The last time an army crossed the Rhine was in 1945. That may be the longest period of peace, on that frontier, since the Romans.

For those, like myself, who have had trouble understanding the history and astonishing import of the French Revolution, I strongly recommend Hilary Mantel's A Place of Greater Safety. It provides a superb imaginative portal to that time and place.

The bloodthirstiness of the first verse ultimately put me off revolutions, but it was fun to sing.

Going to play that video of La Marseillaise now.

We'll be fighting in the streets
With our children at our feet
And the morals that they worship will be gone
And the men who spurred us on
Sit in judgment of all wrong
They decide and the shotgun sings the song

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around me
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
And I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Don't get fooled again

Change it had to come
We knew it all along
We were liberated from the fall that's all
But the world looks just the same
And history ain't changed
'Cause the banners, they all flown in the last war

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around me
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
And I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Don't get fooled again
No, no!

I'll move myself and my family aside
If we happen to be left half alive
I'll get all my papers and smile at the sky
For I know that the hypnotized never lie

Do ya?

There's nothing in the street
Looks any different to me
And the slogans are replaced, by-the-bye
And the parting on the left
Is now the parting on the right
And the beards have all grown longer overnight

I'll tip my hat to the new constitution
Take a bow for the new revolution
Smile and grin at the change all around me
Pick up my guitar and play
Just like yesterday
Then I'll get on my knees and pray
We don't get fooled again
Don't get fooled again
No, no!

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

Meet the new boss
Same as the old boss

The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat; as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade

A bit of nostalgia, that. I first saw that play put on by a local company on Cape Cod on a bitter (5°F) evening in February, 1972 (my cousin was playing a bit part and invited Eva and me to drive out from Boston and see the performance).

http://www.google.com/logos/

If they did a doodle for Bastille Day, it should appear there in a few days. They do quite a few doodles for other counties that don't show in the US.

A bit of nostalgia, that. I first saw that play put on by a local company on Cape Cod on a bitter (5°F) evening in February, 1972 (my cousin was playing a bit part and invited Eva and me to drive out from Boston and see the performance).

ETA: Mods, I found this error message this morning after thinking the message posted last night:

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On the other hand, my boss does an occasional bluegrass jam, so I dragged one of my dulcimers on the plane and sat in with them, and they're a beginner-oriented jam so I wasn't lost the whole time.