Lazy Weekend Music: Songs of Hope
Posted on: January 30, 2016
Good Saturday, Widdershins! The Iowa caucus begins on Monday, thus beginning the dash to the nomination. 
With any luck, we’ll get through the next four months or so and have a candidate we have waited for for eight long years. We can hope, anyway.
With that I mind, I’ve created this post to honor songs of hope. There are not a lot with “hope” in the title, but there are an abundance of great tunes that are hopeful in spirit, and I for one can use such a lift right now. So post whichever songs fill you with hope, wonderment, or any other such feeling that will get you through the next three days, and onward to Iowa we go.
This is an otherwise open thread.
Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul. Emily Dickinson.
This is an open thread. Chatblu.
(1) Don’t Stop Believing – Journey
(2) Don’t Stop Thinking About Tomorrow – Fleetwood Mac
(3) I Can See Clearly Now – Johnny Nash
(4) Stronger – Kelly Clarkson
(5) Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows – Leslie Gore
65 Responses to "Lazy Weekend Music: Songs of Hope"
January 30, 2016 at 3:40 pm
From Wiki:
Bowie allegedly got drunk to perform “Golden Years” for the American TV show Soul Train; at the time he was one of the few white artists to appear on the program. He wasn’t too good at lip syncing either.
January 30, 2016 at 8:36 pm
Can’t believe I forgot this one! I hope she gets it, we need her to have this job!
January 30, 2016 at 9:05 pm
I was just over at TalkLeft reading the Iowa post. At the bottom of the comments Jeralyn linked a post from her live blog in Iowa in 2007. (You remember Hillary came in third there) I read the post for the next day where some were talking about their doubts that Obama could keep getting out the youth vote. Of course this before the shenanigans that happened in the forthcoming caucuses (among the other crap that happened later). It just made me queasy.
I know Bernie ain’t no Barack Obama and he needed the AA votes he won so overwhelmingly. But it made me feel uneasy. I hope Hill’s ground game will watch these caucuses like hawks. I reeaaalllyy want her to win IA now after reading that. And I think her supporters NEED it.
January 31, 2016 at 12:31 am
@12: I’m right there with you. Of course, the AA vote is not going to be a factor in either Iowa or NH.
January 31, 2016 at 1:47 am
I wasn’t referring to the AA voter in IA or NH (that was later), I was thinking more about the youth vote who were all about Obama and now are all about Bernie. I do not want to see the the same caucus shit that I saw before. That’s all. Caucus states should be shamed for their lack of a secret ballot. Only they can fix that.
January 31, 2016 at 2:13 am
@12 &13, most of the 2008 Obama ground team are organizing for Hillary. I’ve read, in more than one place, Hillary’s ground team is the best in the history. She has not only her team from 2008, but the Obama team as well.
The only thing to watch is the turnout. If it’s normal — under 150K, then Hillary will win by 6-8%. If the turnout is over 200K, Bernie has a chance, but it isn’t a foregone conclusion he will win. Every vote above 200K makes it a better day for Bernie.
The modeling for the polling this cycle is skewed because most, if not all, are running off a weighting model based upon 2008. That year was an outlier with a turnout of 230K. What happens there is that the sample (meaning the totality of the phone numbers purchased to randomly dial) are based upon an inherently skewed demographic picking up Bernie supporters. There are a couple of pollsters running panels (large numbers of potential voters who are willing to be called randomly to participate in polls). Panels are not as accurate because the panels are more sophisticated in answering questions.
One of the things that gets mangled in all of this is the social desirability of actually voting. No one wants to tell, even a stranger, “I’m a slug and I’m not going to vote.” So when a pollster is screening for likely voters, the socially desirable answer is to “opt in” as a voter even if you aren’t going to vote. The more accurate poll is a simultaneous run of voters who have actually voted in previous elections. Of course, you have to try and pick up the requisite cohort of newly registered voters for those between 18 and 22.
The long and short of it is this: There’s not much excitement on the ground in Iowa or at least that is what the accounts are saying. Bernie has big turnouts, but Hillary does too, they just aren’t being reported. There’s no feeling that the turnout is going to be out of the ordinary. I’m sticking with my prediction of 6-8%.
January 31, 2016 at 2:44 pm
Nate Silvers remains convinced:
http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/hillary-clinton-may-win-iowa-after-all/
January 31, 2016 at 4:28 pm
Haven’t been around the last day or two – feeling sort of yucky. I think part of it is just the temps going up to the point of needing the a.c. and then a day or so later lows going down to the twenties or teens. It is playing havoc with my nose and sinuses.
January 31, 2016 at 4:32 pm
I don’t know about songs of hope. However if the pundits and yakking heads keep up the false, incomplete articles and narratives about Clinton’s server and the emails, I think we’ll need some “songs of medication”.
