Curmudgeon's Corner

I'm Back #2

2008-11-20T09:39:00.000-08:00

It's been more than two months since I posted a blog comment. Shame on me!

I had excuses - of sorts. When you last heard from me I was about to leave on a 3+ week trip to Italy. Then I was back for a little more than a week and went away again for 8 days, to Vegas and Sedona with our friend Pam to help celebrate her 60th birthday. Then I was focused on getting my Dear Old 97-Year-Old Mum moved to a new apartment. Then I was consumed with getting a new computer up and running (still consumed by that project), which has been more challenging than normal since I changed from a PC to an Apple.

But all my excuses notwithstanding, I want to get back into posting regular blog pieces and continuing with the other writing I'm doing, so today is about getting started again.

So much hads happened during these past two months. We got Obama elected. Yes!! I was very nervous on election night - until Ohio went for Obama and I knew it was a done deal. I could hardly believe it. And the Democrats did well everywhere. Yes!!

Watching my net worth plummet as the economy has gone into the toilet has been an unpleasant experience, with a large bit of helplessness thrown in. In the good old days there were places to hide, like overseas. These days there is no place to hid. It is definitely globalization at work.

I can still count on Stewart and Colbert to keep things in proper perspective. I can still count on real football to satisfy me more than the American variety. I can still count on my wine cellar providing taste delights. I can still count on my overlook of the bridge and the bay being a stunning sight. I can still count on the Lovely Ms Marsh to provide wisdom and balance in my life.

Not bad, huh?

OK, I've stuck my toe back into the blogosphere. More later . . .

I'm Back

2008-11-19T11:29:00.000-08:00

That last one didn't work well. I'm trying to figure out how to paste an entry from a word file into this blog site. I'll keep trying and will let you know when I'm back up and running. This problem may have something to do with my move from Windows to Apple. Also I keep getting error messages saying "Autosave failed." Need to do some investigating here.

Buon Viaggio To Me

2008-09-15T09:22:00.000-07:00

Sandra and I are off to Italy for three weeks. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve been to Italy, something like 20-25 visits since 1962. Sandra and I have gone together about 8 times. Most of our trips have been to see our dear Italian friends who have a home in Sicily. This time we’ll end our trip with a week in Sicily, but before that we’ll travel to parts of southeastern Italy that are new to us.

I may post some blogs along the way, but then again I may not. So let’s call this a preview.

We’ll rent a car in Rome and head east into the Abruzzo area, stopping for three nights in L’Aquila. We like to locate ourselves in a centrally-located town and make day trips to the various spots we want to visit. Our motivation for the day trips is often to eat in a particular restaurant or drink a specific wine or see something beautiful or historic – whatever suits our fancy.

From Abruzzo we will continue east and south, heading for Lecce, an old baroque city in Puglia. We’ll stop in Trani for a night, a port city on the Adriatic, recommended by friends who stayed there. Fidele, who sells me meat when I shop at Mollie Stones, is from Molfetta, a small town not far from Trani. I thought it would be fun to at least drive through Molfetta.

We’ll be in Lecce for three nights and then head back north to Matera in Basilicata. Matera has received a lot of attention in recent years. It is very old and well preserved. Several films have used Matera to represent ancient Jerusalem. And the Sassi stone, into which people have dug homes for thousands of years, is a major tourist draw. My hope is that since Matera is still off the beaten track and since we’ll be there in late September, we’ll encounter less rather than more foreign intruders. We’ll be there for four nights.

From Matera we go down into Calabria, one night in Cosenza, and then two nights in a small town up in the hills called Gerace. I do a lot of research before these trips, trying to figure out the best places to go, the best routes, the best hotels, the best of everything. For our last stop before Sicily I wanted an offbeat place not too far from Villa San Giovanni, where we need to get a boat that will take us across the Straits of Messina. I found Gerace following various leads on the Internet. We’ll see how well I did.

Part of my research has to do with wine. I went to a little wine store not far from our home, which has only Italian wine. A very good selection from all over Italy. I told Ceri Smith, the owner, I was going to Abruzzo, Puglia, Basilicata and Calabria and I wanted to taste a variety of wines from each of these areas. I went away with a case and had several wines from each place. Drinking them was fun as well as good research. I’ve now got a firsthand idea of what to look for on our trip.

So as I said, Buon Viaggio to Me.

Palin

2008-09-04T10:12:00.000-07:00

Leading up to Sarah Palin’s speech to the Republican Convention, the experts were saying how difficult it would be for her to give the kind of speech they thought she should give. I didn’t think it would be difficult at all.

It was very simple. She should introduce herself and let people know where she stands on the various issues that confront us. If she did that effectively and powerfully she would have gotten her job done.

I thought I’d end up disagreeing with her on the issues. Also, based on what I’d heard, I thought I’d end up with some degree of affinity for her. I didn’t think I’d change my assessment about McCain choosing her. It was a cynical move, designed to appeal to women, especially Hillary Clinton women. And it was an irresponsible move insofar as he was setting us up to have President Palin succeed him should he die or be incapacitated. I don’t care how the zealots spin it, no way should that woman be president.

Well, she did introduce herself. She didn’t talk much about issues. She took the attack-dog low road and spent time snarling at and ridiculing Obama. She gushed about how wonderful John McCain is. I could have guessed her handlers would make sure she took this approach, so that wasn’t too surprising.

What did surprise me is that I ended up with absolutely no affinity for her. She seemed (dare I say it?) comfortable in the bitch role.

I know the convention crowd loved it. Of course they would. And I imagine there are plenty of people around the country who loved it. About that I’m concerned. Buying into this cynical, irresponsible choice would be a mistake. Electing this pair would be a disaster.

News Summary

2008-09-02T09:37:00.000-07:00

In case you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening in the world:

1. The news about Sarah Palin’s daughter Bristol confirms that drilling has already begun in Alaska.

2. Benazir Bhutto’s widower, Zardari, a thief who gives corruption a bad name, will be confirmed as Pakistan’s new President on Saturday.

3. Globalization: Yesterday, the Thai owner of the British football team, Manchester City, sold the club to a group in Abu Dhabi, who immediately bought the Brazilian star, Robinho, from Real Madrid in Spain.

