Tuesday Rant

Good tidings from Connecticut: A Quinnpiac poll shows Holy Joe Lieberman so far behind that if things don't change quickly, his 2012 reelection is a "lost cause." As if to make amends for his many transgressions, Holy Joe wants to lead the Don't Ask Don't Tell repeal bandwagon and bully for him. But any senator from Connecticut could do that without risk. Much better to dump the guy who also helped lead the Iraq war bandwagon, the McCain bandwagon, and the health care reform assassination bandwagon.

My dislike of Holy Joe goes back to this magic moment in the annals of sanctimony:



The man is a goiter, a malignant tumor on the face of the body politic. His pettiness, hypocrisy, egotism, and self-righteousness deface everything they near. Moreover, Lieberman regularly betrays his party and constituency for a few pieces of corporate silver from the defense, pharmaceutical, finance, and insurance, industries. Not unusual, perhaps, but he makes a point of explaining his votes as matters of conscience and independence as if he weren't in the back pockets of the usual suspects. 2012 can't come fast enough...

"Progressivism is the cancer in America and its eating our Constitution." So says Glen Beck, who also argues that progressivism must be "eradicated." As Jonathan Alter points out, this means that Beck believes that -- among other things -- women are second-class citizens, opposes technological advance and economic growth, and thinks that old people should eat cat food and die without complaint when they get sick. And that's just the 20th Century: Go back a few more and he'd probably come out for Jim Crow, oppose abolition, and stand tall against the American Revolution...

OK, you've starved the beast. Now what?...

Along Franklin Ave...

Give me a reason to walk the line:

Many who did not see, feel, hear and taste the blood believe it should be so easy to wrap their head around, as if we could just send in a Mythic Disaster Manager and save a little girl, your mominem's little girl, I saw laying face down in the sunrise over a bloody Holy Cross, dead and alone, floating in the water with her eyes down, during that first week of the Federal Flood...

And I Quote

"[People] are fed up -- frustrated and fed up and angry about the way in which our government does not work. And I think the filibuster has become not only in reality an obstacle to accomplishment here, but it is also a symbol of a lot that ails Washington today."

Quick, who said this? Was it Bill Clinton, frustrated by the Republican intransigence that blocked even minor appointments? Maybe Barack Obama in an unguarded moment, worried that a few small-state senators stood in the way of health care reform? Guess again: It was Holy Joe Lieberman who, back in 1994, introduced legislation to reform the filibuster. Today, of course, this unalloyed hypocrite threatens to use the filibuster to deny health care access to 35,000,000 of his fellow Americans. Christopher Hayes of The Nation has more here about the most undemocratic practice of our most undemocratic institution...

Calvin Trillin skewers Lieberman here...

Charity Hospital...

Thoughtfulness. Sometimes, a girl just can't win...

Splatters

Pollock. (2000) D: Ed Harris. Ed Harris, Marcia Gay Harden. The outline of  Jackson Pollock's life makes for a promising film. A Westerner moves to Greenwhich Village on the eve of World War II and develops a signature painting style that makes him one of the most significant artists of the 20th Century and one of the greatest American artists ever. Though misunderstood early on and plagued by alcoholism, with the support of his wife (artist Lee Krasner), Pollock eventually catches the attention of influential art collectors and critics, finally achieving world renown. Unable to shake his alcoholism, Pollock dies prematurely in a 1956 auto accident, leaving behind him a legacy that placed him at the pinnacle of the Abstract Expressionist movement.

Unfortunately, the film -- while undoubtedly well made and well acted -- rarely probes beyond the outline. We're left with an interesting story that doesn't attempt to understand Pollock's motivations or even what he wanted to accomplish with his art. As the film portrays Pollock, it's hard to see why Krasner (Harden's Academy Award winning performance is one of the best things about the film) had any romantic interest in the monosyllabic artist, who seems inarticulate and utterly devoid of charm. Krasner comes across as a PR booster, when in real life she was a significant influence of Pollock's work and vital to his development as a painter.

The strongest part of Pollock comes in the middle, when Jackson and Lee escape New York for the serenity and isolation of the Hamptons. Harris (as director and actor) depicts a convincing period of spiritual regeneration for the artist that culminates in the perfection of his pouring technique and in his abandonment of what were thought to be essential materials like easels and oils. The scenes of Pollock painting are among the film's best: the brushes function as an extension of Harris' body, which moves around and over and on the canvas with rapt intensity. 

More than most artists, you can't appreciate a Jackson Pollock painting until you actually see one. Each work I've seen completely merits every accolade his work has received; it's like holding up a mirror to a battered soul. They have a profound unity and a complex structure completely removed from the stereotype of random and careless splatters. As the size and scope of Pollock's work is vast, reducing it to small reproductions greatly diminishes this sense of wholeness, no matter how skilled the bookmaker.

