... these shows are not natural products of some preexisting mass appetite, they are deliberate inventions. The Big Donor Show worked both as reality TV and as a hoax because an audience – and a worldwide population of outraged columnists – had been created that understood all the conventions. All these people were primed for exploitation and they were duly exploited.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
May the yammering continue ...
... Comments of an Unrepentent Yammerer. Here is another: Less is more. And here's the Persephone Books 'Letter'.
The point of departure for all of this Richard Schickel's recent hissy fit, which I have commented on here and here.
The point of departure for all of this Richard Schickel's recent hissy fit, which I have commented on here and here.
Ms. Beauman's assertion that "only the professional critics ... know what they are talking about; bloggers are merely expressing an opinion" suffers from a couple of problems. One is that all reviews contain opinion. Another is the presumption that bloggers, for some unspecified reason, don't know what they're talking about. I daresay that a good many bloggers are better read than Ms. Beauman, and can probably hold their own with Schickel. The principal thing you need to "know about" when "talking about" a book is a thorough familiarity with its text. To learn that, you have to be able to read - which is not as easy to do as you may think.
In his Memoirs of a Superfluous Man, Albert Jay Nock tells of a test devised by a college president he knew, who administered it to all of his incoming freshmen. The test consisted of a few paragraphs of standard English prose. The students were instructed to read the text to themselves, then read it aloud, and then look it over for a moment before writing down in their own words the gist of what it said. Nine out of 10 failed. They would write down what they thought the passage meant, or what it reminded them of, or a chain of thought the passage triggered in their minds. They would interpret it. But they could not write down in their own words what it said. They were literate enough. They just couldn't read.
One of the pitfalls of professional reviewing - yes, Mr. Schickel, there are such - is that one can begin reading a book not for its own sake, but for the sake of writing about it. The fundamental flaw in Schickel's reasoning is that where one writes has little bearing on the value of what one writes. Would one of Schickel's preciously well-informed reviews suddenly become eminently dismissible if he perversely posted it on a blog?
In his Memoirs of a Superfluous Man, Albert Jay Nock tells of a test devised by a college president he knew, who administered it to all of his incoming freshmen. The test consisted of a few paragraphs of standard English prose. The students were instructed to read the text to themselves, then read it aloud, and then look it over for a moment before writing down in their own words the gist of what it said. Nine out of 10 failed. They would write down what they thought the passage meant, or what it reminded them of, or a chain of thought the passage triggered in their minds. They would interpret it. But they could not write down in their own words what it said. They were literate enough. They just couldn't read.
One of the pitfalls of professional reviewing - yes, Mr. Schickel, there are such - is that one can begin reading a book not for its own sake, but for the sake of writing about it. The fundamental flaw in Schickel's reasoning is that where one writes has little bearing on the value of what one writes. Would one of Schickel's preciously well-informed reviews suddenly become eminently dismissible if he perversely posted it on a blog?
Today's Inquirer reviews ...
... Maxine Clarke is enchanted by Ian McEwan's latest: A beach honeymoon amid shifting sands.
... Vikram Johri is much impressed by Khaled Hosseini's follow-up to The Kite Runner: The cruel, luckless lot of Afghan women.
... Carlin Romano has high praise for the new Ralph Ellison biography: Ralph Ellison, rendered visible.
... David Walton thinks Vincent Bugliosi has the definitive word on JFK's assassination: Making a weighty case against JFK conspiracy.
... Katie Haegele looks at "poem sparks": Her forum seeks to spark poetry, introduce poets to others' work.
... Paula Marantz Cohen considers the sad case of Brooke Astor: Her long life of glitter, giving and, recently, pathos.
and this past week ...
... Edward Champion pondered Richard Flanagan's new book: Australian version of Böll novel.
... and Karen Heller liked Kaui Hart Hemmings' debut a lot: A fine setting for sorrow.
... Vikram Johri is much impressed by Khaled Hosseini's follow-up to The Kite Runner: The cruel, luckless lot of Afghan women.
... Carlin Romano has high praise for the new Ralph Ellison biography: Ralph Ellison, rendered visible.
... David Walton thinks Vincent Bugliosi has the definitive word on JFK's assassination: Making a weighty case against JFK conspiracy.
... Katie Haegele looks at "poem sparks": Her forum seeks to spark poetry, introduce poets to others' work.
... Paula Marantz Cohen considers the sad case of Brooke Astor: Her long life of glitter, giving and, recently, pathos.
and this past week ...
