Daddy Was...
Not my daddy, nor his daddy. But they'd have recognized elements of the story. We all would.
It's a song about all of us, sung through one of us.
The Feast of St. Andrew
Patron Saint of Scotland (which is sort of an oddity, since he never went to Scotland and Scotland has a number of excellent saints of its own), St. Andrew's Day comes as a welcome chance to listen to the pipes instead of Jingle Bells.
It falls during Advent, which is a season of fasting and preparation. In America, it overlaps with what we more usually call "the Christmas Season," when everyone is already singing carols and selling various wares in red and green. We have the habit of feasting in preparation for the feast, which is a bit odd when you think about it.
Still, if you are fasting, a feast day honoring so high a figure as St. Andrew must be welcome. It is a minor relief in a season of preparation for the great relief, which is a fair model of the relationship of human saints and the Incarnations.
It falls during Advent, which is a season of fasting and preparation. In America, it overlaps with what we more usually call "the Christmas Season," when everyone is already singing carols and selling various wares in red and green. We have the habit of feasting in preparation for the feast, which is a bit odd when you think about it.
Still, if you are fasting, a feast day honoring so high a figure as St. Andrew must be welcome. It is a minor relief in a season of preparation for the great relief, which is a fair model of the relationship of human saints and the Incarnations.
Cuba and Israel
Jonah Goldberg on the valentines to a chic dictator recently departed from this life:
As much of the American Left is openly mooting whether or not the American president-elect is a dictator-in-waiting, one has to wonder whether they would take that bargain: No more elections, no more free speech, no more civil liberties of any kind, but socialized medicine and literacy for everyone! American political dissidents, homosexuals, journalists, and the clergy, just like in Cuba, can languish in prison or internal exile, but at least they’ll be able to read the charges against them. To listen to some Castro defenders, you’d think the scales of justice can balance out any load of horrors.
Such un-nuanced arguments always make leftist eyes roll. In a blog post titled “Castro: It’s Complicated!” University of Rhode Island professor Eric Loomis cautioned against thinking “in terms of simplistic moral judgments.” It seems to me that when people want to ban simplistic moral judgments, it’s usually because simple morality is not on their side.
* * *
But among serious leftists, Castro’s radical chic is secondary. For them, Fidel’s revolution provided the slender hope that America was on the wrong side of history. It was a symbol of resistance — intellectual, political, and spiritual — to Western yanqui hegemony. They loved Cuba for many of the reasons they hate Israel (despite its exemplary literacy rate and universal health-care system).
Post-Clinton-Victory Media Coverage As Bad As You Thought
Maybe a little bit worse.
I think we have the potential for a mutually beneficial relationship. But let's be real. I'm not that into you, and you're not that into me. And I know the kind of woman you are. You play hard to get; you're fickle; you say one thing and then do the opposite.... I've seen the way you look at Republicans. The way your face lights up when Henry Kissinger walks into a room. You never look at me that way. To be fair, I don't get that hot and bothered by you... Now, Hillary, you are the president-elect. And as much as a catch as I may be, it would be silly to pretend your being the most powerful person in the entire world doesn't give you a bit of an upper hand.It still remains to be seen if the media can get to a position of "detached professionalism" even now, but at least with Donald Trump we will be spared the media positing their relationship with the new President in terms of a torrid love affair. (And this was one of her would-be critics.)
Burma?
The OSU attacker claims to be motivated -- according to this FB post, which law enforcement says is his -- by the killing of Muslims in Burma.
I'm going to ignore the claims by this obvious loser to speak for "every single Muslim," which are clearly absurd. What really strikes me is the claim that America is somehow responsible for the killing of Muslims in Burma. We haven't had significant ties with Myanmar for almost twenty years. Our sanctions program aimed at them was precisely in order to object to the government's murder of its own people, and to try to motivate them to stop it. Lest one claim that the sanctions themselves are murderous, we have been working recently to begin lifting them -- just because the government seems to be involved in some reform efforts we want to encourage.
In the wake of 9/11, I thought the lesson was that we could not afford to be disengaged from the world. Afghanistan was somewhere we had also ignored for quite some time, having been on their side against the Soviet invaders. But they came to harbor a poisonous hatred for the West, especially America, and to nurture and protect terrorist movements like al Qaeda.
After 15 years of war in Afghanistan, though, I'm now wondering anew if engagement is the answer. Ultimately, things like this cast doubt upon the claims that the West is hated for its policies. Whether engagement or disengagement is pursued, and even when the disengagement is shaped around trying to encourage positive reforms in the way the people of a country are treated, hatred seems to continue. We are blamed for what we do, and for what we do not do.
If we do disengage, we're in a moment where the Russians and Chinese are likely to step up. If you thought the Pax Americana was bad, wait until you have to deal with Beijing.
