9. December 2005 • David Boyle
Email this article
Yesterday was the 25th anniversary of John Lennon’s assassination by Mark David Chapman in front of the Dakota building in New York City. A loss for the whole human race.
At least, though, Lloyd Cargo tells us in today’s MICHIGAN DAILY,
”...Lennon’s traveling art exhibit, “So This Is Xmas,â€? opened yesterday in Ann Arbor and will continue through Sunday.
The free exhibit, located at 217 North Main St., showcases the line-drawing talents of the man who was half of pop music’s greatest songwriting team and features videos and music from the legendary Beatle. The exhibit opens just in time for the 25th anniversary of his tragic murder. ...So young or old, casual Lennon fan or Beatles obsessive, check out “So This Is Xmasâ€? while you can. Although there is no cover charge, there is a suggested donation of $2, which will go to Dawn Farms, a local rehab and recovery center. ...”
Thank you LC. (“Lloyd Cargo” even sounds like some name Lennon would’ve thought up…) I hope everyone can see that exhibit, I intend to myself.
Anyway: RIP JL. Hope you are in a better place, after all you did for us. “We love you, yeah, yeah, yeah…”
« Previous Article Big Ten Party Store's sign in danger
Next Article General Franco still dead. »
|
Speaking of music and tragic death: Billy Bragg recorded this at Big Sky Recordings in ANN ARBOR on March 22, see the Guardian, The lonesome death of Rachel Corrie ,
“An Israeli bulldozer killed poor Rachel Corrie
As she stood in its path in the town of Rafah
She lost her young life in an act of compassion
Trying to protect the poor people of Gaza
Whose homes are destroyed by tank shells and bulldozers
And whose plight is exploited by suicide bombers
Who kill in the name of the people of Gaza
But Rachel Corrie believed in non-violent resistance
Put herself in harm’s way as a shield of the people
And paid with her life in a manner most brutal
But you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Take the rag away from your face.
Now ain’t the time for your tears.
Rachel Corrie had 23 years
She was born in the town of Olympia, Washington
A skinny, messy, list-making chain-smoker
Who volunteered to protect the Palestinian people
Who had become non-persons in the eyes of the media
So that people were suffering and no one was seeing
Or hearing or talking or caring or acting
And the horrible math of the awful equation
That brought Rachel Corrie into this confrontation
Is that the spilt blood of a single American
Is worth more than the blood of a hundred Palestinians
But you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Take the rag away from your face.
Now ain’t the time for your tears.
The artistic director of a New York theatre
Cancelled a play based on Rachel’s writings
But she wasn’t a bomber or a killer or fighter
But one who acted in the spirit of the Freedom Riders
Is there no place for a voice in America
That doesn’t conform to the Fox News agenda?
Who believes in non-violence instead of brute force
Who is willing to confront the might of an army
Whose passionate beliefs were matched by her bravery
The question she asked rings out round the world
If America is truly the beacon of freedom
Then how can it stand by while they bring down the curtain
And turn Rachel Corrie into a non-person?
Oh, but you who philosophise disgrace and criticise all fears,
Bury the rag deep in your face
For now’s the time for your tears.”
There’s a free download of the song in MP3 form on the page linked above.
—David Boyle (Free Billy Bragg MP3, recorded in AA!!, about Rachel Corrie) Mar. 28 '06 - 07:10AM #