... Edward Champion pondered Richard Flanagan's new book: Australian version of Böll novel.
... and Karen Heller liked Kaui Hart Hemmings' debut a lot: A fine setting for sorrow.
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Gee, I almost forgot about BEA ...
... Ed Champion is there and has pictures.
The only reason I regret not going this year is that I'm missing a chance to meet some of my blogging colleagues. But I have to get ready for a big event later this week. I'll try to check to see who's blogging there and post links from time to time.
Of course, Inquirer book critic Carlin Romano is there and he moderated one of the panels: Report from the NBCC Ethics Panel.
Mark Sarvas is there, too, and he also has pictures.
GalleyCat is covering the event. More pix.
So is The Millions.
The only reason I regret not going this year is that I'm missing a chance to meet some of my blogging colleagues. But I have to get ready for a big event later this week. I'll try to check to see who's blogging there and post links from time to time.
Of course, Inquirer book critic Carlin Romano is there and he moderated one of the panels: Report from the NBCC Ethics Panel.
Mark Sarvas is there, too, and he also has pictures.
GalleyCat is covering the event. More pix.
So is The Millions.
Encyclopedist of temptation and pain ...
... Georges Simenon, Soul Inspector. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
This is a fine piece, but I was surprised that Sante makes no mention of Simenon's uncanny ability to make so palpable the setting of his tales.
This is a fine piece, but I was surprised that Sante makes no mention of Simenon's uncanny ability to make so palpable the setting of his tales.
Revenge of the philistines ...
... Why the art world is a disaster.
The presence of money means the presence of “society,” which goes a long way toward explaining why yesterday’s philistine is today’s champion of anything and everything that presents itself as art, no matter how repulsive it may be. If tout le monde is going to an opening for Matthew Barney at the Guggenheim, you can bet your bottom black tie that the nice lady next door who gave MOMA $10 million will be there, too.
In other words, the bourgeoisie - which never really cared about art anyway - has long since bought off the avant-garde - which was never really about art qua art.
The presence of money means the presence of “society,” which goes a long way toward explaining why yesterday’s philistine is today’s champion of anything and everything that presents itself as art, no matter how repulsive it may be. If tout le monde is going to an opening for Matthew Barney at the Guggenheim, you can bet your bottom black tie that the nice lady next door who gave MOMA $10 million will be there, too.
In other words, the bourgeoisie - which never really cared about art anyway - has long since bought off the avant-garde - which was never really about art qua art.
Reading lists ...
... Summer bummer. (Hat tip, Joe of New York.)
The Cardinal Dougherty High School referred to is Philadelphia and Joe Queenan is a fellow alumnus of what is now St. Joseph's University.
The Cardinal Dougherty High School referred to is Philadelphia and Joe Queenan is a fellow alumnus of what is now St. Joseph's University.
Step right up ...
... the Poetry Carnival is under way and has been for a while. (Hat tip, Rus Bowden.)
Goofin' with the bees ...
... (Harry Nilsson fans, especially those who know The Point!, will catch the reference): Why are the bees disappearing? (Via Instapundit.)
Money quote: "... it's never a good idea to trust what the media are telling you. At least once in the present case the media got something completely wrong and created a huge mess: The story about cell phones was basically a misrepresentation of what one pair of reporters wrote about a study that they misinterpreted. In a nutshell, the original research didn't involve cell phones, and the researchers never said their research was related to honey bee colony die-offs. Even details like the alleged Einstein quote are dubious. No one has yet found proof that Einstein said anything about bees dying off – the earliest documented appearance of the 'quote' is 1994 and, yes, Albert was dead at the time."
By the way, I am a longtime Nilsson fan. I even have in my possession a letter from Harry.
Money quote: "... it's never a good idea to trust what the media are telling you. At least once in the present case the media got something completely wrong and created a huge mess: The story about cell phones was basically a misrepresentation of what one pair of reporters wrote about a study that they misinterpreted. In a nutshell, the original research didn't involve cell phones, and the researchers never said their research was related to honey bee colony die-offs. Even details like the alleged Einstein quote are dubious. No one has yet found proof that Einstein said anything about bees dying off – the earliest documented appearance of the 'quote' is 1994 and, yes, Albert was dead at the time."
By the way, I am a longtime Nilsson fan. I even have in my possession a letter from Harry.
Who's he to talk?
... well, he's Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451, the true point of which, he says, has been missed: Ray Bradbury: Fahrenheit 451 Misinterpreted.
