An Alice’s Restaurant Thanksgiving

Posted by | November 26, 2015 07:37 | Filed under: War & Peace

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Arlo Guthrie’s “Alice’s Restaurant” is one of the best antiwar songs ever written. It’s a fitting time to revisit this Vietnam-era classic, and not just because it’s Thanksgiving.

Happy Thanksgiving from your friends at Liberaland.

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Copyright 2015 Liberaland
By: Alan

Alan Colmes is the publisher of Liberaland.

53 responses to An Alice’s Restaurant Thanksgiving

  1. KABoink_after_wingnut_hacker November 26th, 2015 at 07:43

    Happy Turkey Day!

    • Suzanne McFly November 26th, 2015 at 07:44

      You as well, I hope you get a belly full and enjoy your day today :)

  2. Suzanne McFly November 26th, 2015 at 07:43

    Great tune!!!!!

  3. Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 07:58

    Remember, people; Parker House rolls are NOT that hard! Make the effort!

  4. William November 26th, 2015 at 07:59

    Happy thanksgiving to my atheist friends.

    • Larry Schmitt November 26th, 2015 at 08:27

      Not to be pedantic (but it is in my nature) but we created the thanksgiving bird. If the domestic turkey were let loose in the wild, they would either quickly die off, or evolve to look more like their wild brethren. We bred them into freaks, to have the enormous breasts that Americans favor (naturally). Happy Thanksgiving anyway.

      • Buford2k11 November 26th, 2015 at 09:21

        Ha….Massive Breasts are as Murikin as ummm…ahhh, Massive Breasts….As one who lives in the middle of several large herds of Wild Turkeys, not the bottled kind, they are smart/not so smart, and can FLY….not for long, or very far, but they are very impressive on their takeoffs…but to see that large of a bird take flight, and then land in a tall tree, with some mighty slim looking branches, one really wonders about Ben Franklin….I have been photographing these guys for a few years, and they still amaze me….

        • Larry Schmitt November 26th, 2015 at 09:46

          Ben wanted the turkey as our national bird, he thought the eagle was not deserving of the honor. This is from a letter he wrote to his daughter:
          For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly. You may have seen him perched on some dead Tree near the River, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the Labour of the Fishing Hawk; and when that diligent Bird has at length taken a Fish, and is bearing it to his Nest for the Support of his Mate and young Ones, the Bald Eagle pursues him and takes it from him.

          With all this injustice, he is never in good case but like those among men who live by sharping & robbing he is generally poor and often very lousy. Besides he is a rank coward: The little King Bird not bigger than a Sparrow attacks him boldly and drives him out of the district. He is therefore by no means a proper emblem for the brave and honest Cincinnati of America who have driven all the King birds from our country…

          “I am on this account not displeased that the Figure is not known as a Bald Eagle, but looks more like a Turkey. For the Truth the Turkey is in Comparison a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America… He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage, and would not hesitate to attack a Grenadier of the British Guards who should presume to invade his Farm Yard with a red Coat on.”

          • Buford2k11 November 26th, 2015 at 10:02

            I agree with Ben on the Majesty and Honesty of the Turkey…Watching them, and trying to stalk them is difficult…they have a way of disappearing as quickly as they appear…I photograph a mated pair of Red Tail Hawks, they are incredible…Northern Canadian Geese are fun to photo…they like to show off their approach and subsequent botched landings…Turkeys have no such compunction about hiding their limited flying abilities…they just Hang it out there….coyotes, bob cats, and some foxes are their natural predators…I have yet to see a turkey get nailed by one tho…Bald Eagles used to be common around here…but it looks like there is a pair of Golden Eagles, dominating the river bottom…Can ya tell I like watching and photo’g birds…?

            • Larry Schmitt November 26th, 2015 at 10:40

              This fits perfectly.
              http://assets.amuniversal.com/afbf38606f7a01331d51005056a9545d

            • rg9rts November 27th, 2015 at 04:17

              We have a rails to trails conversion that I ride and walk in the snow..and I love doing bird species counts through the seasons and even racked a couple accidentals for the Hudson Valley…Sand Crane and a Great White Heron …the former about 1500 miles from home the Mississippi valley…the latter about 2000…they are native to the Keys ..recently we had bald eagles moving in

          • rg9rts November 27th, 2015 at 04:09

            The true bird today sadly is the chicken hawk

      • William November 26th, 2015 at 10:51

        True.
        The typical farm raised bird is nothing like that band of roving turkeys that pass through by back yard and drive my dog crazy every other day.

        • rg9rts November 27th, 2015 at 04:08

          50 years ago they weren’t around…I guess we thank the rod and gun clubs for the reintroduction…

      • Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 10:58

        My brother used to raise them (he had a game bird license), and what always struck me was how their chests sounded when you patted them…like a meat balloon or something…

      • bpollen November 26th, 2015 at 16:04

        On my way to work, I pass through a park. Frequently, I’ll see wild turkeys there (and not the bottled kind.) The other day, there were 18 of them visible and as I passed by, another half dozen walked out of the trees.

