65 thoughts on “So Long Aretha”

  1. I remember the first time I heard Aretha Franklin’s voice. It was a weekend, probably a Sunday. I was in the back yard listening to KAAY, The Voice Of The Southland. As the first note she sang hit my ear scoops, the hair on my back, the back of my neck, and over my entire scalp (I had hair on my scalp then, lots of it) – every single hair stood up. The skin on my arms stood up too. My back froze all the way down to my lumbar vertebrae. My body shook. It felt like a full-body twang.

    Then, she sang the second note.

     

  2. Growing up in the Detroit area during the 50’s and 60’s meant Motown, but importantly Aretha too.  In fact almost every Black singer or group was on the radio, especially those from Detroit.  One question that I had was why Motown Records never signed her.  That aside, her voice always meant Detroit to me.  Something about the city was woven in every singer and song.  WXYZ, WKNR (Keener Radio), CKLW (Windsor, Ontario) and a bevy of lesser power stations, blasted music around the clock.  Aretha was always there.

  3. thinking of gospel songs that were part and parcel Aretha, must post this one as huffpo reported on last night:

    James Corden And A Gospel Choir Taunt ‘Dirty’ Trump With ‘Mueller Indictment Song’

     

    James Corden hereby charges President Donald Trump with being “just the worst.”

     

    On Thursday’s broadcast of “The Late Late Show,” host Corden jumped into character as special counsel Robert Mueller for a spoof song about the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election and possible Trump campaign collusion.

     

    Joined by a full gospel choir, Corden zinged Trump over and over again with references to the probe, Trump’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin and his alleged affair with former porn star Stormy Daniels.

    Standout lines?

     

    “He’s the man you want to fire, but I’m preaching to the choir,” and ”Mr. President, if I may be completely candid. I caught you red and tiny-handed.”

     

     

  4. the guardian:
    Aretha Franklin: Barack Obama and Trump pay tribute – with very different words

     

    When the death of Aretha Franklin was announced on Thursday morning, one US president paid tribute to a voice that offered “a glimpse of the divine”, in which Americans could feel “our power and our pain, our darkness and our light, our quest for redemption and our hard-won respect”.

     
    That was the former president, Barack Obama, who released a joint statement with his wife Michelle praising the legacy of the woman known as the “queen of soul”.
     
    Donald Trump, on the other hand, could not resist opening his remarks on the singer’s death with a little self-promotion.
    “I want to begin today by expressing my condolences to the family of a person I knew well. She worked for me on numerous occasions. She was terrific – Aretha Franklin – on her passing,” Trump said at a White House cabinet meeting, according to a pool report.
     
    He continued, more warmly: “She’s brought joy to millions of lives and her extraordinary legacy will thrive and inspire many generations to come. She was given a great gift from God – her voice, and she used it well. People loved Aretha. She was a special woman. So just want to pass on my warmest best wishes and sympathies to her family.”
     
    Trump did not explain further when he said he knew Franklin well and she “worked for” him. But the singer had performed at one of Trump’s casinos and was photographed with him at the grand opening of New York’s Trump International Hotel & Tower in 1997.
    But the Obamas’ statement focused on Franklin’s importance to Americans.

    “America has no royalty. But we do have a chance to earn something more enduring. Born in Memphis and raised in Detroit, Aretha Franklin grew up performing gospel songs in her father’s congregation. For more than six decades since, every time she sang, we were all graced with a glimpse of the divine,” they said.
     
    “Through her compositions and unmatched musicianship, Aretha helped define the American experience. In her voice, we could feel our history, all of it and in every shade – our power and our pain, our darkness and our light, our quest for redemption and our hard-won respect. She helped us feel more connected to each other, more hopeful, more human. And sometimes she helped us just forget about everything else and dance.”
     
    The Obamas sent their prayers to her “family and all those moved by her song”.
     
    Trump posted a tweet that concluded: “She will be missed!”
     

