.

Whaa???

Now this week we learn that several officials in the Pentagon – including former acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller, former Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy, and former Pentagon chief of staff Kash Patel – had their government cell phones scrubbed as they left office despite being advised not to because of pending investigations.

You've got to be kidding. The Pentagon? Don't you think there's some good info floating around inside that peculiar five-sided building as to why the National Guard was delayed in responding to the Jan. 6 siege of The Capitol?

And Friday we learned that the FBI received more than 4,500 tips regarding allegations of sexual misconduct and assault toward Christine Blasey Ford by then conservative Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. According to FBI Director Christopher Wray, the pathetically short week-long investigation of Kavanaugh was actually directed by former President Donald Trump, which suggests the entire investigation was a sham that was rigged by the most thoroughly corrupt president in American history. Surprise, surprise. "I like beer" Kavanaugh was subsequently voted to the bench by a partisan Senate and now we're dealing with the earth-rattling reversal of Row v. Wade after 50 years of Constitutional protection for abortion rights. 

Sweet Jesus, where is this country headed? 

But back to emails and texts. The first thing that came to mind was Hillary Clinton and her 30,000 deleted emails. After the latest news of scrubbing dripped out of the Pentagon, I had to laugh. I mean, the poison of corruption and lies seeping from the former Trump administration into one government agency after another is apparently wide-ranging as it is infuriating. There's a new scrubbing revelation every week, it seems.

I found this tweet the other day that says it all:

'"I can't vote for that lady (Clinton) because she once used a private email server" to literally everyone in this (Trump) administration has illegally deleted their official texts in four short years.'

Interestingly enough, we may soon get the incriminating evidence we need from Infowars mogul and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, a detestable human being who has claimed that the massacre of school children at Sandy Hook was a hoax perpetrated by crisis actors. It was revealed in Jones's trial this past week that his lawyers "accidentally" sent texts and emails to the attorneys representing the Sandy Hook plaintiffs who were suing Jones. This is significant because Jones was a key figure in the Jan. 6 insurrection riots at the Capitol.

Those texts will be sent to the Jan. 6 Committee investigating the riots.

This "leak" would be comical if it wasn't so serious.

So this is where we are. Stay tuned.