There were a couple of items in this that I would have brought to the reporter's attention had I edited the story. One is the assertion that in 1953 most Americans "watched 7-inch screens in black and white." Well, the black and white is right, but the screens were already much bigger (we had a 12-inch TV), as this ad indicates.
Then, there's the reference to "Senator Joseph McCarthy, whose investigations had already instilled fear and stifled the creativity of thousands." I hold no brief for McCarthy, who was a bounder, but his investigations, such as they were, were of the state department and the army. In other words, it was intragovernmental squabbling of a particularly high decibel level. Our reporter is probably thinking of the House Un-American Activities Committee that in the late '40s investigated the movie industry (it was that industry that set up the black list, by the way, not the government). Whether thousands had their creativity stifled is doubtful.
There were a couple of items in this that I would have brought to the reporter's attention had I edited the story. One is the assertion that in 1953 most Americans "watched 7-inch screens in black and white." Well, the black and white is right, but the screens were already much bigger (we had a 12-inch TV), as this ad indicates.
Then, there's the reference to "Senator Joseph McCarthy, whose investigations had already instilled fear and stifled the creativity of thousands." I hold no brief for McCarthy, who was a bounder, but his investigations, such as they were, were of the state department and the army. In other words, it was intragovernmental squabbling of a particularly high decibel level. Our reporter is probably thinking of the House Un-American Activities Committee that in the late '40s investigated the movie industry (it was that industry that set up the black list, by the way, not the government). Whether thousands had their creativity stifled is doubtful.
Two views on art ...
... one from Nige: Samuel Palmer's Tree.
... and one from Bryan: On Damien Hirst.
... and one from Bryan: On Damien Hirst.
If you are unfamiliar with the Palmer painting Nige refers to, here is Pastoral with a Horse-Chestnut Tree. Nige raises some interesting questions: "Having once absorbed Palmer's tree, it's no longer possible to see a living horse chestnut except through the Palmer filter. Does this, I wonder, make the tree more or less itself? What was it before Palmer drew it? Did it take Palmer to fully see it for the first time, and pass on its essence to us? I suspect the last is the case, and that the tree is therefore more itself, more real." One of the principal effects that great representational art - and I mean the term in its broadest sense - is to enable us to see the world better, to know better how to look at it.
I would add a slight refinement to Bryan's commentary. "Hirst follows Duchamp and Warhol in eliminating craft from the equation," Bryan says. None of the three quite eliminated it. It is simply that the craft Duchamp and Warhol were skilled in, and that Hirst is clearly also skilled in - marketing - is not one we tend to associate with great art.
I would add a slight refinement to Bryan's commentary. "Hirst follows Duchamp and Warhol in eliminating craft from the equation," Bryan says. None of the three quite eliminated it. It is simply that the craft Duchamp and Warhol were skilled in, and that Hirst is clearly also skilled in - marketing - is not one we tend to associate with great art.
This will displease doubters ...
... and many as well who claim to believe, for it is what faith often looks like from inside: Jojhn Berryman's Eleven Addresses to the Lord. (Hat tip, Joe of New York.)
Interminable: an old theologian
asserts that even to say You exist is misleading.
Uh-huh. I buy that Second-century fellow.
I press his withered glorifying hand.
You certainly do not as I exist,
impersonating as well the meteorite
& flaring in your sun your waterfall
or blind in caves pallid fishes.
Scoffers, I know, will point out that one January morning, not so long after these lines were written, Berryman leaped from a bridge onto a frozen riverbank (I visited the spot once, for I was deeply moved by his passing, being at the time, as he was, a drunk). But I suspect he thought that God had led him there - and jumped with him.Friday, June 01, 2007
The final word ...
... "In fact it is the simplest things that are the most tricky to do well. To read, for example. To be able to read exactly what is written without omitting anything that is written and at the same time without adding anything of one's own. To be able to capture the exact context of the words one is reading. To be able to read!" - Jean-Louis Barrault
An anniversary ...
... tomorrow marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Sir Edward Elgar. Richard Morrison looks at the Mystery inside an Enigma. (Hat tip, Maxine Clarke.)
Everyone who has graduated knows Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance March No. 5, but he wrote a lot of very good music. Try to spend part of tomorrow listening to some. A while back I posted this: Something unforgettable ...
And with that, having picked up the pace of blogging a bit, I'm calling it a night. It has been a grueling week and I have much to do over the weekend.
Everyone who has graduated knows Elgar's Pomp and Circumstance March No. 5, but he wrote a lot of very good music. Try to spend part of tomorrow listening to some. A while back I posted this: Something unforgettable ...