  5. cbs news:

    Top former intelligence bosses speak out in favor of John Brennan

     
    Twelve former senior intelligence officials, including 11 former CIA directors and deputy directors and one former director of national intelligence, have signed a letter of support for former CIA director John Brennan, calling the signal sent by the White House’s decision to strip him of his security clearance “inappropriate” and “deeply regrettable.”
    “We feel compelled to respond in the wake of the ill-considered and unprecedented remarks and actions by the White House,” the senior officials wrote. “We know John to be an enormously talented, capable and patriotic individual who devoted his entire adult life to the service of this nation.”
    The letter’s signees include former Directors of Central Intelligence William Webster, George Tenet and Porter Goss; former CIA directors Gen. Michael Hayden, Leon Panetta and Gen. David Petraeus; former director of national intelligence James Clapper; and former deputy CIA directors John McLaughlin, Stephen Kappes, Avril Haines, David Cohen and Michael Morell, who is also a CBS News senior national security contributor.
    […]
    In their letter, the former directors called allegations of wrongdoing on Brennan’s part “baseless” and criticized the White House for what they said was a transparently political move.
    “[W]e all agree that the president’s action,” they wrote, “has nothing to do with who should and should not hold security clearances – and everything to do with an attempt to stifle free speech.”
    “You don’t have to agree with what John Brennan says (and … not all of us do) to agree with his right to say it, subject to his obligation to protect classified information,” the letter said.
    Since leaving his post at CIA, which he ran during the Obama administration, Brennan has emerged as one of Mr. Trump’s most consistent and vociferous critics, tweeting occasionally overwrought missives that have often taken aim at the President’s character, in addition to his policies. On Tuesday, Brennan waded into the latest personnel scandal that for much of the week had been engulfing the White House, lashing out at the President for calling a recently fired aide a “crazed, crying lowlife” and a “dog.”
    “It’s astounding how often you fail to live up to minimum standards of decency, civility, & probity,” Brennan tweeted. “Seems like you will never understand what it means to be president, nor what it takes to be a good, decent, & honest person. So disheartening, so dangerous for our Nation.”
    Though embraced by many of the president’s opponents, Brennan’s candor has been met with disapproval from a significant swath of the intelligence community, whose members typically pride themselves on doing their jobs dispassionately and apolitically. Friday’s letter was subtly caveated to that effect.
    “John has chosen to speak out sharply regarding what he sees as threats to our national security.  Some of the undersigned have done so as well,” the letter said. “Others among us have elected to take a different course and be more circumspect in our public pronouncements.”
    In the days following Wednesday’s announcement, a number of other prominent and generally measured former senior national security officials – in statements, op-eds and television appearances – fiercely defended, if not Brennan’s views, his ability to express them.
    In a “Washington Post” op-ed published Thursday, retired Navy Admiral William McRaven, who oversaw the Navy SEAL raid that killed Osama bin Laden, called Brennan “a man of unparalleled integrity, whose honesty and character have never been in question, except by those who don’t know him.”
    “Therefore,” McRaven wrote, “I would consider it an honor if you would revoke my security clearance as well, so I can add my name to the list of men and women who have spoken up against your presidency.”
    […continues…]

  6. The gift of music…been singing Aretha’s songs in my head since her passing.   And I could never sit still listening to her singing…swooning and moving with the rhythm and lyrics.   What a legacy.

  7. Awaiting the morning glory as we had a big storm last night.  Hubby’s play opened last week, we have new airbags in our car and awaiting conviction in the manafort trial.

