Out Of The Dark And Into The Light

Michelle Obama waxes euphoric about her hubby and the Weekly Standard goes all Biblical:

Michelle Obama made a remarkable claim when talking up her husband, President Barack Obama, at a campaign event earlier today in Nashville, Tennessee.

"I am so in," Michelle Obama said toward the end of her remarks. "I am going to be working so hard. We have an amazing story to tell. This president has brought us out of the dark and into the light."

The crowd of nearly 450 folks applauded as the first lady likened her husband to a Jesus-like figure.

In the book of Matthew, we read, "the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up." (Matthew 4:16) The phrase is used to describe the words Jesus preached.

In Micah, light, however, is a reference to God's words. "Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the LORD will be a light to me," it says in Micah 7:8. 

Either way, in religious terms, light is used to denote the true path, presented either by God or a savior. Or by Barack Obama.

[Or, Shorter Michelle: If God had a son he'd look like Barack.]

Oh, relax. Does anyone think Jeremiah Wright has a Bible handy?

Michelle is a mom who has seen the Wizard of Oz with her kids one too many times (I know the feeling!). A blind man could see or a deaf man hear that she was comparing Barack to Glinda, the Good Witch of the North, who got Dorothy and her crew to the Emerald City with a well-timed snowfall:

You're out of the woods, You're out of the dark, You're out of the night.

Step into the sun, Step into the light.

Keep straight ahead for the most glorious place

On the Face of the Earth or the sky.

Hold onto your breath, Hold onto your heart, Hold onto your hope.

March up to the gate and bid it open.

My goodness. Hold onto your hope and wait for Michelle to click the heels of her ruby slippers.

PLOT TWIST: Whaat? With a Man Bites Dog plot twist was Michelle trying to hint that Barack ate Toto?

Comments

[Captain Hate]

I dunno Porch; I'm not a vinyl fan because of the surface noise involved in it. If done right it can be minimized but if you screw it up accidentally it's there forever. My memory of "Whispering Pines" contains a click-click-click throughout the last verse and stanza through no fault of mine. I find that incredibly annoying.

[Captain Hate]

Columbia was pretty powerful in those days.

Troo dat. There was a lot of strange stuff that went on with Dylan and what was released. Positively Fourth Street was only released as a single until an album compilation, no? Plus there would be some smokin' B-sides of singles that would never make it on to albums; I think "Killing Me Alive/Barbed Wire Fence" was one of those.

You might be too young to remember those.

[Porchlight]

I've definitely collected unreleased B-sides - both from that era and then later when punk and indie bands started doing the same thing. Of course now it's probably all on iTunes. Speaking of B-sides, Hey Jude which isn't a "real" Beatles record is actually my fave Beatles record. Stuff like Old Brown Shoe etc. is right up there for me.

I can't agree about vinyl though - I don't mind the surface noise at all. Just turn it up. :)

[Porchlight]

Positively Fourth Street was only released as a single until an album compilation, no?

I think that's right. It wasn't released on LP until Dylan's Greatest Hits which was so short it must have been a disappointment at the time. Greatest Hits Vol II is more satisfying IMHO.

[Captain Hate]

We'll just have to differ on vinyl; no big whoop since there's plenty else to talk about music wise. Btw, is Mr Porch happy with Vanguard? Do the Gourds play any Band songs in concert?

[Captain Hate]

It wasn't released on LP until Dylan's Greatest Hits which was so short it must have been a disappointment at the time.

As you no doubt can imagine, I'm not a "greatest hits" fan; plus so many buds in the dorm had it there was no use for me to. Columbia *did* piss me off by making some songs available only on compilations which punished people for buying the non-comp lps. They might have done that on some other songs around the "New Morning" time like "Watch the River Flow" which I heard the Asylum Street Spankers do a version of in one of their incarnations a few years ago (a group that my daughter saw in San Antonio and raved up to me; I was so proud). I might be wrong about that but I'm too lazy to look it up; if not that specifically there are other cases. I'M NOT CRAZY!!!

[Porchlight]

I think they're happy enough but they're pretty blase about label stuff (which is probably good for their business model as they change labels a lot). I believe I've seen "Ain't No More Cane" and "Million Dollar Bash" if those count. And I think a one-off of "Jawbone" which is one of my faves.

[Porchlight]

I kinda dig New Morning although a lot of people don't. I never did see the Spankers - they're a huge Austin act but sort of before my time. Guy Forsyth still plays around. Austin is a pretty good town to grow old in if you play music. Geezers always welcome.

[Porchlight]

Oh and I'm sure they've done "The Weight." They just left for a long weekend (Missoula and other Montana gigs) this afternoon - I mentioned to Claude that they should prepare for a Levon cover of some sort. It's only right and natural.

[Melinda Romanoff]

CH-

I can take a CD, mag tape, and vinyl of the same recording, play them back, and you will stare at the turntable.

And I do it on the cheap, not one of those $12K turntable/cartridge set ups, even though they are works of art.

And after that, I will prove to you that it all depends on the engineer in the studio.

And that's all I'll boast about that, besides loathing The Band and Duluth's own Bobby Zimmerman.

[Captain Hate]

New Morning wasn't bad especially after the putrid Self Portrait. Plus it was all in the post motorcycle accident period following John Wesley Harding and Nashville Skyline and nobody knew wtf Dylan would come up with. I think that was the first record I ever reviewed for some campus arts magazine (I'm sure reading it would be *extremely* embarrassing).

The Spankers are defunct since Wammo was given a stop drinking or die ultimatum; pretty rough to maintain his on stage persona so they just said the run is over. How could they be before your time if my daughter saw them before I did; or is that a Texas thing?

[Captain Hate]

And after that, I will prove to you that it all depends on the engineer in the studio

Sorry Mel but I don't see any way you can overcome a poor pressing with low quality vinyl. I've heard some Japanese Blue Notes that are as close to perfection as I can imagine but some pressings are just garbage.

[Melinda Romanoff]

No argument there, but that's still the same engineer who's supposed to be overseeing it.

An age old argument continues.

Still fun though.

G'night. (DubDave just popped his Depends on the other thread. I have to go watch.)