And with that, having picked up the pace of blogging a bit, I'm calling it a night. It has been a grueling week and I have much to do over the weekend.
A melancholy farewell ...
... publisher John Calder bids goodbye to Samuel Beckett. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
I find Beckett funnier than he apparently has.
I find Beckett funnier than he apparently has.
Very good advice for poets ...
... get a job in business: Dana Gioia on the Close Connection between Business and Poetry. (Hat tip, Rus Bowden, who knows something about this.)
Writer and curmudgeon ...
... BBC interview with Evelyn Waugh, who seems to have been on his good behavior.
Mythic Delirium ...
... has some new poems up, including on in homage to Alfred Noyes's The Highwayman. (Hat tip, Laurie Mason.)
Noyes's poem, by the way, was made into film, I think more than once.
Noyes's poem, by the way, was made into film, I think more than once.
Wise words about writing ...
... To the point.
I always write to size, in order to avoid having to cut down to size. It's a good way of learning to think formally - i.e., in terms of form, and insuring that your piece has one. Shorter is harder, too, by the way.
I always write to size, in order to avoid having to cut down to size. It's a good way of learning to think formally - i.e., in terms of form, and insuring that your piece has one. Shorter is harder, too, by the way.
I told you so ...
... Brisk walking - the ideal exercise. (Hat tip, Maxine Clarke.)
And I can dream, can't I? - 20 great British rural walks. (Also sent by Maxine)
And I can dream, can't I? - 20 great British rural walks. (Also sent by Maxine)
Bryan is promoting ...
... rational discussion: Science and Belief.
I completely agree with this, except when it comes to deciding to back what is claimed ot be the consensus. Had I done that in the Galileo case, I would have opposed Galileo, because the consensus among astronmers at the time favored the Tychonic System devised by Tycho Brahe, the leading astronomer of his day. Tycho and the consensus proved to be wrong, however. Which is why I thought Josie Appleton's Spiked piece ( Measuring the political temperature), which I linked to yesterday, was so worthwhile. We laypeople can get a handle on the historical context of the debate, I think.
An afterthought: I think I should elaborate somewhat on the concluding point I made in the comment I posted on Bryan's blog. The unstated presumption in much climate debate seems to be that, thanks to computer models, we can now make accurate predictions regarding the future state of the single most complex system we study, i.e., the biosphere. This strikes me, prima facie, as nonsense. The purpose of science is not to predict the future, which cannot, in fact, be predicted. Who's going to win tonight's Phillies game? It's anybody's guess, and nobody knows for sure. Period. And it beats me why more scientists are not concerned about having science returning to its astrological and alchemical roots.
I completely agree with this, except when it comes to deciding to back what is claimed ot be the consensus. Had I done that in the Galileo case, I would have opposed Galileo, because the consensus among astronmers at the time favored the Tychonic System devised by Tycho Brahe, the leading astronomer of his day. Tycho and the consensus proved to be wrong, however. Which is why I thought Josie Appleton's Spiked piece ( Measuring the political temperature), which I linked to yesterday, was so worthwhile. We laypeople can get a handle on the historical context of the debate, I think.
An afterthought: I think I should elaborate somewhat on the concluding point I made in the comment I posted on Bryan's blog. The unstated presumption in much climate debate seems to be that, thanks to computer models, we can now make accurate predictions regarding the future state of the single most complex system we study, i.e., the biosphere. This strikes me, prima facie, as nonsense. The purpose of science is not to predict the future, which cannot, in fact, be predicted. Who's going to win tonight's Phillies game? It's anybody's guess, and nobody knows for sure. Period. And it beats me why more scientists are not concerned about having science returning to its astrological and alchemical roots.
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Instead of me ...
... since I am weary after a very long day, I give you Jacques Brel Madeleine English Subtitles.
... and Jacques Brel Jef 1966 English subtitles.
... and Jacques Brel Jef 1966 English subtitles.
Dissing Allies ....
... The Book Critics' War on Bloggers.
What Maxine has to say in connection with this is very worth reading, a summa of common sense on the subject: The Critics’ War on Bloggers.
What Maxine has to say in connection with this is very worth reading, a summa of common sense on the subject: The Critics’ War on Bloggers.
Let's not forget technology, though ...
... Sniggering at Greens.
