A Plea For Unity

"At its core, democracy is an act of faith, a shared belief that the people can fairly act in the common good by choosing their leaders. Destroying the faith in the system will destroy the American experiment." -- Garry Kasparov

This in an extraordinary moment and an extraordinary voice has risen to meet it. The brilliant Russian-born chess master Garry Kasparov is uniquely suited to warn Americans of how easily the promise of democracy can devolve into the nightmare of authoritarianism.

He argues that impeachment is the wrong path to prevent our slide downhill. Whether you agree or disagree with him, now is the time to listen and think carefully about what is happening.

Those of us old enough to remember when the Berlin Wall fell, followed by the collapse of the Soviet Union, know how shocking it was when what Reagan called the "evil empire" imploded so quickly and completely.

How that happened is instructive. The hearts of the Russian people changed, and they chose freedom and liberty over the darkness of extremist tyranny. 

Today, as out nation teeters on the verge of possible collapse, it is because the hearts of a substantial number of our citizens have been infected with the fatal disease of authoritarianism.

As the Congress prepares to impeach Trump, the man who would be a dictator and is IMHO a traitor, fully 24 percent of the Republican Party still believe his lie that the election was stolen. And 73 percent believe Trump is "protecting" democracy.

According to our highest military and intelligence officials, his supporters are preparing to stage violent riots over the coming days leading to the inauguration of the rightful President, Joe Biden, and probably after that as well.

Getting Biden safely into and Trump out of the White House is not going to end this threat or solve the horrific divide in this nation. The Trump faction not only adheres to the most preposterous conspiracy theories instead of truth, they demonize those of us who do value truth and pray that it will prevail.

Unfortunately, impeachment will not help in that process. As Kasparov warns, political persecution in the heat of the moment is a rush to judgement that will not help the cause of democracy. 

IMHO, the best speech in today's debate was by minority leader Kevin McCarthy (R) of California, who denounced Trump but pleaded to his colleagues to reject impeachment. His was the voice of reason, while most Democrats spoke out of anger and revenge and most other Republicans spoke utter nonsense.

I have no doubt that in any coming confrontation, the military and police serving the U.S. government will prevail over the ragtag "militias" blindly devoted to Trump. The leaders of the insurrection of January 6th and whatever further disruptions lie in the immediate future will be hunted down, arrested, jailed, and convicted, and their rebellion will be crushed.

I trust that Trump himself as well as his closest lieutenants will face legal jeopardy for inciting the January 6th riot.

But what is rotten at the core of America will not be cured by repression or political revenge. It also will not be flattened by censorship by tech giants or federal communications regulations.

The difficult work of rooting out the cancer of anti-democratic doctrine will have to be fought person by person, gradually over a long period of time. Those of us who believe in the ideals of this country are going to have to commit to engaging in the hardest work of all -- persuasion.

During the coming stretch of time, our best hope is the governing coalition led by the centrist Joe Biden. This is not the time for the magical thinking by those who think because Trump lost the election, the country embraces a more radical view of how to reform society.

Nothing could be further from the truth. Biden squeaked by Trump nationally by 7 million votes or less than 4.5 percent of the more than 158 million votes counted. Your 3rd grade math teacher will tell you that is not a landslide.

More specifically, by a much smaller margin -- only a few thousand votes here and there in several swing states -- did Biden flip the areas Trump won in 2016. That, in turn, swung the Electoral College vote from the GOP to the Democrats.

As we all know, Trump and his supporters did not accept that result as legitimate and they still don't -- and *that* is the big, big problem. Sure, you can suppress their protest by force, but you will not persuade them to return into believers in the American experiment overnight.

Furthermore, there are many members of the military and the police who sympathize with the sentiments that fueled the extremists who attacked the Capitol. We need them to choose nation over sentiment. They will follow orders but they are watching, too.

The work that needs to be done is going to take many years.

Biden is the right man for the job because he is a centrist and the center is what needs to be strengthened, not the left, nor the right. Those two quarters of the loaf need to absorb the yeast of moderation for the broken bread to have any hope of being reassembled.

Throughout my career as a journalist, when I have produced my biggest stories with the biggest impact, invariably I have come under attack, including death threats, from the sectarian left and the sectarian right. The left attacked me for exposing the thuggery of the SLA and the Black Panthers. The right attacked me for exposing the thuggery of multinational corporations.

