Hopscotch / Rayuela

2009-06-09T23:29:00.002-04:00

Purity and Innocence

This column by Mark Morford, is a bit of sanity in our often insane society.

My view is that we are all sinners, and I don't believe that is a bad thing. It is perhaps the only thing. Purity (outside of milk and a few other substances) is one of the most pernicious ideas humans have ever wielded against each other. We are all impure, in both mind and body. We should try to keep that in mind when we criticize others. As a mongrel whose origins are murky at best, and as someone who thinks impure thoughts every day, I take heart in the fact that all this makes me human. I don't want to be an angel, and I don't expect to spend eternity in the presence of the Deity; I just want to live this life, as frustrating as it can be.

2009-04-28T16:59:00.002-04:00

Senator Arlen "Craven" Specter joins the Democratic Party

This is good news for the Democrats, but do not, for a minute, believe that the decision had anything to do with principle. Senator Craven faced a tough challenge from the right in the Republican primary in 2010 and he did what he always does when faced with a tough fight: He ran.

This man rivals "Joe-mentum" Lieberman in his cravenness. The Democrats would have been better off with running a real Democrat in 2010, but perhaps Senator Craven can come in handy in preventing a few filibusters over the next several months. I'll be impressed if he does vote to cut-off any debates, but if he does, good for him.

Lest we forget, Senator Craven's illustrious record, here is something I wrote about him three years ago.

2009-02-20T19:08:00.004-05:00

Paul Tibbets

I watched a movie entitled Above and Beyond the other day. It was a old-style studio biopic, in this case made by MGM in 1952. It was apparently one the last movies overseen by Louis B. Mayer before the control of MGM was wrested from him.

The subject of the film was Paul Tibbets, the man who commanded the mission that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima in 1945. Colonel Tibbets piloted the Enola Gay himself on that mission to Hiroshima. The film is a well-made example of its type: The subject has a problem to solve, they face conflicts, and eventually overcome them. A film such as The Life of Emile Zola or Sergeant York isn't much different from Above and Beyond when you come right down to it.

What made this film compelling was how it depicted Col. Tibbets's internal conflicts about the atomic bomb. He was depicted as having misgivings about how it could kill so many civilians. He comes across as an honorable man, a person who struggled with his conscience and ultimately decided to do his duty. Say what you like about the morality of using the atomic bomb, the decision to use it was a defensible position. I would like to think that in President Truman's shoes, that I would have decided to drop the bomb into the sea, within sight of the Japanese coast, as an example, rather than dropping it on a city. The fact is, however, that U.S. bombers had killed tens of thousands of civilians already by using incendiary bombs on Tokyo and other Japanese cities. So, if killing thousands of civilians by using conventional weapons was defensible (and I don't think it really was, but that is easy for me to say after the fact, isn't it?), then how was killing thousands using a single bomb any less defensible?

The Japanese had killed thousands of civilians themselves during the war (e.g., the Rape of Nanking, the occupation of the Philippines) and there was little sympathy for them among Americans. The Allied commanders were facing the serious prospect of a land invasion of Japan which would have cost millions of lives on both sides. Perhaps continued conventional bombing of Japan, combined with a blockade of their ports, could have forced a surrender, but it was the responsibility of Allied commanders to end the war as soon as possible, with a minimum of Allied casualties, wasn't it?

The real Col. Tibbets, to my disappointment, seems to have felt none of the misgivings depicted in the film of his life, as is evidenced in this interview he did with Studs Terkel. One can believe one did the right thing and still feel regret over the pain one caused, but that is not the case with Col. Tibbets. It is too bad.

One last observation about the film is that Robert Taylor, an actor not known for the emotional depths of his performances gave a very good performance in the role. I am no fan of Taylor, as he was a Red-baiter and an arch-conservative who ruined the career of Howard Da Silva, among others, by his testimony before the House Un-American Activities Committee, but he did a good job on this film.

The autumn leaves

2009-02-12T09:51:00.000-05:00

Now that the snows of December and January have melted, the winds of
February are stirring the leaves that have been left uncovered. In my
mind, I hear Yves Montand singing. It is all too sad.

Richard Stark

2009-02-11T21:20:00.002-05:00

Shorten your stay in Purgatory

The New York Times reports that the Church of Rome is once again promoting indulgences to its members. Martin Luther, were he alive, would be relieved that one cannot buy them outright anymore, although charitable donations are one way to earn indulgences.