That, unfortunately, sums up Pollock: It's good as far is it goes, but frustrating for how much further it could have gone. We're voyeurs of key moments of Pollock's life, but when the movie is over, we don't understand much more about him and his work than can be gleaned from a Wikipedia article. Nonetheless, any film that calls serious attention to the work of a great painter can't be dismissed. Harris' respect and love for his subject are evident throughout, but you'll keep hankering for more and may find yourself thinking that there ain't nothing like the real thing...

Want make a Pollock painting yourself? Go to this ultracool web site and drag your mouse any which way you can. Click to change colors, hold down the mouse to create blots, and press the Space bar to clear the canvas...

Like most Democrats, I think Holy Joe Lieberman deserved the political equivalent of having his thumbs broken. I even think there are sound political reasons for doing same. But Barack Obama thinks otherwise, and who am I to tell Barack Obama what to do politically? Over at The Nation, John Nichols explains that grass roots disgust with Holy Joe never translated into a structured effort to defenestrate him...

I have no problem with Obama naming Tom Daschle and Eric Holder to his cabinet (or Rahm Emmanuel to his staff). Yes, Daschle represents the Democratic establishment of the 90's. Yes, Emmanuel and Holder were members of the Clinton Administration. Yes, on the surface none of the three symbolizes change for the sake of change. But Obama's relationship with Emmanuel goes back to Chicago, and both Daschle and Holder were key campaign advisors. Holder was publicly critical From here, it looks Obama has so far gone with people he knows and trusts, and whose counsel and advice is proven...

What he said goes for me...

Congratulations to the Little Engine That Could, American League MVP Dustin Pedroia. And if Dustin is 5'9", I'm 25 years old and look like George Clooney...

Poor Mike:

Attractive Girls Union Refuses To Enter Into Talks With Mike Greenman

Sunday Funnies & So Much More

The Tom Toles archive is here...

Williams Ayers tells his side of the story: 

Obama has continually been asked to defend something that ought to be at democracy’s heart: the importance of talking to as many people as possible in this complicated and wildly diverse society, of listening with the possibility of learning something new, and of speaking with the possibility of persuading or influencing others...

Barack Obama's election made headlines around the world. Here's one:

Be sure to click on the link for a terrific mosaic. Thanks to Sylvia for calling this to my attention. More headlines here...

The Obama family waits, congratulates, and celebrates...

Will Joe Lieberman join the Republican caucus? Talk about change we need. If so, he'd be the first rat to board a sinking ship...

The carnality of food

As I wrote, the Valentine's Day dinner at Cafe Juanita was amazing. What I didn't write about was the carnality of the experience. That food can be sensual and erotic is practically a cliche. But Cafe Juanita... They served a Roman orgy of a meal, a lover's paradise of a banquet, a repast of gender emblems.

 

Take the citrus salad with hearts of palm. A half avocado sliced lengthwise reclines beneath ovarian grapefruit and blood orange, topped with a frisee of hearts of palm and thin-sliced marinated red onion. The local spot prawns served in their carapaces, which sequester a cornucopia of roe spilling out when the shell is pulled away. The raviolo, a deceptive disk that explodes with a fireworks of hidden flavors when bitten into. The steak covered with a layer foie gras that goes down like meat butter. All of which set up the dessert -- a chocolate souffle than one opens carefully and spills vanilla creme into. Get the picture?

  

Amy Denio writes from Ireland: "On the way out of the cemetery [of Ballintubber Abbey near Westport), I noticed a grave of a man who had died at age 50 about 5 years ago, and at the bottom it was written 'there are so many songs to sing' with RIP right below that, and ‘always loved’ at the bottom, which I found incredibly sad. At first I thought 'that's what I want on my gravestone...' But seeing that triggered some wierd deep sadness about a musician dying young, I could almost see the fellow singing joyously, friends all around. In fact, as I started driving away, I found myself racked with sobs. It really touched a nerve, seeing ‘there are so many songs to sing’ on a gravestone. I’m almost finished writing a song with that title. It was a very strong experience."

Now, you can listen to the song, "Ballintubber Abbey," here. It's a beauty, and I bet you can hear it in the pubs of Mayo before long.

Speaking of beautiful music, is there a prettier American song than "Shenandoah"? Listen to Englishman Richard Thompson's stunning version here.

The Seattle P-I has this troubling story about the rape of a Kirkland servicewoman while in the Army. Veteran's Administration statistics show that 19% of their female patients were diagnosed as victims of military sexual trauma. (And we all know that the numbers are greater than that because many rape victims choose not to seek treatment or report it at all.) While this has been an ongoing problem in the military, one wonders whether the lowering of recruiting standards has exacerbated it.

Call me a charter member of the I Detest Joe Lieberman Club. I haven't liked Holy Joe since 1998 when he lectured Bill Clinton from the Senate floor. Now he's cavorting with John McCain even though he promised the voters of Connecticut that he'd support the party nominee in 2008. A great reason in and of itself to pick up a half dozen Senate seats would be to kick that s------------- out of the caucus. (I don't use profanities in this blog, but if there was ever an exception to the rule...)

Meanwhile, don't miss this inspirational video of his playmate.