tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-56550442011-04-21T18:08:57.090-07:00For the those who are interested in the thoroughly incomplete examination of Culture, Politics, and Literature.Waynenoreply@blogger.comBlogger461100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1115878854871360272005-05-11T23:20:00.000-07:002005-05-11T23:20:54.876-07:00

too long, too long. why write now?

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1112034872741709532005-03-28T10:31:00.000-08:002005-03-28T10:34:32.743-08:00

While I have much to write--I say that all the time and never get around to it--this strikes me as utterly absurd--and that is the fact that soldiers, etc. have to worry about their houses being foreclosed, credit cards, etc. when many of these soldiers, especially the reservists, etc. are being taken away from their jobs at a moments notice. It is already bad enough that we do not pay our

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1111828329634205382005-03-26T01:03:00.000-08:002005-03-26T10:33:54.156-08:00

Various thoughts:1. The Terry Schiavo case dominated the news like I could never have imagined. I think the right thing to do would have been to give her parents the injunction they were looking for and to declare the law the Congress passed as absolutely unconstitutional. Instead, neither happened. It is too bad that her family could not have been given a last shot to make their case, especially

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1111656548986197832005-03-24T01:17:00.000-08:002005-03-24T01:29:08.986-08:00

Here are several books that I think one ought to read:1. Amsterdam, by Ian McEwan, is a delightful little read, given the fact that it ends in the most pernicious of ways--a double murder. Given the recent discussions that many have been engaged in concerning the right to live, the right to die, and so forth, one ought to consider where it is that the double murders took place and why they took

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1111443421056008032005-03-21T14:11:00.000-08:002005-03-21T14:17:01.056-08:00

Just in case you'd thought that I've given the Bush Administration too much of a free pass, here are a couple of thoughts:1. Why is it okay to have an open deadline, to not threaten attack, to want to negotiate with a regime that supports terror, sells weapons to terrorists, is cruel to its own people, and ignores all international law? Such is the case with North Korea. Now, I am not proposing

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1111031483044015272005-03-16T19:49:00.000-08:002005-03-16T19:51:23.046-08:00

Fathers of the world beware--give into your daughter's every demand. No shopping spree is too large, no dress is too dfaring, no car is too fast, no date is too late. After all, if you disagree, perhaps she'll waste you and say that you were trying to kill yourself. It will be fascinating to see how this goes. . . . In the meantime, bewareeeeeee . . . . . .

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1111000455966910972005-03-16T11:04:00.000-08:002005-03-16T11:14:15.966-08:00

All two of you must have thought that I was dead. This is no way to build a readership, Captain, you've got to spend time. You've got to write. You've got to be dedicated. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I am tired of letting things like obligation and responsibility get in the way of my life. At the very least I can blow off things that I claim are important to me. So, Screaming Diatribe suffers. But I love

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1109965795835289372005-03-04T11:41:00.000-08:002005-03-04T11:49:55.836-08:00

According to a NY Times poll Bush is out of step with Americans on a variety of issues. What I find most interesting is the number--79%--of Americans who think that government "should" provide a dencent standard of living for the elderly. That is an insurmountable number in my opinion. Also 61% are in favor of raising the amount of income subject to the SS tax and and 69% think personal accounts

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1109648423157262362005-02-28T19:33:00.000-08:002005-02-28T19:40:23.160-08:00

Oh how lame the ad hominem and those who use them! I rarely listen to Michael Savage--there is usually excellent jazz on KKJZ 88.1 FM at that time of the night. Yet, tonight, mistake of all mistakes, I turned to Michael Savage's show for a mere three minutes. All he had to say was that Chris Rock was a joke and he intimated that he was verging on treason. Actually he called him a toxic comic; so

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1109358704692412702005-02-25T10:34:00.000-08:002005-02-25T11:25:56.470-08:00

There are many possible reasons for not blogging for the last month, some of which may be the following:1. Takes time to organize my brilliant thoughts.2. My thoughts are not so brilliant and I have to spend time to convince myself that they are.3. I am going through something of a political conversion and I must admit it is painful to be reborn.So, let me take a stab at the issue of the Senate

Waynenoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1107229614551006892005-01-31T19:25:00.000-08:002005-01-31T19:46:54.553-08:00

Well, I hoped that it wouldn't be 10 days between posts--not bad, only one week. The problem that I have usually experienced in my life is that I feel that I have a lot to say, so I won't say anything at all. And, related to that problem, if I can't say it perfectly, then why bother to say it. So nothing gets said. Now, that being said-- It seems that the Iraqi elections are dominating the news

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1106591812839051472005-01-24T10:27:00.000-08:002005-01-31T19:25:21.530-08:00

