TODAY AT MERLE'S: Bette Midler

TODAY AT MERLE'S: "Wind Beneath My Wings by Bette Midler

The Original Diva herself forced me to greet the day this morning, as the nails-on-a-chalkboard strains of the Beaches hit pummeled the assembled on the Francisco platform this morning.

Of course, in this post-9/11 universe one can not hear this song and not be reminded that Oliver Stone's sure-to-be-smash World Trade Center, the movie that exploits tragedy so hiply it has a MySpace page, is opening this week. So in honor of both occasions, I present this YouTube gem: a commemorative 9/11 slideshow set to Midler's classic. My personal favorite image: the ghostly bald eagle head floating God-like above a presumably Iraq-bound aircraft carrier whose bow is emblazoned with the phrase "PAYBACK IS A BITCH." Who knew the U.S. military was so well-versed in post-modern irony?

If you can't stomach the rest of it, please scroll ahead to the 2:20 mark and pump your fist in the air.