I'm going to ignore the claims by this obvious loser to speak for "every single Muslim," which are clearly absurd. What really strikes me is the claim that America is somehow responsible for the killing of Muslims in Burma. We haven't had significant ties with Myanmar for almost twenty years. Our sanctions program aimed at them was precisely in order to object to the government's murder of its own people, and to try to motivate them to stop it. Lest one claim that the sanctions themselves are murderous, we have been working recently to begin lifting them -- just because the government seems to be involved in some reform efforts we want to encourage.
In the wake of 9/11, I thought the lesson was that we could not afford to be disengaged from the world. Afghanistan was somewhere we had also ignored for quite some time, having been on their side against the Soviet invaders. But they came to harbor a poisonous hatred for the West, especially America, and to nurture and protect terrorist movements like al Qaeda.
After 15 years of war in Afghanistan, though, I'm now wondering anew if engagement is the answer. Ultimately, things like this cast doubt upon the claims that the West is hated for its policies. Whether engagement or disengagement is pursued, and even when the disengagement is shaped around trying to encourage positive reforms in the way the people of a country are treated, hatred seems to continue. We are blamed for what we do, and for what we do not do.
If we do disengage, we're in a moment where the Russians and Chinese are likely to step up. If you thought the Pax Americana was bad, wait until you have to deal with Beijing.
OSU Volunteers
Much like the impromptu citizens militia of Flight 93, yesterday's attack on OSU prompted a sudden response.
It might help if they weren't completely disarmed, too.
OSU student, Molly Clarke, recalled the incident, citing, “We have quite a few military men in our class, who are actually all standing by the doors, keeping us safe.” She added, “I’m feeling pretty good about that.”Ultimately the issue was resolved by the good shooting of a young police officer, but these moves are not in vain. This is how a similar attack was stopped on a train in France -- also by US servicemembers. Being of the right mind, and training yourself to do your best physically, is a key part of filling this critical citizen function.
@CNN It's what we do. What most people take for as a right is truly made by sacrifice. I love my brothers and sisters. Best family ever.
— Disabled War Vet (@WarVet_MarsOne) November 28, 2016
Their training instantly kicked in and the heroic servicemen quickly secured the area, relying on the only weapons the gun-free campus would allow them to use — their own bodies.
Names of the military members have yet to be released but reports indicate that the servicemen moved the class into the middle of the room while they stood watch at the door.
It might help if they weren't completely disarmed, too.
Loss of Citizenship as Time-Out
I like flag-burners about as much as I like cross-burners, but as satisfying as it might be to strip them of their citizenship, what both groups are doing is protected free speech. As long as the cross burning is not explicitly aimed at someone as a terrorist act, it is available as a form of expression. Flag burning is much the same. Odious speech is protected not because it is worthy or interesting, but because protecting even odious speech is the best way of protecting more valuable speech.
What I do find interesting is that Trump considers loss of citizenship a punishment on par with a year or so in jail. That suggests he thinks of citizenship as not being especially valuable. So you lose your citizenship, then what? Presumably, you become a legal resident without voting rights. You go to the back of the line, and in seven years you can re-apply and take the test to prove you're worthy of being taken seriously? It's like a time-out to teach better citizenship, in other words.
Well, maybe. The alternative would be exile, but that's dubiously constitutional even at the state level. On the other hand, if we're obviated First Amendment protections and are stripping citizenships, who knows if the prohibition against exile would hold?
What I do find interesting is that Trump considers loss of citizenship a punishment on par with a year or so in jail. That suggests he thinks of citizenship as not being especially valuable. So you lose your citizenship, then what? Presumably, you become a legal resident without voting rights. You go to the back of the line, and in seven years you can re-apply and take the test to prove you're worthy of being taken seriously? It's like a time-out to teach better citizenship, in other words.
Well, maybe. The alternative would be exile, but that's dubiously constitutional even at the state level. On the other hand, if we're obviated First Amendment protections and are stripping citizenships, who knows if the prohibition against exile would hold?
A Briton Makes A Point of Cassandra's
A writer notes a rough form of equality.
[T]he point that I think has been missed by Solnit – and by all the women who have written and talked about mansplaining ever since – is: men also talk this way to each other. It’s not that they don’t defer to women. It’s that they don’t defer to anyone....Her contention that the biggest issue facing society is a lack of kindness is a point worth considering.
At the start of this column, I said there had been two recent stories about mansplaining. The first was that the 600,000-strong Unionen has launched a mansplaining hotline.
And the second, which followed soon after, is that the majority of calls to the hotline have been from men: anxious, self-doubting men, asking exactly what mansplaining is and how to avoid doing it.
Beware of throwing your ire at the wrong target.
