put me down for a t-shirt
I laugh at people who don't realize they've jumped the shark.
a serious moment
I was really struck by this photo , which graced the cover of Tuesday's New York Times, showing Ariel Sharon, Condoleeza Rice and James Baker attending a memorial of the late Yitzhak Rabin in Israel. There's something in that picture...in Rice's face, jaw set, eyes hidden behind rockstar sunglasses...and how she is flanked on either side by two men who've played hard-ball power politics for decades: Ariel Sharon, peering beneath his furrowed brow and, always conscious he is being observed, gesturing and thinking...and James Baker, completely hidden behind a permanent dimplomatic mask, an impenetrable sphinx. Of course, that photo sends a powerful message to the world. Rice was in Israel to do serious business . The fact that she brought Baker with her meant that the full weight of the U.S. military-industrial complex... the old guard ...was with her. That trip to Israel was important; and I would guess that U.S. plans and actions regarding Syria were part of that
Comments
just read your diary on kos.
"There's something happening here.
What it is ain't exactly clear..."
The ground is twitchin' and I don't know what it is...but, I'm liking the vibe.
I got your back...
i'd followed the ensuing discussion on dkos with rapt attention, and at least a little sadness. and--having a user id only in th 30K range--i opted to stay right out of it.
dkos is better with you, and will go on without you, although, as you clearly put forth, in a manner and form different from the one you'd prefer to see.
but i will not presume to begrudge you your take on things over there.
wherever i have to click to have access to your writing, i'll go (t)here as well.
best to you.
For now, anon 1, I'm here on blogger simply because I've got so much work in the 'real world'. Which is a good thing.
And besides, this is a small solo blog, with no pretensions of being a community blog.
WG, thank you so much for your comment here and your comment/disagreement on dkos. I respect both.
nybri, no need to get my back. I just had something to say. that's all.
As to anon2....I meant what I said, simple enough. You are free to disagree.
Appreciated. Sometimes you just have to speak your mind. Most people can agree with that.
IMO, the personal attacks on you were completely out of line.
I was pretty vocal in your diary on dailykos today including (unintentionally) parroting your "jumped the shark" line (though in the negative) without knowing I was doing so.
I suppose I disagree with your premise, but I'm going to add your blog to my aggregator (an oversight on my part). Dkos is just one place. It may be the biggest, and I certainly support it, but it's a big Internet. A lot of people say you're a smart blogger, and I want to find that out for myself. Even if we don't agree about dkos, I hope you don't mind if I try to find out if we agree on other things.
I'm glad to have it...and some of the best posts on that thread were in disagreement or challenging me.
k/o is not going to become "about" dkos, so rest easy, please.
with that in mind, I'm grateful for your readership and comments.
I guess we'll have to see whether I've jumped the shark or not here...on this blog.
And this blog isn't about dkos. It's about something else...you're welcome to read and comment if you like.
Is this where I place my order?
btw-I resemble some of the remarks by Kos that set off the shitstorm....
no one group of ours can stand completely alone and make a difference, nader and the DLC both proved that in their own respective political failures. a true solidarity borne of mutual respect, mutual trust, and a clearly understood sense of a common mission is the way back to true power, but more importantly is the way back to a left that means something, and a nation that remembers how to dream.
the blogsphere, like the broader political left, must openly hash out our common ground and learn to respect those with whom we ally before we are to start to take this party/nation/world back for the people and the common good. i think we can do it, but we cannot do it alone.
we are all in this together.
I found that time fascinating beyond belief. Man, it really got me thinking about the enormously complex relationship between democratic principles and actual power.
Zowie.
For the record, I found your criticisms of Kos pretty unconvincing. And I think I lean toward Kos' side in the discussion.
But I loved the fact that you raised them and the discussion was scary-good.
Thing is, we are approaching issue in which, we hope, our political ideals intersect with genuine power structures. That's complicated.
You're a good blogger and I would like to blog with you. But the larger political war, that's something else again.
I think I want Kos playing a heavy role in that political war.
But I'll be listening to both of you and many others.
Eventually, this "progressive" energy better coalesce into a genuine power structure or what we think of each other won't matter.
Not very articulate, I know. My mind is reeling, but I am not sure what logos to reach for.
-- Thresholder.
(One of these days, I'll figure out how to register properly.)
That post hit me like that sudden realization that I just ordered another drink and it’s really late and I have no business being out and I really had best be getting on home.
I’ll keep going to DailyKos (and linking to it from time to time) for the interesting commentary and the power of the community. I mean, I “read” Playboy for the pictures of girls, not because I love Hugh Heffner. But with all due respect, this recent spate of site self-awareness is incredibly awkward.
A bit snide this diary, don't you think? Not that you're not entitled, of course. But baby, don't fall victim to the same self-righteousness you've accused others of. You're a superb writer m'dear, and i'll follow your ass to any blog you spin out of (even though i'm not a big poster, and the aesthetics of this one are absolutely killin' me!).
Howevah --and my eyes are bleary from reading some of the rampantly petty discourse on the Woody Guthrie thread (dude, don't ever make me say "jump the shark," just don't. and when i think about it, don't ever make me say dude again either) -- in the words of the great Curtis Mayfield (as covered by the also great Paul Weller) "Just Move on Up. Toward Your Destination." Hawking t-shirts...whatever. Who gives a fuck? Estupido, hermano.
Because, just as you asked for more from The Man Who Is Not a Leader, No He Is Not, I also want more from you, K-to-the-O. And this is a serious grudge holder talking. Seriously.
Does it matter that I'm in agreement with your points in the Kos diary? Probably not. Does it matter that i'm giving you the Official Departmental High Five Plaque for calling out the Frat Boy mentality ("Yeehaw motherfuckers! Let's attack all who disagree!") on Kos. No. What matters at this moment, after having waded through all that shit, is that as a writer I loves ya. As a community builder, you are one of the more important and stirring voices operating today. And I acknowlege that you're just a wee little human -- absolutely of the earth Human -- but dammit I want you to remain mildly above reproach too.
It's not so much, eh?