  9. from slate:
    Here is the complete text of the ex-intelligence leaders’ statement:
     
    August 16, 2018
     
    STATEMENT FROM FORMER SENIOR INTELLIGENCE OFFICIALS
     
    As former senior intelligence officials, we feel compelled to respond in the wake of the ill-considered and unprecedented remarks and actions by the White House regarding the removal of John Brennan’s security clearances. We know John to be an enormously talented, capable, and patriotic individual who devoted his adult life to the service of this nation.  Insinuations and allegations of wrongdoing on the part of Brennan while in office are baseless. Since leaving government service John has chosen to speak out sharply regarding what he sees as threats to our national security.  Some of the undersigned have done so as well.  Others among us have elected to take a different course and be more circumspect in our public pronouncements. Regardless, we all agree that the president’s action regarding John Brennan and the threats of similar action against other former officials has nothing to do with who should and should not hold security clearances – and everything to do with an attempt to stifle free speech.  You don’t have to agree with what John Brennan says (and, again, not all of us do) to agree with his right to say it, subject to his obligation to protect classified information. We have never before seen the approval or removal of security clearances used as a political tool, as was done in this case.  Beyond that, this action is quite clearly a signal to other former and current officials. As individuals who have cherished and helped preserve the right of Americans to free speech – even when that right has been used to criticize us – that signal is inappropriate and deeply regrettable. Decisions on security clearances should be based on national security concerns and not political views.
    William H. Webster, former Director of Central Intelligence (1987-1991)
     
    George J. Tenet, former Director of Central Intelligence (1997-2004)
     
    Porter J. Goss, former Director of Central Intelligence, (2005-2006)
     
    General Michael V. Hayden, USAF, Ret., former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2006-2009)
     
    Leon E. Panetta, former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2009-2011)
     
    General David H. Petraeus, USA, Ret., former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2011-2012)
     
    James R. Clapper, former Director of National Intelligence (2010-2017)
     
    John E. McLaughlin, former Deputy Director of Central Intelligence (2000-2004)
     
    Stephen R. Kappes, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2006-2010)
     
    Michael J. Morell, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2010-2013)
     
    Avril Haines, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2013-2015)
     
    David S. Cohen, former Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2015-2017)
     

  11. We have two foxes in the hood…I took this photo of the fox in my neighbor’s yard.   Coyotes are walking down the streets.    A banner year for the wild life…climate change is changing habitat.

  12. Yesterday, I believe I heard that Aretha was only 25 when “Respect,” was released.  A voice like that & so young.  Amazing.

    The news also reported that she had two kids by age 17 (and two later), so it’s doubly amazing that she was able to have the career she had.

    My favorite Aretha moment was Obama’s inauguration because of the actually huge, outdoor crowd…and that amazing hat with the Hello Kitty bow.  I was/am obsessed with that hat.  Great voice, great style.

     

    patD & xr – Spite is the elixir of life.   Thanks to you both.

  14. Where is pompeo?  Should his security clearance be revoked?  SOS bungled the nuclear deal and the former CIA chief had the commander-in-thief visit the headquarters as one of his first moves.   Everyone at the CIA knows trump is putin’s toy and the election was stolen.

  15. wonder if this also includes the 12 former chiefs who rebuked him in the statement above.  looks like twit has taken another step toward dictatorship

    wapo:
    Trump gears up to strip more clearances from officials tied to Russia investigation
     

    President Trump has told advisers that he is eager to strip more security clearances as part of an escalating attack against people who have criticized him or played a role in the investigation of alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential campaign, two White House officials said. 

    […continues…]

  16. politicususa:
    Rachel Maddow sounded the alarm on Thursday, saying that Donald Trump isn’t just using his power to go after his critics; he’s also targeting key witnesses in Robert Mueller’s investigation.
     
    Maddow said that “the practical effect” of Trump’s move to terminate the security clearance of former intelligence officials is to “interfere with that former official accessing his or her own notes and files” to use during key testimony.
    […]
    or a president who repeatedly says he isn’t guilty of obstruction, Donald Trump certainly obstructs justice a lot. On Thursday, he even admitted that his decision to terminate Brennan’s security clearance was directly connected to the Russia investigation.
     