4. In order to pretend they were on top of managing Hurricane Gustav, Bush and Cheney cancelled the speeches they were supposed to give at the Republican Convention. You decide whether that’s good news or bad news.

5. In Japan, the young Russian sumo wrestler, Wakanoho, was thrown out of sumo after being caught smoking pot. Good riddance. The guy was a jerk anyway.

6. Vehicles that run on natural gas are popular in Utah. Reduces one kind of pollution; increases another. To skeptics this story smells fishy.

7. Of the top eight women’s seeds in the U.S. Open four are Russian; two are Serbian.

8. There are reports that dinner was late at San Francisco’s Slow Food Festival this past weekend.

9. And Burning Man was put out by a sandstorm.

10. Scientists report that living is bad for your health. Bummer!

Finding the News

2008-08-28T10:00:00.000-07:00

Recently I read that Jon Stewart had challenged the “real news” TV people to begin getting their job done, i.e., to start reporting the news. What he said really resonated with me.

Two or three times every day I sit down in front of the TV to have a snack, eat lunch, whatever. I flip through several news channels, CNN, Headline News, CNBC, Fox and MSNBC. What I find are either commercials or a reporter being blown away by strong winds or people yelling at each other about this or that subject or a story about a missing child. So I flip through again. I find more of the same. So I give up and go to ESPN for yesterday’s sports results.

Obviously I’m not alone. That’s why so many people get more of their news from Jon Stewart and online than from networks whose core competency is supposed to be delivering news.

I may be retro, but I still rely on newspapers to keep me informed. And in my case I read them the old fashioned way, in my living room, not on the computer. These days, newspapers are not an efficient product. Too much wasted space. Too costly. Not green. So I’m not surprised that readership is down and staying viable is a struggle.

But I’m sure that as newspapers head toward history’s trash bin of outdated products they won’t be replaced by TV news. The news will be online – delivered on demand, through small mobile products, customized for personal interests, and always up-to-date.

It may be that if the news networks got their act together they’d be able to slow down their inevitable demise. But that would only be a holding action. In the meantime, they’re a waste of time – and at least in the short term Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert will continue to thrive.

Today's the Day

2008-08-18T14:44:00.000-07:00

Here’s a peek at my latest project – a book I’m calling (for now) ”Today’s the Day.” I’ve written a draft Intro:

The Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset said:

Life cannot wait until the scientists have explained the universe. We cannot put off living until we are ready. The most salient characteristic of life is its coerciveness; it is always urgent, here and now without any possible postponement. Life is fired at us point blank.

In plain everyday language, what does this mean for you and me?

You look like you’re waiting for the starting whistle. Look around. The game has already begun.

The preliminaries are over. The finals are next week. But today is for the championship.

There will never be a better time than right now to live the life you dream about.

It’s your parade. Rain or shine, you’re the only one who can piss on it.

I’ve been a coach for years. A life coach. I’ve helped people with their careers, their relationships, their well-being. We worked on whatever needed attention, but I was reluctant to be prescriptive. I didn’t want to tell someone what to do. I was willing to make suggestions or point out options, but I wanted you to be the chooser. I didn’t want you to follow mindlessly what I or anyone else told you to do.

I still feel you should exercise free choice and be responsible for the decisions you make. But from now on I’m not going to hold back. If I’ve got something to say: advice, opinions, to do’s, prescriptions, strong suggestions – whatever – I’ll be letting you know what they are.

What changed? What happened? Do I suddenly have a fount of infinite wisdom to dispense? Yes, I do. But that’s not what happened. What happened was that I turned 75.

I know that some birthdays have a big impact on some people. It’s going to be the Big 3-0 or the Big 4-0, or the Big 5-0, whatever you say is important. I’ve never had much attention on these age-related landmarks. Until this last one. The Big 7-5.

I thought, “No way around it. I’m getting old.”

And then the chatter from my internal iPod got louder: “Every day I see more evidence. Obituaries for people who died before they turned 75. Death notices for others who weren’t much older than 75.”

I didn’t think I was on the verge of expiring, but it did occur to me that I was entering the last act, the final stage, the winter of my existence.

It was now time to coach myself. Was I going to sink into a morose depression, wallowing in a cesspool of self-pity, whining about a chronological reality over which I had no control?

Nope. Not my style. So I came up with a new thought, a new context that acknowledges reality but doesn’t capitulate to it: 75 may be the beginning of old, but old is not the end.

To make sure I was not totally off base, I thought I should check out the definition of ‘old’. The dictionary has a lot to say about old, but the first definition is: Having lived or existed for a relatively long time. Perfect. That is both accurate and not loaded with negative interpretations. I have lived for a relatively long time. So be it. Let’s move on.

Long before the Big 7-5 came into my life, I felt that I had something to say that I hadn’t yet said. This notion kept rattling around in my brain, but I couldn’t nail it down. I thought maybe the story of my life, which for sure has been an interesting one, was what I was looking for. I doubted it, because I figured that except for the dozen or so people who really love and care about me, my story would not be of much interest.

Despite my doubts, I couldn’t come up with a better idea or at least a better starting point for getting at this something I had to say. My rationale was that if wrote the story, perhaps in the process of doing that I’d see more clearly what was really on my mind. So I began a memoir/autobiography that I called “Where Did I Go?”

Four years and a thousand pages later I finished writing my story. I’m happy I did it. It was a great project, fun to go back and re-live so many wonderful experiences, and a challenge to push myself to go behind the surface to discover and reveal, as best I could, the truth.

At some point in the process did I receive the revelation I was looking for? No. Not a magical revelation that enlightened everything. But in no way was it a completely dry hole. I saw some tantalizing hints. I noted insights that helped shed light on my behavior. From the data I distilled recurring themes. I could see some of the basic operating principles I had integrated into my life that pushed me in this or that direction.

That might have been the end of the process. But wait. Not so fast. I completed writing and celebrated my 75th birthday at about the same time. Serendipity? An accident of timing? Karma? Does it matter?

I’m now clear that I have something to say to you that is worth saying and hearing. My research lab has been my life. My long life. My old life. And fortunately, since old is not the end, I am able to share what I’ve learned.