Well, never let it be said that there haven't been 10 productive days off. Off course, I am not sure how productive I've been since my last post, but at least it is good to lie to oneself. Much of interest has happened in the last several days. First, I was in the park the other day with my youngest son--almost 5 years old. We were playing some type of war game, I don't remember exactly but I am

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1105769156854008452005-01-14T21:32:00.000-08:002005-01-14T22:05:56.853-08:00

First, I have been bogged down by the first week and by the sick kids. I need to be more committed. I am sure there are thousands out there waiting for my words of infinite wisdom. Some brief points and questions for the night: Don't say that I did not tell you. Check out some of my earlier posts to discuss the fact that we ought to be concerned with how much of our aid gets to critical areas

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1105554968397669482005-01-12T10:18:00.000-08:002005-01-12T10:36:08.396-08:00

It's always killer to try and write something the first week of class. At least I only missed a couple of days writing do to the insane idea that perhaps I ought to teach something important to my students. I must say, and I say this just after three days of class, that I am happy with some of the students that I have. There are some who seem to be quite bright and quite interesting. First, let

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1105256104478700642005-01-08T23:10:00.001-08:002005-01-08T23:35:04.480-08:00

I would be remiss if I did not share two sublime music finds. First is Classic Meets Cuba. The band is the product of sweet serendipity .(Now I am waxing cheesy!) The band is comprised of the Klazz Brothers and Cuba Percussion. The tunes are arrangements of classical favorites such as the 1st movement to Mozart's 40th, cleverly arranged to become Mambozart, Beethoven's 5th, and Bach's Cello Suite

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1105254968546342152005-01-08T23:10:00.000-08:002005-01-08T23:16:08.546-08:00

I will get back to the European Caterwaul tomorrow. Translating at the pace that I do, I might as well be a snail in a pool of glue. The Palestinian elections should remind us of one thing--democracy, meaning the commencement of free and fair elections, does not guarantee in any way freedom. I think that this is something that we should remember in Iraq as well. Democracy is certainly a goal

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1105158307598141322005-01-07T18:32:00.000-08:002005-01-07T20:25:07.600-08:00

A continuation of yesterday's feeble attempt at translating: Historically the American Right has never adhered to this creed, and their creed is not one that the European right does not accept. This is simply because democracy and capitalism--that is to say equality and the changing economy--has made it impossible to adhere to this program [of the European Right]. Because the American right was

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1105066888165270622005-01-06T18:46:00.000-08:002005-01-06T19:01:28.166-08:00

I figure that if I am going to carry out my project to examine European morality, the least I can do is to examine some of the primary sources of European thought. I will probably stick to the French for a couple of reasons: 1) Americans love to hate the French, 2) my own French ancestors, 3) I am not sure that the average pundit actually reads much in the way of European thought. So we get our

Waynenoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1105061515954738632005-01-06T17:02:00.000-08:002005-01-06T17:31:55.953-08:00

To further my self-proclaimed task of identifying whether claims that Europe is corrupt place as some on the right claims, I offer this caterwauling. There does seem to be evidence that there is a great divide between those who are Muslim and those who are not in Europe. A recent survey says that up to 80% of Muslims in Great Britain feel threatened or harrassed. At the same time, the strength

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1105049681534300222005-01-06T13:56:00.000-08:002005-01-06T14:14:41.533-08:00

Sorry about not posting yesterday--time to get ready for the new semester. I heard both Laura Ingraham and Sean Hannity blasting Democrats for asking Gonzales for his now infamous torture memo. I must admit that it is quite funny to hear Ted Kennedy asking about water toture--given his own experiences with water. Also, I am not sure that Senator Leahy is the most righteous figure around either.

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104909068569201102005-01-04T23:05:00.000-08:002005-01-04T23:11:08.570-08:00

FIGHT ON!!! What can be said about USC's dominance in the BCS Championship game? I was so delirous after the game that I found myself watching Food Network and Rachel Ray's show $40-a-Day. The show was set in Amsterdam. The food that she downed looked great--pancakes, sweetcakes, and, for dinner, Indonesian food. Now, being that my wife is Indonesian, I have eaten quite a bit of Indonesian food

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104794015493027362005-01-03T15:06:00.000-08:002005-01-03T15:13:35.493-08:00

Given the amount of money that will be given to the governments of these countries that suffered through the devastating tsunamis one has to ask the question: what will these governments do with the money? I have Indonesia in mind in particular. Since its independence from The Netherlands the Indonesia government has always been corrupt. Not only only has it been corrupt, it has been oppressive.

