Clash City Rocker
Clash City Rocker's JournalGoDaddy Employees Were Told They Were Getting a Holiday Bonus. It Was Actually a Phishing Test.
https://coppercourier.com/story/godaddy-employees-holiday-bonus-secruity-test/I know phishing is a serious issue, but in this economy, that sounds terribly cruel, unless they’re really giving their employees that bonus. And that seems unlikely, if they recently laid employees off, as the article suggests.
The story of the ultimate holiday song for sad times - "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas"
There are many Christmas songs for those who see this is as a happy time of year. But what about those of us for whom this can be a challenging time? What about years like this, when it’s challenging for everyone? Fortunately, there are are Christmas songs for those too. And one has been around for over 75 years.
“Meet Me in St. Louis” is a 1944 MGM musical starring Judy Garland. Judy didn’t initially want to make the film, but would eventually claim it as one of her favorite roles. Her relationship and eventual marriage to director Vincente Minelli started with this film, which means that without “Meet Me in St. Louis” there would have been no Liza. The second highest grossing film of the year, it was also a critical success. The movie is rated 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. The story shows one year in the life of a family, and contains several songs by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blaine that became standards, the most famous of which is “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.”
Martin wrote the melody, but couldn’t make it work and threw it in a wastebasket. Fortunately, Blaine had heard the tune and fished it out, insisting that it was too beautiful to waste. The original lyrics were much darker (for example, “Have yourself a merry little Christmas / It may be your last / Next year we may all be living in the past" ). While the song takes place during a point in the film when the characters are depressed, the director and stars urged Blaine to change some of the lines, and it became instead a song of hope, acknowledging that the present was sad but showing vision for the future. The song resonated with Americans, coming as it did during World War 2 when the future was uncertain. It was particularly popular among servicemen serving overseas.
Frank Sinatra wished to include the song in his 1957 album, “A Jolly Christmas,” but wanted happier lyrics. At his request, Martin changed the line “Until then we’ll have to muddle through somehow” to “Hang a shining star upon the highest bow,” and altered some lyrics from the future to the present tense. The result was the version most people are familiar with today.
The song has been recorded more than 500 times, usually with the revised lyrics, but even before hearing the original version, I had always felt there was an inherent sadness to it. At its heart, the song is meant to be sung with hope, through tears. My favorite covers with the newer lyrics are by artists who seemed to understand the emotional depth of the the song, particularly the Pretenders and Aimee Mann.
In 2001, James Taylor stepped into a studio to record a song, which took less time than expected. On a whim, he used the extra studio time to record “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” with the original lyrics, which he had always preferred. When 9/11 happened, the decision was made to release it as a single, and it got considerable airplay, given the mood in America at the time. It remains one of my favorite versions.
Chris Isaak found yet another way to sing the song. Since that section of the song is usually sung twice, why not do both versions?
The song’s greatest legacy will be that it is a Christmas song for sad times without being hopeless. The song reminds me that this isn’t always a happy time for everyone, but gives me encouragement to find happiness, if only for the sake of others. It’s a good message this year, I think.
What do you think? What’s your favorite version?
This should be the official Christmas song for 2020
The lyrics just sum up the whole damn year.
Happy holidays, all, and may next year be a lot better.
LOL...Trump wants an airport named after him
https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-already-wondering-airport-bear-095256622.htmlIf you see a RW post claiming the death rate in the US has stayed the same this year, reply w/ this
Basically, people are claiming that Covid can’t be real because the death rate is about the same as, or even lower than, last year. It’s a specious argument, for reasons explained in the article.
https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2020/dec/11/facebook-posts/chart-comparing-2020-us-death-toll-previous-years-/
One thing I don’t think they mention is that some types of death are probably down because of the isolation. For example, I’m sure there have been fewer car fatalities, fewer school shootings, and fewer deaths from viruses other than Covid, because Americans have stayed home more. Simple raw death numbers don’t mean much this year.
Otherwise, I think this does a good job of demonstrating that the comparison is fraudulent. Most damning to their argument is the information from the CDC.
Why Trump Might Just Fade Away
“Business journalists know that many of Trump’s ventures quickly went bankrupt, and that he would now be much richer if he had simply invested his inheritance in the S&P 500. But to most Americans, the host of The Apprentice is an entrepreneur who built a grand empire thanks to his incredible business sense.
“Now, however, Trump’s veneer of invincibility is fading. He lost his bid for reelection, and staged the most incompetent coup attempt since Woody Allen’s Bananas. He can rant and rave about what happened in November, but he can’t keep his followers from seeing Joe Biden inaugurated in January. Fear of what he might attempt next is giving way to laughter. He looks weaker and more scared by the day.”
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/12/trump-will-fade-into-obscurity/617271/
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