What happened to Obama? NYT Opinion

Indeed, this article had me wincing at times, mostly because of how blatantly and disappointingly true I found it to be.  The last thing we needed in the wake of the Bush administration was someone willing to straddle the line that divides blue and red.  We needed the boldest, loudest blue imaginable, which is what we voted for, but is not what we're seeing.  It seems as though Obama has regrettably muddled his color to purple.

"But the arc of history does not bend toward justice through capitulation cast as compromise. It does not bend when 400 people control more of the wealth than 150 million of their fellow Americans. It does not bend when the average middle-class family has seen its income stagnate over the last 30 years while the richest 1 percent has seen its income rise astronomically. It does not bend when we cut the fixed incomes of our parents and grandparents so hedge fund managers can keep their 15 percent tax rates. It does not bend when only one side in negotiations between workers and their bosses is allowed representation. And it does not bend when, as political scientists have shown, it is not public opinion but the opinions of the wealthy that predict the votes of the Senate. The arc of history can bend only so far before it breaks."

Roar

lest we forget the dead

I am pretty much stunned that I got around to this before Bobby did, but today is the sixteenth anniversary of the death of the legendary Jerry Garcia. Now, as a metal head, I am not typically expected to be a fan of bands like The Dead and subsequently spawning "jam bands" or "hippie bands" or whatever it is that you want to call the genre. However, around the age of sixteen, I was introduced to a little green guy who said, "Toss me into the funeral pyre and throw some records on the table, dude" (that was a mix of metal and chill language blending in my head). Well that little bud of mine helped me to open my mind to many things, and some additional buds in college (real live buds, the Pinehurst boys) certainly helped push that process along by taking me to some great shows (most memorably moe. on Halloween Albany '09, Phish Hartford summer '10). And so I would venture to say with confidence that I am a pretty open-minded metal head. And it seems like Brian Fair, frontman of Shadows Fall, is as well, and perhaps experienced a revelation similar to mine. Check out his guest spot on Metal Insider regarding Jerry and The Dead, and then have a little chuckle at Axl's commentary on MetalSucks. But most of all, remember Jerry today:

The Scarlet Tombstone

Literary and Metal freaks unite, for today's Metal Monday features a dark, deep, blood-red literary secret hidden smack in the middle of Downtown Boston. 

Not long ago I was meandering around downtown, trying to kill some time, when I decided to check out King's Chapel Burying Ground, one of two historic cemeteries in the middle of Downtown Boston that I have never visited.  I strolled around, the morning sunlight breaking through the branches high above me, when I stumbled upon this gem of a tombstone, marking the grave of the long deceased Elizabeth Pain.  If you're at all like me, you would currently be asking yourself in a puzzled, quizzical, inner-workings-of-your-head voice, "Who?"

sweet sweet summer tour hits LA

Metal heads and thrashers alike must peep this tour. I, for one, have seen Pelican live (with Circa Survive 2008) and they kill it live with a very cool blend of hardcore, alternative, and metal. Check 'em out with Eyehategod and Pentagram as they brutalize Echo Park at the Echoplex (awesome venue) on Saturday August 13th.

Read more about the tour at MetalSucks:

BEHOLD, THE POWER OF THE RIFF: FREE SOUTHERN LORD DOWNLOADABLE SAMPLER

Mellow Mondays

Also, for the very first time ever, we are presenting Mellow Monday (what a day!), in special tribute to Jerry Garcia, who would have turned 69 years old today.  If you're feeling a little tired from the weekend, just sit back in your chair, close your eyes for a minute (or ten), and let Jerry's sweet voice carry you away.

Stay tuned for more JG tributes, as August 9 marks the 16 year anniversary of his death.

Metal Mondays

Blogging Molly is proud to bring you our first ever Metal Monday, with perhaps one of the most terrifying streets in the entire country, courtesy of Metal Injection.