January 31, 2016 at 5:32 pm
Betcha won’t see this on MSNBC.
Long line outside @HillaryClinton's event in Council Bluffs pic.twitter.com/tWQvw8dr4J
— Liz Kreutz (@ABCLiz) January 31, 2016
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January 31, 2016 at 5:48 pm
What kind or type of feminist are you? Take the WaPo quiz to see.
I was in the “Hell, yeah” feminists group. 🙂
January 31, 2016 at 5:57 pm
Chris Portero undecided voter we spoke to before @HillaryClinton speech was sold by end of event in Council Bluffs, gave thumbs up.
— Kim Ghattas (@BBCKimGhattas) January 31, 2016
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January 31, 2016 at 6:12 pm
Former Gov of Michigan Jennifer Granholm was on CNN a few minutes ago and explained the email issue perfectly, precisely and very clearly. The banner below her said Senior Advisor Correct The Record. Hell Yeah!! She also set things straight on a few other things. Now she needs to hop over to MSNBC and educate a few people there. It was awesome. The damn media knows this. It just doesn’t fit their narrative of keeping people in the dark so they can spin it into a controversy.
January 31, 2016 at 6:12 pm
Beata, all this time and I never knew it was Mantovani. Should have known. 😝
January 31, 2016 at 6:31 pm
198 elected Dems who #StandWithHillary
12 Governors
38 Senators
148 House Reps
Only 2 House Reps support Bernie pic.twitter.com/JAyHQGfZUN
— Puesto Loco (@PuestoLoco) January 31, 2016
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January 31, 2016 at 6:42 pm
Fredster, you put up some great posts for not feeling well! Sorry your weather is so crazy. I would be feeling bad also. We had a wild rain and wind storm today.
January 31, 2016 at 6:49 pm
annie@28: They were easy to do: copy/paste, copy/paste. 😉
I just saw something on the news about the Cali weather today. It did look wild.
January 31, 2016 at 7:42 pm
@19, I have spent some time in Council Bluffs. The folks over in Omaha call Council Bluffs — Counciltucky. In fact, I have a t-shirt with Counciltucky, Iowa on it.
January 31, 2016 at 8:16 pm
I’m a Hell, yeah feminist too but a couple of those questions were wacky. 4. The feminist movement unfairly blames men for women’s challenges. Is this true or not true? Feminists don’t “blame” men, they blame the patriarchal society/system. We know plenty of women who are guilty of it too, whether consciously or not. Also, there are a lot of people (women and men) who say they are not a feminist, but really are if they understood what it really is. Then you’ve got the Rush Limbaughs of the world denigrating the word itself. From the percentages on that survey it looks like a men’s “movement” has chimed in.
January 31, 2016 at 8:24 pm
@32 GAgal, let’s hope the quiz was done that way to a keep it at one-line questions.
January 31, 2016 at 10:27 pm
@33, no, it wasn’t supposed to be a good thing, Counciltucky was seen as just about the worst thing in the world you could be called.
January 31, 2016 at 10:28 pm
Hillary is speaking live from Des Moines right now on MSNBC.
January 31, 2016 at 10:53 pm
@36: Ah…sorta like the way some of those Cincy people feel about the folks across the Ohio river.
January 31, 2016 at 10:54 pm
@37 Thanks for the heads up. When she finished I stood up and said -Now THAT’S how it’s done. Go Hillary!
January 31, 2016 at 10:54 pm
OIMG. Huffpost blares that Clinton and bernie are neck and neck. Here’s the link that they provide:
http://elections.huffingtonpost.com/pollster/2016-national-democratic-primary
January 31, 2016 at 10:57 pm
Just a few close friends here in Des Moines tonight #ImWithHer pic.twitter.com/IVMG1HHfnp
— Gwen Rocco (@gwenrocco) February 1, 2016
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January 31, 2016 at 11:03 pm
@39, it was a great speech. She is confident and looks strong. The crowd seemed animated and engaged.
January 31, 2016 at 11:57 pm
I just read a link on Memorandum that I won’t link to here (because judging by the first few comments it’s a cesspool) but the title is: OMG: NAACP leader uses the F-word to apologize for using the T-word after N-word meeting.
I’ll break it down. In AZ a local NAACP leader (a white man by the way)was attending a meeting to discuss the issue of 6 high school girls who where sharing pictures of themselves on social media standing together wearing shirts that spelled out NI**ER (with asterisks) Afterwards he was caught on camera saying that a reporter had “nice t*ts”.
When this was brought to his attention, he said. ‘I didn’t mean to offend anyone. I’m so sorry. I’m very f@cking sorry’. What a whacko!
