Monthly Archives: August, 2013

August 9, 2013 - Country star legend Loretta Lynn was named by President Barack Obama to be one of the recipients of the 2013 Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor that is presented to individuals who, "have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors." The award ceremony will be held later his year. 2013 marks the 50th anniversary of the Executive Order signed by President John F. Kennedy establishing the Presidential Medal of Freedom, since then over 500 exceptional individuals have been awarded with this Presidential Medal of Freedom. In a statement President Obama said, "The Presidential Medal of Freedom goes to men and women who have dedicated their own lives to enriching ours. This year's honorees have been blessed with extraordinary talent, but what sets them apart is their gift for sharing that talent with the world. It will be my honor to present them with a token of our nation's gratitude." 

The White House website said about Ms. Lynn that she "is a country music legend. Raised in rural Kentucky, she emerged as one of the first successful female country vocalists in the early 1960s, courageously breaking down barriers in an industry long dominated by men. Ms. Lynn's numerous accolades include the Kennedy Center Honors in 2003 and the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010."

Read more and learn about the other 31 recipients on the White House website here.  (photo credit Scott Schram/CC)

August 9, 2013 - JTMP has been posting recently about Americans making mistakes and needing justice and second chances, and The American Scholar website has a great article out really delving into the issue. With the Internet, where people's lives get splayed out permanently for all the world to see, it is especially important for people to be able to get that second chance and move on with their lives. They discuss how 30 years ago, one would have to go to a police station or city hall to get at criminal records, but now with the Internet and sites that let anyone do a background check for $39.99, people's privacy and ability to move past their mistakes and move on with their lives is getting increasingly very difficult to do. The article discusses how many people after making a mistake do not repeat the mistake; it is incorrect to say. "Once a criminal, always a criminal". Read the American Scholar article here, and start a discussion or leave a comment on our Justice Through Music Facebook Page here.  (photo credit: Scott*/Flickr)

August 8, 2013 - Americans can buy guns and ammo at Walmart, but apparently they ban free speech. I stumbled across this fact today that back in 1996, Walmart objected to the Sheryl Crow song, "Love Is a Good Thing" that contained the lyrics: "Watch out sister, watch out brother, Watch our children as they kill each other, With a gun they bought at the Walmart discount stores". Reason #148 to not to shop at Walmart. Read more about this in a 2004 article on PBS.org here. Watch Sheryl Crow sing "Love is a Good Thing" live from CrowVideoTV2 below.

August 8, 2013 - Today.com has a cool article out on the "Ten Best Sesame Street Musical Guests", and lists musicians from Paul Simon to Yo Yo Ma. I grew up on Sesame Street, and remember many musicians coming on and helping guide kids with music to good values and bettering the community. JTMP urges our supporters to contact their elected officials and ask them to protect and even increase funding for the arts and public television. Even though he was never on Sesame Street, John Denver had a very close relationship with The Muppets on The Muppet Show, and was a great musician and musical activist.  Watch John Denver sing "Grandma's Feather Bed" with The Muppets below from dteeps42 on YouTube, and check out the article with videos of the Sesame Street musical guests on Today.com here.  (Photo credit: Jim Henson, creator of The Muppets by Alan Light/CC)

August 7, 2013 - JTMP is excited to announce we are re-releasing Op-Critical's "Fear Not" video in HD, a powerful video and song that is a scathing condemnation of the George W. Bush administration, and how they used propaganda in duping the nation into launching the unnecessary and foolish Iraq invasion and war. The video was directed and produced by filmmaker Dmitry Torgovitsky in 2008, before YouTube had an "HD" feature. So to remind everyone of the debacle of the Iraq War and how we must be vigilant against government propaganda starting foolish wars, we have re-released the video on our JTMP YouTube Channel in full 1080p HD and audio. Watch the video below, and leave a comment about it on our JTMP Facebook Page, and please give us a ""Like"! Thanks!