Bryan is a being a little too modest in this post when he says that it's just his lay person's opinion and as suich as worthless as every other lay person's. Having read Understanding the Present I can assure all who read this that Bryan has a much better grasp of science than most of us and is extraordinarily good at explaining it. He also has a much better grasp of science's epistemological implications than most scientists have.
That said, I don't get one point: "Whether it is cyclical is irrelevant ..." If it is cyclical, it is, well, part of the cycle and has happened before and will presumably happen again. Is there any evidence for such a catastrophic cyclical occurence? Catastrophes have occurred in the past - asteroid collisions and the like - but they're not part of a cycle.
Moreover, it seems to me that the solution to whatever problem there may be is going to come by way of technology not eco-asceticism. I am amazed atv how the same people who preach at us that Nature is so much greater than humankind can turn right around and preach at us that only humankind can save oh-so-fragile Nature.
Bryan is a being a little too modest in this post when he says that it's just his lay person's opinion and as suich as worthless as every other lay person's. Having read Understanding the Present I can assure all who read this that Bryan has a much better grasp of science than most of us and is extraordinarily good at explaining it. He also has a much better grasp of science's epistemological implications than most scientists have.
That said, I don't get one point: "Whether it is cyclical is irrelevant ..." If it is cyclical, it is, well, part of the cycle and has happened before and will presumably happen again. Is there any evidence for such a catastrophic cyclical occurence? Catastrophes have occurred in the past - asteroid collisions and the like - but they're not part of a cycle.
Moreover, it seems to me that the solution to whatever problem there may be is going to come by way of technology not eco-asceticism. I am amazed atv how the same people who preach at us that Nature is so much greater than humankind can turn right around and preach at us that only humankind can save oh-so-fragile Nature.
You heard it here first ...
... yet another Reprise of haecceity, only this time transmogrified into Melicity.
Among the best reviews I've read ...
... period: Josie Appleton's Measuring the political temperature. Talk about a must read.
This is surely odd:
It feels right? What the hell kind of science is that?
This is surely odd:
We can also see political concerns imprinted on scientists’ theories of the Earth’s past. In the 1980s, scientists formulated the theory that the dinosaurs had been wiped out by the striking of a giant asteroid. One scientist at the time noted that such theories should be measured not just by the facts of nature, but also against the concerns of the age. ‘[The asteroid theory] commanded belief because it fit with what we are prepared to believe.… Like everyone else...I carry within my consciousness the images of mushroom clouds…. [It] feels right because it fits so neatly into the nightmares that project our own demise.’
It feels right? What the hell kind of science is that?
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Poetry finds a home ...
... With Lilly backing, poetry group closes on prime home. (Hat tip, Laurie Mason.)
Mirabile dictu ...
... some (mostly) interesting remarks from Daniel Dennett as interviewed by Alessandro Lanni. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
By and large I have no objection to a "scientific" study of religion or anything else. One thing I find interesting here is that, in talking about religion's evolving and the species and subspecies of religion, Dennett has to be speaking metaphorically. A species of religion is not the same sort of thing as a species of reptile. The "evolution" of religion or culture is not the same as the evolution of biological species. To speak as if they are the same is either to speak metaphorically or to equivocate.
By and large I have no objection to a "scientific" study of religion or anything else. One thing I find interesting here is that, in talking about religion's evolving and the species and subspecies of religion, Dennett has to be speaking metaphorically. A species of religion is not the same sort of thing as a species of reptile. The "evolution" of religion or culture is not the same as the evolution of biological species. To speak as if they are the same is either to speak metaphorically or to equivocate.
Today's must read ...
... Marilynne Robinson's That Highest Candle.
But really, read the whole thing.
Though doubt, alienation, and even parody are elements in some of these poems, the collection is quite appropriately aware that these all have reference to the field of thought and meaning ordinarily called religious. Any reader of Ecclesiastes or the Book of Job is aware that the canon of scripture has room for thought that can disrupt conventional assumptions about the nature of belief, whether these assumptions are held by the religious or by their critics. ... To associate religion with unwavering faith in any creed or practice does no justice at all to its complexity as lived experience. Creeds themselves exist to stabilize the intense speculations that religion, which is always about the ultimate nature of things, will inspire.
But really, read the whole thing.
So you're down on Joyce Kilmer ...
... well try, "Versified and rhythmic non-prose verbal arrangements are fashioned by people of alternative intelligence such as myself, but only the divine entity, should he or she actually exist, can create a solar-shielding park structure from low-rise indigenous vegetative material."
John Leo On Good Writing.
John Leo On Good Writing.
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Possible Tasmanian conspiracy ...
