Thursday, May 23, 2013

NYC.  Chris and I just returned from a trip to the Big Apple, always a treat.  As Will Rogers noted, the “passing scene” is constantly changing, always amusing.  We went on a 4-day visit with long-time friends, the couple who introduced us many years ago.  We thoroughly enjoyed three plays: Ann, Motown, and Once.  

To appreciate Ann you have to be “of a certain age,” else much will be unknown, ancient history.  However, if you are of that age, the comments of Ann Richardson, the late, former TX governor will ring true and elicit more than a few belly laughs.  Governor Richardson was played by Holland Taylor, a Broadway veteran and, unlikely, the current star of TV's 2 ½ Men.  A stunning performance!

In Motown, it was immediately obvious that the audience, young and old, were “into” the music.  A fast-paced kaleidoscope of past musical hits and the interplay in the recording business.

Once, winner of the 2012 “best musical” Tony award, was of a different genre.  The rip-roaring setting was an Irish pub where the musicians were also the actors.  Before the show and during intermission, a limited number of the audience were allowed on stage to purchase/enjoy their libations, temporary patrons to set the stage; it fit nicely.   Our thanks to Chris and Jerry, as the play was well worth their stand in line at the 'Tix' discount ticket outlet.

We also enjoyed our first visits to Staten Island and the 9/11 memorial; we did a short walkabout in Central Park with lunch at the Boat House.  Chris and I had tickets for the taping of David Letterman's Monday (May 21st) Late Show, with Will Smith as the featured guest.  Alas, there was no “face time” for the Abells.  Aside from the actual show, it was most interesting to see what happens “behind” the scenes, what the TV audience does not see.  It's quite a production, fittingly in the Ed Sullivan theater – home of Ed's long ago “really, really big shews”.

And what trip to NYC would be complete without a slice of cheesecake at Junior's!  We actually visited twice, for dessert after Ann and again for dinner with Chris's young cousin, a dance major juggling seven jobs as she works up to “bigger and better things.”

Enjoy the coming weekend; thanks for tuning in.

WEDNESDAY, May 15, 2013

Pogo. Like many my age, I learned my early politics from my father and the comics. Dad was a lifetime employee of the local Meadville Tribune and I was a newspaper delivery boy, so the paper was free and there was always time to read after the morning paper route. Then, too, on those special mornings when I got to ride with dad as he delivered papers to local rural post offices, there was time to mull over the day/week's news. Whether in the car or the kitchen, politics were discussed quietly. Dad loved and introduced me to Pogo's (i.e.Walt Kelly's) sometimes not so subtle political satire.

Anyway, as Pogo was wont to note, especially on a slow news week, “Friday the 13^th, comes on ___ this month.” Today I often read a news story and am forced to remember Pogo's other, still oft quoted witticism, “We have met the enemy and he is us!”

As I occasionally reminded students, back in my day the newspaper was essential to “keep up”. In those long ago dark ages, after the introduction of moveable type, but before the internet (now Tweets, etc.), imagine my surprise at finding out on the front page ot the Tribune that the US was involved in a “police action” in Korea – and, thanks to the Associated Press story, there was even a map. This was the first of many “scoops” I delivered to my classmates who were not early risers/readers.

There was also the morning when my college international relations class destroyed the early morning lecture of a much admired Penn State professor. Dr. Albinski, lacked a car radio in his ancient VW, and was blindsided when someone in the class pointed out that his response to a well thought-out question was incorrect, this according to a morning radio bulletin. The good professor, who never came to class without having read (cover-to-cover) the morning's NY Times and London Times, promptly corrected this problem, as many of us noted the next morning: there was a small battery powered transistor radio hanging from the rearview mirror mount in his battered VW. The lesson from this story: always listen to NPR while driving to school, especially when coming to Mr. Abell's first period class!

A great read from the past. I found the 50^th anniversary edition on the local library shelf. Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe. A two-part story about tribal life in Nigeria and the first interactions of the Nigerians and the missionaries who had come to “save” them. Mr. Achebe is revered as a writer who brought African writing to the western literature forum.

The Cleveland kidnappings. History: Elizabeth Smart was kidnapped on June 5, 2002, and reunited with her family on March 12, 2003. A comparison of the 2003 media coverage with 2013 will no doubt illustrate the huge difference accorded the three young women in Cleveland. What is surely true is that today's mass media will stampede to the money to be gained by securing as much coverage as possible, most probably to the detriment of these newly freed women. Ms. Smart and her father were among the first to point out how absolutely necessary privacy is to allow these young women to re-adjust and re-insert themselves with their friends/families. Unfortunately, the victims's privacy earns no

$$$ for the media.

The western world's fear factor. An article in the upcoming Nation magazine, which seeks to analyze the rise of Britain's UKIP (United Kingdom Independence Party), notes that,

Across the Western world, a sizable section of the white working and middle class is terrified. Their wages have stalled; their welfare is being slashed; their jobs are emigrating [leaving them unemployed, even unemployable]; labor, skilled and unskilled, is immigrating [at best reducing their wages]. A 2010 New York Times poll showed that more than half of self-described Tea Partiers were concerned that someone in their household would be out of a job in the next year, while more than two-thirds said the recession has been difficult or caused hard- ship and major life changes.

