No mistake about Dylan singing. In his prime he was one of the most powerfully effective singers ever. Listen to him sing "Blind Willie McTell" in the mid-80s, and see how great a blues singer he was in his prime. Listen to him sing in '65 and '66...there's been nothing like it since for caustic intensity and stunning clarity as well. The fact that he can't sing now is a matter of aging. Joni Mitchell didn't sing for the last 10 years either, and she can't hit the high notes anymore either...nor can Ian Tyson. Tyson had a wonderful voice for most of his life, but it's in shreds now.

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Back to the stuff about people posting just to prove someone else is a baaaad person. It's a disease in this place (and on the Net in general). When I post complaining about people here, I complain about their online behaviour toward the others herein their posts, not about their innate character or their innate worth. I don't attempt to prove that they are bad people, homophobic, sexist, racist people or anything else like that, because I'm not out to destroy them or make some sweeping judgement of their character. I simply point out that they are unpleasantly attacking other people all the time, labelling other people, and that that is no way to have any kind of useful conversation with anyone.

If you tell someone he's a racist or a homophobe or a fascist or whatever popular buzzword you choose to demonize him with...the conversation is basically already OVER. He will either get angry and reply in kind, telling you what a jerk he thinks you are....or he'll try and prove he isn't what you said he is...which is a fool's errand, because no amount of talk along that line will convince someone who has already labelled someone else. They have a big emotional investment in what they said! And they have their pride. They will not change their mind about it...because they would take that to be "a defeat".

It's like being accused by the Inquisition. Once they've named you "a witch", "a homophobe" or "a racist" you'll never convince them otherwise. Your choices then are to fight or flee....or if you're in no real danger (which you aren't here)...just ignore them or make fun of them. Most people choose to fight, however, because of their damned pride. And those fights go on forever, and no one learns a thing from it.

It doesn't matter who started it! And no one can agree on who started it. Talk to the Israelis and Palestinians or talk to the Irish about that and see if you can get to the bottom of who started it. To hell with worrying about who started it. The only way to stop it is to be the one who decides one day "Okay...I'm just not going to do this any longer."