October 2004 Archives

The New York Times > Arts > Music > The Rap Against Rockism

Rockism isn't unrelated to older, more familiar prejudices - that's part of why it's so powerful, and so worth arguing about. The pop star, the disco diva, the lip-syncher, the "awesomely bad" hit maker: could it really be a coincidence that rockist complaints often pit straight white men against the rest of the world? Like the anti-disco backlash of 25 years ago, the current rockist consensus seems to reflect not just an idea of how music should be made but also an idea about who should be making it.

The Times' contention that a critique of singers who cannot sing or write songs has been coopted by a shrill minority with a racial agenda is a sad commentary on popular culture. Certainly, popular music is notorious for putting a white face on other people's musical traditions. However, is there not enough genuine talent across the board to disprove easily any assertion that the only people who can really sing are straight white males? Although the search for "authenticity" in popular music may be a chimera, surely this does not mean that we should fail to distinguish talent from its lack?

The Washington Post has an overview of the smoke and mirrors that surround the production of modern popular music. The Post points out that Simpson's performance should have come as no surprise; electronic enhancement has been around for years and is pervasive in the industry. Simpson just had the misfortune to get caught in a very public and embarrassing way.

Rockism defined.

MoorishGirl tells it like it is.

Bob Herbert excoriates the war effort in the New York Times. Herbert points out that we sent in the troops without the tools necessary to do the job, and without telling them clearly what the job was. To paraphrase Talleyrand, we have learned nothing and forgotten nothing since 1968.

My response to Jane Galt/Megan McCardle, who was lauded by Andrew Sullivan for her "thoughtful, thorough, and cogent argument" in support of George Bush.

Bush's military adventurism in Iraq represents a failure of imagination in foreign policy, not proof of it. In light of the intense animosity we have generated in the region, the worst consequences of Bush's "quagmire" most likely have yet to unfold. We've been here before, when we needed to "stay the course" in Vietnam lest the dominoes tumble and the world be overtaken by Communism. Next thing we hear from the Bush camp will be that there is "light at the end of tunnel." Perhaps we need to have a statement of goals that will either let us ascertain when we have achieved victory or when further loss of life is pointless. However, if Bush really has made a ghastly mistake, he should not be allowed to persist in it for another four years.

On the home front, the consistent thread in Bush's policy has been to consolidate his base by institutionalizing increasing wealth for the wealthiest Americans. This is not what America is or ought to be about.

Why does it make sense to argue that since both parties are bad on civil liberties, it does not matter if the Republicans are worse?

Who seriously thinks that Bush the Texas oilman would support emissions taxes?

Bush was a mistake. Let's not repeat it.

Incidentally, I do not know the origin of the moniker "Jane Galt." However, it sounds suspiciously like a play on "John Galt," the hero of the best known novel of the shallow materialist Ayn Rand.

My good friend Peter Shaw is trying to save the jetty in his native Opossum Bay, Tasmania. He has written the lyrics and music to a song about his boyhood memories of fishing on the jetty. Go to http://www.opossumbay.com/ now to cast your vote as part of the worldwide campaign to save the jetty!

Old Warrior Again Underway (washingtonpost.com)

The Constellation, in celebration of the 150th anniversary of its launch this year, was venturing out of Baltimore's harbor for the first time since her arrival there in 1955. Yet the old sloop of war was a fettered beauty. The gorgeous double-wheeled, teak-and-mahogany helm was lashed with the crown spoke pointing straight up, and the rudder amidships. The capstan bars were stowed. And the mizzenmast, mainmast and foremast were missing the canvas the ship was built to carry.

I toured the Constellation when I was about 10 years old, and it was one of the great thrills of my young life. I loved sailing ships growing up: I read C.S. Forester and I built models. The Constellation — often confused with one the first ships built for U.S. Navy in 1797 bearing the same name — was in fact the last ship powered entirely by sail built for the U.S. Navy just before the Civil War, according to the Post article. Of course, the Post should be read with a grain of salt; even I know that a square-rigged ship is not a sloop.

