If dogs run free…

Our dog after a grueling performance as Walt Whitman in his own one-dog show “Eating Leaves of Grass.”

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Dear John:
Thank you so much for coming to our University!  Your show does more through comedy, drama and reason than any other live acted performance I’ve ever seen.  It reminds my generation of people in their early twenties of what sort of moral and mental dilemmas we faced less than five years ago.  It is these dilemmas that we have to watch out for as we move into the adult world and perhaps have kids of our own.  Your show was a masterpiece because all if not most of your messages opened/reopened our eyes drug problems we have or will face in a very touching way.  Thank you again for allowing us the opportunity to be your audience.

Sincerely,
Quinnipiac University Student and RA

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An email from the other day.

hi john, i watched your program the other day in my school (Cresskill High School) and I just wanted to say your work truly inspired me… I come from a really harsh family… my parents have been divorced as long as i can remember and both of my parents are serious alcoholics…. i realized that alcoholism is truly a factor in my life over this past summer, .. i basically drank a bottle of jack daniels by myself in a feeble attempt to forget about the pain i felt … i was pretty damn pissed off at life before i saw your show… bottom line, i just wanted to let you know that your poem(s) and your program in general really might not be a big issue for all the other students, but aside from making me cry quite a bit, you helped me realize that every storm has its rainbow… i look forward to living my life the way that i want to, and i know that i can overcome this sickening disease of alcoholism one way or another… thank you, again, for saving me… im forever in debt to your inspiring words, and just know that you’ve helped me more than any psychologist or parent ever could… thank you with all my heart…

Happy Veterans Day

Happy veterans day to my dad who is 79 years old.
Happy veterans day to a man who flew 25 missions in world war 2.
Happy veterans day to the man who risked his life for the greatest country in the world.
Happy veterans day to the man who fought not for a flag but for my future.
Happy veterans day to the man who willingly offered his best years and then came home to overcome a depression, work his ass off and send me to college.
Happy Veterans day to my dad and others like him who go to war so that we may sleep peaceful.
Happy Veterans day to Roland Pepin who decided WWII was not enough and stayed in for Korea and is one of the greatest guys I know who sends me funny emails, always cheers me up, and whose reappearance in my dad’s life filled us all with so much love.
Happy veterans day to Sgt. William Carney of the 54th Massachusetts regiment of the civil war who was the first african american to receive the congressional medal of honor…and never lived long enough to see his people vote.
Happy veterans day to Senator John Kerry and Senator John McCain who served at war and are still serving thier country to this day.
Happy Veterans Day to my former president George Bush who risked his life in WWII.
Happy veterans day to all those who are serving/served in Iraq. You probably joined after 9-11 like my dad joined after Pearl Harbor. Or maybe you joined so you could have money for college. Or maybe you have been in the guard for a long time and you have now been called up or extended. Whoever and whatever…I thank you. I thank you and I apologize for the sacred trust that has been violated by GW Bush. A trust and emotional contract that says as President I will only send troops into harms way when its absolutely necessary. I pray for you and hope that something will wake up george and dick and make them see that they have blood on thier hands and they are not making us any safer. So Happy Veterans day to GW Bush who skipped out of the national guard and Dick Cheney who had 5 deferments because he had “other priorities”. Happy veterans day to these two men who have over extended the duty of the national guard, sent over 1,100 to thier death for political gain, Trampled the Geneva Conventions, watched as over 100,000 have been killed in Iraq, and never even had the courtesy to attend ONE FUNERAL of our soldiers. Again I rant…:-)

But alas, Veterans day is a day for TRUE heroes so I will not mention the president and vice president anymore. So to all of you reading this. Go say thank you to a veteran today. Give him or her a big hug and say thanks for doing what you did for me. And if you really want to honor the veterans work your butt off to make this country great by raising your voice and caring enough to be a loud voice of dissent that rejects the mainstream media lies and fights for the truth. Its the least we can do to honor our heroes. So, thank you to all my heroes who never stopped fighting your wars and have inspired me to do the same.

tears of rage

Tears of rage, tears of grief,
Must I always be the thief?
Come to me now, you know
We’re so low
And life is brief.

Today was Cresskill NJ.

About 700 kids at 2:00 PM. I was so impressed with how respectful an audience they were.
Here it was the end of the school day and the buses were waiting and it was an assembly and uhm
they could have been loud
and uhm they could have talked
and uhm they could have slept
but they were THERE and it was cool.

And a kid came up to me afterward and mentioned he had an UNcle that OD’d
and it made me think of all the kids that came up to me in recent days telling me of their losses.
Like the girl in Deptford who wrote that song called “Slippin Away”
and like the kid that was in the ROTC at Old Bridge that looked so tough
and then floored me with this amazing poem about a friend that made some poor choices
and has drifted away and it just builds up
and I think of all these special people. It makes you think twice about how everyone has a story
and how we carry around this grief for those among us who cannot overcome this disease. A disease that gets fed by drugs in a country that declared war on drugs
and yet every other commercial is for some miracle pill that can change your life in a daily dose. In a country that allows other countries heroin to flourish
and come into our society and yet will not allow helpful drugs from its dearest neighbor to the north to come into our country and help the lives of the sick and the old.
We live under a cruel circus and were all mad
and were all talented
and we can all do some cool tricks
and we all just want a three ring standing ovation
and we all just want to enjoy the show
and there are some mean ol ringmasters that try to control us
and there are some lions that need to be tamed
and there are some lions that need to be freed
and sometimes were sorry we bought a ticket for this show
and its then we need to look in the eyes of someone we love
and be thankful for the time we have
and keep on fightin till we have done our job
and we have sprung the cages of those who need to be freed
and weve shouted loud enough to make a change

I hear you all and this clown is thankful for his greaspaint

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“Oh, but you who philosophize disgrace and criticize all fears,
Bury the rag deep in your face
For now’s the time for your tears.” -Dylan

Oh well. I worked hard for my candidate. I campaigned. Held signs. Made phone calls to get out the vote. I volunteered for a cause that was bigger than myself. Something I believed in deep down in my soul.. To all those who labored like me, ON BOTH SIDES, we can reflect on the words of the marcher to MLK.

