Monday Lyrics: Good Morning, Mr. Blue

It's true: we fired the head of the CIA because he wasn't into torture

The CIA’s top counter-terrorism official was fired last week because he opposed detaining Al-Qaeda suspects in secret prisons abroad, sending them to other countries for interrogation and using forms of torture such as “water boarding”, intelligence sources have claimed.

Robert Grenier, head of the CIA counter-terrorism centre, was relieved of his post after a year in the job. One intelligence official said he was “not quite as aggressive as he might have been” in pursuing Al-Qaeda leaders and networks.

Vincent Cannistraro, a former head of counter-terrorism at the agency, said: “It is not that Grenier wasn’t aggressive enough, it is that he wasn’t ‘with the programme’. He expressed misgivings about the secret prisons in Europe and the rendition of terrorists.”

Grenier also opposed “excessive” interrogation, such as strapping suspects to boards and dunking them in water, according to Cannistraro.

A song came immediately to mind... I'm sorry, it's not a traditional Valentine. Think of it as a love letter to lost freedoms....

Looking for the lyrics, I came across this Paxton interview from a couple of years ago in which he talks about the -- far too rare -- big-name cover versions of some of his songs. This one was covered by some psychadelic rock band.

MR BLUE
by TOM PAXTON

Good morning Mister Blue, we've got our eyes on you.
The evidence is clear, that you've been scheming.
You like to steal away and while away the day.
You like to spend an hour dreaming.
What will it take, to whip you into line?
A broken heart? A broken head?
It can be arranged. It can be arranged.

Step softly Mister Blue, we know what's best for you.
We know where your precious dreams will take you.
You've got a slot to fill, and fill that slot you will.
You'll learn to love it, or we'll break you.
Oh, what will it take, to whip you into line?
A broken heart? A broken head?
It can be arranged. It can be arranged.

Be careful Mister Blue this phase you're going through,
Can lead you nowhere else, but to disaster.
Excuse us while we grin, you've worn our patience thin.
It's time to show you who is your master.
What will it take, to whip you into line?
A broken heart? A broken head?
It can be arranged. It can be arranged.

Don't worry Mister Blue, we'll take good care of you.
Just think of it as sense and not surrender.
But never think again, that you can think again,
Or you'll get something you'll remember.
What will it take to whip you into line?
A broken heart? A broken head?
It can be arranged. It can be arranged.