Mid May 2023 News.

 

 

By January of 1985, New Edition (from Boston, Massachusetts) had their first U.S. Top Ten single with the song of Cool It Now. Their 2nd self-titled album was very popular after their debut single of Candy Girl in 1983. New Edition has grown its fans over the years, not just among younger people. Madonna was from Bay City, Michigan. Like a Virgin was her first number-one single in America and in the UK. Her other single was Material Girl which was very popular in January of 1985 too. This was the beginning of Madonna. As time went onward, we know that she grew more controversial and bolder in her music and videos. The Cable channel of VH1 was released in January 1985, as a sister channel to MTV. It shows music videos and the series of Behind the Music, I Love the 80s, 90s, 2000s, etc. Vh1 is known for establishing groundbreaking documentaries. The channel has shown mostly movies and reality television in recent years. US/UK rock band Foreigner has their biggest career hit with the power ballad "I Want To Know What Love Is" which reaches #1 in both the US and UK. The song is written by band founder Mick Jones and is from the band's fifth album Agent Provocateur which hits #1 UK and #4 US (by February of 1985). The singer of Don Henley (from the Eagles) and the group Anthrax showed their music. David Lee Roth (from Valen Halen) had his hit of California Girls, a cover of the 1965 Beach Boys hit. Dead or Alive had the hit of You Spin Me Round (Like a Record), John Fogerty had the song of Old Man Down the Road, and REO Speedwagon had the famous song of Can't Fight the Feeling (they were from Champaign, Illinois). Jacksonville, Florida band Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers have their highest charting single to date with "Don't Come Around Here No More" #13 US, #50 UK. The song is co-written by Petty and The Eurythmics Dave Stewart. The album Southern Accents hits the US Top Ten. Inspired by the UK's Band-Aid concert, Harry Belafonte organized USA For Africa with a star-studded group of American artists to record the single "We Are The World" for charity. Written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and produced by Quincy Jones, the song hits #1 in both the US and UK. This took place in April of 1985. These movements saved human lives literally. Simple Minds had songs like Don't You Forget About Me, and Power Station had the son of Some Like It Hot. Spin Magazine debuted in May of 1985. It was launched by Bob Guccione Jr. as an alternative to Rolling Stone. 

The UK-based Nigerian singer Sade showed the song of Smooth Operator in May 1985. Sade and her music changed everything in music. I haven't heard of a bad Sade song in my life. This came from her debut album called Diamond Life which hits Number 2 in the UK and Number 5 in America. The album sold over 6 million copies. The album's first single of Your Love is King reached Number 6 in the UK. Grand Rapids, Michigan family band Debarge make it big with their fourth album Rhythm Of The Night #19 US, #3 US R&B. The album's title track reaches #3 US, #1 US R&B and #4 UK. The second single "Who's Donna Holding Now" hits #6 US and #2 US R&B. The Debarge family has been through massive abuse (by their own father who is sick) and drug addiction among some of their family members. Yet, the DeBarge family is strong and overcame so much to be a great part of our musical heritage. Former Metallica lead guitarist Dave Mustaine forms his own thrash metal band Megadeth and vows to be faster and heavier (than Metallica) in 1985. Howard Jones made the song Things Can Only Get Better, and Tears for Fears (both groups are from the UK) made the 1980's anthem of the song Everybody Wants to Rule the World. By July 1985, there was the charity concert Live Aid, organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, is held in both London, Philadelphia, and other cities to raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief. The concert is broadcast via satellite reaching 1.9 billion people worldwide. Artists include Queen, Bowie, Led Zeppelin, U2, and more. The Boston new wave band 'Til Tuesday, Paul Young, and Huey Lewis made much rock music. Sting made his solo album of The Dream of the Blue Turtles in August 1985 with singles like If You Love Somebody Set Them Free. Heart made the song of What About Love? UK reggae band UB40 and UK-based American singer Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders team up for a cover of Sonny & Cher's 1965 hit "I Got You Babe." The single reaches #1 UK and #28 US. The album is included on UB40's sixth album Baggariddim #14 UK, #40 US. The veteran soul singer Aretha Franklin had the hit of Freeway of Love in 1985. It was part of her thirtieth album of Who' Zoomin' Who? on Arista Records. It was Franklin's first album to go platinum in America with a younger sound. The first Annual Farm Aid Concert took place on September 1985. It took place in Champaign, Illinois. It was organized by Neil Young, Willie Nelson, and John Mellencamp. This concert wanted to help American farmers who were facing debt, foreclosure, and other issues. The annual concert continues to this very day. 