They both threaten democracy from opposite directions like two speeding trains bearing down on each other along the same track.

Right now the centrist portion of the country is ascendant, barely. The liberal wing is impatient and the conservative wing is buried beneath the ugly specter of Trumpism. We need to achieve enough unity to proceed with whatever healing is possible.

We need to unify the country. May cooler heads prevail and may the center hold.

 ***

The headlines, annotated:

* Garry Kasparov: What happens next. "As terrible as the events of Jan. 6 were -- and I'm on the record warning of 'the unimaginable' -- I'm going to repeat what I said after Election Day: It's not over. This battle against anti-democratic extremism didn't end when a right-wing mob invaded the United States Capitol and five people died, including one police officer. It didn't end when Twitter and other social media platforms finally muzzled President Donald Trump -- although that was a heavier blow in this fight than most. And it won't end when Joe Biden is inaugurated on January 20." (CNN) This essay is a must-read for anyone who cares what happens to our democracy. (DW)

* Exclusive: Facebook is tracking a rise in violent rhetoric tied to U.S. presidential inauguration (Reuters) This is a major warning flag. (DW)

* Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has reportedly told those close to him that he believes Trump committed impeachable offenses by supporting insurrectionists who violently attacked the U.S. Capitol last week, an incredible shift in thinking as Democrats take steps to remove the president from office. McConnell has privately indicated he is pleased with the Democrats’ effort, believing it's a chance for the Republican Party to purge Trump. [HuffPost] McConnell is a very smart politician. Impeachment is a trap. (DW)

* Secret Service launches massive security operation to protect Biden inauguration (WashPo) I hope this works. (DW)

* Google to pause all political ads from Jan. 14 (Reuters) Too little, too late. (DW)

* Evidence emerged that top officials, including at the F.B.I., had warnings about violence before the riot at the Capitol. (NYT) We need to know more. (DW)

* Before riot, Trump said ‘we got to get rid’ of Rep. Liz Cheney. Now she supports impeaching him. (WashPo) If I were her, I would too. (DW)

* Lawmakers Were Feet and Seconds Away From Confrontation With Mob (WSJ) Bless our Capitol Police. (DW)

* How the Republican Party Could Break -- After the Capitol Hill riot, the divide between reality and fantasy may become too wide to bridge. (NYT) This would be bad for the country. (DW)

* A growing chorus of congressional Republicans announced their support for the impeachment of President Donald Trump, a remarkable turn for a party that has been marching in lockstep with Trump for years. (HuffPost) That doesn't make it the right move. (DW)

* Trump defiant and unapologetic about his role in inciting Capitol mob attack (WashPo) Trump is an asshole. (DW)

* Prosecutors Expect to Arrest ‘Hundreds’ Tied to Capitol Riot (NYT) Good. (DW)

* As part of new safety precautions in response to last week's insurrection, lawmakers at the Capitol must now walk through metal detectors to enter the chamber and vote. But many Republican members of Congress threw a fit at the idea of going through the same security check that everyone else does when entering the Capitol. Democratic Rep. Cori Bush lambasted her Republican colleagues, saying lawmakers who refused to use new metal detectors should get another job. [HuffPost] Leave your guns at home. (DW)

* YouTube bans Trump from uploading videos for at least a week, cites ongoing potential for violence (WashPo) May it help. (DW)

* States Told to Vaccinate Everyone 65 and Over as Deaths Surge (NYT) Finally. (DW)

* Since last week's riot, inside cops-only message boards and other pro-law enforcement media groups online, police officers are grappling with how a group that usually proclaims “Blue Lives Matter” could turn its wrath on them. Instead of facing the uncomfortable implications of the Capitol siege, many are pushing the debunked conspiracy theory that the chaos was orchestrated by anti-fascist activists. [HuffPost] Major warning flag! (DW)

* Backlash to riot at Capitol hobbles Trump’s business as banks, partners flee the brand (WashPo) Good. (DW)

* National Guard Deployment to Grow to 20,000 Strong, Officials Say (WSJ) Fine. (DW)

