on LET FREEDOM RING

January 15th
Although confused at first, I eventually figured out this distinctly American phrase. First the Liberty Bell and now this – I think January has two themes: patriotism and winter. I’m excited to see what the answer is on inauguration Tuesday. Maybe Barackobama!

On LET FREEDOM RING
I looked up ‘Let Freedom Ring’ on Wikipedia and a Jazz Album by Jackie McLean, and a book by Sean Hannity came up. I also put ‘Let Freedom Ring’ into google, and a bunch of right-wing websites popped up. Eventually I discovered that it comes from the patriotic song “My Country ‘Tis of Thee”
Sean Hannity is on a show that, until recently, was called Hannity and Colmes. What I just discovered through Wikiresearch is that Colmes is supposed to be Hannity’s liberal foil. I had always thought they were two crazy conservative guys, but then again I only have seen them through the Daily Show and Colbert Report.
Alan Colmes was also on my favourite ever episode of the Colbert Report, where he became co-host for one episode, criticized Colbert for putting Watership Down in his non-fiction section, and turned into a bat at the end of the show.
I was recently down in Florida and, for fun, we would listen to the right wing radio and laugh at the crazy things they would say. I was a bit worried that my parents knew what station it was, and I’m not sure if they listen to laugh or listen to listen. But mostly they seem like normal liberal Canadians.
When I write things like that, I can’t help but feel I am playing into the hands of the provocateurs. I’ve ushered at Massey Hall for a bunch of comedy concerts, and even though I agreed with him, Bill Maher’s pandering to his liberal lefty crowd seemed just as lazy as Jeff Dunham and Artie Lange with their boorish right-wingers. I’m not saying anything original when I say right wing crazies are crazy, wrong and hurtful. They treat important issues like they are players in a team sport that they have to rah rah to victory. They are tremendously frightened that people will impinge on their Christmases and hunting and military. They sound like children who have been given two sides and their reasoning for believing in something is because it is their assigned side.
Anyway, I hope these people are on their way to becoming obsolete. After watching a bunch of youtube clips of the ‘culture wars’ I kind of want to barf a little, even though it seems interesting at the time, like candy.
Soon Barack Obama will be inaugurated, and we’ll be doing comedy that night. Of all the promise that Obama has, it’s the promise that he’ll somehow be able to stop the fear and hate and pandering which makes me hope hardest. Listening to people say things that don’t make sense like it’s perfect sense is only so funny.

Let Freedom Ring!
Let our muscles relax.
The pinched days are done
No more talk of facts.

Trust is welcome
Let’s all take a nap
America, America
Is a place on a map.

God Bless! He said sarcastically?