Which brings us back to Ortega y Gasset.

“Life is fired at us point blank,” he said. You’re dealing with your life right now – today. Whatever’s going on isn’t going to wait until you’re ready for it, until you get your act together. So I’m not going to tell you to think about all the resolutions you’d like to make someday – on New Year’s or your birthday or whenever. Don’t wait.

My Message is: Procrastination is your enemy.

I’m going to send you some Messages. I’ll send you Text Messages. Use them right now and keep using them. I’ll send you Email Messages. Use them when you need them. It’s OK to archive them, but don’t delete them.

My Messages aren’t ranked by importance. So I won’t be telling you what to do first. Why? Because what you need to do now is what to do first. Look, if your house is on fire it’s not a good time to have a serious conversation about your relationship. Put the Goddamn fire out.

I want you to be able to do it all – all the time. Not possible, you say. In a purely linear world you’re right. But our lives are not only linear. They are also holistic and unpredictable. I didn’t say do it all – all the time. I said be able to do it all.

My Message is: Have the tools available to handle whatever comes your way.

Remember, life is fired at you point blank.

Not Happy With the Drift

2008-08-06T16:12:00.000-07:00

I keep waiting for Obama to break through. It hasn’t happened yet. I’m not happy about it.

Given that:

The economy is in the toilet
Unemployment is up
Real estate is down
Gas prices are up
The war is unpopular
The current president is even more unpopular
The Republican candidate is an out-of-touch, unimpressive doddering old fool wedded to the past
People want a change
The Democratic candidate stands for change
In most states Democrats are in the ascendancy.
Etc., etc., etc.

Obama should be up by 20 points and rising. But depending on the day and the poll he’s only slightly ahead or dead even – and stagnant.

I can find reasons to explain the situation, but whether they are accurate or not is irrelevant. Because the explanations don’t help.

It’s possible that my natural inclination to avoid overconfidence is skewing my perception. I hope so. So I ask myself, could the American people really choose this cranky old fart McCain? Given our history, the answer is a resounding “Yes they could.”

I look at him and think, I’m older than he is but this guy looks like he could be my father. And I shake my head in disbelief that we could end up electing another disaster. But I know it is possible.

Maybe I should just go to sleep for the next few months and hope for the best. Not likely. I can send Obama another contribution. At least that will make me feel like I’m doing something useful. Sounds like a plan.

Suicide

2008-07-29T12:13:00.000-07:00

Every year several dozen people leap off the Golden Gate Bridge. 225 feet below, the water is cold and the current is strong. Few survive. In 2004 Eric Steel set up a camera and shot for a year to explore this phenomenon in this unique place. He did capture people in the process of jumping, and his film, “The Bridge,” is haunting and powerful.

“The Bridge” focused public attention on what has been a recurring issue in my beautiful city: Should we take steps to prevent would-be leapers from leaping?

Inevitably, taking steps means putting some sort of barrier in place. Putting some sort of barrier in place creates design and engineering problems. Over the years various proposals have been put forth, and for one reason or another none of them has gotten past the talking stage.

Recently, the talking has been supplemented by specific suggestions for how to do it. We, the public, have been asked to make suggestions and tell the bridge authorities what we think. I went online and joined my fellow citizens in expressing an opinion. My opinion was simply – do nothing. As it turns out 75% of us felt this way.

A more formal public hearing was held. Of the five designs (each costing $40-50 million to implement) only one, a net that would catch the leapers after they leapt, received any degree of support. I must say that of the various proposals, that was the only one that I would accept, but I wondered how that would really stop a determined person. We were assured that the net would so enmesh the jumper as to make it next to impossible to get loose and jump again.

All of this, however, is not the point. The point is that if someone wants to kill himself, unless he is behaving in a way that is a cry for help and is in fact asking us to stop him, we have no right to get in his way. (Change the gender in the previous sentence if that makes you feel better.)

I know there are people who fail in the attempt and later on say they’re glad they failed, but that doesn’t change my opinion. Admittedly, I think the Golden Gate Bridge is exquisitely beautiful as is, and I don’t want to add fences or other contraptions that will detract from it. But more importantly, I don’t like the government telling us what we can and can’t do, unless it has to do with harming others.

So like I said – do nothing.

Paul Byard

2008-07-18T10:11:00.000-07:00

Part of my early morning ritual is to check the obituaries in the New York Times. All too often these days I see a familiar name. And so it was this morning when I read, “Paul Byard, 68, Dies; Architect Renovated Landmarks.”

My thoughts went back to more than 30 years ago when Paul and I were colleagues at the New York State Urban Development Corporation (UDC). Paul was a UDC lawyer; I was Executive Assistant to UDC’s President, Ed Logue.

In 1972, a small group of us went on a work trip to Europe. To be more accurate, I’d call it a UDC-sponsored trip, not really work. Or to be really straight, let’s just say it was a boondoggle. Our stated purpose and rationale was to visit and learn about housing developments and new towns in several countries. In fact it was an acknowledgement and thank you from the boss.

Our itinerary included England, France, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and the Soviet Union. One night in Moscow we went to the circus and returned to the hotel a little before 9. We wanted something to eat so we stopped at the restaurant. The sign on the door said they were open until 9:30. When we asked for a table a large woman in a white uniform sternly said, “No food. Nyet. Clos-ed.” We pointed out that the sign said they were open. Again, “No food. Nyet. Clos-ed.”

We persisted, but to no avail. At this point my friend Paul Byard had had it. This was our fourth day in the Soviet Union and a series of unpleasantries that had accumulated now overflowed into outrage. To get the full impact of the moment you had to know Paul. He was an elegant gentleman. Raised in a proper northeast elite environment, he never raised his voice. He always reminded me of a young Bill Buckley, brilliant, well tailored, almost like someone from the 19th century. His obituary says he was “unfailingly dapper, with a broad chin perpetually set at a jaunty angle and a patrician mid-Atlantic accent.”

He was a product of Yale College, Cambridge University and Harvard Law School. Then, in his mid-30’s Paul changed course and went to Columbia’s School of Architecture to pursue his real passion. It is no surprise that he became a successful and respected architect. He headed up both his own firm and the historic preservation program at Columbia.

