Monthly Archives: August, 2013

AUG 24, 2013 - Linda Ronstadt opened up publicly that she has been fighting Parkinson's disease for over 8 years, and it has taken away her ability to sing. Linda Ronstadt was a huge icon in the 1970s as a solo vocal performer selling tons of albums and tickets. About 8 years ago she noticed trembling in her hands, and then it eventually affected her vocal chords. She finally saw a neurologist who diagnose her with Parkinson's disease, and she was shocked. I remember rockin' out to Linda's albums as a teenager, cranking up her version of "When Will I Be Loved" and other great songs. JTMP wishes her good health and long life. You can read the interview on AARP.com here.  (photo credit: Carl Lender/CC)

AUG 22, 2012 - Responding to the hateful Westboro Baptist Church rally at her Lincoln, Nebraska concert back on August 18, 2013, popular artist Ke$ha sent her dancers to perform fabulous dance moves and love to counter the hate from WBC. Unfortunately, WBC had their awful parody of Ke$ha's song, "We R Who We R" in the background where they changed the lyrics. Listen to the real Ke$ha song here. Sienna Stylish on YouTube posted this video of the event below. What do you think? Leave a comment or start a conversation on our Justice Through Music Facebook Page.  (photo credit: Becky Sullivan/CC)

August 19, 2013 - After posting about the oft forgotten battles (literally!) for worker's rights at the turn of the century in this country, a JTMP supporter passed on this great song about the struggles in the song, "Battle of Blair Mountain", played by Louise Mosrie. Great stuff....watch her perform it live below.

What do you think? Start a conversation or leave a comment on our Justice Through Music Facebook Page.

(Photo: company thugs - 1912 - credit: Charleston Gazette)

August 18, 2013 - Watching one of my favorite shows "Diggers" last night, I was reminded of the actual battles for worker's rights, including guns and all, that took place in this country at the turn of the century. With the Republicans lately attacking unions and eroding worker's rights, I thought I would blog about a hidden history of the United States; something you don't find in any textbooks. They never taught me this when I went to public school. 

In our Industrial Age in the 1800s coal miners were horribly exploited even to the point of "company scrip", where workers would get tokens for pay, and be forced to buy only from the company store. Misery and death ruled their lives; from poor working conditions, long hours, death and disease from "black lung", and very low pay while Robber Barons lived in the lap of luxury. Around 1910 the workers had had enough, and started to form unions demanding better pay and better working conditions. Coal companies responded by firing union-sympathizing workers, blacklisting them, evicting from their homes, and even hiring armed thugs who would beat, intimidate and even murder workers trying to organize. The coal companies would bribe government officials to arrest union-sympathizers on flimsy charges and to hire these squads of well-armed thugs.

In West Virginia in 1912, after enduring this brutality for too long, and fired up by Mary Harris "Mother Jones", miners started fighting back. They formed unions and started strikes such as "The Paint Creek-Cabin Creek" strikes. This led to many armed confrontations such as "The Battle of Blair Mountain" where over 10,000 striking coal miners attempting to rescue three workers from a jail and armed with only "squirrel guns" (small caliber), marched to the jail and faced high-caliber rifles and machine guns manned by government agent thugs. When all was said and done, 30 were dead on the coal company thug side, and over 100 coal miners died. 985 miners were indicted for murder, but acquitted by sympathetic jurors. The coal companies won in the short term, it wasn't until the 1930s under FDR's New Deal until workers would get the right to form unions and unions expanded to steel workers and beyond. Now we have Republicans trying to erode all those rights workers have actually fought for. Of course JTMP does NOT suggest or condone violence in any way, but JTMP does urge our supporters to work peacefully through the ballot box and other ways to protect and secure those rights all those men died for back then. We urge you to make sure you constantly tell your lawmakers in the state and federal level that you want them to protect worker's rights, protect unions, and stand up to Republican thugs trying to enact this stupid, "Right to Work" insanity.  (photo credit: Blair Mountain Reenactment Society)

August 18, 2013 - Thanks to Gray Warrior on Democratic Underground, JTMP found a nugget from way back in 2011. Attending the Point of Light Institute ceremony honoring former President George H.W. Bush on March 21, 2011, country legend Garth Brooks gave an interview to CNSNews and really hammered into the obstructionist Teabagger Republican US Congress really giving Obama a hard time in letting him do his job. Brooks said, ""Yeah, I think what President Obama is finding out is all that we want to do, the system kind of doesn't allow the most powerful guy in the world to kind of do his job and I'm sure nobody's more frustrated than him to complete those promises that he did and I think he's trying his heart out. I love him to death and I fully support him and I just wish him well because it's got to be hell in that office."

Garth Brooks then added, "It just seems like we vote for things because they're  Republican or Democratic. I think we should vote for them because they're right or wrong and we kind of have seemed to have fallen into that trap so that would be the one warning I would give all us. Put down where you're from and what flag you fly under and let's get to putting the best person, man or women in the office and let's start making some strides. For me, it's if my guy didn't get in then I drag my feet for four years and we don't get anywhere and if my guy gets in, you drag your feet for four years and we don't get anywhere. We've got to stop doing that." Read more on CNSNews.com here. Watch the 2011 full concert below with Reba, Darius Rucker, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood and Garth Brooks below. Fast forward (using you mouse along the timeline) to the 1:08 mark to see Garth Brooks perform, he was the last entertainer.  (photo credit: Steve Jurvetson/CC)