Whoever it was in 1969 who named the very first Bob Dylan bootleg album “Great White Wonder” may have had a mischievous streak. There are any number of ways you can interpret the title — most boringly, the cover was blank, like the Beatles’ “White Album” — but I like to see a sly allusion to “Moby-Dick.” In the seven years since the release of his first commercial record, Dylan had become the white whale of 20th-century popular song, a wild, unconquerable and often baffling force of musical nature who drove fans and critics Ahab-mad in their efforts to spear him, lash him to the hull and render him merely comprehensible. --- Bruce Handy, NYTimes ____________________________________________ I figured we can start fresh with Bob Dylan. Couldn't resist this photo of him striking a Woody Guthrie pose. Looks like only yesterday. Here is a link to the comments building up to this reading group.
Ouch!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/09/secret-video-romney-private-fundraiser
The revelations in this video come to me as a genuine shock. I have never hated Romney. I presumed his ideological makeover since he set out to run for president was largely phony, even if he was now committed to carry through with it, and to whatever extent he’d come to believe his own lines, he was oblivious or naïve about the damage he would inflict upon the poor, sick, and vulnerable. It seems unavoidable now to conclude that Romney’s embrace of Paul Ryanism is born of actual contempt for the looters and moochers, a class war on behalf of his own class.
ReplyDeletehttp://nymag.com/daily/intel/2012/09/real-romney-is-a-sneering-plutocrat.html?wpisrc=nl_wonk
The quote above from Jonathan Chait sounds genuine to me. I think a lot of political commentators, while they might disagree with Romney, seemed to take his move to the right as political, not philosophical. But I think the video does show a very relaxed and honest Romney, assuming anyone who would vote for Obama is on the take from the government. "Let them eat cake," is the bottom line here.
ReplyDeleteExtremely cynical comments. The only thing that surprises me is that he could be so bald-faced in a room full of people, assuming they all thought like him. Seems to me these comments would have leaked out one way or the other but the tape makes it impossible to duck them. The worst part about his admission is that he is completely unapologetic, saying he should have been more "elegant" in his speech. This point to the inherit flaw in Republican thinking that they are never wrong, just tactics could have been better.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lame counter assault,
ReplyDeletehttp://news.yahoo.com/romney-tries-change-subject-233848226--abc-news-politics.html
Romney is truly flailing his arms desperately to tread water here.
I would not be at all surprised if the Obama campaign counters with the observation that if you look at wealth accumulation in this country, redistribution "UP" has been proceeding apace for quite some time now.
ReplyDeleteWhoops,
ReplyDeletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DgB3WASwXA
Dear old Dad was "on relief, welfare relief, for the first years of his life"
(at the 57 sec. mark)
I see Obama is up by 14 in Wisconsin,
ReplyDeletehttp://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/poll-shows-obama-leads-romney-key-swing-states-150338499--election.html
so much for the Ryan factor.
Meanwhile, Brown is still harping on Warren "exploiting" her Cherokee heritage,
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/ticket/massachusetts-senate-debate-begins-discussion-warren-cherokee-heritage-000344164--election.html
as he now trails her in most polls. What an ass!