It seems safe to assume that a current poll would yield similar. results.

For the unthinking/uncaring among us. From Tolstoy's last novel, Resurrection.

If once we admit...that anything can be more important than a feeling of love for our fellows, then there is no crime which we may not commit with easy minds.... Men think there are circumstances when one may deal with human beings without love. But there are no such circumstances....Only let yourself deal with a man without love…. and there are no limits to the suffering you will bring on yourself.

Syria, a part of the “new” Middle East. From an article in the Boston Globe, May 8, 2013:

History possesses a remarkable capacity to confound. Right when the path ahead appears clear — remember when the end of the Cold War seemed to herald a new age of harmony? — it makes a U-turn. The Syrian civil war provides only the latest indication that one such radical reversal is occurring before our very eyes. For Syria bears further witness to the ongoing disintegration of the modern Middle East and the reemergence of an assertive Islamic world, a development likely to define the 21st century. Recall that the modern Middle East is a relatively recent creation. It emerged from the wreckage of World War I, the handiwork of cynical and devious European imperialists. As European (and especially British) power declined after World War II, the United States, playing the role of willing patsy, assumed responsibility for propping up this misbegotten product of European venality — a dubious inheritance, if there ever was one. Now it’s all coming undone. Today, from the Maghreb to Pakistan, the order created by the West to serve Western interests is succumbing to an assault mounted from within. Who are the assailants? People intent on exercising that right to self-determination that President Woodrow Wilson bequeathed to the world nearly 100 years ago. What these multitudes are seeking remains to be seen. But they don’t want and won’t countenance outside interference...Americans have long entertained the conceit that we are bigger than history. We provide the drumbeat to which others march. Sorry: Not so.

Andrew J. Bacevich, professor of history and international relations at Boston University.

A friend and student of the Middle East had this to say about the Bacevich article, “I agree with the essence of his article but think he overgeneralizes about what "Washington" knows, understands and anticipates. The fact is that Washington is not a unitary actor. Many in Washington would strongly agree with Bacevich and are fully aware of the historical, political and social realities in the M[iddle] E[ast].”

America's drive against (?) empire. In an impressive collection of excerpts titled Against the Beast, a Documentary History of American Opposition to Empire, edited by John Nichols, the [late] eminent historian Chalmers Johnson had this to say: “. . .where U.S.-supported repression has created hopeless conditions, to U.S.-supported economic policies that have led to unimaginable misery, blowback reintroduces us to a world of cause and effect.”

Enjoy your week! Next week's musings will “be out” on the 22^nd.

TUESDAY, MAY 7th

Laid low.  This week's entry comes a day late as I am only now beginning to recover from a bad cold.  Have had to spend much time supine in my recliner with only short walks around the block.  

Spring? Unwisely I took the snow shovels off the back deck and, in retribution, Ullr rewarded me with snow last Wednesday morning. At least he sent down those big, fat, water-ladened flakes that stick to branches and darken the bark on the trees, all much needed here in our drought-plagued state. The high country was similarly blessed, the webcams along the I-70 corridor and in Breckenridge look very “white.”

While we are speaking of drought.  Most western students of geography knows about the much maligned line of 100º west longitude: to the west lies the "Great American Desert."   Many of us who reside west of the line have enjoyed inquiring of fellow plane passengers about those large green circles in the middle of Nebraska.  I have gotten some of the most interesting explanations, especially from young fliers: alien "crop circles" and burn marks from alien space ships are two of their favorites.  Even some eastern adults are clueless.  So you smile and explain while trying not to come across too much like the "Big Bang's" Sheldon.  

A view from the right. The following points come from Michael Gerson's recent column, a sobering analysis by a moderate commentator on the challenges facing the Republican party.

Republicans face a series of complicated political tasks. First, they must manage to get back to George W. Bush’s level of support among Latinos — somewhere in the low- to mid-40s — and eventually compete for a majority of that vote...Second, Republicans must manage the difficult task of becoming more socially inclusive without becoming socially liberal...Third, Republicans must manage to stand for long-term fiscal sanity while promoting social and economic mobility...All of these Republican goals demand a response more sophisticated than simple obstruction.

As the old saw goes, the proof will be in the pudding and politics provides no certainty that the pudding will be tasty even edible.

A good read. I have begun Two Graves by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. I have read several of their books, all interesting. The authors's books offer a mix of mystery, combined with detailed, accurate site descriptions, CSI-like analysis/psychological profiles, and interesting characters. Two Graves opens with a quote from Confucius, “Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.”

Yours, but not mine? The public was treated to its first example of who gets “saved” and who gets “hurt” in the Sequester Wars. The sequester-induced air travel delays were halted in short order.  My heavens, no one could expect House Majority Leader Boehner to be delayed for more than 90 minutes without him taking action! But, do not even think of complaining if your child's head start program is shortened/altered or elderly relative's "meals on wheels" does not arrive.

Have a pleasant week; stay warm and healthy.