Paul moved close to the woman in the white uniform, drew himself up to his full height of 6’3” or so, leaned down into her face and said, “You are the most thoroughly disagreeable people I’ve ever met. Now, we want to eat. Give us a table.”

She might not have understood all his words, but she got the message. “Vodka. We serve vodka.”

“Fine,” he answered. “Vodka.”

“And orange juice,” she added.

“Good, vodka and orange juice,” he said.

“And caviar.”

“Perfect. Vodka, orange juice, and caviar,” he echoed.

We’d given in to all her demands. Poor little chubby lady in white. She was left with no options and led us to a table. In the end she brought us some other food as well. We got fed, but it was a challenge. Thanks to Paul, we were up to the challenge.

A Fair Exchange?

2008-07-17T10:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday the Israelis made a trade. They released five live Hezbollah fighters who were being held in Israeli prisons and the remains of several dead ones. In exchange they were given the dead bodies of two Israeli soldiers who had been captured a couple of years ago.

The key figure in the swap was Samir Kantar, one of the Arab world’s icons of armed struggle, who’d been imprisoned for nearly 30 years. Kantar had been serving multiple life sentences for killing three Israelis, one a 4-year-old girl, in 1979.

In Beirut, thousands of ecstatic supporters cheered Kantar, welcoming him home as a hero. In Israel they held a couple of funerals.

I wouldn’t have made the deal. Releasing a guy who should have been locked up until he died and in return getting some dust or bones or whatever in a box is not a fair exchange. Wait. I can already hear the screams of dissent for my unfeeling, uncaring point of view. “This gives us closure.” “Now our loved ones can rest in the sacred ground of the country they loved.” “At last my boy is home.” Etc.

Those remains in the boxes aren’t your son, your husband, your father. What is there is simply what’s left of the case he occupied while he was alive. You don’t need the box or a gravesite to remember him. Your loved one lives in your heart and your memory. Closure is not a fact. It is a way of being. It is not dependent on some physical remnant.

I know. I know. I’m in the minority on this one. (So what else is new?) However, it should be noted that there were some dissenting voices in Israel. I noticed that the family of the people Kantar killed thought setting him free was the wrong thing to do. So as usual, what we have to say depends on what we already think.

If Kantar had been swapped for two Israeli captives who were still alive, now that would have been a fair exchange. But alas, that was not to be. Instead they got two black boxes.

No Place To Go

2008-07-10T12:21:00.000-07:00

I like to follow the news. It’s been that way for as long as I can remember. And during a political season I particularly like to follow political news. So every day when I’m not doing anything else I turn on TV to check out the news. And every day I get pissed off at what I see on the tube.

Except for Charlie Rose, who is like a breath of fresh air, there is no place to go to find a balanced, informative discussion about politics or anything else for that matter.

I usually start with MSNBC because their views are in tune with mine. Which, of course, is the problem. I shouldn’t be listening just because I can find someone who agrees with me. Their partisanship is boring.

I then go to CNN. Once in a while there will be a reporter worth watching, someone like Christiane Amanpour. But usually it is something insipid or people on different sides of an issue yelling at each other.

Headline News is similar, except their stories are often of no interest to me or I’m already familiar with the news they’re covering.

Fox is at the other end of the continuum from MSNBC. I usually disagree with everything they have to say. Since their bias isn’t to my liking, from time to time out of desperation I may check them out, but rarely do I linger for more than a few moments.

In a way, during the day CNBC is a refuge. While they may be yelling at each other, it is about financial issues and usually I either don’t know or care about the subject they’re covering. So it is less offensive.

Like I say, there is no place to go.

Totally Disgusting

2008-07-04T11:21:00.000-07:00

Again this July 4th morning, seemingly by accident, I turned on the TV and found myself face-to-face with the annual hot dog eating contest held at Nathan’s in Coney Island.

I have no interest in this event. I find it disgusting to watch. Who cares how many hot dogs somebody can eat in ten minutes? It is like a mini-reality show akin to determining who can last longer in a pit filled with maggots. And yet it seems that every year, by accident, I end up turning it on. There are those who would say my protestations are bogus and there are no accidents in the universe. Maybe they’re right.

Anyway, since we’re here I might as well tell you what happened. The announcers, breathless in anticipation of the great event, set it up for us. There are a dozen or so competitors, some huge guys, 300 to 400 pounds, a couple of petite Asian women, and the two world champions, Tekeru Kobayashi from Japan and Joey Chestnut from San Jose, representing the good old red, white and blue on this Independence Day.

Kobayashi has won this event six times, but Joey beat him last year. Can Kobayashi with his superhuman jaw muscles regain his title? Will Joey cannonball the dogs and buns into his mouth as he’s done before? The time has been shortened from 12 to 10 minutes. Will that change our heroes’ strategy? Are there any dark horses who can challenge these two?

The countdown begins. The seconds tick off. The contestants, on a platform facing thousands of hungry fans, hunch over the table. The assistants stand ready to keep their plates full. And off they go.

I can’t stand to watch when these people start shoveling food into their mouths. They drool. They bounce around. Some have a steady rhythm. Others shove and stop, shove and stop. The minutes go by. First Joey is ahead and Kobayashi seems lackadaisical. Then Kobayashi catches up. Then it is neck and neck. All the other eaters are way behind and have no chance. I am listening to the announcers and from time to time turn around to watch. I can’t believe they won’t choke to death. I can’t believe they’ll be able to continue. The crowd is screaming.

As the last minute begins they both pick up steam. Kobayashi is ahead. Joey is ahead. Now we can’t be sure who is ahead. And then it’s over. Time’s up. Who won? No one knows for sure. There’s a delay. Finally, they announce it’s a tie. They’ve both eaten 59 hot dogs in the allotted ten minutes. What now? A tiebreaker. It’s like a penalty shootout in football. Each will be given five dogs and the first to down them wins.

At this point I’m watching. Disgusting it may be, but I want to see what happens. The hand to mouth shoving and gulping and shoveling and drooling begins again. It’s close. And then it is over. It looks like another tie to me, but the judges rule Joey Chestnut has retained his title. The USA is triumphant.

