Killing the Messenger
Why is it the people you detest the most
Always have to be the first to telephone with bad news;
A favorite acquaintance has died, or a spiritual mentor,
Or the only in-law you actively liked and still respected-
They just can't wait to be the first to call,
Be the bearer of the worst news.
At such times, I have to stifle an urge to scream
Into the handset, send a hundred decibels
Roaring into their captive ear-drums;
'I wish to god, that it had been YOU instead.'
Sometimes you just want to kill the messenger.
Why do the idiots always go on breathing soundly,
While the saintly people pass away too soon?
poem by Patti Masterman
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Related quotes
Here Is The News
Here is the news
Coming to you every hour on the hour
(here is the news)
The weathers fine but there may be a meteor shower.
Here is the news
A cures been found for good old rocket lag
(here is the news)
Someone left their life behind in a plastic bag.
Here is the news
Here is the news
Here is the news.
(spaceworkers dispute in london today.
A lightning strike by air shuttle officers
Led to over 2,000 passengers being held up
For up to 10 hours to board flights...)
(ten eurotechnicians were today sentenced
By the justice computer to be banished for life
To the prison satellite penal one...)
Here is the news
Another action filled adventure
(here is the news)
All the worst from the world convention.
Here is the news (the very latest)
Here is the news
Here is the news
Here is the news
(... shares of roboko development are now climbing...)
(... a very great friend of mine...)
(... our regular scheduled programs...)
(... the latest report from the people down there...)
(... a tiny little detail...)
(... Id like to say hello to everybody...)
Here is the news
I wanna go home, I want my baby back
(here is the news)
I wanna go back!
Here is the news
Somebody has broken out of satellite two
(here is the news....)
Look very carefully, it may be you, you, you, you...
(... the energy counsel today announced...)
(... the archbishop is waving to the crowds...)
(... the world broadcasting authority today announced...)
(... I think thats going to be alright, youll have to wait & see...)
(... Ill call you back later...)
Here is the news.
song performed by by Electric Light Orchestra
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Stifle Rave and Rant
Some people
(who can’t be identified)
Say some things
(that can’t be verified)
That passes for news that’s
(rarified, bullied and) terrified.
Some people say
Liberals are always wrong
Past, future and present.
Some people say
They pigeonhole wrong
people like pheasant.
Some people say
“Some people say
Liberals? - unpleasant.”
Some people say
“Some people say
Liberals? - mamby pamby.”
Wrong people say
Fair and balanced
Fox News can’t be.
Some people say
Some people and
Wrong people can’t
Sit somewhere and
Talk, and stifle
Rave and rant.
Some people grind
Opinion sausage at
A shiny plant.
An elephant shows
Greater respect for
A tiny ant.
Sit somewhere and
Talk, and stifle
Rave and rant.
So couch people
Can watch decent
Fair and gallant
People get cast
By some people
As wrong. Wrong-ized.
Richard Clarke, for one
Comes to mind. Wrong
For having apologized!
[5-20-05 Berkeley, CA]
poem by David Floren
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The News
A billion people died on the news tonight
But not so many cried at the terrible sight
Well mama said
It's just make believe
You can't believe everything you see
So baby close your eyes to the lullabies
On the news tonight
Who's the one to decide that it would be alright
To put the music behind the news tonight
Well mama said
You can't believe everything you hear
The diagetic world is so unclear
So baby close your ears
On the news tonight
On the news tonight
The unobtrusive tones on the news tonight
And mama said
Why don't the newscasters cry when they read about people who die?
At least they could be decent enough to put just a tear in their eyes
Mama said
It's just make believe
You cant believe everything you see
So baby close your eyes to the lullabies
On the news tonight
song performed by by Jack Johnson from Brushfire Fairytales
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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One of the reasons why when Elvis dies or the Son of Sam is captured ABC News' ratings go up is because people who don't normally watch news are watching then. The question is, do you want to attract people who don't watch network news or fight over the people who do?