More "Just In Time for Christmas" History
Gadsden & Culpepper are having a 50% off sale on a "pick four" pack of historic American flags. The Veterans Exempt flag they have has a pretty silly looking skull-and-crossbones, but the others are solid.
I have a love for historic flags, both American and earlier insofar as they represent worthy things. Perhaps someone else you know does too.
I have a love for historic flags, both American and earlier insofar as they represent worthy things. Perhaps someone else you know does too.
The Russian Red Army Choir and the Leningrad Cowboys
From Sippican Cottage, via Ace:
UPDATE: In the comments, Stone Soup offers this link to Sweet Home Alabama.
The Fins. Remember Steve 'n' Seagulls?
I'll have to go there someday just to check out the music scene. And hey, apparently, Steve 'n' Seagulls has a new album out:
This is the greatest concert I've ever heard of. It makes Woodstock look like Monday night in a Chinese restaurant lounge in Milford, Mass. Don't ask me how I know what that's like.
This video gets pulled from YouTube faster than I can keep up with it. The video quality in this one is set on Etch-A-Sketch through a periscope, but you get the idea. The whole thing is sublime.
The main performers are a spoof. More to the point, they are a metaspoof. There's layers to it. They are pretending to be Russians who are pretending to be American. They're actually Finnish. If you know anything about Finland, you know how extraordinary this performance is. The concert in the video is from 1993....
UPDATE: In the comments, Stone Soup offers this link to Sweet Home Alabama.
The Fins. Remember Steve 'n' Seagulls?
I'll have to go there someday just to check out the music scene. And hey, apparently, Steve 'n' Seagulls has a new album out:
Also In Time For Christmas
Thirty just-translated Medieval texts. Some of these would make for great reading. Others would be highly informative. Others, of course, are arcane -- but that has its own pleasures.
Flaming Turkey Wings!
This was one of my father's favorite commercials, and one that he would always quote about this time of year (although referring to Thanksgiving, and not Christmas).
Along the lines of Cassandra's comments about being frugal, naturally we do something similar with the leftover turkey. By this point, now three days into leftovers, we have gotten as far as "chiles poblanos, stuffed partially with leftover turkey."
Turkey chili and sausage is also good, although I get better results with the sausage if I make it with raw turkey.
What do you folks do with yours?
Last Two Reactions for the Night: Jill Stein and Harvard Prof. George J. Borjas
Erstwhile presidential candidate Dr. Jill Stein:
Harvard Kennedy School Professor George J. Borjas:
Click over to read the rest.
Fidel Castro was a symbol of the struggle for justice in the shadow of empire. Presente!
Harvard Kennedy School Professor George J. Borjas:
Fidel Castro died last night at age 90. My first reaction upon reading the news this morning was “Good riddance!”
As I recount in We Wanted Workers, I have many not-so-wonderful memories of growing up in the very early years of Castro’s Cuba. It has always pained me to see Americans who are so ignorant of what a communist dictatorship is about singing praises to the Castro regime. It pains me even more to see people who should know better, like Pope Francis, saying that the “death of Cuba’s revolutionary leader Fidel Castro was ‘sad news’ and that he was grieving and praying for his repose.”
My family owned a small clothing factory prior to the revolution, and that factory was quickly confiscated after Castro’s takeover. Here are some personal and random vignettes of what it was like to live in a revolutionary utopia from the perspective of someone who was 10 or 11 years old at the time ...
Click over to read the rest.
Andy Garcia Reacts
Garcia, the actor and director known for such films as “The Godfather: Part III” and “The Untouchables,” was born in Havana, Cuba.I think we're going to be subjected to all of Hollywood and the allegedly anti-authoritarian left wailing and rending their garments for poor Fidel, so I thought I'd get some sane reactions as well.
“It is necessary for me to express the deep sorrow that I feel for all the Cuban people both inside and outside of Cuba that have suffered the atrocities and repression caused by Fidel Castro and his totalitarian regime,” Garcia wrote. “The promises of his so-called revolution of pluralism and democracy, were and continue to be a false promise and a betrayal of all basic human rights.”
...
Babalú Blog Reacts
Babalú Blog used to be one of my hangouts. It is a group blog run by a man whose parents fled Castro's Cuba. Here is a roundup of some of their reactions (although it's worth just clicking over and reading down the page):
fidel castro Dead at Age 90:
Image of the Day: Poetic Justice
This next article is rough. It includes film footage of executions carried out under Castro, as well as some details about the slaughter he is responsible for.
Mass-Murderer/Mass-Torturer/War-Monger/Terror-Sponsor Fidel Castro Dies–Media Continues Spreading Romantic Fairy Tale About HIM!
And the inevitable crackdown ...