Hallelujah! Praise the Lord. It is finished. I can go on with my day. Congratulations, Joey. You’ve made us proud.

Mini Reviews

2008-06-30T10:28:00.000-07:00

I’m an avid reader of the New York Times Sunday Book Review, especially the non-fiction reviews. After digesting the erudite summaries, learned opinions and academic analyses of the experts I am saved the bother of reading all these books.

Still, it takes some time to read the sometimes-lengthy reviews, so today, as a public service for those of you who are in a hurry, I’m going to quote snippets from a few of yesterday’s reviews.

Peter Dizikes, a science journalist, told us about “Microcosm – E Coli and the New Science of Life,” by Carl Zimmer:
If you must limit yourself to only one title on bacteria this year, “Microcosm” is a good pick.

Hey, Pete. Thanks for narrowing it down for me.

Holly Brubach reviewed “The Mysterious Montague,” by Leigh Montville:
His legend was born when he challenged Bing Crosby, a good golfer by all accounts, to a contest in which Crosby would play with his clubs and Montague with a shovel, a fungo bat and a rake. Montague won.

I wonder what Montague’s handicap was.

Now to insights provided by James Panero, managing editor of The New Criterion, who writes about “Apples and Oranges – My Brother and Me,” by Marie Brenner:
They both came from the same secular Jewish household . . . So how could she become a liberal journalist in New York while her brother turned out to be a Bush-loving, Wagner-listening, evangelical “right-wing nut” growing apples on the other coast?

I give up, Jimbo, how could this have happened?

Norman Ornstein, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, didn’t love a critical look at the Republican Party in “Grand New Party,” by Ross Douthat and Reihan Salam. Ornstein hooks us into reading further in the first paragraph of his review:
One of the Republican Party’s most astute pols, Representative Tom Davis of Virginia, recently wrote about his party’s status among voters, “If we were a dog food, they would take us off the shelf.”

Sounds like a good idea to me.

Finally, Jack Shafer who writes for Slate, reviews “Right is Wrong,” by Arianna Huffington. Ms Huffington tells us:
McCain has been hijacked by the right-wingers! McCain is the Trojan horse the right desperately needed to put a faux maverick, faux independent, faux straight-talker imprint on the same ruinous policies that have taken us down this dark road.”

Okay, Arianna, stop holding back and tell us what you really think.

For more, you’re on your own.

Guns

2008-06-27T18:45:00.000-07:00

The two lead stories in this morning’s San Francisco Chronicle were about guns. That the stories were side by side on the front page was not, I assume, an accident.

Yesterday’s Supreme Court decision saying Americans have a constitutional right to own guns occupied the center of the page. To the right was continuing coverage about a father and two sons who were gunned down and killed here last Sunday after a minor traffic incident.

If the consequences that follow from important Supreme Court decisions weren’t so serious the intellectual and philosophical inconsistency that go hand-in-hand with Justice Scalia’s latest foray into ‘originalism’ would be laughable. To argue with a straight face that the Founders wanted the Constitution interpreted the way Scalia and his buddies see it in 2008 is the polar opposite of originalism. It has been interpreted the other way around for more than 200 years, for God’s sake.

The Scalia/Thomas/Alito/Roberts coalition, joined unfortunately all too often by Kennedy, make decisions that fit their conservative political philosophy. That’s it, pure and simple, no matter how skillfully they may argue their ‘holier than thou’ point of view. It would be easier to take if they were just honest about it. But that won’t happen.

In the meantime, the Tony, Michael and Matthew Bolognas of the world will be senselessly killed by guns, legally or illegally obtained. In their caskets the difference is of no importance.

A small confession. My libertarian proclivities give rise to a little voice in my head that says the government should not be telling us we can or cannot own guns. It is our business, not theirs. Punish us if we break the law. Don’t punish us before we’ve done anything wrong.

Like I say, a small confession. I still don’t like the Court’s decision.

Euro 2008

2008-06-26T14:44:00.000-07:00

These past three weeks has been paradise for those of us who love what most of the world calls football. After almost two years of qualifying play, the best 16 teams in Europe got together in Switzerland and Austria to see who was best. It has been a great tournament. And because of enlightened programming by ESPN/ABC every game has been telecast live in the U.S.

Most people expected the perennial top teams – Italy, France, the Netherlands, and Germany – to do well, and except for France they all made it into the quarterfinals. The over-achieving surprises were Croatia, Russia and especially Turkey. The Turks came from behind three times with late-game heroics to win and only lost a semifinal to Germany in the final minute. The Spanish, who have a history of collapsing when it counts, broke their jinx and looked good. They’ll play Germany in the final on Sunday.

England wasn’t there. In what was a national humiliation, they didn’t qualify. It cost the coach his job. A totally appropriate consequence in my view. The country went into mourning. Also a totally appropriate consequence. So this under-achieving European football powerhouse took the summer off.

I went into Euro 2008 wanting Italy to win. But my preferences changed as the games unfolded. I thought I’d like Germany and Russia to do badly, but the quality of their play modified my view – at least a little. I haven’t forgiven the Croats for supporting the Nazis, but I found the team’s quality and the enthusiasm and sportsmanship of their young coach, Slaven Bilic, very attractive. I was glad to see Italy knock out France. I was impressed by the Dutch. I wasn’t distraught when Spain eliminated Italy, because the Spaniards were clearly the best team. And like everyone, partisan and neutral alike, I fell in love with the Turks.

I have a clear favorite in the final – Spain. That would top it off nicely, thank you very much.

Jesus Camp

2008-06-20T16:59:00.000-07:00

If you’ve ever wondered what life would be like living in a fundamentalist evangelical Christian country, see the movie “Jesus Camp” and you’ll have the answer:

Run by fanatics
Totalitarian
Intolerant
Righteous
Power in the hands of pre-teen zealots
Freedom to think and do only what God tells the fanatics is OK
The church IS the state, so separation of church and state is impossible
Add whatever other nightmare scenarios you can concoct and you’ll be right

I can hear the laughter of the fanatics as I write this. They’re thrilled to hear me say all this. It means they’re succeeding. They’re getting their job done. They’re scaring the shit out of anyone who doesn’t think the way they do.

