They Came from Outer Space
Today, I took my son to see a revival of the old (1953) War of the Worlds film at the Loews Jersey, a restored 1920s movie palace in our town. I had only seen it on TV before, a long time ago, and this was a real treat. The special effects, stunning for their time, are still quite watchable, and it's a decent adaptation of H.G. Wells's story. I found some of the dialog and acting to be far more dated than the effects, actually, especially the way the female lead carried on--screaming and crying and fainting and so on. It's interesting how much the way we expect women to act (in both senses of the word) has changed in the last half century. It's accepted and admired for women to act like the men in 1950s movies today (i.e., tough and heroic), though no similar change has come about for the male population.
In a way, I think our country has been taken over by Martians, only these aliens are called NeoCons. I was remarking to a friend the other day that it feels like we're now living in Bizarro World--that mirror universe from the old Superman cartoons in which everything is topsy-turvy. Cut taxes for the rich to deliberately bankrupt the government, invade countries for what they maybe, perhaps, could do to you (even if you're secretly none too sure that they could), appoint people to head government agences who want to destroy them, and on and on. An alien, Bizarro World country.
In the movie, it was the "littlest creatures"--bacteria--that finally defeated the Martians, after all else, including an atomic bomb, had failed. I'm wondering what the equivalent of bacteria are in our socio-political culture today. Something to ponder on (another!) dreary, rain-soaked day . . . .
Saturday, May 31, 2003
Friday, May 30, 2003
Quote of the Day
"It was then, staring into the moonlight, that my fears first became obtenebrated."
--Z. Hazel Ballantine, O My Knowledge
This quote has been driving me crazy, since I have no idea what "obtenebrated," means, though I like the sound of it. Finally, I broke down and looked it up--and it wasn't in the dictionary. (And I have one of those big, thick ones.) I suspect it has some relation to "tenebrous," which means "dark and gloomy." Or maybe Ms. Ballantine just made it up. . . . Next time someone asks me how I am, maybe I'll say "obtenebrated."
"It was then, staring into the moonlight, that my fears first became obtenebrated."
--Z. Hazel Ballantine, O My Knowledge
This quote has been driving me crazy, since I have no idea what "obtenebrated," means, though I like the sound of it. Finally, I broke down and looked it up--and it wasn't in the dictionary. (And I have one of those big, thick ones.) I suspect it has some relation to "tenebrous," which means "dark and gloomy." Or maybe Ms. Ballantine just made it up. . . . Next time someone asks me how I am, maybe I'll say "obtenebrated."
Monday, May 26, 2003
Am I living in England?
Or Seattle? I'm sick of all this cool, gray, misty weather we're experiencing in the northeastern US, which seems to have been going on for weeks. Every day the weather report is the same: clouds, showers, "12 degrees below normal for this time of year." It's all caused, the apologetic weathercasters tells us, by a "slow-moving low-pressure system" parked over the Great Lakes. I wonder how many millions of people are barbecuing in their garages today.
Shiny streets and a sky the dull color of concrete--day after monochromatic day. Break out the Prozac . . . .
Or Seattle? I'm sick of all this cool, gray, misty weather we're experiencing in the northeastern US, which seems to have been going on for weeks. Every day the weather report is the same: clouds, showers, "12 degrees below normal for this time of year." It's all caused, the apologetic weathercasters tells us, by a "slow-moving low-pressure system" parked over the Great Lakes. I wonder how many millions of people are barbecuing in their garages today.
Shiny streets and a sky the dull color of concrete--day after monochromatic day. Break out the Prozac . . . .
Saturday, May 24, 2003
Quote of the Day
"When we look weak in a time where people feel insecure, we lose. When people feel uncertain, they'd rather have somebody who's strong and wrong than somebody who's weak and right." --Bill Clinton
This is from a speech last winter by Clinton, more of which can be found here. (Original link via Silliman's Blog--see sidebar.)