* Hundreds of federally funded senior centers and regional agencies are holding together a frayed safety net for the elderly while teetering on the edge of a financial cliff. Financed by Congress under the Older Americans Act, these centers coordinate iconic programs such as Meals on Wheels. In the two COVID-19 relief bills passed in March, Congress set aside $1.05 billion in extra funds for the Older Americans Act, a fraction of the overall need. [HuffPost] This is a true crisis. (DW)

* Threats of ‘armed protests’ in multiple cities challenge National Guard support for inauguration (WashPo) God save us all. (DW)

* Amazon warned Parler about violent content before cutoff - court filing (Reuters) So? (DW)

* New York City will terminate business contracts with President Donald Trump after last week’s insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Wednesday. (AP) Good. (DW)

* As coronavirus stalks Brazil's Amazon, many die untreated at home (Reuters) This is a true tragedy. As they die, so does the Amazon. (DW)

* Second year of pandemic 'could even be tougher': WHO's Ryan (Reuters) Damn. (DW)

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We Interrupt This Crisis

In the middle of what is overwhelming, the smallest distraction provided a welcome comfort.

Yesterday, they found a plastic bag of my possessions from when my car was sold 18 months ago. I wasn't there when it happened -- I was in a skilled nursing facility after my stroke, relearning how to walk, not worrying whether I would ever drive a car again. 

The bag resembled what they give you after a person has died -- their last possessions. 

Now my car didn't exactly die -- it just left me for somebody else -- but it *was* a symbol of the independence I yearned for when I was strapped down in beds with alarms on each side in case I started to take another fall.  

As I sorted through the stuff, here's what I found:

A bag of quarters, maybe $4-5 worth, that I kept in the car for parking meters. (Remember those?) That's back when you needed cash to park legally.

Like when I was fetching my kids at school or dropping them off at soccer practice, or when we were picking up take-out Mexican or Chinese. My youngest daughter, who always had my back, saved quarters for this purpose, and gave them to me whenever she noticed I was running low.

Along with the coins, there was a faded press pass that gave me full access to the gaming company Zynga's headquarters down along the borderline between Soma and the Mission when I was a tech blogger for BNET and 7x7.

But most of what spilled out of the bag were the old CDs that I used to play in the car as I was shuttling my kids here and there. Often our trips were short -- fifteen minutes or so, and I'd try to pick songs that would finish before we reached our destination.

Elton John, Bob Dylan, the Beatles but most memorably Johnny Cash. For some reason his version of "Highway Patrolman," written by Bruce Springsteen, was one of our family favorites. It's a long  take (5:20) and more than once, I remember us sitting in the car waiting for it to finish before we got out to proceed with our business.

Of course we had heard how the story-song ends a thousand times before, but we had a minute or two left before we'd be late so why not wait it out again?

After all, anything beats being stuck in a national crisis.

***

The headlines. Folks, this is scary stuff, so I'm trying something new. My comments are appended.
 

* Joint Chiefs of Staff issue military-wide memo condemning Capitol riot, confirming Biden will become next commander in chief (WashPo) They never do this. (DW)

* How White Evangelical Christians Fused With Trump Extremism -- A potent mix of grievance and religious fervor has turbocharged the support among Trump loyalists, many of whom describe themselves as participants in a kind of holy war. (NYT) The scariest religious event I ever saw was an Islamic fundamentalist gathering in Northern Afghanistan. The second scariest was a Christian fundamentalist event in the Southern U.S. (DW)

* As senators and House members trapped inside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday begged for immediate help, they struggled to get through to the president, who — safely ensconced in the West Wing — was too busy watching fiery television images of the crisis to take their calls. (WashPo) What's on TV is more exciting than running a country. (DW)

* Justice Dept. Pursues at Least 150 Suspects in Capitol Riot (NYT) They are just scratching the surface. (DW)

* New leaders of the Capitol Police told House Democrats Monday that they were closely monitoring three separate plans by pro-Trump extremists that could pose serious threats to members of Congress and Washington ahead of Jan. 20. The most concerning plot would involve insurrectionists forming a perimeter around the Capitol, the White House and the Supreme Court, blocking Democrats ― perhaps killing them ― so Republicans could take control of the government. [HuffPost] Holy shit. (DW)

* Several Capitol police officers suspended, more than a dozen under investigation over actions related to rally and riot (WashPo) There are traitors inside the government. (DW)

* Impeach Trump Again (The Editorial Board/NYT) Good luck with that one. (DW)