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104774996352547422005-01-03T09:48:00.000-08:002005-01-03T09:56:36.353-08:00

Certainly the Tsunami Disaster in South East Asia is beyond comprehension. While my wife's family no longer lives in Indonesia and feels a much greater connection to Holland than to Indonesia, the fact that they are Indonesian makes them feel a great deal of gratitude that they are here. The suffering and pain must be unspeakable and we should do all that we can to help. That being said, why

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104730607787426822005-01-02T21:27:00.000-08:002005-01-02T21:36:47.786-08:00

If there is one good way to start off the new year it is with the threat that you might fail at all that you thought was possible in life. Here is an interesting article about the need for a higher education. For all those pundits out there who decry the state of higher education--that is to say that it is nothing but a soup of liberal bias in which the stupide become indoctrinated and the smart

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104524697643812562004-12-31T13:10:00.001-08:002004-12-31T12:24:57.643-08:00

(I am having some seriously difficulties with my internet account at this point.) As I was saying, Mao may have tried to dress like a socialist, but he was a thug. Secondly, the current regime in China might use words like socialism as well, but we can see that they are trying to create secular, non-liberal, capitalist state. Personally, I think that it is dangerous to have a capitalist state

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104524249967791652004-12-31T13:10:00.000-08:002004-12-31T12:17:29.966-08:00

This is a brief continuation of yesterday's blog--I couldn't make a connection with the server for some reason mid-blog. Hanson argues that the left has been taken by the "indigenous liberationist movements of the Islamic world." Of course, he does not name any of these so-called liberationist movements. I have read a great deal of left political thought, philosophy, and the like, and I can't

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104487007099236852004-12-31T01:47:00.000-08:002004-12-31T02:08:27.440-08:00

Let me start by saying that Hanson is a brilliant thinker. I use his book Carnage and Culture for my war, literature and politics class. He is especially illuminating when it comes to discussing the interesting ties between ideology, politics, and warfare among the ancients. His recent article in The National Review--"The Left Needs a New Life"--is not up to his usual standards. First, it is not

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104372512640076442004-12-29T17:58:00.000-08:002004-12-29T18:08:32.640-08:00

A few thoughts: 1. Say what you will about Susan Sontag--intellectual, great thinker or anti-American--she certainly had courage. I have always wished that there could have been an element of her genius and her childhood in my life. I love hearing her recount talking with Thomas Mann and her love for books. One of my favority quotes about reading is from her: "A novel worth reading is an

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1104276942342832362004-12-28T15:22:00.000-08:002004-12-28T15:35:42.343-08:00

Just a few thoughts, since I have been away for awhile. (I have been spending the last several days playing GI Joe, Halo 2, Barbie, pirates, listening to various artists, etc., etc. etc. It is amazing the education you receive from three kids at Christmas time.) 1. I cannot believe that Rumsfield used a mechanical pen to sign the condolence letters to the families of soldiers killed in Iraq.

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1103788115575935252004-12-22T23:36:00.000-08:002004-12-22T23:48:35.576-08:00

As a Mormon and as someone who has always taken philosophical ideas seriously and, yet, at the same time, as a person who doubts everything for reasons beyond my control--it is a similar condition to writing sentences that are too long--I feel it appropriate that I set forth the things that I am grateful for this holiday season. But, given my propensity towards doubting and deplorable cynicism,

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1103786903337481762004-12-22T23:18:00.000-08:002004-12-22T23:28:23.336-08:00

Apparently your child's teacher is the new enemy. Continuing my fascination with talk radio, I was listening to Michael Savage's stand-in while making my kids dinner. He argued that having teacher's teach about the rain forest, ecology, etc. was similar to tactics and techniques that Nazi's used. I would say that is overstepping, just a tad. Assuming that it is bad to learn about ecology, the

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1102490196968540212004-12-07T23:14:00.000-08:002004-12-07T23:16:36.966-08:00

This is an interesting viewpoint. Rorty claims, basically, that there is one issue left for the left--poverty. I am not sure if he is correct, but if he is, then there is seemingly little hope for the democrats. And just what is the position of the right in helping the poor? Get out of the way so they can help themselves? Doesn't that seem a tad on the naive side? Rorty's thoughts: MOST

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1102456854266147842004-12-07T13:51:00.000-08:002004-12-07T14:00:54.266-08:00

Sorry but I have been gone for a bit. First, take a look at what the editors of The Nation think of the president. Why did so many voters embrace a President whose Iraq policy was paved with lies and deceptions, who has shown contempt for science, the rule of law and many of the principles of the Enlightenment, and whose economic policies favor the rich at the expense of the vast majority of

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1101887565419509882004-11-30T23:51:00.000-08:002004-11-30T23:52:45.420-08:00

Feel the mighty Trojan arm, reaching out and destroying South Bend, yet again. Fight on.