Gayle just showed me my first lunar eclipse, which was quite spectacular since the moon was full and the eclipse was total. We watched a black arc pass over the moon, gradually obscuring the golden crescent at two o'clock. The moon was not completely blacked out; it was more as though someone had painted a gold disc with charcoal paint; you could still tell the disc was there, but it was covered with a thick, grey, grimy coating.

Tech Republic reports that employers are now installing software to monitor employees' keystrokes on their computers, so that the employers can monitor the employees' use of email and instant messaging. What the legal limits under the wiretap laws are on employer monitoring of messages is apparently still not clearly defined.

Denyce Graves, After the Low Notes (washingtonpost.com)

Far from the stage lights, this is the Denyce Graves the public never sees, a 40-year-old woman who has been battling four years of depression, turbulence and upheaval, all scrupulously kept out of the public eye. In 2000, when she began to undergo a series of debilitating physical and emotional crises, her vocal cords -- the ones that made her world famous -- began bleeding.

I have been a big fan of Denyce Graves ever since I first saw her on Sesame Street, of all places. I found it heartwarming to read about a woman who is not only blessed with a beautiful voice but also a strong character.

Kerry for President (washingtonpost.com)

Rebels Massacre 49 Iraqi Guardsmen (washingtonpost.com)

The bodies of 49 freshly trained Iraqi National Guard recruits, lined up and executed by insurgents, were discovered on a roadside about 75 miles northeast of Baghdad, Iraqi officials said Sunday.

Despite regarding our intervention in Iraq as basically misguided, I am shocked and saddened at the fate of these young people whom we recruited but didn't — or coudn't — protect.

The Chessworld.net gallery.

On my way back from West Virginia, a friend persuaded me that I need to read the Da Vinci Code. (I suppose that I had been a little put off by its runaway popularity, although I was amused by the gravity with which theologians had started issuing books refuting its "errors." Lighten up, people, it's a novel.) A friend has also just sent me a copy of Tahar Ben Jelloun's Le dernier ami.

This slightly unorthodox cookbook is based on the premise that to please the woman in your life, you should figure out what kind of women she is and cook her what she wants. Naturally, the book is ready to offer its assistance in figuring her out; hence the quiz above (which concludes that if I were a girl, I would be "Academic Girl"). The fact that the quiz is aimed at women, although the book is ostensibly aimed at men, suggests that there may be a lot of men receiving this book as a gift with a hint.

I am off to West Virginia for an EEOC hearing. Back in a few days.

McSweeney's Internet Tendency: Unused Audio Commentary By Howard Zinn & Noam Chomsky, Recorded Summer 2002, for The Fellowship of the Ring Platinum Series Extended Edition DVD, Part One

I heard a selection on the radio today from this imagined commentary by Howard Zinn and Noam Chomsky on the Lord of the Rings. Although not everyone agrees, I found the conceit of the Orcs as oppressed farmers brutalized by the militaristic regimes of Gondor and Rohan quite funny.

I never thought to find myself on the same side of an issue as former RIAA Chairman Hilary Rosen, but I agree with her analysis of the furor over John Kerry's mention of Mary Cheney. Unfortunately, most voters do not seem to get it.

Debate Ducking (washingtonpost.com)

Mr. Kerry did himself no credit when, like his running mate, he brought up "Dick Cheney's daughter, who is a lesbian," in response to a question about homosexuality. Mr. Cheney has been forthright about his daughter's sexuality, and that's commendable, but it's hard to see why the Democratic ticket should keep bringing it up. Yet unlike Mr. Bush, Mr. Kerry did answer the question, saying he believes homosexuality is an innate characteristic and not a lifestyle choice.

Why does the Post think this did Mr. Kerry no credit? Does it think there is no contradiction in the Bush-Cheney campaign's position on gay rights (i.e. that they should be denied by Constitutional amendment) when a member of the Vice President's family, who is working on his campaign, is gay? Or does the Post perhaps think that Ms. Cheney is somehow being stigmatized when Mr. Kerry brings up her sexual orientation? If the latter, it says more about the Post than Mr. Kerry.

