Issue #69
Last Update October 31, 2010
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National and Last Days of the Republic by Gerry Krownstein October 31, 2010 Anyone with any knowledge of history finds it easy to draw parallels between the present moment and some inflection point in history when the world changed forever. Unfortunately, the parallels that present themselves now are the last days of two republics: Rome and Weimar. In both cases, government was widely perceived to have failed, and in both cases the republic morphed into a dictatorship, while preserving outward republican forms for a while. The underlying conditions that put each government under stress were, in the long run, less important than the cynical decision to have the government fail that was made by the powerful of the time, ultimately with disastrous results. continued Declare Victory by David Katz October 28, 2010 Afghanistan is another bleeding sore on the American body politic. Like Iraq, it is a country that wants to be left alone to do its thing uninterrupted by foreigners. In the case of Afghanistan, as in Iraq, its thing is feudin', fussin' and fightin', with economic corruption and religious fundamentalism thrown in. Unlike Iraq, there was a actually a justification for our military presence. We had two goals in mind: to kill or capture Osama bin Laden and destroy the Taliban that harbored and encouraged him, and to make it clear to the rest of the world that harboring groups that attack the US means the destruction of your government, and indeed your nation. The first goal was frittered away by our Iraqi distraction, although keeping bin Laden on the run was, at least, something. The second goal was achieved within weeks of 9/11. The Taliban government was destroyed, its leaders on the run to Pakistan and elsewhere, and a new government was put in place, all with very little loss of American lives and those of its NATO allies, and with very little loss of Afghani lives as well. continued Climate Change Lost Cause by Gerry Krownstein July 31, 2010 It has become clear that nothing effective will be done to prevent climate change caused by human endeavors. No bill of substance will get through the US House and Senate any time soon, and none of the other nations that contribute significantly to global warming is prepared to act either. The international standards that have been set are too little, too late and too toothless. Even the experiences of this past year, the warmest in recorded history, with severe floods, hurricanes, droughts, glacial retreats and polar ice meltings have not been enough to convince skeptics or shake believers out of their complacency. We act as if we still have plenty of time, but time has already run out. continued My Mother the Corporation by Gert Innsry June 30, 2010 The Supreme Court, in its wisdom, has ruled that since Congress established corporations as "persons" in order to facilitate corporate activities within the law, they are entitled to all the rights and privileges of human persons. If you knew my family, you would agree that I was switched at birth, or at least adopted. Mr. and Mrs. Innsry can't possibly be my real parents. We don't even resemble each other. Mr. Innsry (or "Bob", as he is often called) is bald and has to shave frequently; I have a full head of hair and don't shave at all, except for armpits, legs and bikini line, areas which "Bob" ignores entirely. Mrs. Innsry (or "Sally" as she is known to her few friends) is over 50, stout, and has red hair (this year, anyway); I am 30, slender and dark-haired. My best guess is that I am really the offspring of an illicit liaison between Whole Foods and Verizon, put up for adoption when Whole Foods came to term. continued Obama's Psyche by Gerry Krownstein May 31, 2010 Some of the discontent with President Obama's handling of the important issues of the day (health care, the economy, the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the two wars, various issues of Presidential power vs individual rights, and others) is unjustified; given the number of crises he inherited and the intransigence of the Republican opposition which seems to be putting partisan interests ahead of the interests of the nation. He is probably doing as well as anyone could in the situation. But in achieving what he has inarguably achieved, he has made some of his natural allies very uneasy. continued Is Israel Suicidal? by David Katz April 30, 2010 Israel's recent behavior makes no sense at all, even if you grant that a coalition government is often unwieldy. Insulting its closest ally, the ultimate guarantor of its safety, seems extraordinarily dumb. There is only one possible explanation: the settlement expansion was an integral part of Netenyahu's strategy, but the Interior Minister fumbled the timing. Not only does this fit the current Israeli internal politics, it fits Israeli history since the assassination of Rabin: whenever peace talks with the Palestinians look even a tiny bit hopeful, Israel scuttles the possibility by enlarging settlements and enraging the Palestinians. continued Republican Brownshirts by Sten Grynir April 2, 2010 Hysteria on the right has now reached the point where it is seriously flirting with thuggishness. From the Sarah Palin-inspired threatening chants, to disruption of "town hall" sessions where right-wingers shouted down anyone who wanted to ask a serious question, to openly carrying loaded weapons to meetings and speeches, to racist signs at right-wing marches, conservatives seem to be focussed less on debate than intimidation. What looks like the early stages of Mussolini's Brown Shirts or Hitler's SA has begun an attempt to make this nation ungovernable, with the hope that a right-wing authoritarian state will be the successor to our democracy. continued Business and What Middle Class? by David Katz October 31, 2010 Modern American politics is all about paying homage to the American middle class, while doing nothing to help them. By framing the issues in terms of the middle class, the real problems and solutions are obfuscated. Just what is the middle class, anyway? We used to have four classes in this country: the rich and powerful, which in other countries would have been a hereditary aristocracy; the middle class, which was composed of shopkeepers, merchants, government officials and professionals; the working class, which included