    As Maddow noted, reporting on Thursday suggests that Brennan was only the first, and Trump plans to target other former intelligence officials with similar connections to the Russia investigation.
    It’s bad enough for a president to abuse his authority to go after his critics. But Trump’s behavior goes well beyond that. He isn’t just waging war on those who criticize him. He is systematically attacking key witnesses in Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation.
     
    In doing so, the president has only bolstered the special counsel’s already-strong case that he is guilty of obstructing justice.

  17. Follow Follow @billmaher

    More

     

    I’ve been calling this Trump thing a since before the election – but its moving faster now. Dems say “We have to be FOR something” – how about Democracy? The Saturday Night Massacre is happening, just not on one night.

     

    9:16 PM – 15 Aug 2018

     

  18. No actual Democrat is saying they have to stand for something.  Democrats already do and it includes Democracy

    Why does everything begin with an insult to the Democrats?

  19. I hate it when IMPOTUS  tries to act like a human being.   He isn’t.  He has no friends. He has no playlist.  He has no favorite teams.  He never throws out the first pitch despite his claim of being a great baseball player.  No favorite movie, book or play.

  22. it’s one of my all time favorite movie scenes with my all time favorite Aretha song…

  24. “I hate it when IMPOTUS  tries to act like a human being.   He isn’t.”

    kgc, is this what you had in mind?

  27. Of course I con’t speak for XR, but as far as first notes in Aretha songs goes, Chain of Fools is a pretty difficult one to top.  In my mind, 1967 & 68 were really Aretha’s years – almost all of the songs we think about when we think Aretha were released then.  It was a stunning output in that stretch. I was not much of a “soul” guy back then, but Aretha transcended that label.  Hell, she could have sung kids’ songs and they would have been magical.

  30. The Fierce Urgency of Now has identified its slogan for the mid-terms:
     
    “The Adorables versus the Deplorables”

  31. The Avenger….Avenatti ….to the rescue….id vote for him for potus.

    The Ponderosa…er Omerosa for dnc chair…..they both have done so much already to bring down the Trump Thieves….all of them…..

    The Dems only have a hand full of brave people that even talk about trump in any spirited way….they are just waiting it out until they are safe…….with all of the ammo coming out every day….they should also be going after the Senate big time….but they will be satisfied with the house……not that they are fighting for it, deserve it…..but its just that they are waiting for the pendulum to swing back around….

    Jack, I have a very special neighborhood video that you must see…and show the wife (all of my cosmic vibrations for her are in my thoughts)

    This makes me feel like im  really proud to be a part of the human experiment.  Even has their own “Liberty Bell” This is what i call being truly courageous….saw this a while back and think of it often, and will every time i need a little ccccourage. make sure to watch it all:

  32. I dont know if your hving a hard time playing t hat vid…type in:

    how this town got rid of crime….it has english captions…

  34. from hbo:

     

    thisa one works. but you will have to hit the auto translate in the settings section of the lower right on the vid

  35. Just watched the hbo vid….i like the ot her one a whole lot more.  I shows how the women of the village should get the credit for it all…..worth the typing it in….later raining very light….going for a little barefoot earth walking…..

  36. The New Yorker had an article last fall about community policing in Mexico

    The practice has spread to neighboring countries.  It’s been an active movement for about 4-5 years.

    https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/11/27/a-mexican-town-wages-its-own-war-on-drugs

    It’s kind of one of those good news-bad news things.  Yes, it is good that something is being done.  It’s bad that it isn’t being done by the people who are supposed to

  38. To reload the page I have to get out of the thread then go back into it from the homepage.  (Could be my computer, but I’m not having that trouble at the Wapo site).

    EU governments have no doubt worried that full proscription of the group would hinder political and diplomatic engagement with Lebanon. However, the United States, Canada and the Netherlands have banned Hezbollah in full, and continue to maintain full diplomatic relations with Lebanon. The UK should follow their lead and encourage our international partners, including in the EU, to follow suit. It is time to ban Hezbollah in its entirety.

