INDEPENDENCE DAY

Tradition tells of a chime that changed the world on July 8, 1776, with the Liberty Bell ringing out from the tower of Independence Hall summoning the citizens of Philadelphia to hear the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence by Colonel John Nixon.The Liberty Bell gained iconic importance when abolitionists in their efforts to put an end to slavery throughout America adopted it as a symbol.It was, in fact, the abolitionists who gave it the name "Liberty Bell," in reference to its inscription.

God Bless America

Today is American Independence Day and I thought I should mark it in some way. America arouses some strong emotions,especially when it comes to their foreign policy and in particular their involvement in Iraq.I must be honest and confess that, at the time I supported the U.S invasion ,on the basis that Saddam had these weapons of mass destruction as we were repeatedly told by U.S intelligence sources.Of course now we know that this was not true and therefore the whole reason for the war is untenable, and the bitter harvest of U.S interference is being reaped on a daily basis by mass killings in Baghdad. Foreign policy apart America has had such a profound influence on the world that it is impossible to ignore its positive contribution...especially in the area of popular culture. Here's a partial list of Americans who have influenced me...Billy Graham...Bob Dylan...Emily Dickinson...Jimmy Carter...Johnny Cash...Earl Hammer...Joan Baez...Martin Luther King Jnr.... And to mark this Big Day for all our American friends,here is a song by Bob Dylan... -GOSh.-

Ring Them Bells

Ring them bells, ye heathen

From the city that dreams,

Ring them bells from the sanctuaries

Cross the valleys and streams,

For they're deep and they're wide

And the world's on its side

And time is running backwards

And so is the bride.

Ring them bells St. Peter

Where the four winds blow,

Ring them bells with an iron hand

So the people will know.

Oh it's rush hour now

On the wheel and the plow

And the sun is going down

Upon the sacred cow.

Ring them bells Sweet Martha,

For the poor man's son,

Ring them bells so the world will know

That God is one.

Oh the shepherd is asleep

Where the willows weep

And the mountains are filled

With lost sheep.

Ring them bells for the blind and the deaf,

Ring them bells for all of us who are left,

Ring them bells for the chosen few

Who will judge the many when the game is through.

Ring them bells, for the time that flies,

For the child that cries

When innocence dies.

Ring them bells St. Catherine

From the top of the room

,Ring them from the fortress

For the lilies that bloom.

Oh the lines are long

And the fighting is strong

And they're breaking down the distance

Between right and wrong.

Bob Dylan