farmers, factory workers, laborers (both private and public) and artisans; and the lower class, which contained the unemployed and the indigent. Class was defined by function, not money – a factory worker that had made and saved a decent amount of money, owned his own home and had no debt was nevertheless working class. A merchant with a failing business was nevertheless middle class, as were poor churchmen. This all changed in the middle of the 20th Century. continued Convergence by Sten Grynir October 5, 2010 There are new kids on the block. In addition to the usual mp3 players, portable DVD players, and desktop and laptop computers (including netbooks) we now have to cope with smart phones, tablets and ereaders. How do these differ from what we are used to (cell phones, portable computers and portable media players), and how do they differ from each other. Most important: what can we expect in the future? continued National Preparedness Month by David Katz July 20, 2010 September is National Preparedness Month. The brainchild of FEMA, with cooperation from the Ad Council and state and local governments, National Preparedness Month is intended to increase awareness of disaster preparedness amongst ordinary people. This is not an alarmist undertaking; it merely reminds people that natural and man-made situations may arise that disrupt everyday life, and that a modicum of forethought can lessen the impact of the emergency. Terrorist acts like 9/11 aside, nature and corporations have given us enough recent examples, from Hurricane Katrina to the BP Gulf oil disaster, to warrant each of us spending a little time and energy on this. continued Archos 7 Home Tablet by David Katz July 10, 2010 Two trends have converged to create a new class of gadget, the Android tablet. The Google-created Android operating system has become popular with smart-phone manufacturers, with Android phones now outselling the iPhone, and the new class of tablet devices epitomized by the iPad is beginning to expand as new vendors come into the marketplace with their offerings. The Archos 7 Home Tablet is an early example of this trend. continued High Velocity Trading by Sten Grynir May 30, 2010 The extraordinary volatility of the financial markets, with prices bouncing all over the place from day to day, is not only a deterrent to a full economic recovery, but also a symptom of a systemic flaw in the organization of these markets that someday could lead to disaster. That disaster nearly occurred recently when the stock market plummeted a thousand points before rebounding most of the way scant seconds later. Some of the volatility is generated by unsettled political and economic situations, but some of it is generated by trading technologies not adequately controlled by the exchanges and for which limitations are not even contemplated by the regulatory agencies. High frequency computer generated trades bear a significant responsibility for recent events. continued Ereaders 101 by David Katz April 17, 2010 Portable readers for digital books have finally caught on. Sit in a subway car in New York City and you may well see three or four people reading from Kindles or its equivalent. A few more people may be reading on their laptops or smart phones. This article is the first of a series to introduce you to the ereader offerings currently available, and to alert you to additional readers due to be released in the next few months. First, ereaders 101. continued Arts and Reviews Musica Viva by Gert Innsry October 26, 2010 Musica Viva, the resident choral and chamber group of New York's All Souls Church, presented an outstanding Early Music concert on October 24th. The chorus and chamber orchestra, conducted by Wally Klauss, was enhanced by guest artist Marion Verbruggen, recorder. Ms. Verbruggen's virtuosity made the evening especially memorable. continued West Balkans by Peter H. Salus October 15, 2010 When Rebecca West and her husband arrived in Zagreb by train in 1936, they were greeted in the pouring rain by three friends. When I arrived in Tirana airport in bright sunshine, I was greeted by a young woman in a yellow t-shirt reading “University of Vlora,” who asked my name, examined her notes and informed me that I wasn't in her group. Where to go and what to do were were open – negativity ruled and as I wasn't her responsibility I didn't exist. continued Flying Karamazov Brothers by David Katz July 28, 2010 America has produced some great comedians and comic actors, but the Brits have always led the way in inspired, intelligent silliness. Not since the days of the Marx brothers (and perhaps Gallagher in his better moments) have we even approached the silliness levels of Monty Python or The Goon Show. With the world in a mess, and looking like it will get worse before it gets better, the need for silliness has never been greater. Fortunately for us, we have the Flying Karamazov Brothers. continued Corduroy Mansions by Gert Innsry June 30, 2010 Alexander McCall Smith is the author of the amazingly successful No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series. The reason for that success is easy to understand: the books are charming, well written and give us an insight into a culture and part of the world that we don't usually have much contact with. With "Corduroy Mansions", Mr. Smith begins another series, a somewhat less successful one. continued The Rheingold Curse by David Katz March 1, 2010 Sequentia, the Paris-based Early Music group, has created an awe-inspiring and eery work in its concert and CD set The Rheingold Curse: A Germanic Saga of Greed and Vengeance from the Medieval Icelandic Edda. Performed in New York at the Morgan Library as part of the Library's “Boston Early Music Festival”, The Rheingold Curse tells the story of the Rheingold, which Wagner used to such great effect, but is based on an earlier version of the myth told in the Iceland Eddas, the great Old Norse mythic poems. Since no written music of this period survives, Benjamin Bagby, Sequentia's Director, has created a work using other musical survivals from a slightly later period and whatever is known of the musical practices of the day. Combined with superb singing and a fascinating collection of period instruments, this resulted in a performance of great interest, historical value, and above all, musical quality. continued
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