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Lowell Folk Festival Rates Five Stars

The following is a republication of a post by Paul Marion that first appeared here on July 28, 2013. It is being reposted in advance of this year’s Lowell Folk Festival which begins Friday, July 26, 2024, and runs through Sunday, July 28, 2024.

Lowell Folk Festival Rates Five Starts

By Paul Marion (7/28/2013)

I have seen them all, and the 2013 Lowell Folk Festival was a five-star event, if that’s the highest ranking possible.

Now, can I saw something about the setting? The downtown looked fabulous. From Market Street to the Boott Cotton Mills, and in between, the historic district offered stunning views block by block. A glance down Lee Street from John Street: what a gem of a scene, without cars. The mid-section of Merrimack Street as a backdrop for the Red Trousers acrobats: every building facade restored and looking classy. Cutting through the Enterprise Bank parking lot to get to Middle Street: could be a movie-set with the vintage buildings preserved. Walking the center line of Kirk Street from St. Anne’s church yard towards the National Park HQ at French Street: a slice-of-nineteenth century life in architecture.

And what made the setting so special today? No cars other than vehicles needed for Festival operations. Without the distraction of traffic and parked cars, anyone can fully appreciate the decades of restoration work and enormous investment that has made a treasure of the historic district downtown.

Add people to the zone, and the city exudes humanity in a very appealing way. When the Festival nudges aside the vehicular clutter for two days, anybody can see how much better it feels to be in the middle of the city. The notion that the City is the Park, and the Park is the City changes from an idea to reality.

Biden stands tall in standing down by Marjorie Arons Barron

The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons Barron’s own blog.

Our phone has been ringing off the hook; our electronic mailboxes flooded. Friends, even staunch supporters of Joe Biden, have come to accept the idea that he is not well enough to serve another term. Worse, that he didn’t have the stamina even to win a second term. The stakes could not be higher. Now, the President’s announcement that he would do what seems best for the country, putting aside his own personal desires, and his embrace of Kamala Harris to be the Democratic Party’s nominee for President have breathed a whisper of optimism that Donald Trump can be defeated. As one wise person said to me, “I feel as if we’re climbing out of a hole.”

In passing the torch, finally, Biden is replicating George Washington’s magnanimous and statesmanlike behavior, putting country above self. Biden has been an extraordinary President, keeping the country together and helping to pull it out of the problems wreaked by the pandemic, creating jobs to underpin the recovery, protecting health care; capping certain drug costs and establishing the power for Medicare to negotiate with Big Pharma. He worked with Congress on a bipartisan basis to rebuild infrastructure, keep the government open, and launched the nation’s first serious commitment to fund initiatives to combat climate change. He got a modest gun safety bill through and set the groundwork for bringing manufacturing, especially of computer chips, back to the United States. He strengthened our international relations and finally got our troops out of Afghanistan, albeit with the tragic loss of 13 lives. It is arguably the most significant record of accomplishment since Lyndon Johnson. He will long be remembered for his skillful leadership, his big heart, and his humanity.

That said, his health has been on a downward trajectory, and he’s been unable to communicate effectively his achievements or articulate a compelling agenda for the future. The June 27 debate made that abundantly clear, especially if you compare that presentation to an interview he did a scant year ago on Sixty Minutes. Now it’s up to the Democratic Party to get their act together, show strength and turn their attention to differentiating themselves from Donald Trump and his goals. The contrast couldn’t be clearer.

Until this month, with most polls getting bleaker, it seemed we would be stuck with a race few wanted: between the self-referential despot Trump promises to be from Day One and Biden’s persona as a frail but dignified good man and once-effective President. Now Biden has withdrawn and endorsed Kamala Harris.

Donald Trump remains a daunting problem to be dealt with: a wildly popular convicted felon, business fraud and sexual assaulter, who has made clear the dictator he intends to be, the revenge tour he envisions for his second term, the autocratic impulse that legitimately threatens democracy. It’s all written down in the Project 2025 Playbook. Its 900 pages include (but are not limited to) a national ban on abortion, a dismembering of federal agencies, the expulsion of all illegal immigrants, and a return to America-First isolationism. He reflects the American version of a frightening and growing international pro-authoritarian zeitgeist. Trump has recently tried to gaslight his support of the Project 2025 agenda, but remember his history of outright lying about everything. (Just one example, he told evangelical supporters of extreme right-to-life positions to trust him but that he must moderate his support for a bit in order to win the general election.)

Six months ago – heck, even three months ago – I would not have been high on Kamala Harris at the top of the ticket. Since then, I have seen her come into her own. In the two years since Trump’s Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, threatening every woman (and men though they may not be as aware) in the United States, she has been on the road constantly, campaigning effectively on the issue. She has also traveled abroad, representing this country well. She has given full-throated defense of the Administration’s many accomplishments and its values for the future. Even her speaking style has become more fluid, her timing and cadence less tentative.

A wise former Republican leader whom I deeply respect helped to alleviate my earlier skepticism. He has known and watched her for nearly two decades. He told me, “She’s very bright, a pragmatic, traditional liberal, but not a ‘defund the police’ progressive.’” She’s been a district attorney, attorney general, a United States senator, and Vice President. He added that “she knows the world.” Beginning when she was district attorney in San Francisco, she has met with top government, military and foreign policy officials in and from many foreign countries. As a former prosecutor, he expects that Harris will be a terrific campaigner and formidable against Trump in the debates.

She is the logical replacement for Biden on the ticket, the legally sanctioned repository of the $91million of campaign donations already made to the Biden-Harris team. Early reports are that donors, who have been holding back during Biden’s Hamlet days, are now contributing money again.

Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi praised Biden’s decision, but she didn’t endorse Harris at this time. She has had concerns about the appearance of a Harris “coronation” and earlier had seemed to prefer an open convention. This brings its own risks. In Kamala Harris’s first public statement since Biden’s announcement, Harris said she intends to earn and win the nomination. The major outstanding question will be whether the convention delegates will get in line, especially the woke wing of the party, and, if they do not do so initially, whether the Democrats will come together by mid August and present as unified a party as Trump’s convention signaled.

I don’t have answers to these questions. Neither is there certitude about the best choice of a vice president. The next days and weeks will tell us much more. But right now I feel eternally grateful to President Biden for the difficult decision he has made, putting party and country above ego. This fulfills his intention four years ago to be a transitional figure, a bridge to the future. The grace of his message today permits us a spark of optimism we haven’t had for quite a while.

Paris 2024 – Maximum Security

Paris 2024 – Maximum security

By Louise Peloquin

Security agents from all over the world are joining the 35,000 French police officers and 18, 000 military to ensure maximum security during the Paris Games expected to welcome more than 15 million visitors.

The French Ministry of the Interior is supervising approximately 1,800 agents from some 40 countries – including 31 European nations, South Korea and Qatar – to beef up security details.

     “A great number of these agents will be deployed in train stations, airports, the 39 Olympic sites and other sports venues” specified Minister Gérard Darmanin.

Among the foreign members of the security personnel are police dog teams specialized in detecting explosives, experts in tracking and disabling drones, border guards, spotters to detect unusual bahavior, deminers, mounted police and motorcycle officers. Although they will all be working on French territory, these agents, alone, will not have the judicial prerogative to carry out an arrest or to check someone’s identity. They are systematically working in pairs along with a member of the French security forces.

 “Turning to other countries for assistance is a common practice” stated Minister Darmanin. “All large international events held around the world do it. It is normal to have police officers, deminers and civil security agents to assist in ensuring safety during the world’s largest sports event.” (1)

1) News source: France Télévisions. Translating by Louise Peloquin.

Go jump in the…Seine!

Go jump in the…Seine!

 By Louise Peloquin

      Rehema Ellis closed NBC’s July 17th Nightly News with it, The New York Times published a brief and other news outlets covered the story. No scoop ahead, just a third update on the River Seine in the run-up to the Summer Olympics. (1)

Nine days before the opening of the 2024 Summer Olympics, Paris Mayor Annie Hidalgo donned a black and orange wetsuit to honor her promise to take a dip in the Seine. “Pure happiness” she shouted to the TV cameras as she demonstrated her crawl technique along with Tony Estanguet, president of the 2024 Summer Olympics organizing committee, and a group of local elected officials. (2)

@Paris tweeted:

Swimming in the Seine – some dreamt of it, many doubted it and we, we did it!

     After a hundred meters or so, the swimmers reached a floating platform set up for journalists and a few vetted spectators. Mayor Hidalgo pointed out the four-year-long effort to depollute the Seine for the 2024 Summer Olympic open water events. “Without the Games, we would not have done this.”

After her swim, Hidalgo also told the journalists that the water was “cool but not cold at all. We didn’t feel like getting out!” Water temperature was 68 degrees F.

The Paris Mayor’s dip was but the first step towards a clean Seine.

“Imagine a spot here in a year, a pool for all who want to take a swim” she said. “The Games will have been the accelerator. But we are doing this because we need to adapt our cities to climate change.” Hidalgo referred to the usefulness of having a bathing venue at the very heart of the city. Parisians would not have to travel anywhere to do a cannonball and splash around on a hot summer day.

Naturally, the July 17th water quality analysis allowed for safe swimming. However, organizers warn that this good news does not quite guarantee smooth sailing – or rather swimming – for upcoming Olympic and Paralympic competitions such as the triathlon.  The quality of the Seine water is subject to environmental incidents. For instance, Hidalgo’s plunge, originally planned for June, had to be postponed several times because of heavy rainfall drainage into the river. Consequently, on the dates of the open water events, if the quality analyses do not meet cleanliness and safety requirements, competitions could be postponed or even partially cancelled. The triathlon could turn into a duathlon, for example.

The Seine’s water level has to be closely monitored as well. On July 16th, it was three times higher than it normally is. However, water watchdogs predict a decreased rate of flow which will allow the hundred-plus boats to navigate safely from Austerlitz Quai to Iéna Bridge.

All in all, the signs bode well.

Lyrics from an old Parisian song say:

La Seine est une amante

Et son amant c’est Paris. (3)

Here’s hoping Olympians, and Parisians after them, will soon experience the “pure happiness” of La Seine’s watery embrace. (4)

 ****

1. “The last lap – Paris’s Summer Olympics” was posted on July 9. See link: https://richardhowe.com/2024/07/09/the-last-lap-pariss-summer-olympics/

“Olympic Happy Hour Ahead!” was posted on July 16th. See link:

https://richardhowe.com/2024/07/16/olympic-happy-hour-ahead/

2) French slalom canoeist Tony Estanguet, 46, won the slalom canoeing Olympic gold medal in Sydney in 2000, in Athens in 2004, and in London in 2012. He successfully led Paris’s bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics and is serving as the head of the organizing committee for those games.

3) “The Seine is a mistress and her lover is Paris.” “La Seine,” was written in 1948 by Guy Lafarge and Flavien Monod and was made popular the same year by Jacqueline François. Maurice Chevalier later included it in his performance repertoire.

4) News source: BFMTV. Translating by Louise Peloquin.