As recently as 1967, States could deny interracial couples the right to marry. See Loving v. Virginia, 388 U.S. 1 (1967). Professor Randal Kennedy offers some perspective on the history of Loving.

Lynn Cheney accuses John Kerry of a "cheap political trick" because he mentioned that her daughter Mary Cheney is a lesbian when asked if he believed homosexuality to be innate. (Kerry said yes, ask Mary Cheney.) Cheney and the right's outrage seems manufactured. Andrew Sullivan points out that Mary Cheney is out of the closet, lives with her partner, and has directed outreach programs for gays and lesbians. Neither she nor her parents has made any secret of her sexual orientation, and Mary Cheney has taken a visible role in the Bush-Cheney campaign. Sullivan suggests that the outrage stems not from concern about Mary Cheney — who is apparently quite open about her sexual orientation — but from the Right's discomfort with any discussion of gay sexuality. They talk about tolerance, but they are not willing to tolerate openness. They preach about families, but they are willing to deny gays and lesbians their right to have families. They say they want to uphold marriage, but not for anyone who is gay or lesbian. The most revolting aspect of all is that they call themselves Christians, but have no concept of what it means to love their neighbor.

The New York Times > Books > 9/11 Report Is National Book Award Finalist

I was pleased to see that the 9/11 Report is a finalist for the National Book Award. So is Stephen Greenblatt's biography of Shakespeare, Will in the World, which I am reading now. A number of reviews are online.

Christopher Reeve, Another Kind Of Superhero (washingtonpost.com)

The two warring images will be linked forever, each denying -- and completing -- the other: Christopher Reeve, built and beautiful in his Superman suit, roaring invincibly into the stratosphere. And Christopher Reeve, strained and drawn, hooked to a ventilator and living another motionless day in his wheelchair. The cartoon hero had suffered a horrible fall and emerged as a real-life hero.

Now cracks a noble heart. Good-night, sweet prince,
And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest! (Hamlet, 5.2.349)

Rachel learned to kiss this morning. She was eating her breakfast, and she just puckered up her lips and started to blow kisses for the first time.

Later in the morning, we went to swim class. Rachel does not much like floating on her back, but she kicks like a champ when I pull her along on her stomach.

When I blew bubbles in the water, she was not imitating me. Gayle told me after the class that the problem was that I needed to put Rachel's mouth in the water. (She was not going to do it herself. Duh!) I was hesitating because (obviously) Rachel does not like getting water in her mouth, but my hesitancy kept her from having a chance to imitate my bubble blowing. I guess I always have to bear in mind what she is and is not capable of: I tend to be surprised by both. Clearly, I have my assignment for next week.

We then went to a community fair sponsored by the Comcast cable network. Most of the booths were geared to children older than Rachel, so it was just as well that Rachel slept through it all. I was not sorry to be spared waiting in the block-long lines for a chance to have my picture taken with lifesize cartoon characters Sponge Bob and Dora the Explorer.

The fair was not a total loss, however, since we managed to grab a couple of chili dogs and some Ben & Jerry's ice cream.

Before hitting the grocery store later in the day, Rachel and I stopped at the Barnes and Noble, where I grabbed a latte and a chess book. Rachel was able to indulge in two of her favorite activities — riding the escalator and ogling the "bookmarks" sign. (The sign is shaped like a large wooden flag, and it never ceases to amuse.)

Politics News Article | Reuters.com

With a mixture of bemusement and condescension, Reuters takes note that the campaign is being blogged:

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The U.S. presidential campaign between George W. Bush and John Kerry has prompted a frenzy of gossip and conspiracy theories among Internet bloggers, hybrid online sites that blend news, gossip and opinion.

As Bush and the Massachusetts Senator slug it out in a neck-and-neck race ahead of the November 2 election, partisan bloggers have flooded the Internet with alternative views about both candidates, which they hope will help sway voters.