“My feet are tired but my soul is satisfied.”

And I will press on and fight and I unfortunately will not accept the words and deeds of this president. He will be Mr. Bush to me. They say we need unity. I’m sorry I disagree. We need dissent. Loud and Clear. Because I sense some dark days ahead for my friends and family unless someone speaks up. I’m not talking hatred. I’m not talking name calling. I’m talking truth.

I am confused because of this “Moral Values” thing in the exit polls. I thought we were electing a president but apparently we were electing a pope or a pastor. They say W won based on moral values. This moral values question concerns me because it hints that my candidate and I did not have any. It echoes the sentiments of Sean Hannity and Pat Robertson who said (Ands this is a QUOTE) “Those who go to church support Bush and conversely…The majority of all pornography is purchased in Blue States.” This sentiment deeply offends me because it reveals an attitude which I assumed to be on the fringe but apparently its real and 58 million strong. Just because I do not believe in their church does not mean I’m immoral with no values. Personally I find Abu Gharib and 100,000 CIVILIANS killed by my tax funded bombs to be “pornographic.” I find lying to and deceiving the american people immoral. I find hijacking peoples religion and faith and politicizing it for your gain to be sinful. I find sending the pack of wolves known as the “swift vets for truth” to attack a decorated veteran Obscene. I find it blasphemous to declare war on drugs but then permit the new goverment that we installed in Afghanistan to supervise the production of 60 PERCENT of the heroin killing our kids.

But alas my senator told me it is time for “healing”. No time for sour grapes. My side lost and we move on and try to keep love in our hearts. So with sadness I will accept the choice of the American People. They wanted four more years and I fear they will get it. As they celebrate their moral values I hope they can learn to ignore their four more years of the patriot act, tax cuts, deficits, COBRA payments, coffins, widows, and amputees.

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“The cat’s in the well and the servant is at the door.
The drinks are ready and the dogs are going to war.
The cat’s in the well, leaves are starting to fall
Goodnight, my love, may the lord have mercy on us all.”
Cats in The Well-Dylan

What a difference two weeks can make.
Since my last blog I did 19 performances.
My Red Sox came back and won it all.
The race is now tied in a statistical dead heat.

I have held off making an official endorsement but it is now the eve of the biggest election of our lifetime. So here is my official statement.

As some may know, in the last election of 2000 I backed George W. Bush. I started by backing Bill Bradley and after he lost the primary I was dissapointed with Gore and wanted the democratic party to do better. To return to its ideals and nominate a progressive candidate. Bush was in my view flawed but seemed decent and likeable and perhaps a GOP victory would unite the dems to do better. Compassionate conservative. Thrifty. Might work. That was my thinking. Everything was great for a while too. We had a HUGE surplus and surely the GOP would at least be fiscally responsible. And like a lot of you, 9-11 caused us to rally around our president. The whole world was on our side actually. And now I feel all that good will was squandered.

The man that I helped elect has in my opinion made unfortunate choices which have hurt our nation. He has alienated our allies. Mismanaged our economy and we now have a HUGE deficit. Lost 1.6 million jobs. He is the only president to never meet with the NAACP. And of course there is Iraq which was in my view a diversion from the war on Al Queda. It sounded like a good idea to me when I was told that they had nuclear weapons aimed at us. But now we know it wasnt true and the poor men and women who dutifully volunteered to make the ultimate sacrafice for me have had thier mission and objectives shifted. 1,100 killed. 15,000 Iraqis killed. And I keep getting told that “The world hates us for our freedom.” Meanwhile although “75 percent of Al Queda leadership” has been destroyed….The actual number of al queda MEMBERS has skyrocketed and estimated to be in the 100,000’s. I just want to live in a country that I am proud of. I don’t hate W. I don’t hate the GOP. I just feel a little cheated and lied to and I want my country back. I want my 79 year old WWII vet father to feel pride in his country and its leadership. So what do I do to change this…What would I want in my perfect candidate.

I want a candidate who is a very serious man for a serious time. I don’t want a folksy wise cracking down home dude. I want a serious, smart, and well-spoken president.

I want someone who knows what its like to go to war AND to march for peace.

I want someone who can see both sides of an issue.

I want someone who will keep us safe.

I want someone who knows how to balance a budget.

I want someone who will not allow my Father’s medicare to go up 17 PERCENT!

I want someone with a healthcare plan.

I want someone who doesnt talk down to me…but challenges me.

I want someone who has traveled abroad, speaks many languages, read The Great Gatsby, saved a life, and hung out with John Lennon…All before he was 30 years old!

I want someone who will not push his faith on me.

I want someone who will offer hope and not fear.

I want my Senator John Kerry to be the 44th president of the USA.