Whatever you think of our former president, he does have some valuable insight into politics. The quote above is not a flattering comment about the US electorate and its aversion to complexity, but its an accurate one I think (fear). As Silliman points out, the right wing has simplicity on its side, which is why attempts to counter "conservative" talk radio and Fox News with a "liberal radio network" or some such media entity are doomed to failure. What progressives need more than anything right now, it seems to me, is a leader (and, realistically, it would have to be a white male) with both dynamic public-speaking skills and the ability to project sincerity: a Clinton without all the baggage or a bullet-proof Robert Kennedy.
"When we look weak in a time where people feel insecure, we lose. When people feel uncertain, they'd rather have somebody who's strong and wrong than somebody who's weak and right." --Bill Clinton
This is from a speech last winter by Clinton, more of which can be found here. (Original link via Silliman's Blog--see sidebar.)
Whatever you think of our former president, he does have some valuable insight into politics. The quote above is not a flattering comment about the US electorate and its aversion to complexity, but its an accurate one I think (fear). As Silliman points out, the right wing has simplicity on its side, which is why attempts to counter "conservative" talk radio and Fox News with a "liberal radio network" or some such media entity are doomed to failure. What progressives need more than anything right now, it seems to me, is a leader (and, realistically, it would have to be a white male) with both dynamic public-speaking skills and the ability to project sincerity: a Clinton without all the baggage or a bullet-proof Robert Kennedy.
Quote of the Day
"You know the world is going crazy when the best rapper is a white guy, the best golfer is a black guy, the tallest guy in the NBA is Chinese, the Swiss hold the America's Cup, France is accusing the US of arrogance, Germany doesn't want to go to war, and the three most powerful men in America are named 'Bush', 'Dick' and 'Colon'. Need I say more?" --Chris Rock
"You know the world is going crazy when the best rapper is a white guy, the best golfer is a black guy, the tallest guy in the NBA is Chinese, the Swiss hold the America's Cup, France is accusing the US of arrogance, Germany doesn't want to go to war, and the three most powerful men in America are named 'Bush', 'Dick' and 'Colon'. Need I say more?" --Chris Rock
Friday, May 23, 2003
Quote of the Day
"Truth has a way of asserting itself despite all attempts to obscure it. Distortion only serves to derail it for a time. No matter to what lengths we humans may go to obfuscate facts or delude our fellows, truth has a way of squeezing out through the cracks, eventually. But the danger is that at some point it may no longer matter. The danger is that damage is done before the truth is widely realized. The reality is that, sometimes, it is easier to ignore uncomfortable facts and go along with whatever distortion is currently in vogue." --Senator Robert C. Byrd
This is from a speech on the floor of the US Senate; you can read the entire speech here.
Some random thoughts:
It's seems odd to me--alarming, even--that Byrd (who's what--pushing 80?) is the only politician who is talking this way, given all that's happening. There used to be a lively political debate in this country. Eloquence used to move people; truth used to matter. Now a sort of rhetorical paralysis has set in, and lies are shrugged off. The climate in this country is very weird right now, like nothing I recall in my lifetime. All because of 9/11, I suppose. But it's interesting that that event seems to have traumatized the rest of the country--in political terms--far more than the New York area, where I live and where it happened.
Another quote:
"It is expected that despots can force the blind allegiance of their people to falsehoods. But it is frightening in the extreme when lying matters not at all to a free people. The only plausible explanation is that the tragedy of September 11 so traumatized us that we are no longer capable of the outrage expected of a patently deceived citizenry. The case for connecting Saddam Hussein with that tragedy is increasingly revealed as false, but it seems to matter not to a populace numbed by incessant government propaganda." --Robert Scheer
"Truth has a way of asserting itself despite all attempts to obscure it. Distortion only serves to derail it for a time. No matter to what lengths we humans may go to obfuscate facts or delude our fellows, truth has a way of squeezing out through the cracks, eventually. But the danger is that at some point it may no longer matter. The danger is that damage is done before the truth is widely realized. The reality is that, sometimes, it is easier to ignore uncomfortable facts and go along with whatever distortion is currently in vogue." --Senator Robert C. Byrd
This is from a speech on the floor of the US Senate; you can read the entire speech here.