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1101841707346458052004-11-30T11:02:00.000-08:002004-11-30T11:08:27.346-08:00

Adhaf Soueif, the author of the great book The Map of Love, makes a very salient point in a recent interview, "This was the world that my generation believed we had inherited, an area of overlap where one culture shaded into the other, where echoes and reflections added depth and perspective, where differences were interesting rather than threatening because they were foregrounded against a

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1101714780917540692004-11-28T23:39:00.000-08:002004-11-28T23:53:00.916-08:00

The NY Times magazine has a great article about parents willing to spend $70,000 per annum to help their children become uber-jocks. Aside from the obviously grotesque notion that children should be put into athlete factories at 14, introducing them to greater risks of injury, making them out to be something that they more than likely will not be, etc., the parents need a lesson in probability.

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1101367954774954102004-11-24T23:32:00.000-08:002004-11-24T23:32:34.773-08:00

Truly I am genius 

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1101368023865579712004-11-24T23:14:00.000-08:002004-11-24T23:35:21.093-08:00

How can the words "Wynona's got herself a big brown beaver and she shows him off to all her friends . . . Along came Lou with the Old Baboon and said "Recognize that smell?" "Smells like seven layers that beaver eats Taco Bell" not go down as some of the mightiest ever penned by one who speaks with an English tongue?

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1101366831242431852004-11-24T23:02:00.001-08:002004-11-24T23:13:51.243-08:00

I have always loved the religious symbolism behind this piece, yet much of it is inverted. The world is my expense The cost of my desire Jesus blessed me with its future And I protect it with fire So raise your fists And march around Just dont take what you need I'll jail and bury those committed And smother the rest in greed Crawl with me into tomorrow Or I'll drag you to your grave I'm deep

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1101271127852037872004-11-23T19:19:00.000-08:002004-11-23T20:38:47.853-08:00

Excuse the length of this post, but it is interesting to get a least a glimps into the purported harmony of the mandate. Of course, we often forget that politicians are, if anything, self-interested, each one, perhaps, thinking that he or she could be president, king, etc. A New York Times Op-Ed The story of the 2004 intelligence reform bill just keeps getting sadder and sadder. House

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1101057206166732202004-11-21T09:12:00.000-08:002004-11-21T09:17:29.036-08:00

Here is a great article about the life and thought of Derrida. In the spirit of postmodernism, I will defer comment. And another one . . . and . . .

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1100760846296040832004-11-17T22:53:00.000-08:002004-11-17T22:54:06.296-08:00

While the FCC gets its panties all bunched up over things like Janet Jackson and Desperate House Wives meets Monday Night Football, it might be the case that it will someday become irrelevant. Perhaps the way of things is that if you want it, you'll have to pay for it. Recent reports show that in ways that cable is starting to dominate most TV, satellite radio might be next in line to be king.

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1100206492863267892004-11-11T13:45:00.000-08:002004-11-11T12:54:52.863-08:00

While it might be the case the Democrats have much to learn about those who state the moral values are important to them and by this they do not mean poverty but, rather, the belief in God, the truth of the Bible and so forth. I have always been shocked at the disdain that the left shows for faith, especially when one considers some of the great faith traditions that have been associated with the

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1100192309165830792004-11-11T08:48:00.000-08:002004-11-11T08:58:29.170-08:00

The fact that Palestine should have a state seems pretty clear. What also seems clear is that many of my colleagues on the left seem to have undue admiration for Yasir Arafat. Imagine, if you will, if Osama Bin Laden's Al Qaeda was given permenant observer status in the UN because it was willing to kill innocent people for some "political" ideal --this was Arafat's reward for murdering innocent

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1100156842969726652004-11-10T22:51:00.000-08:002004-11-10T23:07:22.970-08:00

As this blog is launched and as it takes form, I should note some of the guideposts that will mark the way: 1) Cornell West once wrote that he was "obsessed with confronting the pervasive evil of unjustified suffering and unnecessary social misery in the world." For better or worse, such as been the direction of my own thoughts, though I must admit that my anchor is usually adrift. I intend to

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5655044.post-1093829172097726922004-08-29T18:09:00.000-07:002004-08-29T18:34:40.043-07:00

One of the interesting tactics that the Bush administration has used to decry a potential Kerry presidency is to say that America is more safe under Bush's watchful eyes than Kerry's. Hugh Hewhitt, in his book They Can't Cheat if It's Not Close, which, by the way is one of the best books on political tactics that I have ever read, argues straight out that you're playing with your life if you vote

Waynenoreply@blogger.com0