February 1, 2016 at 12:04 am
GAgal, I think I saw something about the original thing of the girls in the photo. SMH
February 1, 2016 at 12:18 am
Oh my goodness. I just ROTF and now I’m LMAO at this. I think this might be called flinging stuff to see what sticks.
Here’s’ the laughable part:
Weaver said he was unaware whether regulations require precinct captains to be residents, but still has concerns about Luther’s letter. He said he has not heard of any other indication the Clinton campaign has someone from out of state serving as a precinct captain.
“You’d have to talk to the party or somebody else about it. I don’t know the answer to that,” Weaver said when asked about the rules. “I do know that, certainly on its face, it seems highly suspect to have out of state paid staffers participating.”
Weaver is Bernie’s campaign manager.
February 1, 2016 at 1:16 am
God, I will be so glad when 24 hours has passed and Iowa is ovah.
February 1, 2016 at 1:18 am
annie@51: Yes but then we get to lather/rinse/repeat for New Hampshire. 😆
February 1, 2016 at 1:29 am
@48, Weaver, that Mitch Miller/Skitch Henderson look-a-like has been flinging for days now. That is one of his particular favorites I’ve heard him use a couple of times. It’s tired and ill-conceived just like his outfits.
He’s refined his patter about the out-of-staters — when he first started telling the tale you would have thought it was the alien invasion from the “War of the Worlds”.
February 1, 2016 at 1:40 am
@53: I’m sooo willing to bet that it will get major playtime on MSNBC’s unnamed morning show.
And btw, uppity woman said that CSPAN is going to be providing all day coverage of the caucuses today in the event you don’t want to listen to all day spin.
February 1, 2016 at 1:56 am
@54, it goes a little beyond Yahoo. He’s literally something from a comic book:
In 2009, a few months after leaving Sanders’ office, Weaver opened Victory Comics in Falls Church, Virginia. “Sometimes you need to recharge your batteries a little bit,” Weaver says. “This was something I always wanted to do.” The 3,500-square-foot shop features new releases, back issues (the most expensive item in the shop right now is a $5,500 copy of Hulk No. 1), and a back room for games ranging from Settlers of Catan to Fortress America, which—stop me if you’ve heard this one—postulates an invasion of the United States by European socialists. Business is good. On a typical Wednesday night, 60 people might show up for Victory’s Magic: the Gathering, Heroclix, and Dungeons and Dragons competitions. It’s the largest combined comic and gaming space inside the Beltway.
http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2015/07/bernie-sanders-jeff-weaver-victory-comics
February 1, 2016 at 2:09 am
My sister was talking today about how distressing it is to see so much negative Hillary info by Bernie supporters. I’ve been sending her links to counter that. This is from Hillary’s Issues page. I know it’s late and it boggles my mind anyway, but the sheer work and detail in this is worth, at least, scanning if you haven’t seen it. When someone says they think Hillary is in the pocket of Wall Street, they need to see this. Where is Bernie’s plan?
https://www.hillaryclinton.com/briefing/factsheets/2015/10/08/wall-street-work-for-main-street/
February 1, 2016 at 2:37 am
@57: Aw geez, the beltway version of Comic Book Men and Silent Bob.
@58: I wanted to throw rocks at him one day this past week when he had de Blasio on there and kept trying to call b.s. on his support of Hillary, kind of saying “C’mon man – you know Bernie is more your type of candidate (nudge-nudge).”. de Blasio kept saying no, he’s supporting Clinton, yadda yadda and #socklessdeadintern would not let up.
One day it’s going to happen: He’s going to p.o. someone so badly that they’ll unhook the mic, scoot the chair back and walk off.
February 1, 2016 at 8:47 am
Good gawd.. After watching 2 minutes of Schmoe, then a few on CNN I checked Fox. Some woman was talking about Hillary’s plan for single payer (huh?) and ranting on about socialized medicine. Damn those people are stupid.
Okay, I’m back to finish this comment. I was dealing with my 6 year old nephew who refused to go to school.
Then I watched Chris Cuomo trying to convince the world that Hillary will be sentenced to life in prison because of her emails.(Like Hell) Oh lookie at MSNBC! There is Mrs. Greenspan trying to convince Schmoe the email issue is sh!t. She tries and tries semi-coherently (for once). He won’t hear of it and Tweety has joined in. Now the two boys have convinced the girl that she is wrong! Who’da thunk it?
I can’t even describe it. I need a DISCLAIMER – at least for the next week, maybe longer- for my grammar, spelling, punctuation and my effing language. Cause it ain’t gonna be pretty.
February 1, 2016 at 8:51 am
Damn, it’s worse than I thought. Glenn Beck was just on CNN. Think about that.
Comments are closed.
The Widdershins 
January 30, 2016 at 1:51 pm
Good idea for a post, Chat. I’m taking a break from the news until after the Iowa caucus.