    Blue, last time I checked we are the primary country considered “the West.”  WTF does banning them mean?  That they can’t hold their flags up at rallies?  It’s not like they wear Hezbollah caps and jewelry so they can be recognized on sight.

  39. What was it IMPOTUS said about bringing coal back?  WVU disagrees.

    MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — While production has seen a turnaround since 2016, the increased demand isn’t likely to continue, according to “Coal Production in West Virginia: 2018-2040,” released by WVU’s Bureau for Business and Economic Research.
    Export demand for southern West Virginia coal — mostly metallurgical — accounted for most of the 27 percent production increase seen from mid-2016 through this June, the report said. But domestic demand for thermal coal has remained negative, largely affecting northern mines.
    Looking ahead, weakening export demand coupled with continued retirement of domestic coal-fired plants — in favor of gas-fired — will contribute to renewed declines. For southern coal, demand will drop over time as it becomes too expensive to recover.
    The report estimates 2018 production will reach about 91 million tons this year — a slight drop from 2017 levels. From 2020-2030, demand will drop by about 12 million tons, and fall by another 7 million by 2040.

    Note that the only increase in demand for WV coal was for exported metallurgical coal – to make the steel elsewhere that IMPOTUS is slapping tariffs on.  The article does note a 41% increase in export steam coal – mainly to China and India I’d bet. And further note that the overall demand was up a bit in 2017 and is beginning a slide for the next 12 years. And WV idiots will vote for the moron again in 2020, probably in record numbers. Brilliant.

  40. pogo, he saw the numbers improve for awhile in Wyoming…  thus equates in his mind with that other place which also starts with “w”…. and declared he kept his promise.

  41. business insider:

    Trump aides fear that Omarosa has as many as 200 recordings that they will appear on

  42. Pogo, sorry for your trouble. I can’t find anything amiss on our end. If you’re on an apple platform they sometimes hiccup on windows-based server like ours.

  43. patd, there’s likely a difference between WV & WY – Here. most of our coal is now deep and getting more expensive to extract as I understand it. I’m a little dense on the subject, but I understand that it is very marginally profitable at this point to mine coal here no matter where it’s going.  I’m in the “northern mines” area that has been hi t the hardest as pointed out in the article.  There ain’t shit going on in coal in this area these days.  A decade ago I’d be behind coal trucks regularly on Routes 33 & 50 and on I-79 – these days it’s water trucks and gravel haulers for the well sites.  Biggest difference other than that obvious one is that most of the plates are from out of the state now.

  44. if it hasn’t been done already, this commercial should be parodied with mueller label on raid can

  45. Poobah, nope , not Apple.  Seems to have smoothed out – could have been out server and firewall – it’s overdue for maintenance. (But the site is scolding me for posting things too quickly)

  46. craig & pogo, a lot of times lately when posting an anti-IMPOTUS article or story re twit and russia (particularly if it’s from slate, but others as well) I’ve had problems of the trail disappearing.  figure it’s just those pesky russkies .

    helps to clear history.

  47. Mr Sturgeone, the first time I heard Aretha Franklin she was singing That Lucky Old Sun. By the time she got to the word ‘in’ (the second word of the lyric), I was already her fan.

  48. Hiya, Solar !

    That Avenatti kid is brash, forceful, & unflappable. Is he one of your kin ? Maybe, he’s just imitating you.

  50. Ms Dallas,

    hezbullah is also an enemy of the saudis’ dominance among non-oily Arab states. However, the mention of the saudis fight with hezbullah & Iran probably would be counter-productive in the task of pushing public opinion against hezbullah. I was about to write, ‘against the terrorists’ when it occurred to me that assad, khameini, and the saudis are also terrorists. Finding actual good guys in the Near, Middle, and Far East is damned difficult these days.