After tonight's debate, I would say that the Kerry campaign is 3 for 3 in the debates, but I am unashamedly partisan. I think Kerry is right that the War in Iraq was a mistake and that the administration did not plan adequately for the peace. I agree with Kerry that the Bush tax cut for the very rich was a mistake. I agree with Kerry that we need to do more for homeland security. (I just finished the 9/11 Commission Report.) I agree with Kerry that we need to reform the health care system, and that this entails more than simply curbing trial lawyers. (Disclaimer: I am a trial lawyer, although I do not do medical malpractice cases).

The New York Times > Books > Poetry Starts to Wear $100 Million Crown

The Poetry Foundation awarded its first two prizes out of the $100 million gift it received two years ago to Greenwich Village poet Samuel Menashe and former poet laureate Billy Collins.

The latest issue of Poetry Magazine is largely devoted to a single (disturbing) poem by Frank Bidart, most of which is about sculptor Benvenuto Cellini. Cellini, while a gifted sculptor, was apparently a monstrous human being, guilty of at least one murder. Once again a refutation of the idea that art is dependent upon morals.

Enjoying Macbeth has quite a bit of useful information about the historical background of the play, but is marred by gratuitous remarks about "white Broncos" and "radical Afrocentrist" historians and about the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church. (I don't deny that the author has a right to his opinions, but I find some of his remarks and quotations neither to my taste nor germane to discussion of the play.)

Gayle and I went to see a very good production of Macbeth this afternoon at the Shakespeare Theatre. The play gave rise to several observations:

1. The play shows clearly that the question is not whether you will die, but how. Very few people have a chance to make a "good death," most are butchered when they least expect it.


2. Even if the play was written for a Scottish king, it is clear that it was written by an English playwright. Who else would pen a drama in which the rightful Scottish king is restored to power by the English army?


3. Of course, the play is all about getting even, not just revenge by individuals, but also the attempt to bring the state back into equilibrium.


4. Women are always judged more harshly than men.


5. In an unusual decision, the play did not show the murdered Banquo at the feast to which he returns after being murdered by MacBeth. The effect is to emphasize Macbeth's madness rather than the supernatural element in the play.


6. Macbeth seals his pact with the devil by exchanging blood with the weird sisters. (The actors who plays the weird sisters double as servants at the feast.)


7. The murder of Lady MacDuff and the children takes place on stage, and is particularly horrifying and pitiful.


8. Ted van Griethuysen (who also plays Duncan) gives a bravura performance as the porter, whose shadow, thrown in relief against the wall, looms over him in dumbshow as he clowns on his way to answer the door.


9. Patrick Page is a cunning and diabolical Macbeth, Andrew Long a solid MacDuff, and Kelly McGillis, as Lady MacBeth, is Kelly McGillis.


10. The set, which consisted mainly of a metal frame with patterned screens and a few trees, was everything a Shakespearian set should be, spare and minimal, yet flexible and evocative.

Foreign Reporters A World Apart In the Campaign (washingtonpost.com)

One Democratic campaign official ranks the foreign press "about on a par with lice" on his list of concerns. The official would not allow his name to be used, for fear his comment would reflect poorly on him.

Gee, I wonder why the rest of the world has a low opinion of us. Equally striking is the observation that during the last month of a campaign, the print media in general is treated just as badly as the foreign press is the rest of the time. Television is all that matters.

House Rejects Same-Sex Marriage Ban (washingtonpost.com)

Every once in a while the U.S. Congress shows a grain of common sense and humanity:

The House joined the Senate yesterday in refusing to approve a constitutional amendment to bar same-sex marriage, described by Republican supporters as a vital protection for traditional families but denounced by Democratic foes as a divisive pre-election ploy to inflame prejudice.

Any temptation to rejoice should be tempered by the realization that although the proposed Amendment fell short of the two-thirds vote necessary for passage, a majority of the House voted for it. We've got a long way to go, baby.