" ... America, America ..." / "Born in the U.S.A"

Oh beautiful for heroes proved In liberating strife Who more than self, their country loved And mercy more than life America, America may God thy gold refine 'Til all success be nobleness And every gain divined

(Ray Charles)

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Out of the rack and ruin of our gangster death, The rape and rot of graft, and stealth, and lies, We, the people, must redeem The land, the mines, the plants, the rivers. The mountains and the endless plain— All, all the stretch of these great green states— And make America again!

 (Langston Hughes)

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Thank you to Beth at her Tumblr page for the inspiration for today's post.