"War Is Over...If You Want It"

The last contingent of American troops left Iraqi soil earlier this morning.

This Christmas, tens of thousands of families will be able to spend the holidays with their loved ones, instead of having them fighting a war overseas.  Mothers will be home to tuck their children into bed on Christmas Eve, and fathers will be there to open presents the following morning.

A myriad of gifts will be opened a week from today, but to many kids in this country, the greatest gift of all will be to have mommy or daddy home.

I thought this song was especially fitting given the situation.

**The following is the official video of the song.  It includes some disturbing images of war, which may be unsettling to some people.  While I could have found an alternate video for the tune, I think that this does a great job at representing the fact that, with human nature, while one armed conflict may be ending, it's only a matter of time before the world finds itself involved in another.**



Welcome home, servicemen and women.

Happy Xmas, John

I can't believe that it has been 29 years since John Lennon was assassinated. The word "assassinated" is usually reserved for political figures, which I believe John was. He transcended music. He had passed by his contemporaries, even the rest of his band mates, a decade or more earlier, and, at the time of his death, was as much a figure for peace as he was a figure in the music industry. Who knows what he would have been capable of if he would have been able to live. Who knows what kind of influence he would have had on the world. A Nobel Peace Prize maybe? I was only five years old, but I remember the shock and sadness in my house that evening. I'm sure everyone's home felt that shock to some degree.

It seems like, for the better part of the last decade at least, the world has been a pretty fucked up place around Christmas time. Numerous wars that our soldiers are in, terrorist attacks in cities around the world, from Russia to Pakistan, not to mention Sarah Palin and Glen Beck(sorry, had to lighten the mood) make this a world that can sometimes seem hopeless.

John reminded us that "war is over, if YOU want it." WE have the power to make the world a better and safer place. Do your part. Volunteer at a homeless shelter, become an activist, get behind a cause you believe in. Don't let this world pass you by. This is your planet too. Do something about it. Ghandi said, "Be the change you want to see in the world." Then again, John also said he was the Walrus....goo goo ga choo.

I have included a video of John's Happy Xmas, War Is Over. Just a warning, it includes some pretty graphic war footage. Following that is a cover of the same song by Maroon 5. No video accompaniment, but one of the better covers of this tune that I have heard lately. Happy Xmas everyone. We miss you, John.