READ THIS NOW....

ON POLITICS

There's an interesting article in today's NYTIMES (2-28-07). Mario Cuomo and Newt Gingrich will be debating at the Great Hall at Cooper Union. Cuomo is a most articulate gentleman. Gingrich is...Gingrich. It was in the Great Hall that Lincoln made one of his most powerful speeches and introduced himself to the eastern electorate. The point of this debate is to move political discourse away from the 30 second sound bite. If i didn't have a previously scheduled commitment, I would be there. I hope this link works, otherwise paste it into your browser.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/28/us/politics/28coop.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

If you have the time and inclination, take a look at the text from Lincoln's Cooper Union speech and contemplate how that would be presented today.

http://showcase.netins.net/web/creative/lincoln/speeches/cooper.htm


RADIO, RADIO

I have long thought that the consolidation of media into the hands of a very few corporations is dangerous for our democracy. Now, XM and Sirius want to take consolidation into orbit. Please read the OP-ED piece by Eric Kleinenberg in today's NYTIMES (2-28-07). If you do not have a NYT subscription, sign up for the free trial period.


STREETTTCH!

For those of you on the right who loathe the NYTIMES (or example) and for those of you on the left who loathe the WALL STREET JOURNAL (for example), here's a proposal: take one week and read materials from the other side. Folks on the right can listen to Randi Rhodes on Air-America. I know it's difficult, but guys on the left, listen to Rush or Laura Ingraham. Listen to what's going on. Check out the BBC on line. Better yet, look what Al-Jazeera is saying on its web site.

Ok, a one week task might be too much too soon. Try it for one day. Get out of your self-supporting, self-serving media rut and THINK!


ON "JOURNEY'S END" take 2

I'm still knocked out over this powerful piece of theatre. The play is a set piece that takes place in a British officers dugout on the front lines during World War 1. It's pretty much a set piece with the kid CO who drinks to forget, the older, wiser exec, the coward, the newbie who gets killed, etc. The rigid class system of the British military is all too apparent, but some of the best lines are delivered by the lower class batman to the officers.

The claustrophobic feeling of the dugout seems all too real and the stress and strain on the characters is palpable.

The utter silence of the audience was testimony enough to the power of the presentation.