Welcome to this month's reading group selection. David Von Drehle mentions The Melting Pot , a play by Israel Zangwill, that premiered on Broadway in 1908. At that time theater was accessible to a broad section of the public, not the exclusive domain it has become over the decades. Zangwill carried a hopeful message that America was a place where old hatreds and prejudices were pointless, and that in this new country immigrants would find a more open society. I suppose the reference was more an ironic one for Von Drehle, as he notes the racial and ethnic hatreds were on display everywhere, and at best Zangwill's play helped persons forget for a moment how deep these divides ran. Nevertheless, "the melting pot" made its way into the American lexicon, even if New York could best be describing as a boiling cauldron in the early twentieth century. Triangle: The Fire That Changed America takes a broad view of events that led up the notorious fire, noting the gro
Maybe it's because I was expecting the worst -- in fact I didn't even watch it -- but that was some speech today:
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It is so obvious that the massive tax cuts have been a huge burden on the government, especially with all the increased spending. I understand that he doesn't want to distance himself from the middle class, but maybe his approach should be that your $500 will be better spent in Washington than it would be distributed among the masses as a rebate check, naming the type of infrastructure improvements he has in mind, and the jobs they would create.
ReplyDeleteObama is too willing to compromise. He has to stick to his ground, especially in the bargaining phase.
It would be great if this is the line in the sand. We'll see how America responds to it. It certainly gets me more enthusiastic about his reelection now, which I'm assuming was the idea. That it wasn't a speech about compromising gives me ... dare I say it ... a little hope?
ReplyDeleteAs Cohn said, the middle class has to bear some of the brunt of these tax cuts as well. No point turning this even more into a "class war." But, given the current hostilities I can understand his desire to frame the tax increases the way he did, especially in the wake of GE getting off tax free.
ReplyDeleteI don't see how a $500 rebate check does anymore than give a little blip in consumer spending. Those billions in middle class tax cuts which be much better spent helping to cover the deficit, if this is really everyone's "great concern."
Just when you thought it was safe to go back to Arizona,
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I can only hope that Jan Brewer has the good sense not to sign this "birther bill" into law.
My chuckle for the day, re Obama inviting the GOP to his speech on Wednesday:
ReplyDeleteStill, Republicans said, did Obama have to attack the men to their faces? “Reagan had the decency to insult his enemies when he was out of town,” grumbled one GOP aide.
And here's a little good news from my part of the world (I love our governor):
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I like his style!
ReplyDeleteNice to see Obama firing back,
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too bad he doesn't say more of this in public.
I think he suggested most of this in his speech, but nice to see it put so bluntly. As Carney says, there's nothing really embarrassing or even revealing in it -- except maybe to the republicans.
ReplyDeleteMonday 4/18/11:
ReplyDeleteBOSTON MARATHON!
The most telling aspect of the Republican agenda, is how they tried to slip Medicare and EPA cuts into the bill. Now they are attempting to take Medicare head on. This after admonishing the Obama health care bill for supposedly undercutting Medicare, and scaring senior citizens by saying the bill contained "death panels."
ReplyDeleteI just wonder how long the GOP'ers can get away with playing both sides of the same coin? I would think that at some point the electorate would realize they are being played as fools by the GOP. It is abundantly clear that the GOP represents business and industrial interests, not that of "Joe the Plumber."
Greetings from the L.A. Festival of Books. My panel with Tom Powers and Jim Newton went well -- so now I can get back to Triangle. Sorry it has taken me so long.
ReplyDeleteLook forward to your input.
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