Not surprisingly, Americans opened their hearts last week to our British friends in the wake of the barbaric attacks in London. We saw many expressions of support, but the most common was along the lines of "We are All British today."  I myself have a particular fondness for the British and felt the same way after the attack.  But, where is the outpouring of emotion for others lost to terror?

Today - as with many days the past several months - we awake here in America to a terrible car bombing claiming more innocent lives. This time the news is that 27 Iraqis were murdered by a car bomber, most of them children.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/07/13/iraq.main/index.html

more on the flip...

The Cowboy Junkies have long been one of my favorite bands.  So, I was thrilled last year when I got to interview bassist Alan Anton. Now, I'm equally thrilled to have the opportunity to speak with Michael Timmins, who along with Alan and siblings Margo and Peter, round out the line-up of this multi-platinum group of indie legends.  The topic of conversation focuses on their latest effort "21st Century Blues" which is described as "an album that is as passionately, intelligently and eloquently anti-war in its intent as anything rock music has come up with in 50 years of trying."

Multi-platinum recording artists the Cowboy Junkies are releasing a complete anti-war cd with covers of classic protest/anti-war songs from John Lennon, Bruce Springsteen, Richie Havens and others.

You can listen to a couple preview songs for free Earvolution.com.

I'm working with a top recording artist and want to do a podcast related to anti-war songs. Besides Air America, who are the top podcasters on the left side of the spectrum?

On June 6, 1944, more than 150,000 Allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy and began the liberation of Europe during World War II.  

Then, just 16 days after D-Day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the "GI Bill of Rights" into law - landmark legislation honoring the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform, providing key education and training benefits to thank them for their service.

This Monday marks the 61st Anniversary of D-Day, an epic event in the history of our nation and the world.  While we take time to remember this historic day and thank those brave liberators who defended freedom in Europe and around the world, it's also important to ask whether we're doing everything we can to honor the sacrifice of today's armed forces and veterans, as America did with the first GI Bill.

In just the past 2 ½ years, more than 400,000 of our National Guard and Reserves have been called up to active duty.  In fact, Reserve Components make up nearly half of our forces in Iraq.

from my blog: earvolution.com

LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The Robert Cray Band's forthcoming album "Twenty" is set for release on a week bookended by the May 24 birthday of one of this generation's most eloquent protest songwriters, Bob Dylan, and by Memorial Day, May 30. The dates are significant when one considers the subject matter which defines the album's title track, "Twenty."

"The song is about an innocent young guy, who, after the events of 9/11, wants to do his part for his country," Cray explains. "He doesn't know he's going to end up in Iraq, watching the horror that's going on there...and he ends up losing his life. It's a subject that needs to be spoken about and is in some ways, a continuation of one of the songs we did on the last album."

I've noticed at least two indie labels who've bought blog ads recently.  Its cool to see one form of indie media support another form of indie media.

If you get a chance, show some support back and check out Sally Crewe and the Sudden Moves.  Their label "12XU" is running a significant blogad campaign in support of their new relase.

Starbucks says they've banned Bruce because of "adult" lyrics.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/4520531.stm

Springsteen did a lot for Dems and Kerry in 2004.  I know he doesn't need the money, and I know his record company doesn't need the money - but we should send a message with our money and go out and buy this record.  The last thing we want is to have conservative pundits saying hey Springsteen spoke out and now he's paying the price by no one buying his record.

If you can't buy the whole record - buy a single!

Also, are there any conservative ties to  Starbucks that could be motivating this?