... Ed Champion reviews Richard Flanagan's The Unknown Terrorist: Australian version of Böll novel.
The tyranny of Nanny ...
... or, Wowsers control news agenda, in which Nige, quite properly, deplores "the erosion of Judgment in both personal and professional life, and its replacement with legalistic structures of compliance and proscription."
Albert Jay Nock many years ago pointed out the inverse relation between state and social power: "... it follows that with any exercise of State power, not only the exercise of social power in the same direction, but the disposition to exercise it in that direction, tends to dwindle."
Here is Chapter 1 of Our Enemy, the State>
Albert Jay Nock many years ago pointed out the inverse relation between state and social power: "... it follows that with any exercise of State power, not only the exercise of social power in the same direction, but the disposition to exercise it in that direction, tends to dwindle."
Here is Chapter 1 of Our Enemy, the State>
Monday, May 28, 2007
In the Left corner ...
... a global warming skeptic: The Greenhousers Strike Back and Out. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Burning books ia bad, period ...
... Unwanted books go up in flames. (Hat tip, Scott Stein.)
I give away thousands of books a year to the Philadelphia Prison System, senior centers, and schools. The guy should have looked harder.
I give away thousands of books a year to the Philadelphia Prison System, senior centers, and schools. The guy should have looked harder.
The genuine article ...
... my colleague Marc Schogol passed away yesterday morning, leaving the world a much, much poorer place. Marc really was a star reporter, to say nothing of a fabulous writer and an absolutely world-class human being. You can see for yourself in the links accompanying his obituary.
Sunday, May 27, 2007
Beauty and truth ...
... Writer's choice 88: Mark Vernon. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Note that all of the pieces in this series may be found here and here.
Note that all of the pieces in this series may be found here and here.
On the global warming front ...
... Cold snap brings 54 new records.
... Brrr... SA is freezing cold.
... First snow brings winter delight.
... and right here in the good old U.S. of A. - Climbers get the cold shoulder.
Oh, I know: Weather and climate are not the same. But many who are quick to tell me that are just as quick to cite any warm spell as proof the other way. This past January, people were going on about the cherry trees along Kelly Drive blossoming because of the unseasonably warm weather. They should have noticed that the trees native to the region didn't change their schedule. And they might have noted that the phrase "unseasonably warm" is thrice familar because, well, weather is often unseasonable. I continue to think that predicting the climate is about as fool-proof as predicting the weather.
... Brrr... SA is freezing cold.
... First snow brings winter delight.
... and right here in the good old U.S. of A. - Climbers get the cold shoulder.
Oh, I know: Weather and climate are not the same. But many who are quick to tell me that are just as quick to cite any warm spell as proof the other way. This past January, people were going on about the cherry trees along Kelly Drive blossoming because of the unseasonably warm weather. They should have noticed that the trees native to the region didn't change their schedule. And they might have noted that the phrase "unseasonably warm" is thrice familar because, well, weather is often unseasonable. I continue to think that predicting the climate is about as fool-proof as predicting the weather.
Andante moderato ....
... "B" Was for Blogger Who Went For a Walk.
(So what' the point of the headline? Andante means walking.)
(So what' the point of the headline? Andante means walking.)
I am not a baby boomer ...
... but I quite remember when they started to arrive: Boomer Guilt.
Bryan has such a way with words.
The boomers are not detached. They fret and fuss over their ambitions for their children, as if unaware that they are simultaneously bleeding them dry. The big, destructive points about boomers are that there are too many of them and they simply haven’t the good manners to die.
Bryan has such a way with words.
Today's Inquirer reviews ...
... John Freeman looks at Natasha Tretheway's Pulitzer-winning Native Guard: Poems give voice to the forgotten.
... and Michael Peich chats with Tretheway: Erecting monuments: To troops, her mother.
... Maxine Clarke has a theory about James Grippando's latest: Soap opera shocks plus thriller chills.
... Katherine Bailley encounters Margaret Drabble's The Sea Lady: Drabble, with Orator: Second childhood of distinguished lives.
... Rathe Miller checks out Anthony Holden's latest poker adventures: The sequel to hitting the poker-book jackpot.
... Katie Haegele is impressed with some short fiction for young adults: Young Adult Reader | Genre's best writers pen a fine collection of young adult tales.
... there's also a bit of Harry Potter news: For 'Potter' finale, midnight hoopla.
During the past week, Ed Pettit had high praise for a new Tolkien: More about Middle-Earth before Frodo.