Many musicians didn't like the following event. By September 1985, the Parent Music Resource Council (PMRC) was created by Tipper Gore, Susan Baker, and others in Washington, D.C. The PMRC wanted to take action against music content that was filled with sex, drug use, and violence. A senate hearing resulted in the RIAA-Recording Industry Association of America agreeing to apply Parental Advisory Stickers to albums, cassettes, and CD's. This situation was just the beginning of the issue of music, content, and censorship. Debates about these issues only intensified as time went on, and these debates continue to this very day (with the debate about lyrics in music and criminal prosecution). The UK rock band Dire Straits made their song of Money for Nothing part of their fifth album of Brothers in Arms. The singer/songwriter from Indiana John Mellencamp had the song of Lonely Ol' Night with a more roots rock sound. Emergency was Kool and the Gangs' best-selling album in 1985 with singles like Cherish. Groups like The Hooters, The Fall, and The Cult expressed themselves too. Whitney Houston had her great song of Saving All My Love for You back in 1985. Her debut self-titled album was number one in the country with songs like How Will I Know and The Greatest Love of All. Whitney Houston was raised in Newark, New Jersey in the church. The church was part of her foundation in musical expression. Immediately since the 1980's, we knew that Whitney Houston was The Voice for real. She was the greatest vocalist of our generation. The Norwegian synthpop band of A-Ha had the song of Take on Me. The historic Krush Groove film and soundtrack were released in October 1985. The movie and the soundtrack had Run-DMC, Sheila E, the Fatboys Kurtis Blow, and New Edition. The film was a fictionalized account of the start of Def Jam Records. For those of Generation X and the younger Baby Boomers, Krush Groove was like a monumental story about the embrace of hip-hop culture. Back in those days, many people didn't even think that hip-hop was an authentic musical genre. That would change, especially with the advent of the Golden Age of Hip Hop. Starship made the song of We Built This City. Feargal Sharkey made music along with Mr. Mister in their song of Broken Wings. Queens, NYC rapper LL Cool released his debut album Radio in November of 1985. I Can't Live Without My Radio, Rock the Bells, and I Need A Beat were part of his album (being platinum selling over 1.5 million copies). LL Cool J has the gifts to be lyrical, to battle rap, to act, to write music, and to make love songs about loving a woman. The group Simple Minds a Scottish new wave group made the song of Alive and Kicking in December 1985. The Brooklyn, NYC comedian and actor had the song Party All The Time by December 1985. It was produced by Rick James. The song was Murphy's first musical album of How Could It Be. Eddie Murphy, by this time, was a superstar actor and comedian. 

 

A very historic time existed during the Birmingham black freedom movement. It was a time that was a turning point in the overall Civil Rights Movement. Many leaders of the freedom movement wanted more victories, especially after the failure to have Albany, Georgia to have real change for black Americans. Birmingham, back then, was the most segregated city of the South. It had an overt, vicious, and intricate system of Jim Crow apartheid where the fundamental human rights of black people were violated in a vicious fashion from employment to basic buying of resources. The 1963 Birmingham movement was a hard battle. Many men, women, and children were jailed for just peacefully protesting for human rights. Also, children were assaulted by crooked Birmingham police officers in a vindictive fashion (using dogs and water hoses). That cowardly action enraged people worldwide, not just Americans. The Birmingham campaign was headed by many organizations like SCLC (Southern Christian Leadership Conference), Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth's ACMHR organization, and other human beings. Dr. King, Dorothy Cotton, James Bevel, Wyatt Tee Walker, and other leaders contributed a lot in their sacrifice in making the Birmingham campaign a victory. Bull Connor lost in his defense of oppression. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. used the Birmingham Letter to refute the lie of moderates who wanted to wait for freedom and to end demonstrations. Freedom is meant to be given to all by birth, not restricted based on time. The Birmingham campaign ended with self-defense, nonviolent resistance, and it paved the way for the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to be signed into law. The Civil Rights Act bans racial discrimination in hiring practices and public services all over the United States of America. Therefore, we should always remember the famous and unsung heroes who stood up for justice in the Birmingham campaign (especially now with book bans in Florida, voter suppression laws nationwide, and more laws violating the human rights of Americans being widespread in 2023). In our time, we have a very long way to go in seeking that human justice that we all seek. That is why we have to use our influence, our power, and our voice to rectify injustice conclusively and establish liberty across the globe. 

