Arlo Guthrie is playing in Boston on 11/15.

My music tastes are eclectic and broad. I'm going to see Arlo Guthrie down at Symphony Hall. It's a larger venue than I like to normally see him in, but I'm glad he's popular enough to fill it.

Arlo's a real working musician. He's out on the road ALOT and I respect the hell out of that. Like everyone who went to school in Austin, I was in a garage band for a while, and I always dream that someday I might hit the road again with a guitar.

I'm sure Arlo's gonna go off on the Iraq conflict, and tie it in to Alice's restaurant. But That's Arlo. He's a child of the 60's, and political dissent is one of the most important things that happens here in the US.

It's something we can all learn from that generation: the fact that popular will can on occasion trump unpopular leadership. I look on the Vietnam war as the wrong conflict. Of course I wasn't there, and I was only 7 (almost 8) when Saigon fell. But I feel very differently about the 2 conflicts -- to me Vietnam was senseless, Iraq is sensible.

I'm glad to have a dissenter like Arlo around though. I want my opinions on this to be challenged. The daily butcher's bill from around the globe DEMANDS that we daily take the time to consider whether we are undertaking the best course of action. So far I'm in complete agreement with the destination we're pursing, if not necessarily every turn in the road. Arlo does the Alice's restaurant bit every year in Boston right before Thanksgiving, so I'm planning on going and then having a feast that can't be beat! (That's some Arlo humor).

Seriously though, Arlo's an American Icon -- if you get a chance to see him, you should.