In A Dusty Black Coat and a Red Right Hand

Take a litle walk to the edge of town,
Go across the tracks, where the viaduct looms like a bird of doom.
As it shifts and cracks where secrets lie in the border fires, in the humming wires -
Hey man, you know you're never coming back.
Past the square, past the bridge, past the mills, past the stacks.
On a gathering storm comes a tall handsome man,
In a dusty black coat with a red right hand.

He'll wrap you in his arms,tell you that you've been a good boy.
He'll rekindle all the dreams it took you a lifetime to destroy.
He'll reach deep into the hole, heal your shrinking soul -
Hey buddy, you know you're never ever coming back.
He's a god, he's a man, he's a ghost, he's a guru.
They're whispering his name through this disappearing land,
But hidden in his coat is a red right hand.

You ain't got no money? He'll get you some.
You ain't got no car? He'll get you one.
You ain't got no self-respect; you feel like an insect.
Well don't you worry buddy,cause here he comes,
Through the ghettos and the barrio and the bowery and the slum -
A shadow is cast wherever he stands;
Stacks of green paper in his red right hand.

You'll see him in your nightmares,you'll see him in your dreams;
He'll appear out of nowhere, but he ain't what he seems.
You'll see him in your head,on the TV screen, and hey buddy, I'm warning you to turn it off -
He's a ghost, he's a god,he's a man, he's a guru.
You're one microscopic cogin, his catastrophic plan;
Designed and directed by his red right hand..."

If you haven't heard that song, by Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, get to it as soon as you can. I associate it strongly with one of the Two Things I Think Are Awesome Even Though Most People Find That Creepy, political machines (the other is Machiavelli as Leadership Example), which I have been thinking quite fondly of in the past few years. I can't remember who it was on NPR talking about how really, no matter what your political affiliation is, it's been a depressing five years - economic havoc, National Debt chaos, war, terrorist attacks, etc. I wish I could, because they put it very well. It's sad to see America in such a chaotic domestic state...I'm not wild about the foreign policy aspect, either, but the domestic one is the saddest part. America is the Land of Opportunity, right? Yay! So why is the Debt so insane and funding for the public good getting picked away at? I guess the root cause is that no one seems to give a shit about anyone but themselves any more, which is fine on the face, but...sad. It's truly sad when people don't care about their fellow man, and I think that's a lot to do with why I like living in Holden - you might not be able to rake your leaves into the street, but people interact here. They say hi and care about your house being empty when you go away, and ask about your pets. If only that could exist on a grand scale, it would be so much better. No one is supposed to be an island unto themselves.

On the current list of Things I Like a Whole Bunch...Avis has a commercial now with various Normal People driving in "hip" cars like a Hummer, and that wacky looking new Chevy HHR critter while the Ruff Ryders Anthem plays. Maybe I'm just easily amused, but I am in full and enthusiastic support of anything featuring velour-sweatsuit-wearing senior citizens strutting away from their Hummer while clicking their car lock remote over their shoulder while DMX growls about how he's gonna "stop, drop, shut 'em down open up shop."