You’ve seen pictures of children studying in Islamic madrasas. Every day spending hours rocking back and forth memorizing the Koran. With the anti-Islamic propagandists spreading the word that we’re looking at the terrorists of tomorrow. These kids are benign pussycats compared to the 8 and 9 and 10 year olds in “Jesus Camp.”

The preachers and the teachers and the parents of these kids are brilliant. Their ability to indoctrinate at an early age, reinforce their ideas morning, noon and night, and provide opportunities for the kids to practice what they preach, is unparalleled. Theirs is a closed system that brooks no dissent. They concentrate on the hot button items they want to promote – never abort a fetus, always deny the validity of evolution, be a soldier in God’s army, convince others to accept Christ as their personal savior, elect those who believe as they do, home-school your kids, hate homosexuality, dump on all other churches and all other religions, etc. etc. etc.

My readers know that one of my favorite charities is the Freedom From Religion Foundation. So it is no surprise that I react as I do to “Jesus Camp.” Normally, I don’t discriminate between one religion and another. They’re all anathema to me. If I were God (relax, people, just a joke) I’d get rid of all of them. But if I were a making a list it’d be hard not to name these fundamentalist Christians as my top candidate for abolition.

Amen!

Ethnic Dance Festival

2008-06-16T10:41:00.000-07:00

Over four weekends in June San Francisco has an Ethnic Dance Festival. 2008 is the 30th annual festival. I’m embarrassed to admit that until recently I was totally unaware that this event existed. Fortunately, this year I paid attention to a brochure we received, we decided to attend and are very very happy we did.

The performances are staged at the Palace of Fine Arts Theater, about a half hour walk from our house. The Palace of Fine Arts is a large structure created for the Panama Pacific Exposition of 1915. The Exposition was an event dedicated to progress, the celebration of the completion of the Panama Canal, and the rebirth of San Francisco following the disastrous 1906 earthquake.

It is a bit of a miracle that the Palace has survived. It wasn’t built to last. And over the years various preservation movements have ebbed and flowed. Finally, in the late 1950’s a drive to rescue the Palace from demolition began and was successful. The Theater was added in 1970. It is a comfortable venue seating 1,000 people. We had great seats, dead center in the sixth row.

Each weekend during the Festival different dances and dance companies are featured. We went knowing what the line-up was, but not knowing what to expect. The dancers, from various parts of the Bay Area, are not professionals. We assumed we’d be treated to enthusiastic but not necessarily skilled performances. We were wrong. They were absolutely wonderful, each of them and all of them.

We saw nine groups:

Chinese children got us started with a dance celebrating the New Year. They were accompanied by guest musicians from Beijing.

Next we went to Mexico, “Raices De Mi Tierra,” dances from Mexico’s Chiapas region, accompanied by five marimba masters. The costumes were a rainbow of bright colors.

At the other end of the spectrum, quiet and elegant, were classical Khmer dancers from Cambodia. They were Apsaras, celestial beings, dancing in a lovely garden.

Now we were in Central Asia, watching and listening to hand drum players and a soloist doing Ukbek/Tajik rhythms.

The first half of the show concluded with a totally unique Hawaiian dance, a World Premier Piece inspired by ancient Hawaiian celestial navigation and homage to the Polynesian god Maui. The several dozen dancers were more than enthusiastic and talented and beautifully costumed.

The Abhinaya Dance Company of San Jose treated us to a South Indian style Bharatanatyam piece depicting the Goddess Shakti. They were accompanied by wonderful guest musicians from India.
Now came another World Premier Piece from the Korean Ong Dance Company. Very hard to describe this one. Abstract, extraordinary music, said to be Shamanistic in honor of the Souls of the Lost. I loved it.

I also loved the Flamenco dancers and musicians. Classic. Powerful. Moving. The rhythms of Spain at their best.

The program closed with a Cuban-Haitian piece that was a communal celebration, replete with songs, flags, cartwheels and revelry. Again, great costumes and energy to spare.

Without a doubt, we’ll be back for the 31st Annual Ethnic Dance Festival next year.

Hell Hath No Fury

2008-06-08T15:05:00.000-07:00

Finally, Clinton acknowledged the obvious, so we can move on.

Her speech yesterday, part self-serving justification, part an endorsement of and support for Obama, and part about women’s rights and opportunities was OK. It could have focused more on the historic nature of the campaign that has been waged, and there could have been more directed at those who haven’t supported her, but all in all, given her earlier behavior I can accept that what she said got the job done.

I don’t buy into the notion that her defeat was caused misogynists, sexism or other negative attitudes toward women. Yes, that exists. Just like racism exists. But those women who blame Clinton’s sex for what happened are letting their biases get in the way of their common sense.

As many commentators are opining these days, Clinton’s loss had much more to do with strategic and tactical mistakes during the campaign, financial mismanagement, staff disputes, and more. For most of us it had nothing to do with whether we think a woman is up to the job.

Having said all this, in listening to her speech it was obvious that THE issue for many in her audience was the woman thing. Cheers around that topic far outweighed all other subjects she touched on. So my not agreeing with their conclusion isn’t going to change any minds.

I am left with that old truism (or is it a sexist axiom): “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” And for those of you who care about accurate attribution, Shakespeare did not pen these words. They are from a play called, “A Mourning Bride,” written in 1697 by William Congreve.

The complete quote is:
“Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned.
Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned.”

The Morning After

2008-06-04T10:01:00.000-07:00

This morning I’ve been in a conversation with myself about Obama winning the Democratic nomination. While it has been a 16-month campaign for him, I’ve been on the journey with him for only the past five months. His extraordinary victory speech after winning Iowa in January inspired me. I knew I didn’t like Hillary Clinton, so I’d been looking for a candidate I could support. After listening to Obama I knew I now had a viable and exciting alternative.

I recognize the historic nature of Obama’s nomination. A black president? On TV in “24,” maybe. But in this country? Not likely. At least not likely soon. So I am surprised and happy that the process has taken us this far – and hopeful it’ll go all the way in November.