* Americans across the political spectrum fear what the Capitol attack portends (WashPo) No shit. (DW)

* The Constitution gives Congress clear authority to punish its members and to expel them. The House and Senate have used the expulsion power only rarely, however, partly because disgraced members tend to resign. But Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.) introduced a resolution in the House with 47 co-sponsors directing the Ethics Committee to commence a disciplinary review of all 139 Republicans who voted to overturn the election results to see if they should be censured or expelled. [HuffPost] This one's DoA. (DW)

* Trump takes no responsibility for riot as he headed for Texas (AP) You had me at 'responsibility'. (DW)

* Right-wing extremists are using channels on the encrypted communication app Telegram to call for violence against government officials on Jan. 20, the day President-elect Joe Biden is inaugurated, with some extremists sharing knowledge of how to make, conceal and use homemade guns and bombs. (NBC) Coup attempt.2. (DW) 

* ‘They Got a Officer!’: How a Mob Dragged and Beat Police at the Capitol (NYT) Coup attempt.1. (DW)

* To save American democracy, truth needs to beat fantasy (WashPo) We're in trouble. (DW)

* State Capitols ‘on High Alert,’ Fearing More Violence (NYT) No shit. (DW)

* Twitter purged more than 70,000 accounts affiliated with QAnon following Capitol riot (WashPo) Too little, too late. (DW)

* Parler Faces Obstacles to Getting Back Online (WSJ) Elephant tears. (DW)

* Warp Speed will urge vaccination of adults 65 and older, those with preexisting conditions (WashPo) Breaking news. (DW)

* Environmentalists make a case for leaving fossil fuels in the ground (Reuters) Back to the Future. (DW)

* Georgia Adds Swastika, Middle Finger To State Flag (The Onion) No comment. (DW)

***

"Highway Patrolman"

My name is Joe Roberts I work for the state 
I'm a sergeant out of Perrineville barracks number 8 
I always done an honest job as honest as I could 
I got a brother named Franky and Franky ain't no good 

Now ever since we was young kids it's been the same come down 
I get a call on the short wave Franky's in trouble downtown
Well if it was any other man, I'd put him straight away 
But when it's your brother sometimes you look the other way 

Yeah, me and Franky laughin' and drinkin' nothin' feels better than blood on blood 
Takin' turns dancin' with Maria as the band played "Night of the Johnstown Flood" 
I catch him when he's strayin' like any brother would 
Man turns his back on his family well he just ain't no good 

Well Franky went in the army back in 1965 I got a farm deferment settled down took Maria for my wife 
But them wheat prices kept on droppin' 'til it was like we were gettin' robbed 
Franky came home in '68 and me I took this job 

Yeah we're laughin' and drinkin' nothin' feels better than blood on blood 
Takin' turns dancin' with Maria as the band played "Night of the Johnstown Flood" 
I catch him when he's strayin', teach him how to walk that line 
Man turns his back on his family he ain't no friend of mine 

Well, the night was like any other, I got a call 'bout quarter to nine 
There was trouble in a roadhouse out on the Michigan line 
There was a kid lyin' on the floor lookin' bad, bleedin' hard from his head
There was a girl cryin' at a table, and it was Frank they said
Well I went out and I jumped in my car and I hit the lights 
Well, I must've done 110 through Michigan County that night 

It was out at the crossroads down round Willow Bank 
Seen a Buick with Ohio plates behind the wheel was Frank 
Well I chased him through them county roads 'til a sign said Canadian border 5 miles from here 
I pulled over the side of the highway and watched his taillights disappear 

Me and Franky laughin' and drinkin' nothin' feels better than blood on blood 
Takin' turns dancin' with Maria as the band played "Night of the Johnstown Flood" 
I catch him when he's strayin' like any brother would 
Man turns his back on his family well he just ain't no good

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Friends With You

My two oldest grandsons, who are 14 and 12, both enjoy solving the Rubik's Cube puzzle. Watching them do this is one of the sweet pleasures in my life.  

For those unfamiliar with the cube, it requires memorizing a series of algorithms to align by color the nine square panels on each of the cube's six sides so that you end up with one side that is all white, another all yellow, another all red, etc.

This 3-D puzzle was created by Hungarian sculptor and architecture professor Ernő Rubik in 1974 and has long since been the world's best-selling toy. While children are working out the solution, they tend to develop a facial expression that is simultaneously focused yet distant.

