Letters to the Editor
William Timberman
Published Letters: 3298 Editor's Choice: 7
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Is the arc ascending or descending?
[Read the article: Various items]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]20% of the population sufficiently convinced -- and alarmed -- about anything is enough to influence the entire country, if the Zeitgeist is in its favor. We saw this with abolition, women's suffrage, abortion, labor organizations, civil rights, Viet Nam and recognition under the law of same-sex domestic partnerships.
What's odd about Bush supporters is that the Conservative Movement is essentially a put-up job, against the historical trends; reactionary in the purest sense of the word.
That's what interests me about Obama's campaign. If the perceived grievances of the Bush twenty-percenters -- those frightened by drug usage, abortion, welfare cheating, child-molesters, gay advocacy, sexual permissiveness, even the old bugaboo, miscegenation -- can be addressed in a way which doesn't pander on the one hand, or patronize on the other, there may be some hope that this unhappy 20% can be returned to the fold before their fears erupt into a destructive proxy war against a future which they're powerless to stop even with the backing of the cynics and crazies of the authoritarian right.
Obama seems to think that this is possible. I doubt it, given how deeply it's embedded in our history, but I admire him for giving it a try, and will certainly be paying attention to how the country responds to his campaign.
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Reality testing
[Read the article: Various items]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]This may piss some people off, but in discussing how many believe in UFOs, or in the lies, fabrications, etc., which gave GWB the cover to start an unprovoked war, my question is this: how many people believe in the virgin birth?
In one sense, all of these beliefs are equivalent, in that all seem to violate common sense, or such evidence -- scientific or otherwise -- as is available to us from a host of other sources.
The difference is that in accordance with received custom and tradition, enormous numbers of people have chosen to believe in the virgin birth, and as a consequence, those of us who don't believe have recognized the need to respect the belief of those who do.
The rest is politics. We can afford not to challenge certain traditions, and allow that belief or non-belief in them is of no concern precisely because they are traditions, and make no claim on those who don't believe other than the right of those who do to hold and profess that belief.
If we treat a belief in the Bush administration's fabrications, or in UFO's -- or in intelligent design, for that matter -- with the same deference, genuine harm can come to us, not only because we might someday be required to profess a belief such things ourselves, but also because a government driven by such beliefs could easily lead the country into disaster.
That is what once caused religious wars, and is at least partly why the founders chose a secular form of gevernment for our new republic. It's also why we shouldn't allow anyone to ask us to support questionable public policies as a matter of faith alone.
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One word
[Read the article: Last refuge of the scoundrel]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Bravo!
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@ casual observer
[Read the article: Various items]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Do you remember the flap about christianism in the Air Force Academy? General Boykin? There definitely is a movement on the Christian right to politicize the military -- the signs are everywhere you look. I've also been told by people who still have contacts withing the offficer corps that the neocons have on occasion openly courted officers of field grade and above -- those considered up-and-comers. The message, usually delivered by a right-wing think tank luminary, or a well-know Republican contributor, is that career paths above full colonel (army rank) are available to those with the right political views.
In some cases, I've been told, the approach is subtle, in some cases not so subtle. I have no direct evidence of this, or names to bandy about, but the gossip comes from people I've never known to be conspiracy nuts. When added to the compelling evidence that ideological purity tests have been inflicted on other federal agencies, such as NASA, the National Research Council, PBS, etc. such rumors do give one pause.
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Agreed
[Read the article: Various items]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Yes, Rove is a Leninist, not a Millenialist, and professionalism in the military has stronger roots than in the civil service. Still, chip, chip, chip is the rule, and Rove is well aware of the advantages of a Praetorian Guard.
Look at all the mileage they got out of poor, befuddled old Colin Powell, who didn't actually seem to realize that he'd been bought and paid for until he looked down and saw Cheney's fist closing on his privates.
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@ Mona
[Read the article: Fred Hiatt and the "Triumphant Top Gun"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I may be in the minority here, but I find references to GWB's attribute even more boring than references to Clinton's (Clinton actually put the damned thing to a traditionally-honored use, after all.)
Dick, dick, dick, dick, dick. There, does that about cover it?
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It's a common mistake
[Read the article: Fred Hiatt and the "Triumphant Top Gun"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Yellow Dog, it's probably the only thing that neocons and pomos have in common: the delusion that the signifier is more important than the thing itself.
It can sometimes be a dangerous delusion. Depicting the Japanese as nearsighted monkeys didn't fend off Pearl Harbor, and a codpiece, however beribboned, won't fend off IEDs.
Does anyone remember why the Colt 45 revolver was often referred to as the equalizer? Does anyone think that Nancy Pelosi or Hillary Clinton would be more effective politicians by donning a codpiece?
Posturing is a very human activity, but a clear-headed assessment of risks and capabilities would stand us in better stead, except in the rituals of genuine courtship. Even there, it's often of limited utility; ask Woody Allen.
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Beautifully done, J.M., and well-deserved
[Read the article: Fred Hiatt and the "Triumphant Top Gun"]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Gladly would he learn, and gladly teach... A fitting tribute to our very own bard, one which I'm happy to join you in. A Sam Adams it is, or maybe a glass of merlot?