Letters to the Editor
ELYDOG
Published Letters: 497 Editor's Choice: 43
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It is not about generations
[Read the article: Art movies: R.I.P.]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]To all the writers who think this is a generational thing. I have an earlier criticism of Ms. Paglia, and I'm 55.
Any good filmmaker or muscian studies his forebears, as far back as possible. They incorporate what they have done if they like, then move forward with their own style. Simple. Blues muscians from the 1920s and filmakers from the 20s USSR should be studied too. It is not either / or.
If you are an artist, you can't throw out the 60s anymore than you can pull a bone out of your skin. On the other hand, culture didn't stop - it changed somewhat and moved on. Could you say creativity was very high in the 60s? I'd say yes, it's pretty obvious. Creativity moves in waves, based on what the overall political and social context is.
Because of the failure of the Iraq war, and the crisis in the environment, it is weakening the dominant Christian / corporate culture in this country right now. Actually reminds me of the 60s a bit. I see a revival of all sorts of art and culture, especially on the Internet. And it is a worldwide phenomenon, cross-fertilizing each country's culture intellectually.
Paglia is asleep at the wheel now, but the opposite, being dead to the past, is just more of the same.
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Link to politics
[Read the article: The religious state of Islamic science]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Very good article. The link to Christian fundamentalism is nice, and perhaps incomplete. Even a posting on this blog about Albert Einstein's supposed love of religion is pure US creationist.
Einstein said "I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it." (Albert Einstein, 1954)
"God" to him was another name for the actual universe... i.e. pantheism. There are many more quotes from him that show he as not in love with obscurantist religion.
But the key thing here is, if you can't accept science that is not controlled by religion, how are you going to accept politics and society that are not controlled by religion?
IE if theocracy is the only way to approach the world, what hope is there for democracy in the Middle East, or the rule of anyone but a bunch of Imans, and the rich who are behind them? As someone has already pointed out, Muslim areas of the world need a 'reformation' badly. Otherwise they will lag behind in science and society permanently.
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Why Islam has not had a reformation...
[Read the article: The religious state of Islamic science]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I think there were several good reasons why the heartland of the Midddle East did not have a reformation (yet...).
One is the low level of economic development. Capitalism took off in Europe, not the Middle East. Even the filthy rich sheiks of Saudi Arabia don't really have a fully capitalist economy. They inherited the oil as an accident. They could never have gotten to the stage where they developed a printing press until oil was discovered. If it wasn't for the oil they would have hardly anything to sell... they'd still be living in a desert. So it is partly an accident of geography.
The second is the inheritance of colonialism. The problem now is that they think 'objective' and critical thinking are somehow "western" and therefore have to be rejected. IE if the West is full of non-theocracies, are tolerant of woman, have the majority of scientists that are not doing work dictated by the Bible, etc., then that is 'imperialism' and something to be avoided.
This is reactionary 'anti-imperialism,' but is the root of how the Iranian mullahs try to get their own poor people to follow them. The key is that an internal revolution against the religious leaders and sheiks is the only thing that will bring someone other than priests into power.
Of course, the Iraq war has played into their hands, creating much more genuine anti-imperialism. Bush has just delayed a reformation in the Middle East.
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Fixed Income
[Read the article: Panic on Wall Street]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]I pulled out of any index funds a few weeks ago, and I'm glad. The stampede of the elephants runs down the 401Ks and mutual funds of ordinary persons.
The bright side is that Bush's moribund plan to privatize social security and hand those massive assets over to Wall Street has another stake in it's heart.
And step back, the real key here is that since 2003 the U.S. economy has become dominated by the financial sector and their 'products' - derivatives, etc. - and not by producing actual products. This is according to Kevin Phillips in his book "American Theocracy." In his view, this is the formula for historic economic weakness.
Domination by the financial sector also results in less employment, because the financial sector does not create the jobs the productive part of the economy did. And the kicker is the government and the economic establishment INTENDED to do this - weaken or offshore the productive economy. NAFTA was just a part of this move. Blue collar workers should take note.
What parties and people are in bed with Wall Street? Republicans AND Democrats...