As they improve, their hand-eye coordination becomes smoothly instinctive. Watching them is like seeing visual poetry, athletic achievement and pure human beauty all mushed together.  

It takes my breath away.

It also is a reaffirmation of the vast human potential to solve problems, no matter how challenging they may appear to be in the present moment.

***

During the very rough days ahead, I fear we are all going to need such inspiration to make it through. Let me start this by saying I hope I am wrong.

But the deeper I probed the current political crisis in America the more concerned I became. Checking a few trusted friends and sources quickly evolved into activating a broad network of people spanning the law enforcement, intelligence, academic, activist, political and media communities and it was a sobering experience.

The consensus of this group was not what I wanted to hear -- that we are in the early stages of what may well prove to be a protracted civil war. If the people informing me are correct, it is most likely going to be violent, disruptive and virtually impossible for our leaders to contain.

I've witnessed myself the sight of caravans of armed civilians in pickup trucks with flags waving, camouflage clothing and weapons roaming our highways. It is neither quaint nor harmless. They are, according to intelligence assessments, potentially the equivalent of America's Taliban -- fundamentalists bent on destroying democracy based on their perception of a threat to white supremacy and their twisted sense of entitlement.

They are poised to act, waiting on a sign.

This is precisely what happened on January 6th and I am reliably informed it's about to happen again.

These folks are not going to slip quietly back into their homes if the political establishment follows through on its threats to banish their leader, Donald J. Trump from public life. Rather, he will continue serve as a lightning rod -- their martyr and purported savior and they will continue to follow him with a religious fervor that is terrifying to behold.

As an editor, I've worked with many reporters covering numerous peaceful demonstrations that were disrupted by the likes of Antifa and its right-wing equivalent, the Neo-nazis and other hate groups. Both extremes resemble each other much more than they do the great majority of conservatives and liberals who believe in peaceful assembly and speech. 

But though relatively small in numbers, their potential to provoke their larger cohort to do harm is enormous. Again, my sources reference January 6th. We all need to study carefully what happened that day.

The essence of our democracy depends on citizens peacefully resolving our differences on politics and religion without resorting to violence. And on accepting the legitimacy of our elections.

I fear that in the coming days that very essence of our democratic process is going to be sorely tested. I hope I am wrong so bad that it hurts. It really hurts.

***

The headlines:

* The FBI is warning of plans for armed protests at all 50 state capitals and in Washington in the days leading up to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration, stoking fears of more bloodshed after last week’s deadly siege at the U.S. Capitol. An internal FBI bulletin warned that, as of Sunday, the nationwide protests may start later this week and extend through Biden’s Jan. 20 inauguration, according to two law enforcement officials who read details of the memo to The Associated Press. Investigators believe some of the people are members of some extremist groups, the officials said. (AP)

* Up to 15,000 National Guard members could be deployed in D.C. during inauguration (WashPo)

* State capitols across the nation stepped up security Monday, deploying National Guard units, SWAT teams and extra police officers as several legislatures convened amid heightened safety concerns... (AP)

* Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser urged Americans to avoid the city during President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration next week during a news conference on Monday. (CNN)

* Police Reassess Security for Inauguration and Demonstrations After Capitol Attack (NYT)

* Even as rioters violently overran his forces, outgoing Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund said in an exclusive interview, the sergeants at arms for the House and Senate took more than an hour to approve his request. (WashPo)

* After days of silence, Trump signed a proclamation on Sunday to honor two United States Capitol police officers ― one of whom died at the hands of the mob he incited. Trump and the White House hadn't acknowledged Brian D. Sicknick’s death before Sunday, and didn't refer to how he died. U.S. Capitol Police, meanwhile, announced the death of another officer, bringing the law enforcement toll from Wednesday’s violent siege to two. [HuffPost]

* The Art of the Lie? The Bigger the Better (NYT)

* Trump’s incitement of a riot is a violation of the separation of powers that threatens the foundation of the Republic. (NYT)

* Two men who allegedly held zip ties in Capitol during riots being investigated by U.S. counterterrorism prosecutors (WashPo)

