Great Quote – Quick Facts – Best Songs Lyrics of Modern America – Part 21
Blog No 141 – February 15, 2022
By Mack W. Borgen
Author, The White Binder (2022); The Writings of a Lifetime (2021); Dead Serious and Lighthearted – The Memorable Words of Modern America (Three Volumes) (2018-2019); and The Relevance of Reason – The Hard Facts and Real Data about the State of Current America (2 Volumes) (2013). As Advertised in The New York Review of Books and Recipient of Eight National Book Awards. For a “cleaner,” non-email presentation of this blog, just go to https://www.mackwborgen.com/ and click the “Blogs” tab.
Great Quote
“I never lose. Either I win or I learn.”
Nelson Mandela (B: 1918 – D: 2013) (Age 95).
For forwarding this great quote to me — My special thanks to Stephen MacIntosh of Santa Barbara, California — a wonderful friend and a great financial adviser!
(Today’s) Quick Facts
Inflation and Wealth Distribution
The media is aggressively reporting the rise of inflation – as it should. But it also should be reporting that many corporations are raising prices even though they are simultaneously making record profits!
The fact is that many price increases are not driven by inflation. Instead, they are merely being driven by the capitalism model which is fine – arguably even wonderful. However, especially because of America’s vast, since-the-1980’s wealthy inequality, these record profits are not widely distributed. Most of America is not in the stock market. Instead, the richest 10% of Americans now own about 89% of all stocks. The rest — the “bottom 90%” — own a mere 11% of all stocks.
While regulated capitalism and free markets should be encouraged, it must also be remembered that both the inflation rate and the stock market are oftentimes very poor measures of the wider American economy.
Get Ready — A Lot of Baby Boomers!!
By 2030, i.e., in just 8 years, there will be 71.5 million baby boomers over the age of 65 in the US. That is more than 21% of the projected US population and more than 1 in 5 Americans! Party hearty everybody — but the bars, restaurants, golf courses, estate planning attorneys, and care facilities should get ready!
Best Song Lyrics – Part 21
Introduction
Song lyrics are the real poetry of Modern America. The lyrics of our favorite songs roll around in our heads for decades. Almost unconsciously, every day we honor the words of America’s songwriters who said something in that perfect, poetic, or clever way. Here is Part 21 of my assembled list — done over the nine years of my research for my series of books, Dead Serious and Lighthearted – The Memorable Words of Modern America.
The Best Lyrics of Modern America – From 1957 through 2015 – Part 21
Stranger Song (1967) (Leonard Cohen) (B: 1934, Quebec, Canada – D: 2016 (Los Angeles, California).
“It’s true that all men you knew were dealers
Who said they were through with dealing,
Every time you gave them shelter …
And then sweeping up the jokers that he left behind
You find he did not leave you very much
Not even laughter
Like any dealer he was watching for the card
That is so high and wild
He’ll never have to deal another
He was just some Joseph looking for a manger ….
And then leaning on the windowsill
He’ll say one day you caused his will
To weaken with your love and warmth and shelter
And then taking from his wallet
An old schedule of trains, he’ll say
I told you when I came, I was a stranger
I told you when I came, I was a stranger.”
Opposites Attract (1990) (Paula Abdul) (B: 1962, San Francisco, CA).
I take two steps forward
I take two steps back
We come together
‘Cause opposites attract.
And you know, it ain’t fiction
Just a natural fact
We come together
‘Cause opposites attract.”
Fancypants Word of the Day
Potation (Noun): 1) A drink, 2) The action of drinking potation.
Examples of uses in sentences:
Serious Example: “Sit down and join me for a potation.”
More Humorous (and ridiculously pretentious) Example: “Most of the plans for the bachelor party concerned copious potation.” O.K. Does anyone ever really talk like that? (Yes, sometimes I miss William F. Buckley and his Firing Line show (1966-1999) as well!).
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