Open Thread 1

I post these threads on Friday afternoons to give people a chance to just chatter without having to comment on a post. I’m happy to answer questions, read suggestions about our blogs, or chit-chat about pretty much any topic.

I always include a question in case no one can think of anything much to say. Answering the question is optional, but if three other people answer it, I answer it on the thread myself.

Here’s my question for today. Bloggers love to do regular features. What’s your favorite feature on the blogs you read regularly? It’s ok to name a few if you can’t pick just one.

– I’ve given this one a real number because they’ve been good so far, so I think it’s safe to go ahead and call this a thing.

Happy Independence Day

I posted the full text of The Declaration of Independence at Just Gene’O today. I’m not going to wax poetic here today. I’ll share a song instead.

“This Land is Your Land” has always been one of my favorite songs. It’s Guthrie’s response Berlin’s “God Bless America,” and it’s very much a critical responst. Here’s Pete Seeger and a couple of other musicians you might recognize performing it with Guthrie’s original lyrics at the Presidential Inaugural Concert in 2009. The last stanza was added during the Civil Rights Movement; I’m not sure if it’s Seeger’s work or someone else’s, but it sounds like him.

The Wiki has a pretty good page that explains the history of the song and discusses  how the lyrics have evolved over the years.