“Where Have All the Flowers Gone?”

Reading that the late Pete Seeger, writer of that song, is being memorialized and honored with the issuance of a U.S. postage stamp was heartwarming to me. Having met Seeger and exchanged letters, one legendary songwriter (Pete) to an aspirant (me), the news made me think of his lyrics and their meaning today.

Memories of my own pleasant school days are shattered by news reports of shootings in schools and other locations. And I’m angered that Republican lawmakers block attempts to ban public ownership of weapons of war. In doing so they make certain that American murderers are the best equipped in the world.

Hearing that a 10-year-old girl had to travel across state lines to abort the pregnancy result of a rapist’s sexual assault is disgusting. This isn’t about Roe v. Wade; it’s about forcing a child to bear a child.

Still wearing a mask makes rose-smelling difficult. Knowing that a cult of anti-vaxxers is at fault makes it more so.

Sweet violins drowned out by Russian bombs and missiles saddens me. Seeger, the banjo-playing, anti-war activist, would have been a voice worth hearing today. Perhaps with a new song or new lyrics to an old one.

Where have all the flowers gone?

Glenn R. Plummer

Unity

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