dead can dance

lady_babalon, adamantine1 and i went to the Dead Can Dance concert last night. I don't go to concerts very often; they are overpriced, and i don't like crowds and loud noise. I made an exception for this special band whose music has touched me deeply.

Their music was even more moving, seen live.

I gather that this note from Lisa Gerrard has been sent out with copies of the concert recordings available for sale:

"Let this note be one of encouragement to you, that you will maintain your sanity in a time when so many are compromised for the well being of others.

Let these concerts dedicate themselves to the maintenance of sensibility, so as to inspire decisions made out of unselfish interest.

Let them be the olive branch that restores our love and faith in one another.

Let the purpose of us being here together be one of gentle pursuits aspiring to a peaceful consciousness.

How fortunate we are to have tasted the fruits of the abstract, so that we might find comfort in the resonant tissue that is our music.

Let our stories be told in innocent ways that bring knowledge of the things that are not seen.

Be well and know that you are special and capable of changing things for the better.

Know that you are very, very welcome, and that we are blessed by your company."

posted on the Dead Can Dance forum here

If you still want to see them, they have three tour dates remaining:
Oct. 8 - New York City
Oct. 10 - Washington DC
Oct. 12 - Chicago

color me not surprised

Among the rumors that spread as quickly as floodwaters after Hurricane Katrina, reports that gunmen were taking potshots at rescue helicopters stood out for their senselessness.

On Sept. 1, as patients sweltered in hospitals without power and thousands of people remained stranded on rooftops and in attics, crucial rescue efforts were delayed as word of such attacks spread.

But more than a month later, representatives from the Air Force, Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security and Louisiana Air National Guard say they have yet to confirm a single incident of gunfire at helicopters.

Likewise, members of several rescue crews who were told to halt operations say there is no evidence they were under fire.

from Rumors of rescue copters under fire unfounded (thanks to supergee for the link)

et tu, McCain?

Why are the conservatives upset by the Harriet Miers supreme court nomination? You'd think they would be happy to see Bush nominate someone who is abortion-hating and gay-rights-hating.

But they are clearly extremely upset. And, what's more, they are talking about Bush as though they no longer think he is one of them anymore. They talk about feeling betrayed, taken for granted, feeling like their efforts have been hijacked. I'm sure i'm not the only leftist thinking, "Hey, they're not allowed to feel demoralized! That's my job!"

They should feel on top of the world, no? The Democrats are not spoiling for a fight over Miers, so they are scant weeks away from acheiving their three-decade goal of stacking the Supreme Court with anti-abortionists. Even so:

William Kristol: I'm disappointed, depressed and demoralized.

Senator Trent Lott: "[i'm] not comfortable with the nomination. Is she the most qualified person? Clearly the answer to that is no."

Ann Coulter: Bush has no right to say "Trust me." He was elected to represent the American people, not to be dictator for eight years.

George Will: The president's "argument" for her amounts to: Trust me. There is no reason to, for several reasons. (thanks to zarq for this link and the one before)

Maggie Gallagher: "Disappointed, depressed, demoralized." That's how Bill Kristol, editor of The Weekly Standard, reacted to President Bush's nomination of His Girl Harriet to the Supreme Court of the United States. Yes, that about sums it up. I've tried hard to shake the feeling. ... This is not political disappointment. This is something deeper.

Do you suppose they are truly this disappointed about Harriet Miers? Or... or, maybe they have just decided it is time to put as much distance as possible between them and Bush. In trying to make sense of this, i can come to only one conclusion: after all the recent indictments, after the Iraq debacle and the Hurricane Katrina debacle, after plummeting poll numbers, the neocons have lost their shine, and their support is collapsing.

I had been wondering which coalition was going to implode first, the left or the right. I think we're seeing the answer to that play out.

The timing of the Senate's landslide vote against the use of torture is very telling. Senator John McCain was harshly smeared by Bush during the 2000 presidential campaign, and one has to imagine that he's been waiting for the right moment to strike back. He chose his moment well; and i get the feeling that he is savoring the sensation of being the last one to stick his dagger into the chest of dying Caesar.