The Tridentine Mass gains in popularity. Indulgences on the rise. A former Hitler Youth member is the Pope. Did the Reformation really occur?

2009-01-06T14:55:00.002-05:00

What makes a good love story?

The comments below are adapted from a response to a posting by a friend on another blog asking what made for great film romances.

There are some great choices in these comments. I particularly concur with The Shop Around the Corner (although I prefer the Lubitsch version with Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullavan). The mismatched pair is often a good device in love stories, as we see in this film as well as in many great romantic novels (e.g., Pride and Prejudice).

I also like the suggestion of The Lion in Winter as an especially bitchy (but nevertheless heartfelt) love story. I would contrast it with Becket, featuring the same actor, in the same role, as a much younger man who is very much in love with his friend Thomas Becket. Another great bitchy but heartfelt romance is Two for the Road, with Albert Finney and Audrey Hepburn.

One thing I haven't seen anyone mention is sacrifice. Great love stories often include great sacrifice on the part of one or both of the lovers. In this vein, I consider Wings of Desire to be a great love story because Bruno Ganz gives up immortality to be with the woman with whom he falls in love, and he does so with no guarantee that she will even like him once she gets to know him.

Roman Holiday is another great love story that includes tremendous sacrifice (in this case Audrey Hepburn must sacrifice her love to duty) and also redemption, which is another important theme in many love stories. The character played by Gregory Peck is redeemed by his love for Audrey Hepburn.

And Brief Encounter is, of course, another great story of sacrificing love to duty.

One other device often found in love stories that I'd like to note is devotion, often of the selfless variety. A great example of this is Charlie Chaplin's character in City Lights. The Tramp has very little to recommend him to the flower girl other than his devotion. The expression on his face at the film's end has evoked tears from me more than once.

2008-12-31T17:28:00.002-05:00

Winter vomiting disease

I am grateful that my recent bout with norovirus has ended. Three solid days of nausea is a truly unpleasant experience, as my last post illustrates. I was amused (now that I am able to eat again) to discover that one of the first clinical articles on gastroenteritis caused by this virus dubbed the condition "winter vomiting disease". That is a much more appropriate name for this pox.

If there is anyone out there actually reading this erratically updated blog, I wish you a happy and prosperous new year.

2008-12-27T23:48:00.002-05:00

Nausea and despair

I have been bed-ridden for the past three days with terrible nausea. I made it to the doctor's office yesterday, where I was diagnosed with a gastrointestinal virus. The doctor prescribed anti-nausea medication, which has been somewhat effective. As I type this, I am not actually nauseated, which is really quite an improvement. What I am, however, is desperate.

I have not, to the best of my memory, every felt as truly desperate as I have during this illness. The aftermath of being struck by a car and nearly crippled in 2006 did not induce such feelings of despair as this persistent nausea has. I cannot imagine how I could tolerate the chronic nausea that accompanies chemotherapy.

Despite the fact that my nausea is now mitigated, I am left wondering just how one is supposed to survive this life we are given without being driven to madness. If nausea can induce such feelings of despair in me, I wonder if I can live with the ailments that will accompany my old age.

I can produce witnesses that would vouch for my resilience during the long period of recovery that followed my accident in 2006. I never felt as if I wouldn't walk normally again, despite the doubts of my doctor. Yet here I am, laid low by a virus and left wondering what the point of life is. I must admit that the disintegration of my marriage over the past year-and-a-half, and the illness and death of my mother that preceded the end of my marriage, and my accident and recovery prior to that are probably all contributing to my current despair.

I have been battered over the past few years and despite the fact that I am loved and valued by many people, I am at a loss to understand why I have suffered so. And I am cognizant of the fact that millions of people suffer much worse that I have.

I fear I will never recover from what the past few years have dealt me. What is the point of all this pain?

That is what three days of nausea has brought me to.

2008-11-05T10:15:00.002-05:00

Assistance for right-wingers

During this time of celebration for liberals, I have not forgotten my conservative countrymen and women. For those of you on the right who are wondering if you can remain in the United States under an Obama administration, I'd like to help you by suggesting that you consider moving to the former Soviet Republic of Georgia. It offers many advantages for conservatives:

McCain is popular there.

