Rebecca Jade Archives - Ramblin' with Roger

Dec. rambling: empathy

Peter Spraugue and Rebecca Jade

Empathy is the new Christian battleground (I’m pro-empathy)

The casino-fication of news: New partnerships between the prediction market Kalshi and cable TV networks will transform every news event into a betting opportunity.

Why Pregnant Black Women Are Routinely Ignored in American Hospitals

Polypharmacy Is a Real Issue. Dismantling Public Health Won’t Fix It. — A healthy society needs more than just “quick fixes.”

As California Limits Water Use, People in Prison Face Punishment for Showering

Australia just enacted the world’s first social media ban for children under 16 years old.

African leaders convene to recognize and seek reparations for colonial-era crimes

Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment. ADOPTED 10 December 1984 BY UN General Assembly resolution 39/46

Black History Has the Power to Ignite Movements. That’s Why the Right Fears It.

Remembering the heroes and the villains of World AIDS Day

A teenager redrew the Alabama voting map – and it’s now state law

Legendary Architect Frank Gehry Has Passed Away—These Are His 10 Most Iconic Designs

This Stunning Image Shows a Skydiver Falling Across the Face of the Sun. “The Fall of Icarus” – Andrew McCarthy, Cosmic Background

The Unlikely Story of an E-mail Time Machine

Drop-Off Day for A Shooting Star

At least 31 languages have a word very similar to ‘huh?’

Archaeologists Find Evidence of a Bronze City in Kazakhstan

Now I Know: The Cost of Being a Simpsons Superfan and A Free Race Ticket, With Ups and Downs, and The Book That Got Americans Hanged and The Worst of the Best is Still Pretty Amazing, and Let’s Have a Book Burning? and The Country of Cookie Dough

“Underinclusive”

A MAGA National Security Strategy; the document, which you should try to read if you can stomach it

Boat strikes: War crime or “fake news” hoax?

How he flipped America’s race conversation

Hepatitis B Vaccine Recommendation For Children Changed By CDC As Academy Of Pediatrics Opposes Decision

U.S. Wants to Scrutinize Foreign Tourists’ Social Media History. Even visitors from countries like Britain and France, whose citizens don’t need visas, would have to share five years’ worth of social media.

Get ready to consume more forever chemicals.

Daily Show: Immigration Double Standard and Jordan Klepper’s Give the Man a Prize

War on ‘woke’ comes for … fonts?

Is sleepy Donald the new ‘Sleepy Joe’?

New poll paints a grim picture of a nation under financial strain

MUSIC

Nowhere Man – Peter Sprague, featuring Rebecca Jade

Song For Bob Dylan – David Bowie

Song to Woody – Bob Dylan

Girl From the North Country – Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash

Beautiful Strangers – Mavis Staples

The Gadabout, Part II – Bryce Dessner from the Train Dreams soundtrack from the Netflix film

It’s Beginning To Look Like F This and RFK! -Randy Rainbow Song Parodies

Alex Chilton – The Replacements

La Mer by Claude Debussy

David Byrne: Tiny Desk Concert, 1 Dec 2025

Bees by Jerskin Fendrix from the motion picture Bugonia

Are You Sure Hank Done It This Way – Waylon Jennings

The Fountains of Rome by Ottorino Respighi.

Peg – Steely Dan

New Directive – Nine Inch Nails from the movie TRON: Ares

Coverville 1559: The 22nd Annual Beatles Thanksgiving Cover Story and 1560: The Alex Chilton Cover Story

From the soundtrack to One Battle After Another by Jonny Greenwood

Jackie Wilson Said (I’m in Heaven When You Smile) – Van Morrison

By the River, the second movement of the ‘Florida Suite’ by Frederick Delius (1862-1934)

J. Eric Smith’s Best Albums and Best Music Videos of 2025

One of my favorite companies, Joel Whitburn’s Record Research, has a future.

Seattle-based musician and chocolatier Aaron Lindstrom wanted to create a space that combined his two passions: chocolate and music. Cocoa Legato is a unique bean-to-bar chocolate factory and café that hosts live music performances and focuses on producing naturally vegan dark chocolate. 12/01/2025

Sunday Stealing is F.A.B. yet again

More Brilliant Than The Sun

Law and Order Tornto Welcome to Sunday Stealing. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves!

Since it’s Thanksgiving weekend, we’re going to keep this simple. We stole this from a blogger named Idzie, who called this the F.A.B. (film, audio, book) meme.

F.A.B. yet again

F. Film: What movie or TV show are you watching?

I stumbled onto Law and Order Toronto: Criminal Intent. Since 1990, I have watched a representative sampling of most L&O programs, enough to anticipate their beats. But the rhythm of this show, while familiar, is fresh enough with its Canadianisms to enjoy.