Some random thoughts:
It's seems odd to me--alarming, even--that Byrd (who's what--pushing 80?) is the only politician who is talking this way, given all that's happening. There used to be a lively political debate in this country. Eloquence used to move people; truth used to matter. Now a sort of rhetorical paralysis has set in, and lies are shrugged off. The climate in this country is very weird right now, like nothing I recall in my lifetime. All because of 9/11, I suppose. But it's interesting that that event seems to have traumatized the rest of the country--in political terms--far more than the New York area, where I live and where it happened.
Another quote:
"It is expected that despots can force the blind allegiance of their people to falsehoods. But it is frightening in the extreme when lying matters not at all to a free people. The only plausible explanation is that the tragedy of September 11 so traumatized us that we are no longer capable of the outrage expected of a patently deceived citizenry. The case for connecting Saddam Hussein with that tragedy is increasingly revealed as false, but it seems to matter not to a populace numbed by incessant government propaganda." --Robert Scheer
Thursday, May 22, 2003
Fender Bender
Another right of passage: I had my first auto accident (as a driver) yesterday. Nothing too serious, nobody hurt--someone plowed into me as I was turning left at a "blind" corner. I ended up with a dented fender, which can probably be fixed. She was going way over the speed limit, so I don't feel it was my fault, though it doesn't matter anyway in this state. Curiously, the incident didn't put me in a bad mood. I felt much crankier the day before when someone sold me a cup of coffee that turned out to be no hotter than room temperature. It's often the little things that set us off . . . .
I was once a passenger in a car than flipped over on the New York State Thruway. Now that was a car accident.
Another right of passage: I had my first auto accident (as a driver) yesterday. Nothing too serious, nobody hurt--someone plowed into me as I was turning left at a "blind" corner. I ended up with a dented fender, which can probably be fixed. She was going way over the speed limit, so I don't feel it was my fault, though it doesn't matter anyway in this state. Curiously, the incident didn't put me in a bad mood. I felt much crankier the day before when someone sold me a cup of coffee that turned out to be no hotter than room temperature. It's often the little things that set us off . . . .
I was once a passenger in a car than flipped over on the New York State Thruway. Now that was a car accident.
Wednesday, May 21, 2003
Tuesday, May 20, 2003
Quote of the Day
"Stories are for children, lawyers and indie-film producers," writes Joel Stein in Entertainment Weekly. "The rest of us don't have time. I can't even sit through my friends' anecdotes without wanting to fast-forward to the part where they either have sex, embarrass themselves, or mention me. Yet some people are convinced that reality television will wane because people crave narrative . . . This argument is usually made by writers. . . . Like Einstein before me, I shall prove my theory that people don't want stories with a simple experiment: You can stay up hours past exhaustion flipping channels, but 30 minutes of reading a book will put you to sleep midday, even with two Jolts in your system."
I found this quote from Stein on a website (I don't read Entertainment Weekly). It depends on the book, doesn't it? But he may have a point (an overstated one) about the modern attention span. Sometimes I think the whole world has ADD.
"Stories are for children, lawyers and indie-film producers," writes Joel Stein in Entertainment Weekly. "The rest of us don't have time. I can't even sit through my friends' anecdotes without wanting to fast-forward to the part where they either have sex, embarrass themselves, or mention me. Yet some people are convinced that reality television will wane because people crave narrative . . . This argument is usually made by writers. . . . Like Einstein before me, I shall prove my theory that people don't want stories with a simple experiment: You can stay up hours past exhaustion flipping channels, but 30 minutes of reading a book will put you to sleep midday, even with two Jolts in your system."
I found this quote from Stein on a website (I don't read Entertainment Weekly). It depends on the book, doesn't it? But he may have a point (an overstated one) about the modern attention span. Sometimes I think the whole world has ADD.
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