quote by Roone Arledge
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Good News
Something to begin with
That's easy said than done
You'll see me rolling home
But I don't understand why
Still there's nothing at all
Time is on my side
But we mustn't let our disappointment show
But I will, and you will go on
All I need is some good news (some good news)
All I need is some good news (just some good news)
To put me on my feet (to put me on my feet)
To put me at my ease (at my ease)
All I need is some good news (all I need is some good news)
All I need is some good news (some good news)
To put me at my ease (to put me at my ease)
All I need is some good news
All I need is some good news (just gimme me some good news)
All I need is some good news (some good news)
To put me at my ease (to put me at my ease)
To put me on my feet (on my feet, on my feet)
All I need is some good news (all I need is some good news)
All I need is some good news (all I need is some good news)
All I need is some good news
All I need is some good news (all I need is good news)
To put me on my ease (to put me at my ease)
To put me on my feet (on my feet, on my feet)
All I need is some good news (good news)
All I need is some good news (some good news)
All I need is some good news (good news)
All I need is some good news
[Repeat to fade
song performed by by 10 Cc
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Good news
When I was a child
I went with thousands of people,
to listen to a great preacher
and today his words still stand:
“Good news
I have good news.
The good news is,
that God loves you.”
“He has a plan for your life
and there’s a purpose for living.
Don’t give up.
Don’t let the headlines
threaten you.”
“God is still sovereign.
He’s still on the throne
and those that follows and serves Him
has a future,
brighter than tomorrow.”
*
Still I keep my eyes on Him
and although my world staggers around me
and at times I do not know
where to find light
in the darkness,
I know that He is still near.
The years pass so quickly
that life is almost
like a dream
and sometimes I do not know
why things happen,
but still I trust
in the almighty God
and that His light will come in time
and I wait on His plan
to unfold for me.
[Reference: Billy Graham.]
poem by Gert Strydom
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The bad news is that 50 people died in a hotel fire; the good news is that we got exclusive footage.
quote by Jessica Savitch
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Dog Gone
I could not pray
I felt so dog gone
Couldnt get no witness but I did not know
Then a voice in a whisper said youve got to carry it on
And the news is gonna break
The news is gonna break
The news is gonna break that I am here
Out along the way I got so bogged down
I had some business there I did not slow
And a boy in the world said youve got to carry it on
And the news is gonna break
The news is gonna break
The news is gonna break that I am here
Im not a messenger
Im not the passenger
Got some business there but you did not know
And the point of my visit, well sir, thats to carry me on
And the news ig gonna break
And the news is gonna break
Yeah, your noose is gonna break when I am there
No paris
No nepal
No barstow
Wont be none of them at all
No congo
No kish or kishangargh
No memphis
It doesnt matter who you are
Im on my way
I feel so dog gone
Go bout your business but you did not know
And the point if there is one, well sir
Thats to carry me on
And the news is gonna break
(your noose is gonna break)
The news is gonna break that I am here)
The news is gonna break that I am here
And your noose is gonna break when I am there
song performed by by Frank Black
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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I have a liberal definition of news because I think news can be what excites people. I'm not very sanctimonious about what news is and isn't.
quote by Diane Sawyer
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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No News
She said, its just a woman thing,
And pulled out of the drive
I said not to worry
Im and understanding guy
I heard that when you love someone
You gotta let them go
She hollered, when I find myself
Youll be the first to know.
Ooo-hooo no news
Ive learned to do the laundry
Feed the cat and clean the house
I promised to be patient
While she worked her problems out
When she packed her bags
Her destination was unclear
But I sensed that her intentions
Were honest and sincere
Ooo-hooo no news
(chorus)
She could telephone, tell a friend
Tell a lie about where shes been
Send a pigeon, send a fax
Write it on a postal pack
Send a signal up in smoke
Tap it out in morse code
Id prefer a bad excuse
To no news
Her mommas been a little vauge
As to her whereabouts
Her sister says, Im certain
Your romance is headed south.
I dont have a single doubt
That shes still in love
My level of anxiety
Is just a product of
Ooo-hooo no news
(repeat chorus)
She missed her bus, missed her plane
Surely, this can be explained
Lost her car at the mall
Got lost in a bathroom stall
Joined a cult, joined the klan
On the road with pearl jam
Buried with the grateful dead
Came back as a parrot head
Got derailed, got de-iced
Offered as a sacrafice
Fbi, cia, if theyve seen her
They aint saying
No news! still no news!