Wikipedia: “The series premiered on February 22, 2024, on Citytv, and became the #1 prime-time drama of the year in Canada by attracting 1.1 million views on the first episode. The first season ran for 10 episodes; in June 2024, it was renewed for a second and third season.”

It stars Aden Young as Detective Sergeant Henry Graff, Kathleen Munroe as Detective Sergeant Frankie Bateman, K. C. Collins as Deputy Crown Attorney Theo Forrester, and Karen Robinson as Inspector Vivienne Holness. In the first few episodes, the latter two had far too little to do; that’s been rectified a bit.

In the US, the CW has been broadcasting the first season – I just finished episode 9. Season 2, already completed in Canada, will air in the US in 2026.

Music

A. Audio: What are you listening to?

I have finally allowed myself to listen to Advent/Christmas music. Also, I’ve been playing the CDs of Rebecca Jade, who, as it turns out, is the daughter of my sister Leslie; in other words, the first niece. Check out her videos; I’m particularly fond of Peter Sprague’s and her take on Wichita Lineman.

B. Book: What are you reading?

My daughter borrowed a book from a Western Massachusetts college library and insisted I read it before she has to return it in late January. It is titled More Brilliant Than The Sun: Adventures in Sonic Fiction by Kodwo Eshun. Buying the book, which was published in 1998, would cost north of $400.

I can tell you that the Discontents, which you would call the table of contents, namechecks Miles Davis, Grandmaster Flash, Cypress Hill, Funkadelic, Kraftwerk, the Jungle Brothers, Sun Ra, Alice and John Coltrane, and Pharoah Sanders. The index mentions others, such as John Cage, Chic, Queen, Public Enemy, Stevie Wonder, James Brown, and Sly and the Family Stone.

Being an obedient parent, I shall have read it by the deadline.

Thank you for playing! Please come back next week.

September rambling: Snollygoster

Measles and Polio Down In The Schoolyard

Word of the Day: Snollygoster – A shrewd, unprincipled person, especially a politician.

Pity the Nation, a poem by Lawrence Ferlinghetti (2007)

Anti-Intellectualism Is Not a Fruit of the Spirit by Rev. Benjamin Cremer

You can’t worship God and money

A.Word.A.Day: kleptocrat – A politician or an official who uses their position to enrich themselves.

United States Boycotts UN Human Rights Review. The move sets “a terrible precedent that would only embolden dictators and autocrats and dangerously weaken respect for human rights at home and abroad.”

SCOTUS ruling allows ICE to use racial profiling in Los Angeles raids.

Israel’s Attacks on Seed Banks Destroy Millennia of Palestinian Cultural Heritage, and Israel Bombs Hamas Ceasefire Negotiating Team in Doha

Lysenkoism Comes to America: As RFK Jr. purges the CDC and cancels billions in research grants, Americans need a refresher course on what happened to Soviet biological research during the Stalin years.

Are You Ready for Measles’ Wrath?

Submit Your Official Comment Against the EPA’s Plan to Rescind Its Ability to Limit Greenhouse Gas Emissions Created By Any Industry and Gut Vehicle Standards Needed to Fight Climate Change

Tax cuts helped health giants dodge billions while patients faced higher costs and denials.

FOTUS vs. Higher Education and The Baileys: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

The Attack on the Smithsonian Previews His Presidential Library

How math turned me from a D.E.I. skeptic to a supporter

Kennedy Center Ticket Sales Plummet as “MAGA Former Dancer” Takes Over Dance Program. Upcoming ballet performances are between only 4 and 19% sold.

FOTUS steals $400b from American workers

Information

Internet Archive Designated as a Federal Depository Library

The National Archives Recovers Rare Logbook from the Pearl Harbor Attack

The Return of Plundered Belongings Offers a Chance for Healing to a Grieving Lakota Community 170 Years After a Long-Forgotten Massacre

Giorgio Armani, Fashion’s Master of the Power Suit, Dies at 91

CBS News’ Mark Knoller, veteran White House correspondent, dies at 73

Davey Johnson, an Orioles infielder before becoming the manager of the Mets, including their 1986 World Series win, died at 82

High Greens, Chip Ordway– now and forever

The game was perfect. The call, more perfect. Sept. 9, 1965 -Sandy Koufax, Vin Scully

You Know More Finnish Than You Think

Reviews, Ratings, and Pointless Surveys by Seth Meyers

The Beetle Bailey book celebrates 75 years in the funny pages

Spider-Man’s first live-action TV run was on PBS, and I watched it

Now I Know: The Worst Movie Money Couldn’t Buy, The Problem With Faking a Smile, and The Human Traffic Cone?