Breaking News: Cuban dissidents rounded up in the wake of the monster's death
There's more, and they will almost certainly keep covering it from the Cuban refugee / emigrant angle in the days to come.
fidel castro Dead at Age 90:
The news is still trickling in, but it’s confirmed this time: fidel castro is dead. May he rot in hell for all eternity.
I’d always imagined this moment much differently. I’d always imagined myself in sheer joy, ecstatic, triumphant. But, alas, that is not the case. Sure, make no bones about it, I’m glad the bastard is dead. I’m glad the pots and pans are blaring in the streets of Miami tonight. And some day, if his legacy of hate and injustice ever ends, I will piss on his grave.
But the damage is done. The real Cuba is gone. A memory. A faded sepia image.
Brace yourselves, folks. The next few days will be heartbreaking as we will be assaulted by the accolades from the media. Tears will rain down from celebrities and world leaders will pay endless tributes to the bearded devil. It will be nauseating.
But please do take a few moments to revel in this news. fidel castro is dead. Roll the words around in your mouth like a fine wine. Take it in and let it soothe you and warm you and embrace you like a favorite blanket: fidel castro is dead. ...
Image of the Day: Poetic Justice
This next article is rough. It includes film footage of executions carried out under Castro, as well as some details about the slaughter he is responsible for.
Mass-Murderer/Mass-Torturer/War-Monger/Terror-Sponsor Fidel Castro Dies–Media Continues Spreading Romantic Fairy Tale About HIM!
And the inevitable crackdown ...
Breaking News: Cuban dissidents rounded up in the wake of the monster's death
There's more, and they will almost certainly keep covering it from the Cuban refugee / emigrant angle in the days to come.
#TrudeauEulogies
The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today issued the following statement on the death of former Cuban President Fidel Castro:
“It is with deep sorrow that I learned today of the death of Cuba’s longest serving President.
“Fidel Castro was a larger than life leader who served his people for almost half a century. A legendary revolutionary and orator, Mr. Castro made significant improvements to the education and healthcare of his island nation.
“While a controversial figure, both Mr. Castro’s supporters and detractors recognized his tremendous dedication and love for the Cuban people who had a deep and lasting affection for “el Comandante”.
“I know my father was very proud to call him a friend and I had the opportunity to meet Fidel when my father passed away. It was also a real honour to meet his three sons and his brother President Raúl Castro during my recent visit to Cuba.
“On behalf of all Canadians, Sophie and I offer our deepest condolences to the family, friends and many, many supporters of Mr. Castro. We join the people of Cuba today in mourning the loss of this remarkable leader.”
And in response Twitter lit up with #TrudeauEulogies. The National Post and USA Today both covered it, and here are some samples:
John Barnes @WesternSkies 8 minutes ago
The world mourns the passing of Uncle Joe Stalin, an innovative pioneer who taught us so much about Photoshop.#TrudeauEulogiesToday we mourn the passing of Osama Bin Laden a revolutionary in the aviation and demolition fields.#trudeaueulogiesmagda_83 @magda_83 13 minutes agoBest known as a style icon for many, Cruella De Vil shall also be remembered as an untiring advocate for animal rights.#trudeaueulogiesJames Robinson @JRobinson8899 14 minutes agoToday we mourn Dr. Josef Mengele, who's controversial experiments helped pave the way for modern medicine#trudeaueulogiesHammersmith @Czernobog 18 minutes ago"An accomplished painter and cinemaphile, Adolf Hitler united a troubled nation using his trademark wit and passion."#TrudeauEulogiesDerek Cook @ARTofHope 19 minutes agoToday we mourn the passing of Judas Iscariot who, with a mere $30, successfully launched a brand new religion.#trudeaueulogiesKevin Sheehan @windkbba 51 minutes agoIt saddens us that we lost Jack The Ripper today. He was responsible for helping prostitutes get off the streets.#trudeaueulogiesBingo Bango Bongo @SumOfChoices 59 minutes ago Virginia, USAThough a divisive figure, Fidel Castro brought us Justin Trudeau's#trudeaueulogies & Jill Stein's serious mental breakdown on Twitter.J.J. McCullough @JJ_McCullough 7 hours agoAs we mourn Emperor Caligula, let us always remember his steadfast devotion to Senate reform.#trudeaueulogiesJason Markusoff Verified account @markusoff 9 hours ago"While controversial, Darth Vader achieved great heights in space construction & played a formative role in his son's life"#trudeaueulogies
The End of Fidel Castro
It's interesting having a diverse group of friends. Seems like half of them are cheering his demise, and the other half are posting what they consider his most inspirational quotes.
Certainly, he was a man of consequence. Most of those consequences were bad.
Certainly, he was a man of consequence. Most of those consequences were bad.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)