Today, however, my internal dialogue has not focused on the historic breakthrough. It has been on more mundane matters, specifically the role Clinton should play as the campaign moves forward. Her speech last night reinforced my existing attitude toward her. What would have been appropriate would have been to acknowledge that she had lost and to congratulate the winner. She could have been human, even emotional. She could have reiterated what she stands for, that would have been fine. Instead, she gave us a self-serving, defiant justification of the way she has behaved as a candidate, with barely an inkling of graciousness.

In his speech Obama gave us vintage Obama, soaring rhetoric, great vision, belief in a better future, and an abundance of appreciation and graciousness toward his opponent – qualities lacking on the other side. And importantly, his speech was the foundation for the campaign ahead. The issues that he’ll focus on were all laid out. In the coming months his job will be to fill in the blanks, to put substance behind the words.

As to Clinton, the news yesterday was a drumbeat of stories about whether she should be offered the Vice Presidency, clearly inspired by her and her supporters. My first reaction was “no way.” Don’t do it. Don’t compromise. Yes, she brings strength, but also a lot of baggage. Then, this morning, I began to think that maybe it is a good idea. Maybe it’s worth it if it means a better chance to beat McCain. In other words, all the practical reasons, rationalizations, for such a move. I almost convinced myself.

But then I came back to my senses. Back to my instinct, which I trust. And even with some practical reasons thrown in. For example, when did the second person on a ticket really make a decisive difference? Cheney didn’t win elections for Bush 43. Gore didn’t win elections for Clinton. Quayle didn’t win it for Bush 41. Nor Bush for Reagan. And on back. Maybe you could argue that Lyndon Johnson was critical for Kennedy in 1960, but even if Kennedy had lost Texas he would have won that election.

My hope is that over the next six weeks or so Obama will strike out on his own. Be his own man. Define himself more clearly for those who aren’t already committed to one side or the other. Not share the stage with any other Democrat. And then pick a running mate who shares his basic commitments, has experience that he doesn’t have, and is not a business as usual, politically expedient choice. Let the current turmoil and emotion subside. Then make a choice.

And by the way – I still don’t want it to be Clinton.

Talking to Myself

2008-05-28T09:45:00.000-07:00

I see this as a regular or maybe not-so-regular column. Time will tell.

And I’m not sure what to call it. Some possibilities:
Items You Might Have Missed
What You Should Know
Trivia to Brighten Your Day
Ten Useless Pieces of Information You Don’t Need to Know
What You Don’t Need to Know

Or maybe just Talking to Myself.

In any event:

1. Pittsburgh sports-radio host Mark Madden was fired by ESPN for saying he hoped Ted Kennedy “would live long enough to be assassinated.”

2. Berlin has a new memorial to honor gay victims of Nazi persecution.

3. Mims Hackett Jr., former mayor of Orange, NJ, had a two-fer yesterday. He pled guilty in two courts – to attempted extortion in Federal Court and to official misconduct in a state court. He began his day by resigning as mayor.

4. There’s a problem aboard the International Space Station. The toilet is broken. Or at least partially broken. It is OK for solid waste, but the liquid stuff isn’t collecting properly. They say peeing in a gravity-free environment is a challenge even when all systems are ‘go.’ They’ve devised a workaround procedure until the plumber and a replacement part arrive on the next shuttle mission.

5. D’Artagnan has introduced two new hot dogs just in time for summer grilling: Duck and Buffalo.

6. China’s Prime Minister, Wen Jiabao, now has a page on Facebook.

7. FIFA, soccer’s international governing body, has lifted its ban on high altitude matches, defined as above 9,020 feet. La Paz and Quito were the key cities affected. Bolivian President Evo Morales had accused FIFA of ‘soccer apartheid.’

8. For the first time a majority of California voters believe that same-sex marriage should be legal. Thirty years ago only 28% were in favor of it.

9. Osmond Molarsky of Mill Valley has written his first two books, a novel and a memoir. He is looking for a publisher. Osmond is 98 years old.

10. The Wall Street Journal warns that all-day delays are possible at the Hong Kong and Singapore airports.

Have a nice day.

Is There An Iran In My Future?

2008-05-23T11:08:00.000-07:00

My lifelong karma has been to travel. I’ve spent time in 62 countries, not including those I transited. Some I’ve visited many times – like about 20 trips to Italy. Some have been remote and exotic – like Bhutan, Borneo, Laos, Myanmar, Turkey, and Egypt.

I enjoy the challenge and excitement of being in new and challenging places. I don’t use travel agents. I don’t go on group tours. In consultation with the lovely Ms. Marsh I organize the itinerary, make the reservations, plan it all out, and then Sandra and I do our own thing in our own way.

Since I stopped working ten years ago we’ve designed Five Year Plans for travel. That’s given us a chance to be clear about our priorities and make them happen. Our current Five Year Plan includes another trip to Italy, which we’ll do in September, a return trip to Japan that will include sumo and visits to several new places, some yet-to-be-determined far out location (probably in Asia) that is way off the beaten tourist track, and at Sandra’s urging, Iran, Syria and Jordan.

Why, we have been asked on many occasions, would we want to go to Iran? Usually the question is followed immediately by some opinions, like “You’re out of your mind,” “That’s a dumb thing to do,” “You’ve got to be kidding,” and other empowering and supportive statements.

For Sandra it’s a no-brainer. Iran is home to an ancient civilization, and she loves face-to-face interactions with what I call ‘old stones’ from thousands of years ago. It is a Muslim country with exquisite mosques, and Sandra has never met a mosque she didn’t like. And it is a place not often visited by foreigners these days, especially Americans, which is a feature both of us like.

I spent a few days in Tehran before the Revolution, so I can’t say I’ve really seen much of the country. I’ve never been in Syria or Jordan. We’ve discussed making this trip for several years. I haven’t been enthusiastic, not because I thought it was too dangerous, but mostly because my interest level in that part of the world isn’t too high.

Even so, we decided to get it on our schedule and made plane reservations for this past March. Then, two things intervened. First, Bush and his cronies upped the ‘maybe we should bomb them’ ante with more inflammatory rhetoric. Also, we realized our dates coincided with the Iranian New Year, not the best time to be there because local people would be focused on family, celebrating and travel, so a lot would be closed.