**The latter box should read: “$893 million in 30 graduated annuity payments”**

MUSIC

Bottle Up Magic – Rebecca Jade (feat. Eric Darius)

Measles and Polio Down In The Schoolyard – Marsh Family parody of Paul Simon’s “Me and Julio” on RFK

In Memoriam: Mark Volman of the Turtles (1947-2025). From Stuart Mason: The masterpiece of the album The Battle of the Bands was ‘Elenore,’ simultaneously an absolutely deathless sunshine pop classic and a not particularly subtle middle finger to White Whale Records.

Supertramp co-founder, singer, and keyboardist Rick Davies died at the age of 81 after a 10-year battle with Multiple Myeloma. 5 standout Rick Davies tracks by Supertramp.

Bohemian Rhapsody, isiZulu version – Ndlovu Youth Choir

Everybody’s Song– Robert Plant and Saving Grace

Moonlight, one of Four Sea Interludes from the Benjamin Britten opera Peter Grimes

One Tiny Flower – Jeff Tweedy

Song To The Moon from Rusalka, Act I, by Antonín Dvořák

Better Broken – Sarah McLaughlin

Coverville 1547: Van Morrison Cover Story IV and 1548: The Aimee Mann Cover Story I

Dead – Sudan Archives

Big Money – Jon Batiste

Letter To My 13-Year-Old Self and Lover Girl – Laufey

Am I Born To Die – Billy Strings, 12/13/24 ACL

Surf’s Up – The Beach Boys

The Boys Of Summer -Don Henley

Hot Fun In The Summertime – Sly & The Family Stone

September Morn – Neil Diamond

I Started A Joke – Ruby Leigh

The Power Of Love – Huey Lewis and the News

Thunderstruck + It’s a Long Way to the Top – Goddesses of Bagpipes

Burning Down The House – David Byrne ft. Olivia Rodrigo – Live at Gov Ball 2025

Is AI Ruining Music? | Dustin Ballard | TED, and AI-generated music sparks industry concern, and AI music takes on a life of its own: Walking Away –Sadie Winters

K-Chuck Radio: Billy Joel gets pitchy and The Out-Of-Phase Stereo Series

Stairway, Denied

August rambling: America’s wombmate

NEW Rebecca Jade!

Big Brother Moves to Become America’s Wombmate -government access to medical data threatens patient rights.

Here’s a Map of What FOTUS-GOP Destruction of US Hospitals Looks Like

America First is America alone. Power-crazed he may be, but he fails to grasp soft power.

This is what extreme heat is doing to us: Policies to Make the Planet Hotter

The North Rim of the Grand Canyon Burned: The NPS Burns Too

The Founders of This New Arkansas Development Say You Must Be White to Live There

How Ireland’s ‘Mediocre’ Milk Powder Made it Big in West Africa

U.S. Drinking Drops to New Low, Poll Finds

How to champion libraries in Congress: a free virtual event on Tuesday, September 9 at 5 PM ET / 4 PM CT / 2 PM PT, where ALA policy experts and special guests will share updates, inspiring stories, and how you can pitch in at the start of this school year.

Mike Lindell & MyStore: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver

Kelly’s 2X4

Matt Damon & Ken Jennings on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire

Marvel v. DC: The 25-Cent War from Tales From My Spinner Rack! by Gary Sassaman

Now I Know: The Dancing Plague and The Baseball Player With The Special ID, and He Bought His Freedom With Fake Money, and Why Some Movies Can’t Give it a Rest, and His Hometown Went to Pot? and Excel Has Bad Genes

ICE Raids and DC Occupation

Make democracy work part of ordinary life, not an add-on (ht/Paul Tonko). Lauren DesRosiers quoted Audre Lorde: “Every day of your lives is practice in becoming the person you want to be. No instantaneous miracle is suddenly going to occur and make you brave and courageous and true. And every day that you sit back silent, refusing to use your power, terrible things are being done in our name.”

DHS is using the Bible to promote ICE, claiming ‘righteous’ fight against immigrants. The agency refers to Scripture, including Micah 6:8, as it seeks to recruit agents.

New York State has seen a surge in ICE arrests, with totals four times the number seen during the same June-July period last year.

Don’t Let ICE’s Legal Abuses Stop You From Asserting Your Rights

‘Go Home, Fascists’: Protesters Jeer Federal Agents in Streets of DC

Federal agents face protests after Trump orders unprecedented takeover of DC police

Five Ways to Fight FOTUS Fascism by Robert Reich

Tonko and Fahy

My Congressperson, US Rep. Paul Tonko: “I traveled to the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility in Batavia… This visit was even more urgent given the results of a report from ICE’s Office of the Inspector General from an unannounced facility inspection earlier this summer. The report found the facility and ICE staff were not in compliance with federal law and used excessive, inappropriate force, including striking detainees and spraying them with pepper spray.