        I may not have gotten massive breasts, but that woulda been 48 drummies!

      • rg9rts November 27th, 2015 at 04:05

        Thank Hef

    • Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 10:55

      We thank you, also, for the gift of overly fermented fruit used to season vegetables, and the use of lye to make olives somehow more unappealing…

      • William November 26th, 2015 at 11:08

        Amen, and best to you as well.

        • Larry Schmitt November 26th, 2015 at 11:11

          It would be hard not to be, even after drinking too much chardonnay. Or whatever is your libation of choice.

          • Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 11:23

            HEY! I’monly on my third 4-pack!I canalwayscukbettrthatnyiooo!wwanafigjt:?

            • Larry Schmitt November 26th, 2015 at 11:45

              Keep trying, you’ll get it. Fortunately, the practice is a lot of fun.

        • Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 11:19

          Best of days to you and yours, William, Always.

  5. rg9rts November 26th, 2015 at 08:12

    OMG NO NO NO ….the last time I mentioned Haight Ashbury the person had to google it now we are going to do it again
    Best anti war song..Country Joe and the Fish’s Viet Nam Rag .1 2 3 4 what are we fightin for….

    • StoneyCurtisll November 26th, 2015 at 11:33

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7Y0ekr-3So

      • rg9rts November 26th, 2015 at 11:59

        That was the anti war song everyone that was in or not could relate to,,,be the first one on your block to have your kid sent home in a box and its 1 2 3

    • whatthe46 November 26th, 2015 at 14:05

      couldn’t help yourself eh? laughing so hard. you’ll never let me live it down will ya? and i’m not going to google, well if i do, i’m not telling anyone.

      • rg9rts November 26th, 2015 at 14:07

        Did I say who????Hmmm,mmmm

  6. imnotgaybut20bucksis20bucks November 26th, 2015 at 08:21

    Please patronize dolphin free cranberries and have a safe and happy thanksgiving.

    • Larry Schmitt November 26th, 2015 at 08:28

      I like that, I’m going to steal it for my facebook page. Thanks.

    • Budda November 26th, 2015 at 08:48

      LOL

    • Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 09:29

      ROTFLMAO
      Don’t forget the gluten-free turkey, either…

  7. Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 09:37

    <a href=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m57gzA2JCcM"<The original.

    • tracey marie November 26th, 2015 at 09:38

      I hear ya!

      • Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 09:39

        tracey, I hope you have a Thanksgiving that can’t be beat.

        • tracey marie November 26th, 2015 at 09:42

          Same for you with your chicken.

  8. labman57 November 26th, 2015 at 09:53

    Thankfully, patriotic gays are no longer relegated to the “Group W” bench.

    • Larry Schmitt November 26th, 2015 at 09:58

      There’s a head shop in New Haven by that name.

      • Buford2k11 November 26th, 2015 at 10:09

        wow, there’s a memory I thought was lost…Went to West Haven High, hung out sometimes on Chapel Street downtown NH…and frequented said Shop…Long ago, in a far away universe, the Sixties….

  9. William November 26th, 2015 at 11:07

    I am thankful.

    • Larry Schmitt November 26th, 2015 at 11:12

      I will always remember my first reaction to hearing the announcement of Palin: That’s the best he could do?

      • StoneyCurtisll November 26th, 2015 at 11:31

        My reaction was, who the hell is Sarah Palin?
        And it just got worse from there.

  10. StoneyCurtisll November 26th, 2015 at 11:28

    Without Woody there would be no Arlo…
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwcKwGS7OSQ
    Happy T day everyone~!

    • Hirightnow November 26th, 2015 at 13:46

      HELL YEAH!

    • fahvel November 28th, 2015 at 01:25

      incredible song in an incredible era and all for naught since the fkn fascists seem to have won the entire thing – folks just work for the corporate state and then do this black friday week thing which seems like it’ll become the black year and then the demise of what once was an interesting country. –

  11. StoneyCurtisll November 26th, 2015 at 13:26

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0q_4p6ijEtc

  12. Anomaly 100 November 26th, 2015 at 13:59

    I love this song.

  13. Mike N. November 26th, 2015 at 14:14

    Arlo says it’s not an anti-war song, it’s an anti-stupidity song. But of course, the two are pretty much one and the same.

    http://www.cbsnews.com/videos/unofficial-thanksgiving-anthem-alices-restaurant/

    • rg9rts November 27th, 2015 at 04:02

      Saw him in concert a few years ago and he had an interesting observation…the song runs about 18 minutes …the same length of time as the blank space in the White House tapes caused by Rosemary Woods…

  14. robert November 26th, 2015 at 15:02

    there is always a feast before a gop organized tragedy

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