Marco den Ouden
Bio
Marco is the published author of two books on investing in the stock market. Since retiring in 2014 after forty years in broadcast journalism, Marco has become an avid blogger on philosophy, travel, and music He also writes short stories.
Stories (71/0)
Songs Featuring Steel Guitar
There is a Youtube playlist embedded at the end of this article. What do Sheryl Crow, The Grateful Dead, The Rolling Stones, George Harrison, Bruce Springsteen, Van Morrison, Judy Collins, Steely Dan and many other popular folk and rock stars have in common? All have used steel guitar in their music at one time or another. I never realized how ubiquitous this instrument was until I started listening to the nominations for this topic. It most decidedly is not just an instrument used for country music and Hawaiian music.
By Marco den Ouden2 years ago in Beat
Songs About Zombies and the Undead
There's a Youtube playlist at the end of this commentary. Zombies! What is it about zombies that makes them so popular? Sure everyone likes a good scare and zombies are a staple of horror movies. But they are much more than that. In an article at Vox, Zachary Crockett argues that “the creature is more than an aesthetic horror – it is a form of political commentary. For 80 years, the undead have been used by filmmakers and writers as a metaphor for much deeper fears: racial sublimation, atomic destruction, communism, mass contagion, globalism – and, more than anything, each other.”
By Marco den Ouden3 years ago in Beat
Songs About Propaganda
Back in 2006, a music writer for the Guardian started an intriguing feature. Every week he would post a topic on the Guardian's music blog and Guardian readers would suggest songs on that topic. The writer would listen to the suggestions and compile a playlist of ten songs with commentary. That feature is still running though no longer at the Guardian. It is now at an independent website called the Song Bar. The bar's landlord posts a topic every week and a volunteer "guru" considers the suggestions and compiles a playlist with commentary. I have been a volunteer guru 29 times now and this is one of the topics I covered. You'll find a Youtube playlist at the end.
By Marco den Ouden3 years ago in Beat
Little Red Riding Hood
This epic poem version of Little Red Riding Hood follows the style of Alfred Noyes' The Highwayman. I have retained some of Noyes' wording, most notably in the first two stanzas, so that readers familiar with the poem will instantly recognize it and because it fits nicely into the story. If you are not familiar with the poem, I recommend you find it online and read it before you read my parody. It is one of the greatest romantic poems ever written in my opinion.
By Marco den Ouden3 years ago in Poets
Propaganda and the Political Cartoon
A good case can be made that the political cartoon, by its very nature, is a form of propaganda. This is not necessarily a bad thing, though propaganda as generally understood has negative connotations. René Welleck in his Theory of Literature argues that
By Marco den Ouden3 years ago in The Swamp
Singapore: Clean, Green and Safe
In 2016, my wife and I visited Singapore, a fabulous city with much to offer the visitor. We first got there after midnight on January 22nd, got some sleep at a nice hotel, and then embarked on a seven day cruise before getting back to the city on the 29th.
By Marco den Ouden3 years ago in Wander
A Sadistic Tale
Jack was camping out in the field with his brothers when the men came for them. They grabbed them brusquely and tossed them into the back of the truck. After a short drive they were hustled off the truck and sold like slaves. How was this possible, he thought. He wanted to shout for help but was stricken silent.
By Marco den Ouden3 years ago in Fiction
The Proposal
I should have heeded Robbie Burns’ advice. The wise old Scotsman penned an ode To a Mouse where he notes the field mouse’s desperate struggle for survival. One house blown down by the wind, his next is turned under by the plough. Burns doesn’t begrudge the mouse an ear of corn and commiserates with his struggle. Things don’t always turn out the way you had expected. Or as Burns puts it:
By Marco den Ouden3 years ago in Fiction