... and Michael Peich chats with Tretheway: Erecting monuments: To troops, her mother.
... Maxine Clarke has a theory about James Grippando's latest: Soap opera shocks plus thriller chills.
... Katherine Bailley encounters Margaret Drabble's The Sea Lady: Drabble, with Orator: Second childhood of distinguished lives.
... Rathe Miller checks out Anthony Holden's latest poker adventures: The sequel to hitting the poker-book jackpot.
... Katie Haegele is impressed with some short fiction for young adults: Young Adult Reader | Genre's best writers pen a fine collection of young adult tales.
... there's also a bit of Harry Potter news: For 'Potter' finale, midnight hoopla.
During the past week, Ed Pettit had high praise for a new Tolkien: More about Middle-Earth before Frodo.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Angels and Ages ...
... Adam Gopnik on Lincoln’s language and its legacy.
"Lincoln’s rhetoric is, instead, deliberately Biblical. (It is difficult to find a single obviously classical reference in all of his speeches.) Lincoln had mastered the sound of the King James Bible so completely that he could recast abstract issues of constitutional law in Biblical terms ... "
"... undeniably, as the war and his Presidency progressed, Lincoln spoke increasingly of God—inserted God, as it seems, into the Gettysburg Address—and evidently had some kind of complicated and rich sense of 'necessity' and a supernatural presiding power."
"Lincoln’s rhetoric is, instead, deliberately Biblical. (It is difficult to find a single obviously classical reference in all of his speeches.) Lincoln had mastered the sound of the King James Bible so completely that he could recast abstract issues of constitutional law in Biblical terms ... "
"... undeniably, as the war and his Presidency progressed, Lincoln spoke increasingly of God—inserted God, as it seems, into the Gettysburg Address—and evidently had some kind of complicated and rich sense of 'necessity' and a supernatural presiding power."
That's it for now ...
... it's Saturday, the start of a holiday weekend. I want to do some gardening and some shopping . Tonight we're going out to dinner.
Fiction runs up against reality ...
... Fictional characters you would like to meet.
I'll have to think about this. I think I'd like to meet Jane Eyre. I don't scare easily, but certainly Dracula would bear watching carefully.
What is interesting about this is that the characters one most likes are those one identifies with and so in once you don't have to meet them and in another a meeting would necessarily disappoint. One wants to meet someone like Jane Eyre because, if you're a male reader, you're likely to have a crush on her.
I'll have to think about this. I think I'd like to meet Jane Eyre. I don't scare easily, but certainly Dracula would bear watching carefully.
What is interesting about this is that the characters one most likes are those one identifies with and so in once you don't have to meet them and in another a meeting would necessarily disappoint. One wants to meet someone like Jane Eyre because, if you're a male reader, you're likely to have a crush on her.
For Memorial Day ...
... tales of arms and men, as chosen by John McCain, who knows more about combat than most of us would want to: Five Best War Stories.
Remembering John Wayne ...
... whose centenary is today (how appropriate - Memorial Day Weekend): Happy birthday John Wayne. (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
A hard choice ...
... The Official Top 20 Countdown of the All Time Greatest Love Poems of Paul Laurence Dunbar
Carol Saba comments that "A Florida Night' gives a glimpse of "old Florida." I had a sample of "old Florida" myself and I know what she means. Check out Carol's Polar.
Carol Saba comments that "A Florida Night' gives a glimpse of "old Florida." I had a sample of "old Florida" myself and I know what she means. Check out Carol's Polar.
Clever Bryan ...
... does the roundup bit: Saturday News Round-Up.
I'm not given to conspiracy theories, but Scientolgy does seem to have set its sights on the rich and famous. If that could ever translate into political power we might well find ourselves governed - even more than we are already - by the rich and the famous. After all, such a development would surely gain the support of the merely rich (do scroll down for the auto show).
I'm not given to conspiracy theories, but Scientolgy does seem to have set its sights on the rich and famous. If that could ever translate into political power we might well find ourselves governed - even more than we are already - by the rich and the famous. After all, such a development would surely gain the support of the merely rich (do scroll down for the auto show).
Friday, May 25, 2007
It's the start of a holiday weekend ...
... I am closing in on restoring order to my life. Blogging may be spradic during the weekend, but should be back on track by next week.
Emerson was born on this date ...
... in 1803. He remains one of the greatest influences on my life and thought and feeling. I can still vividly remember the cold, clear February day in 1957 - I was 15 - when I first read "Self-Reliance." It was for me a personal declaration of independence:
Gwendolyn and I visited his house some years ago. For me, of course, it was an act of pilgrimage.