* A Georgia man, Cleveland Grover Meredith Jr., texted people his intentions to shoot Pelosi “on live TV” while making his way to the nation’s capital with an assault rifle for Wednesday’s pro-Trump rally. He was arrested at a Washington hotel Thursday. Meredith’s alleged text messages included him bragging of having a “ton of 5.56 armor piercing ammo” and wanting to run over the Democratic leader. [HuffPost]

* Dozens have been charged in the days since a mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, disrupting the certification of the 2020 presidential election results. (NYT)

* The Capitol mob: A raging collection of grievances and disillusionment (WashPo)

* In the wake of the attack on Capitol Hill last week, and myriad questions about how rioters breached the building and what is happening in response, federal law enforcement agencies have yet to brief the public directly. The U.S. Capitol Police, FBI, Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security have yet to hold a press conference since Wednesday's incursion into one of America's most iconic buildings, prompting calls from lawmakers to call briefings for the public and Congress. (CNN)

* Video shows mob dragging a police officer down stairs. One rioter beat the officer with an American flag pole. (WashPo)

* Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf resigns (CNN)

* Arnold Schwarzenegger said Trump will be remembered as the “worst president ever,” after his supporters rioted. Schwarzenegger, who was born in Austria two years after the end of World War II, compared the Capitol siege takeover to Kristallnacht in 1938, the aftermath of which he said reverberated throughout his own childhood decades later. [HuffPost] 

* Michigan bans open carry of guns inside state Capitol (AP)

* New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick has announced that he is declining the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which he was scheduled to receive from Trump on Thursday. Belichick cited the "tragic events of last week" as leading to his decision. Pro-Trump riotersrampaged in the US Capitol last Wednesday. Five people died as a result of the chaos, including a US Capitol Police officer. House Democrats want to impeach Trump, accusing him of "incitement of insurrection." (CNN)

*

Wall Street distances itself from Trump, GOP after riots (AP)

* 

New York State Bar Association Considers Expelling Rudy Giuliani (NPR)

* Insurer, hotel chain say they won’t donate to lawmakers who opposed electoral college results (WashPo)

* Thousands of lawyers and law school alumni on Sunday signed an open letter calling for Sens. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to be disbarred over their leading roles in the effort to undermine Congress’ certification of the Electoral College vote declaring President-elect Joe Biden the winner of the 2020 race. [HuffPost]

* In California, there are two Covid-19 surges, one north and one south. In the L.A. area about 30-40% of people in public are not wearing masks; in the S.F. Bay Area, that figure is only 5-10%. (NYT)

* Trump returns Cuba to U.S. list of state sponsors of terrorism (Reuters)

* China: WHO experts arriving Thursday for virus origins probe (AP)

* The United States on Monday imposed sanctions on several Ukrainian individuals and entities, accusing them of U.S. election interference and associating with a pro-Russian Ukrainian lawmaker linked to efforts by President Donald Trump's allies to dig up dirt on President-elect Joe Biden and his son. (Reuters)

* Populist, Prisoner, President: A Convicted Kidnapper Wins Kyrgyzstan Election (NYT)

* D.C. Police Preemptively Deploy 3 Officers For Inauguration Day (The Onion)

* FBI Narrows Down Identity Of Red-Faced Man Carrying Confederate Flag Through Capitol To Millions Of Americans (The Onion)

***

"All I Really Want To Do"

I ain't lookin' to compete with you
Beat or cheat or mistreat you
Simplify you, classify you
Deny, defy or crucify you
All I really want to do
Is, baby, be friends with you.

No, and I ain't lookin' to fight with you
Frighten you or tighten you
Drag you down or drain you down
Chain you down or bring you down
All I really want to do
Is, baby, be friends with you.

I ain't lookin' to block you up
Shock or knock or lock you up
Analyze you, categorize you
Finalize you or advertise you
All I really want to do
Is, baby, be friends with you.

I don't want to straight-face you
Race or chase you, track or trace you
Or disgrace you or displace you
Or define you or confine you
All I really want to do
Is, baby, be friends with you.

I don't want to meet your kin
Make you spin or do you in
Or select you or dissect you
Or inspect you or reject you
All I really want to do
Is, baby, be friends with you.

I don't want to fake you out
Take or shake or forsake you out
I ain't lookin' for you to feel like me
See like me or be like me
All I really want to do
Is, baby, be friends with you.

-- Bob Dylan

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