It has a Christian majority. I'm sure you'll be able to work-out any theological differences (hope you like incense).

You'll get real wine at church instead of grape juice in shot glasses.

You can join militias patrolling the borders, although in this case you'll be looking out for Russian invaders instead of illegal aliens.

Your guns could come in handy if the Russians do invade again.

You can dust-off your Cold War-era hatred of the Russians, as such an attitude is respectable there.

You might get a chance to fight against some Muslims too.

Property with a Black Sea view is much cheaper than waterfront property in the U.S.

Yogurt will help your chronic indigestion.

The name of the country can remind you of your old home back in Marietta.

Learning a new language (and alphabet!) will help keep your mind sharp in your old age (and if those old yogurt commercials are correct, you might live a long, long time).

Have fun over there, and remember the Russian for "I surrender!" is Я сдаться.

2008-11-05T00:58:00.001-05:00

I am more proud of my country right now than I have ever been in my life.

This is bigger than the moon landings.

2008-07-08T22:34:00.002-04:00

I have not written anything on this blog in several weeks. This has been due to the fact that over that period my marriage has been disintegrating. Over the past two years I have now experienced the following:

an automobile accident that nearly crippled me
four subsequent months in a wheelchair
six months of physical therapy
the final illness, slow decline, dementia, and death of my mother
and the long, slow, painful end of my marriage after fourteen years together

Each of these experiences was daunting, but despite the pain and trauma of both the injuries from the automobile accident and the very painful last few months of my mother's life, neither one of those experiences comes close to the pain and difficulty of my marriage ending slowly over the past year. This has been (and continues to be) the most painful thing I have ever experienced, especially over the past several weeks.

2008-05-28T17:38:00.002-04:00

On Nicholson Baker's Human Smoke

Human Smoke... is not a conscientious pacifist tract. It is not a clever contribution to today's debate on warfare, and it does not add anything to what we know about World War II. It is a cheerful contribution to the movement against scholarship —a movement which has advanced so far, in fact, that I fully expect these observations, too, to be condemned as "elitism." As one who does contribute (it's pathetic, I know) to the mainstream media on a regular basis, I know that any author who expresses a sliver of doubt about the wisdom of amateurs risks bringing down a torrent of recrimination and insult upon his head. But if we have arrived at the point where a solemn and excited individual can cobble together anecdotes from old newspapers and Nazi diaries, and write them up in the completely contextless manner of blog posts, and suggest that he has composed a serious critique of America's decision to enter World War II, and then receive praise from respected reviewers in distinguished publications, then maybe it is time to say: Stop.

—Anne Applebaum, in The New Republic

Read the entire review here.

2008-05-27T16:30:00.003-04:00

Land of the free

When I visited Bruges a few years ago, I toured a brewery (it was Belgium, after all). One part of the tour included a few rooms of inactive fermentation tanks. Back in the day, according to the tour guide, children were employed to climb inside the fermentation tanks in order to clean them (the small openings meant that adults could not fit into the tanks). The primary job hazard was that the fumes from the dregs of the beer in the tanks would get the small children drunk and they would pass out. So, the children were required to sing while they worked, and if the foreman did not hear singing coming from a given tank, other children were sent into that tank to pull out their comrade.

Today's New York Times features an Op-Ed piece about a man whose job required him to climb inside a cyanide tank in order to clean it. We'd like to think that here in twenty-first-century America, if we are injured on the job our employer would be held responsible. That, apparently, is not the case here in the land of the free, as the aforementioned essay makes clear.

The United States would at least be a more realistic society if we did not have all these myths about being "a city on a hill." Our laws are the result of negotiations that almost always include major concessions to lobbyists for vested business interests. Schoolhouse Rock it isn't.

2008-05-02T16:35:00.002-04:00

Is this a sign of the early onset of senility?

I have been following the election campaign for mayor of London, and as a part of this effort I was reading the official website for Tory candidate Boris Johnson. Although I knew Johnson was an M.P., I had not thought of him in any role more challenging than that of guest host of Have I Got News For You. I found myself reading his positions on the issues and thinking that he didn't seem unreasonable. Then I realized that I was agreeing with a Tory candidate.

For the record, when I compare Ken Livingstone's policies to Boris Johnson's, I prefer Livingstone. But I frightened myself for a moment there.