song performed by by Lonestar
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Bad News
(Emmylouy HarrisPaul Kennerley)
Bad news black day
Ther's been a wreck on the highway
Drivin' fast in distress
Hit a curve and died in the darkness
He'll never know how much I lose
Bad news
Bad news sirens whine
He rode the devil down the white line
Johnny Walker by his side
Always our there lookin' for the last ride
He'll never know how much I lose
Bad news
song performed by by Emmylou Harris
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Dont Nobody Bring Me No Bad News
(charlie smalls)
When I wake up in the afternoon
Which it pleases me to do
Dont nobody bring me no bad news
cause I wake up already negative
And Ive wired up my fuse
So dont nobody bring me no bad news
If were going to be buddies
Better bone up on the rules
cause dont nobody bring me no bad news
You can be my best of friends
As opposed to payin dues
But dont nobody bring me no bad news
No bad news
No bad news
Dont you ever bring me no bad news
cause Ill make you an offer, child
That you cannot refuse
So dont nobody bring me no bad news
When youre talking to me
Dont be cryin the blues
cause dont nobody bring me no bad news
You can verbalize and vocalize
But just bring me the clues
But dont nobody bring me no bad news
Bring some message in your head
Or in something you cant lose
But dont you ever bring me no bad news
If youre gonna bring me something
Bring me, something I can use
But dont you bring me no bad news
song performed by by Diana Ross
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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News of a Boy
News of a boy in stress,
Is like the lending of money to a man of worth.
News is the best option,
Always special in contrast to the atomic bomb.
News has always been of dying,
Why do we have living and dying?
News is the speeding trolley in the super-market,
When the television has been occupied.
Why do you bother with these times
When what you perceive is truly yours?
poem by Naveed Akram
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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The Prize
The night of a thousand verses
One thousand friends said have you heard
What we expected
We are all working late and
Waiting to win a prize we don't deserve
And live to collect it
Can't you see I'm weary
Maybe this news can wait
The night of a thousand verses
One thousand strivers strain to hear
A voice that's left us
And the magazines still have to sell us
Twelve mastergeniuses a year
It's all so shameless
Can't you see I'm weary
Maybe this news can wait
Can't you see I'm blurry
Maybe this news can wait
Maybe there was a message in it
I don't know where you hid it
Maybe there was a piece that will fit
I don't know where to fit it
Tell me what kind of prize can you get
Where you don't want to win it?
Can't you see I'm weary
Maybe this news can wait
Can't you see I'm blurry
Maybe this blues can wait
song performed by by Semisonic from Great Divide
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Public Phone
A handset torn in two
Red colour it is
Hanging hapless, helpless
In a twist by its frame
The victim of a fragmented heart?
If only the handset will talk
A million secrets it will spew forth
A thousand Hearts shamed and spurned
A million ideas for novels and movies born
A telephone coin box cracked open
A hundred coins stolen
The victim of a desperate vandal?
The public phones, an authority's
Effort to get folks connected
Enduring all their whims and fancies
Their conditions telling tales
Of their mental health
poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
Submitted by Poetry Lover
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Bury Me With It
We were shootin' at a mound of dirt.
Well nothing was broken, nothing was hurt.
But I probably really should have been at work.
But if my freetime's gone, would you promise me this?
That you will please bury me with it?
Please bury me with it!
Well sure as planets come, I know that they end.
And if I'm here when that happens, will you promise me this my friend?
Please bury me with it!
I just don't need none of that Mad Max bullshit.
Well the suit got tight and it split at the seams.
But I kept it out of habit and I kept it really clean.
But if it's getting' faded, if it's runnin' outta thread,
Could you just do this for me my friend?
And please just please bury me with it?
Please bury me with it!
Well we moved to the left and moved to the right.
And sure as hell we stayed out almost every single night.
But if the party's over, if the fun has to end,
could you do this for me my friend?
Would you just please bury me with it?
Please bury me with it!
Good news for people who love bad news.
We've lost the plot and we just can't choose.
We are hummingbirds who are just not willing to move.
And there's good news for people who love bad news.
We are hummingbirds who've lost the plot and we will not move.
We have good news for anyone who loves bad news.
We were aiming for the moon. We were shooting at the stars.
But the kids were just shooting at the busses and the cars.
So don't drink the water, don't you breathe the air.
If it's gotten to that point then I have to declare:
That you please bury me with it!
Please bury me with it!
Well fads they come and fads they go.
And God I love that rock and roll!
Well the point was fast but it was too blunt to miss.
Life handed us a paycheck, we said, "We worked harder than this!"
Please bury me with it!
Please bury me with it!
We are hummingbirds who are just not going to move.
And there's good news for people who love bad news.
We are hummingbirds who've lost the plot and we well not move.
We have great news for anyone who loves bad news.
song performed by by Modest Mouse
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Dig Your Grave
We were shootin' at a mound of dirt.
Well nothing was broken, nothing was hurt.
But I probably really should have been at work.
But if my freetime's gone, would you promise me this?