What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This rule, equally arduous in actual and in intellectual life, may serve for the whole distinction between greatness and meanness. It is the harder, because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you know it. It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.
Here's a good Emerson Page.
Gwendolyn and I visited his house some years ago. For me, of course, it was an act of pilgrimage.
Metaphors out of control ...
... I think: Blanket Exceeds Tightrope. (Don't you hate it when that happens?)
A nasty business ...
... I suppose if you're the sort who "outgrew" pondering the meaning of life, Colin Wilson is a perfect target for your disdain. But it is a bad idea to thoroughly disown one's adolescent enthusiasms - even if they include Colin Wilson. That said, this new book of his does sound rather mean-spirited.
Oops! I forgot the link: Amis: boozer. Tynan: cold. Beckett: rubbish (Thanks to Dave Lull, for jogging my brain.)
Critcizing a professional reviewer ...
... imagine that! When a Book Reviewer Is In Over His Head (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Of course, maybe Kinsley didn't read the whole book.
This is interesting, though: “It’s blindingly obvious: the great religions all began at a time when we knew a tiny fraction of what we know today about the origins of Earth and human life. It’s understandable that early humans would develop stories about gods or God to salve their ignorance. But people today have no such excuse. If they continue to believe in the unbelievable, or say they do, they are morons or lunatics or liars.”
Of course, Plato and Aristotle did their work at a time " when we knew a tiny fraction of what we know today about the origins of Earth and human life," too. Should we dismiss them wholesale as well, I wonder? And just think, Freeman Dyson, Francis Collins, Owen Gingerich - rather accomplished scientists all, and believers - must be "morons or lunatics or liars.”
Who knew?
Of course, maybe Kinsley didn't read the whole book.
This is interesting, though: “It’s blindingly obvious: the great religions all began at a time when we knew a tiny fraction of what we know today about the origins of Earth and human life. It’s understandable that early humans would develop stories about gods or God to salve their ignorance. But people today have no such excuse. If they continue to believe in the unbelievable, or say they do, they are morons or lunatics or liars.”
Of course, Plato and Aristotle did their work at a time " when we knew a tiny fraction of what we know today about the origins of Earth and human life," too. Should we dismiss them wholesale as well, I wonder? And just think, Freeman Dyson, Francis Collins, Owen Gingerich - rather accomplished scientists all, and believers - must be "morons or lunatics or liars.”
Who knew?
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Wise words ...
... from the journal Nature:
...scientists need to take care not to overstep their expertise. It is reasonable to expect a Manhattan Project physicist to weigh in on the dangers of nuclear weapons, with which he or she is entirely familiar. It is less clear-cut to, say, support the candidacy of a politician. ... Political advocacy can, in fact, be the trickiest road for a scientist–activist to navigate. Nobel-prizewinning economists, for instance, are routinely recruited to either side of US presidential campaigns, with their names trotted out like endorsements. ... Scientists who want to promote change in the world would be better off selecting their areas of activism carefully. Nobel laureates have a special responsibility, as they are regarded by the public with a level of awe. Many of them do use their names wisely to advance education or underappreciated areas of science. Last week, for instance, 40 of them helped launch a US$10-million fund to support scientific research in the Middle East. Such efforts are targeted, specific and worthy of the Nobel name.
A twofer ...
... Daniel Hoffman and haecceity: `A Gift You Couldn't Have the Wit to Choose' (Hat tip, Dave Lull.)
Back to Middle-Earth ...
... Ed Pettit reviews The Children of Húrin: More about Middle-Earth before Frodo.
McDonalds' vanity ...
... Catering News.
The fast-food objects that the OED defines McJob as "an unstimulating low-paid job with few prospects." Take out the unstimulating and you've got contemporary journalism.
The fast-food objects that the OED defines McJob as "an unstimulating low-paid job with few prospects." Take out the unstimulating and you've got contemporary journalism.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Oh, blessed rage for order ...
... I have been pursuing order for the past couple of weeks - in my book room at the office, and in my office at home. A goodly measure has in fact been achieved. But boy was it tiring. And I have had little time to read. So that's it for blogging tonight.
I linked to this earlier ...
... but why not link to it again, from Petrona: Memoir of a Ghost by Susan Balée.
Update: I should have added that I read the story this afternoon and agree with Maxine.
Update: I should have added that I read the story this afternoon and agree with Maxine.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)