We’ve reset it for next spring. If Obama is president I don’t think there’s much chance of a war with Iran (certainly not during his first six months.) If McCain is elected we’ll see how it looks closer to our departure date. In terms of military action against Iran, Israel is the wild card. Their track record for launching attacks on sites they consider threatening is consistent, irrespective what an American president might think. But there’s no point in trying to predict what they might or might not do.

In terms of the trip itself, my interest level is higher than it was a year or two ago, so at this point I’m not resisting. Maybe Sandra’s persistence has worn me down. It’ll be a little tricky logistically, since we’ll have to fly from Iran to Syria and then drive to Jordan. We’ll end up in Greece for a few days and fly home from there.

To be continued . . .

Dislike Intensified

2008-05-06T11:16:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of the primary season I wrote about the upcoming political campaign. It hadn’t yet become interminable and for a politics junkie was fascinating. Well, it still has my attention, but it certainly has gone on and on.

My choice hasn’t changed. I still strongly prefer Obama. What has changed is my attitude toward Hillary Clinton. I said when the year began that I didn’t like or trust her. Well, five months later I really really don’t like or trust her. I can’t stand to see her or listen to her. She hasn’t yet risen to a George Bush level of disgust for me, but she’s not far from it.

I’ve found that the most constructive action I can take when my pissed off level overflows is to send more money to Obama. If you believe the polls her inauthenticity, her pandering, her pit bull-like determination to win at any cost don’t fool many people, but she’s still in the race, so some of her behavior must be appealing.

Her negative aura has spread to her husband and daughter. I can’t stand them either. This is new. Until recently I didn’t dislike Bill and I thought Chelsea had turned out pretty well. But guilt by association is powerful, so now they occupy high positions on my shit list. And of course, the more they say and do the more solid their place on my list becomes.

I think Obama will get the nomination. But I’m not overly confident. The witch is shameless and tenacious and shows no sign of giving in, not matter how long the odds. I can only hope that the undeclared super delegates, most of whom are self-serving, gutless politicians, will have the courage to go for Obama. Let me amend that. I don’t think they’ll ever have the courage. I think they’ll just conclude that it is in their interest to do so. And with that, the race will end.

Should the worst happen, would I vote for McCain in protest? No. My dislike for Clinton isn’t great enough to totally obliterate my common sense. But if that is my choice I sure won’t like it.

Tonight will tell us about Indiana and North Carolina. I’d love to see my man kick her ass. We shall see.

Save the Children

2008-04-26T12:27:00.000-07:00

Once I heard a writer say, “I write to find out what I’m thinking.” That’s the way it is for me on today’s subject – The State of Texas and the Mormon Fundamentalists.

I’m caught on the horns of a dilemma. Kind of like the horns on a ten point elk, a multiple horn dilemma. Here’s the deal:

1. Consistent with my views about all organized religious groups, I have no affinity for the religion these people follow.

2. Nor do I support what appears to be a cult-like lifestyle of isolation and rejection of the outside world.

3. If this group embraces and encourages abusive practices, physical or mental, against anyone of any age, I condemn it.

Having taken this position, here’s where my dilemma comes into play:

1. The Fundamentalist Mormons should be free to practice whatever they want to practice and live in any way they want free of government interference.

2. If they want to engage in polygamy or polyandry or gay marriage or if they want to live without any kind of marriage, it is their business, not ours.

3. Do I see any exceptions to my hands-off principle? Yes. If girls (or boys) under the age of either 16 or 18 (I am not sure what the appropriate age should be) are being forced to marry against their will, outside authorities have a right to intervene.

4. If there is incontrovertible evidence of physical or mental abuse, outside authorities have a right to intervene.

5. OK, then, who is to determine what is free will and what is robot-like behavior exhibited by people who have no experience or awareness that there might be another way? That’s tough. Do I trust the people in the child welfare system to make enlightened decisions on these matters? No way. Not even a little bit.

6. Should I trust and rely on the laws of the State of Texas to decide whether to leave these people alone or charge them with crimes? Whether to keep families together or split them apart? No. The laws are written to protect people who live conventional lives, not uncommon folks whose decisions are alien to most of the rest of us.

7. So – what now?

We can’t go back and begin the process all over again. We’re in the middle of it. Families have been split up. Some mothers have access to their children; some do not. DNA tests are being done. The focus, appropriately, is on the children and their welfare. The authorities are saying the right things – about care and consideration and compassion. But they’re in over their heads. They are on uncharted ground. Good intentions aside, mistakes will be made. And even if everything from here on out is done perfectly, the traumatic disruption in the lives of these hundreds of children will cause lifelong damage to many.

One thing I don’t hear much about. What about the adult males in this story? I guess they’re still in the Yearning for Zion Ranch, hanging out. The unspoken assumption is that they’re the bad guys. Maybe they are. In a patriarchal society they make the decisions. But I’d still like to know more about them.

So I’m left where I began – with a dilemma.

Flower Power

2008-04-19T13:44:00.000-07:00

Here’s one for those of you who like conundrums. In the Chronicle’s Earthweek section today there is an item called “Plants and Morality”:

A Swiss federal committee raised eyebrows in both the scientific and religious communities by professing that plants deserve respect, and that killing them arbitrarily is morally wrong. In a report on ‘the dignity of the creature in the plant world,’ the Ethics Committee on Non-Human Biotechnology condemned the decapitation of flowers without reason. But committee member Bernard Baertschi conceded that the sheer pleasure a human might get from picking the petals off a daisy could be reason enough to make it morally justified. The report stipulates that ‘all action involving plants in the aim to conserve the human species is morally justified.’ Only a minority of the group’s members said they objected to patenting plants, with the majority ruling the action did not infringe on ‘their moral value.’

OK, let’s see if I’ve got this right. If I decapitate a flower to save humanity it is not an immoral act. If I decapitate flowers because it makes me happy, no problem. If, however, I go around decapitating flowers because I disrespect the plant world, I’m a murderer. I guess this makes sense, since I wouldn’t want my relationship with flowers to be politically incorrect. About ‘patenting plants,’ I have no idea what they’re talking about.

Have a nice day. I’m going out to smell the roses. I promise not to hurt them.