That you will please bury me with it?
Please bury me with it!
Well sure as planets come, I know that they end.
And if I'm here when that happens, will you promise me this my friend?
Please bury me with it!
I just don't need none of that Mad Max bullshit.
Well the suit got tight and it split at the seams.
But I kept it out of habit and I kept it really clean.
But if it's getting' faded, if it's runnin' outta thread,
Could you just do this for me my friend?
And please just please bury me with it?
Please bury me with it!
Well we moved to the left and moved to the right.
And sure as hell we stayed out almost every single night.
But if the party's over, if the fun has to end,
could you do this for me my friend?
Would you just please bury me with it?
Please bury me with it!
Good news for people who love bad news.
We've lost the plot and we just can't choose.
We are hummingbirds who are just not willing to move.
And there's good news for people who love bad news.
We are hummingbirds who've lost the plot and we will not move.
We have good news for anyone who loves bad news.
We were aiming for the moon. We were shooting at the stars.
But the kids were just shooting at the busses and the cars.
So don't drink the water, don't you breathe the air.
If it's gotten to that point then I have to declare:
That you please bury me with it!
Please bury me with it!
Well fads they come and fads they go.
And God I love that rock and roll!
Well the point was fast but it was too blunt to miss.
Life handed us a paycheck, we said, "We worked harder than this!"
Please bury me with it!
Please bury me with it!
We are hummingbirds who are just not going to move.
And there's good news for people who love bad news.
We are hummingbirds who've lost the plot and we well not move.
We have great news for anyone who loves bad news.
song performed by by Modest Mouse
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Word Of Mouth
Ive been trying to get a message to you,
But the operator cant put me through,
Because the vandals went and wrecked all the telephones.
And all my enemies are spreading bad news,
You wont call me, thats why Im calling you,
To put you straight about the rumors theyre spreading about me back home.
I should have known, sooner or later,
Youd get the news, sooner or later,
The word of mouth will get right back to you.
Somehow we lost communication,
My only chance in my situation,
Is that the word of mouth gets my message through.
The word of mouth,
The word of mouth,
But who are they to say the things they do?
The word of mouth says that Ive gone insane,
That wine and women have affected my brain.
Well whos the big mouth spreading the news again?
The word of mouth says Im round the bend,
Its all over, this is the end.
Exaggeration sure gets the better of people who send[? ].
The word of mouth,
The word of mouth,
But who are they to say the things they do?
The word of mouth said I should be put in my place.
The word is out Im in disgrace -- a waste of space.
But if they say it, say it to my face.
People talking, trying to dig up the dirt,
There are so many lies around.
They spread their gossip and the rumors around this town.
Word of mouth, face to face,
My word of mouth has stated my case,
And Im saying Im coming back home to you.
You should have know sooner or later,
Youd get the news sooner or later,
The word of mouth will get right back to you.
The word of mouth,
Shut your mouth,
Shut your face!
song performed by by Kinks
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Wicked Messenger
(bob dylan)
There was a wicked messenger, from eli he did come,
With a mind that multiplied the smallest matter
When questioned who had sent for him he answered with a thumb.
For his tongue it could not speak but only flatter
He stayed behind the assembly hall, it was there that he made his bed.
And often times he could be seen returning. oh oh
Until one day he just appeared with a note in his hand which read,
The soles of my feet, I swear theyre burning.
Ooh hoo hoo
The leaves began to falling and the seas began to part,
And the people that confronted him were many
The leaves began to falling and the seas began to part,
And the people that confronted him were many
And he was told these last few words which opened up his heart,
If you cannot bring good news, then dont bring any
Oh oh
If you cannot bring good news, then dont bring any
Oooh hoo hoo hoo
And opened up his heart
Oooh hoo hoo
song performed by by Rod Stewart
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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Good News, Bad News
Written by Dean Dillon, Dale Dodson and Lee Ann Womack
I've got some good news, can't wait to tell you.
I realised I missed you, since we've been apart.
I just needed time,
To make up my mind,
But I'm in love with you with all my heart.
I've got some good news.
I got some bad news, I don't know how to break to you.
I found someone new since we been apart.
I had too much time,
An' he took you off my mind,
An' I'm in love with him with all of my heart.
I got some bad news.
Instrumental break.
An' I guess all is fair in love an' war:
Someone wins,
But someone wins more.
You never know what time will do.
All I know is I've got some good news.
I've got some bad news.
song performed by by George Strait
Submitted by Lucian Velea
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