  51. solar!  good to see you’re still in the business of good cosmic vibrations.  also agree with you about avenatti being a good guy.   people who are grousing about his possible/probable run should have heeded his words back in july when he very clearly said about IMPOTUS and 2020 [according to wapo]

    “IF (big) he seeks reelection, I will run, but only if I think that there is no other candidate in the race that has a REAL chance at beating him,” Avenatti wrote on Twitter. “We can’t relive 2016. I love this country, our values and our people too much to sit by while they are destroyed.”

     

    those who don’t want to see avenatti in the race should get on the stick and promote a better and more viable choice.  i’ll gladly vote for whomever they pick that can beat the twit in chief.  even if I have to hold my nose to do it.

  52. nbc news:  
    District Court Judge T.S. Ellis, who is overseeing the bank and tax fraud trial of former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort, said Friday that he has received threats that necessitate U.S. marshal protection to and from the courthouse.
    “I had no idea that this case would excite these emotions, I will tell you that frankly,” Ellis told the court as the jury, which was not present for his comments, deliberated for a second day. The case is being tried in Alexandria, Virginia.

    Ellis’s admission came during an afternoon hearing brought by a coalition of media outlets, including NBC News, to unseal juror names and bench conference transcripts of conversations the judge has had with the defense and the prosecution.
    Ellis refused to reveal the names of the jurors because he fears they would face similar threats — without being afforded the same protections.
    “I have no reason to believe that, if those names are unsealed, there won’t be threats against them,” he said.
    Ellis also said said he would not unseal the one bench conference related to the ongoing investigation, because he did not want to interfere in it, though at the conclusion of the case, he will unseal transcripts related to the administration of the jury.
    The prosecution and defense, including Manafort, were in the courtroom when Ellis made his remarks.
    […continues…]

  53. patd, My impression about the difference between WV & WY was correct – 80% of WV coal is from underground mines and about 99.6% of WY coal is in surface mines, and WY is producing 4 times as much coal as WV.

  54. Although I tend to be concerned about smart people cornered after committing a crime, I am very concerned about a low intelligence, mentally messed up, old man, who has a family history of Alzheimer’s, and is now given ultimate powers unheard of before in the history of the world.  There is the opposition side which is not heard from, they are working in a deep black world that has little shine on the world we live in, and which we can place hope.  They may possess many things to expose a disgusting freak to the world, and that scares him into new diapers all the time.

    If SFB goes very much further in his attacks on America things might start showing up, probably from “Russians” which he does not want out.  How bad, think very bad. Really dirty bad.  And, that is not including his money issues.

  56. I subscribe to the remarks of my former supreme leadership in the Business; should they need it, they can hunker here for mutual support. It’s best if they bring their own weapons and favorite ammunition.

  58. Everyone loves Aretha so much, they waited ‘til she was dead to express it.  People are so bizarre!

  60. I am reading a few articles in the NY Times right now, one caught my attention as the field is what I studied for a while in college.  And, I have followed with interest since as I have my DNA examined, spread across the Intertubes and compared to the word.  The current article is about a researcher (a scientist, but I am not sure I allowed to say “science” anymore) working on the earliest of cells.  Pre-everything except weird cells.

    This is from the article and very much fun reading, because primarily I am a scientist and enjoy this writing, and wish this was a standard for all newspapers.

    In the handful of years following his letter to Crick, Woese developed a unique methodology for this task, limning life’s history by way of the “internal fossil record” within living cells.  NY Times

    What I find disturbing is reading the comments and find so many disparaging the actual article along with people just stating that science is bad.  The sadness of how so many people want to remain ignorant and forcefully refuse to nave knowledge enter their lives.

  63. Solar

    Thanks for the links.

    Francisco/Pancho/Cisco(depending who he is talking to) His wife is from Michoacán, They went back to visit a couple of years ago. From what he described it is a rough world down there, with the town where they went the criminal gangs openly walked around with their weapons in plain site. Even having a local connection didn’t make him feel safe.

    Jack

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