2008-04-30T12:51:00.003-04:00

Celebrity sightings

Yesterday: Actor Aaron Eckhart in City Bakery.

Today: Playwright and actor Sam Shepard, outside One Fifth Avenue.

2008-04-22T10:25:00.002-04:00

On last night's riots in Montréal

Listen up, sports fans. Let's try to have a little decorum, shall we? No torching police cars until your team has won the championship.

—King Kaufman, in Salon

2008-04-21T11:58:00.002-04:00

Bill Kristol, Chicken-hawk child of privilege

There are few more reprehensible traits in American political culture than the constant exploitation of the glories of "sacrifice for freedom" by war cheerleaders like Kristol who ensure that only others sacrifice and neither they nor their families ever do.

—Glenn Greenwald, in Salon

Read the rest of Greenwald's piece on the reprehensible Bill Kristol here.

2008-04-19T16:18:00.002-04:00

So Many Books

Gabriel Zaid, a Mexican poet and essayist, wrote a wonderful book a few years ago entitled So Many Books: Reading and Publishing in an Age of Abundance. There are a number of books out there about the state of the book industry or the future of the printed word, but this one is more elegant and witty than any other I have read. And Zaid understands the realities of the business without succumbing to either pessimism or (thank goodness) business-speak.

Here are a few quotes from the book:

Today it is easier to acquire treasures that to give them the time they deserve.

Confronted with the choice between having time and having things, we've chosen to have things.

The desire to follow a conversation you don't understand is a healthy sign, not an indication of a lack of preparation. Discipline is good in service of desire, not in place of desire. Without desire, there is no living culture.

Reading is difficult, it takes time away from the pursuit of a career, and it doesn't gain anyone points except in lists of works cited.... Reading is useless: it is a vice, pure pleasure.

No experts in technological forecasting are predicting the end of fire or the wheel or the alphabet... yet there are prophets who proclaim the death of the book.... as a technological judgment, [this prophecy] doesn't withstand the slightest scrutiny.

2008-04-10T19:04:00.002-04:00

And Toto too?

From the schedule of the Pope's upcoming visit to the U.S., as found on a site hosted by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops:

Sunday, April 20, 8 p.m.
Shepherd One lifts off from John F. Kennedy airport in the Brooklyn Diocese, heading east to the Eternal City.

2008-04-08T15:31:00.002-04:00

Is the U.S. Constitution going to be good for more than wallpaper?

Stories such as this one, wherein Congress tries to give away power to the rampant executive branch, make we wonder how much longer our Constitution will be anything more than words on paper. I keep hoping that the swing towards autocracy in this country is ending, but seven years into the worst presidency in U.S. history, we are still handing more and more power over to the evil and incompetent people in the White House.

2008-03-20T09:21:00.002-04:00

Paul Scofield, R.I.P.

I never got to see Paul Scofield perform on the stage, so all I know of his work is from the films he made. He was an actor of unusual presence and grace. He gave an excellent performance as Mark Van Doren in Quiz Show. He brought gravity to his portrayal of Judge Danforth in The Crucible. He was an effective villain in The Train. He was a wily French king in Kenneth Branagh's film of Henry V. He was memorable in Mel Gibson's generally underrated film of Hamlet. And, of course, there was A Man for All Seasons. His work in that film (and play) was so highly praised that it is worth going back and watching the film again to see that he did indeed give a great performance.

There are many obituaries of him online. The BBC has an adequate one here.

2008-03-18T22:38:00.002-04:00

I am impressed by Obama's speech on race

This was an excellent speech. Read it here. He makes a good point about not disowning a friend or family member because of intemperate or inflammatory remarks they might make.

My recent post about the Obama/Clinton/NAFTA flap received a comment that I declined to post. The reason why I declined to post the comment is that it came from some Clinton supporter whom I don't know and who had nothing to say other than this: Apparently I did not mention that the Obama campaign released conflicting statements about what happened in this whole NAFTA renegotiation business. The comment did not seem worth saving, as I have no idea who this person was, and he seemed to be some Clinton supporter just looking for pro-Obama comments he could try to refute.