 

It has been over a year since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The myth is that Russia was provoked to invade Ukraine. The truth is that Russia invaded Ukraine illegally and unjustly. Even before the invasion of Ukraine, Putin's military were massively building up on the Ukrainian border. Putin is clear by his own words that he invaded Ukraine to try to create Russian dominance over Ukraine like the Tsars and the counterrevolutionary Stalin once did. Ukraine's heroic resistance to imperialists has been inspirational in the world. We express solidarity with the Ukrainian people in seeking their land free from invasion. Russia promoted imperialism which is about the domination and exploitation of other countries by capitalist states. We also realize that NATO is not perfect too. Western imperialists in America and in Europe are complicit in coups, unjust invasions, and other actions that contradict the ideals of liberty, humane treatment, and democracy. We know about the history of Nuland and various issues. NATO's imperfections are no justification for the Russian attacks on civilian locations in Ukraine, for Russia executing policies violating Russian people's free speech including free press rights, and for the outright terrorism in Ukraine. The pro-Putin fake liberals are wrong to support Putin and blame the conflict only on the U.S. and NATO. This conflict is nuanced and complicated. Ukraine's citizens have every right to use self-defense to stop an invasion from taking place. The war should end, but it must end when Russian military forces must leave Ukraine, a peaceful agreement is created, and Ukraine is firmly established to be an independent nation. 

 

Agriculture is the lifeblood of civilization. From the early stages of human history to the modern era of 2023, we know that agricultural services have developed the cultural aspects of the world. Advancing in farming, seed development, and distribution of resources have been massive in the course of thousands of years. We still have to fight racism involving farming. There are stories in Colorado, and in other places in America where African American farmers and ranchers are being harassed and harmed by racists. Recently, a black couple named Courtney and Nicole Mallery were freed of all charges after they accused their white neighbors of racism and harassment. The Rocky Mountain NAACP investigated how the El Paso County Sheriff's Office handled the case and the arrests. The couple said that people harmed their Freedom Acres Ranch via acts of Vandalism and mutilation of their livestock. The couple also said that the El Paso County Sheriff's Office did racism and dismissed their claims. The Rocky Mountain NAACP said that it was pushing state lawmakers to pass a version of the CAREN Act in Colorado. CAREN stands for Caution Against Racially Exploitative Non-Emergencies. We have a problem here. Black U.S. farmers lost 90 percent of their land in the last century. There were 949,889 black farmers and now only 45,508 black farmers exist now. People in general want happiness and peace. We have a situation where monopoly corporations own a disproportionate amount of the agricultural resources of the world from seeds to water supplies. That is why people globally are using activism to make change. Change is not just about words though words are important. It's about forming institutions, fighting to change laws, and going about to be about the work to improve the conditions of society thoroughly. 

 

In our lives, we always advocate for solutions. There are many men and women struggling in life, and here is great advice to help people reach their highest potential. One mode of advice is that there is no shame in getting help or advice. Therapy is one great method to help men and women to improve their emotional intelligence (i.e. how to deal with communication, how to handle emotions, and how to develop self-expression in diverse, mature ways). There is absolutely nothing wrong with applying for resources if a person has financial struggles. I don't believe in poor shaming or scapegoating working-class men and women for the complex issues of the modern world. Also, achieving great things will take time on many occasions, so people should feel no shame starting at a certain place. Many of the most inspirational people in history started as homeless without any resources. Faith and action matter. Being a great, decent human will also go a long way in life. Going to college or other forms of educational services can lower income inequality, build confidence, and develop stable careers. Forming friendships and relationships among people work wonders in developing human connections. Studies document that excessive loneliness can contribute to mental decline and other health issues. Building up human connections contributes to establishing the longevity of longer life (along with exercise, reducing stress, healthy eating, and reading literature and writing information). Adapting to changing times, mentoring men and women (especially the youth), and making platonic friendships among the opposite sex does wonders in understanding the human condition better. One great piece of advice is to stand up against bigotry and unjust hatred spreading out in the world (we reject false, hateful ideologies). People who stand up for justice and are sincerely motivated to it gain respect among truly honorable people.

By Timothy