“Despite the pressing need for oversight and in violation of federal law that grants me and all Members of Congress access to these facilities, I was denied at the gate. The facility guards blocking my entry went so far as to confirm that they knew they were in violation of the law. If they are fine ignoring the legal rights of a Member of Congress, what does that mean for our own communities and individuals who are detained?”

You may or may not be able to read my state senator, Pat Fahy’s, newest op-ed in the Times Union, “about the paramilitary-type tactics taking over our streets.

“No visible identification, no judicial warrants, no due process – these are setting a dangerous precedent for Americans and normalizing paramilitary secret police style tactics on our streets. That’s why I introduced legislation to prohibit ICE agents from wearing masks or face coverings during civil immigration enforcement in New York.

“Security and humanity can both exist, and instilling fear will not create the immigration reforms we need to enrich America and honor its legacy.”

Kudos to them both.

MUSIC

Not Me No Way – Rebecca Jade ℗ 2025 Ultimate Vibe Recordings, Released on: 2025-08-18

Join Ice – Jesse Welles

He Just Can’t Wait To Be King! – Randy Rainbow Song Parody

Coverville 1545: Cover Stories for Steve Martin and Modest Mouse and 1546: The Mamas & The Papas Cover Story

The Mamas & The Papas cover Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart songs: My Heart Stood Still (from One Dam’ Thing after Another, 1927); Glad To Be Unhappy (from On Your Toes, 1936); Sing For Your Supper (from The Boys from Syracuse, 1938). They sang those three songs and Here In My Heart (from Dearest Enemy, 1925) for Rodgers and Hart Today, a salute to the composers, which aired March 2, 1967, on ABC TV, then reworked it as No Salt On Her Tail.

Symphony No. 1 in F minor by Dmitri Shostakovich

Gospel Plough – Robert Plant and Saving Grace

Lida Rose/Will I Ever Tell You from the movie The Music Man

You’ll Be Back – Primer

On The Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe from the movie The Harvey Girls (1946), with Judy Garland, Ray Bolger, and many others

Theme to the movie Emma by Rachel Portman

The Cast of Oliver with Davy Jones perform I’d Do Anything on The Ed Sullivan Show, Feb 9, 1964

Peter Sprague Plays Waters of March featuring Allison Adams Tucker

Run On -Elvis Presley

I Love You Period – Dan Baird

Bernstein – Academic Festival Overture (Brahms)

Go Away, Little Girl – Donny Osmond

Beethoven “Moonlight Sonata” for Mongkol, the Old Bull Elephant (ht/aal)

The hairpin: The Most Misunderstood Symbol in Music (ft. Seymour Bernstein) by Ben Lade

Leslie went on the 2025 Dave Coz cruise

cousins

Leslie and Rebecca with the cruise director

My sister Leslie went on the 2025 Dave Coz cruise. Someone described it as a “24/7 daytime adventure from Amsterdam to Norway and finally Iceland. The sun never sets this time of year. Wow, what an excursion.”

The website says, “Our guests are fully immersed with the energy and sounds of an array of all-star talent, guided tours, relaxation, and fine dining. ‘Seeing the world together through music’; that’s what the Dave Koz and Friends at Sea cruise is all about!” The 2026 tour of Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina is already sold out, and a waitlist exists.

Leslie has been on a few of these Koz tours, generally as the guest of Rebecca Jade, a ship performer and, not coincidentally, Leslie’s daughter. Based on her comments and those reposted by others, Leslie was particularly taken by Iceland.

In 2018, Leslie dueted with Larry Graham of Sly and the Family Stone. She’s participated in some music competitions onboard and has done well, which is not a surprise, as she’s been singing virtually all her life.

In anticipation of her birthday, I played a CD called Harbor City Heights Worship 2009 on which she appears. It’s not a fair representation of the range of her skills, and they misspell her first name as Lesley(!), but I can hear her vocals, usually in the harmonies. Anyway, I found it on YouTube.

I have other recordings of hers, mostly her solos during her church’s Advent/Christmas Eve services. Alas, I’ve never come across any Green Family Singers recordings.

Genealogy

In the past year, Leslie has spoken to two of our cousins, one each on our mother’s and father’s side, trying to fill the holes in the family tree. As I’ve noted, our lineage has peculiar mysteries, going back not that far.

Anyway, happy birthday, Leslie! If you ever retire, you must transcribe all that family data!