This is not a news site. I make no pretense of presenting both sides of any issue, or of being objective about any issues. If someone makes a comment on my blog that I believe is interesting, I will gladly post it, even if I don't agree with the writer's opinions. I am not here, however, to provide one more platform for the blogging armies of the Clinton campaign or any other campaign. There is no shortage of places for them to express their opinions.

The fact is that I don't hate Hillary Clinton. I merely believe that Obama will make a better president. If Hillary Clinton gives a few speeches like the one Obama gave today in Philadelphia, I might reconsider that position.

So, you among the teeming dozens who might actually read this blog can comment on whatever you like and if I like your comment, I'll post it. If you don't like that policy, then comment on someone else's blog. I don't have the time or the energy to waste on arguing politics with anonymous strangers on the Internet.

2008-03-11T15:33:00.004-04:00

Who was hypocritical about NAFTA?

The Canadian government now admits that its officials solicited input from Obama's campaign on NAFTA and that the documentation of the Obama advisor's conversation with the Canadian officials that the Clinton campaign cited was, in fact, written five days after the meeting with the Obama advisor. The Canadian officials admit that the documentation misrepresented the advisor's remarks.

What is still hanging out there un-denied, incidentally, is the original assertion by the Prime Minister's Chief of Staff that the Clinton campaign had told the Prime Minister's office not to take her campaigning against NAFTA too seriously.

Looks like Obama and his people were not lying or being hypocritical about this particular issue. It must be so disappointing to the Clintonistas.

2008-03-11T08:32:00.002-04:00

My take on the Spitzer scandal

may be found here.

And by the way, Leonard Cohen was very deserving of his induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but John Mellencamp made it while Iggy Pop is still not a member? WTF?

2008-02-05T22:47:00.000-05:00

Listening

Complete albums I have listened to recently:

3 February: Back in the Circus by Jonatha Brooke: Jonatha Brooke gives Sarah McLachlan (see below) competition for the title of my favorite contemporary folk singer/songwriter. She writes great songs about love, desire, and anger. My wife and I saw her perform live back in November at an intimate venue in New York and it was a great show. The room had no amplification and she played unaccompanied. At one point in the show she asked if there were any questions and I asked her why the song she had just performed (Keep the River on Your Right) hadn't been covered by Nick Lachey (the liner notes on the album indicated that she had offered him the song). She actually took the time to answer my question before going on to perform the next song. Back in the Circus is my favorite album of hers. It includes an extraordinary cover of the Alan Parsons song Eye in the Sky.

4 February: I'm Your Man and Songs from a Room by Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man is my favorite Leonard Cohen album. It took time to grow on me, but over the years it has become an album I return to again and again. Songs from a Room is good, but I believe Cohen's music improved over the years and I prefer the more orchestrated sound of I'm Your Man to Songs from a Room. The first track on I'm Your Man (First We Take Manhattan) opens with one my favorite Cohen verses:
They sentenced me to twenty years of boredom
for trying to change the system from within.

4 February: Giant Steps and A Love Supreme by John Coltrane: I will go against the critical wisdom and say that I prefer Giant Steps to A Love Supreme. Songs such as Syeeda's Song Flute and Spiral never get old for me. I can listen to them over and over again and still be surprised by something I hadn't noticed before. This is to take nothing away from A Love Supreme, which is the more difficult, less approachable album of these two. A Love Supreme continues to grow on me, but I confess that I still don't really understand all he was doing on this album. It will take me several more years of listening to begin to figure that out, but that will be a pleasant task.

4 February: Afterglow by Sarah McLachlan: I will confess that I am a sucker for Sarah McLachlan. She is the best singer/songwriter of the past fifteen years, in my opinion. No one writes and performs songs of Gothic melancholy as well as she does.

4 February: The Mask and the Mirror by Loreena McKennitt: McKennitt does a good job of using contemporary instrumentation on Celtic-inspired songs on this 1994 album. My favorite song on this album is Bonny Swans. The arrangement of this song is great and the use of the electric guitar is inspired.

4 February: Autour d'un thé by Fabienne Achard: I bought this album in Paris from Ahmet Gülbay, the pianist whose trio accompanies Fabienne Achard on this 2004 album. Her vocals are good, but it is his piano playing that stands out. My wife and some friends and I saw Ahmet Gülbay live at a small club in Paris in 2005. It was an evening I remember fondly.

And of course I have listened to a number of other "shuffled" songs over the past few days.