Watching TV as police in riot gear move back a crowd. The reserve of the police is extraordinary. Astounding! And protesters interviewed see police brutality, outrageous force, etc. Well, everybody has a camera, everybody is taking video, so let's see it. I am astounded at the reserve of the police, quite frankly. But maybe it's going on elsewhere. Let's see some evidence.
KATU is doing a hell of a job, and so did KEX radio last night, early morning. KATU is the only local TV station covering this. Can't stop football or ice skating.
It looks to me like my prediction of the issue becoming law and order is coming true. I think this off-message energy was started by the protesters, not the police, though it's always gray in confrontations like this.
Keep Portland weird? Well, may the gods bless Occupy Portland. May the gods bless the police. It's a great show but I've seen it already. And guess what? The show ended and precious little changed.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Life and Art
I've never written anything so influenced by contemporary events as the short novel at hand. My protagonist is a retired history professor who is trying to escape history -- it's finally too much for him. He's long held the theory that in our culture, the most sensitive among us must be warehoused in mental hospitals because they don't have sufficient filters to ignore the widespread and common horrific behavior of many fellow humans: to carry on in life, you have to wear blinders. Without them, you'd go crazy. And the professor, at the end of his life, is removing his blinders. Intellectually he's known historical horror for a very long time, his specialty being the U.S. policy of genocide against American Indians (which makes him a controversial scholar). But he's been able to ignore human horror enough to get through the day, largely because of the influence of his more optimistic wife. But now he's a recent widower. The horror of history, the horror of current events, cascades down on him, threatening his sanity, his ability to function -- and he's seeing a shrink, hoping to get his footing back.
And then he meets a young woman released from a mental hospital due to over-crowding who agrees with him. And gives him a new strategy for survival, the zero-sum universe: that without sadists, we wouldn't have Bach.
I could go on but have already said too much. I don't like to get too articulate about work in progress, it dissipates energy in the wrong place. My protagonist is wrestling with events that surround him, as I am, and there's been a sudden rush of events lately, including the Occupy movement (which fits amazingly organically into my narrative) ... so I'm marveling at how sometimes in the process of creating a work, the line between life and art gets very fuzzy indeed.
Not that very many people give a rat's ass. But I find it fascinating.
And then he meets a young woman released from a mental hospital due to over-crowding who agrees with him. And gives him a new strategy for survival, the zero-sum universe: that without sadists, we wouldn't have Bach.
I could go on but have already said too much. I don't like to get too articulate about work in progress, it dissipates energy in the wrong place. My protagonist is wrestling with events that surround him, as I am, and there's been a sudden rush of events lately, including the Occupy movement (which fits amazingly organically into my narrative) ... so I'm marveling at how sometimes in the process of creating a work, the line between life and art gets very fuzzy indeed.
Not that very many people give a rat's ass. But I find it fascinating.
Police end Occupy Portland; camps at Lownsdale and Chapman squares dismantled (live updates) | OregonLive.com
Police end Occupy Portland; camps at Lownsdale and Chapman squares dismantled (live updates) | OregonLive.com:
Let the kids party and claim victory, and when they finally have to go home to sleep, dismantle the camp. What will the kids do when they wake up and find the camp gone?
The more I think about it, the more ingenious this strategy strikes me. Let the kids party, let them pretend they are redistributing the income, let them pretend they are fighting capitalism, let them carry on and claim victory, and when they go home, walk in and do what needs to be done.
Now where are the kids and other folks who will REALLY fight capitalism? Where is the political vision that can take advantage of this groundswell of popular opinion before it all dissipates into factions of differences.
I bet a lot of bank presidents and corporate CEOs are lighting cigars, seeing how quickly a movement can go off message or become at best impotent symbolism.
Thus far, Occupy Portland is to progressive change as masturbation is to starting a family. I already said that. More than once. But I won't apologize. I think it's true. It's rumored that the truth will set us free.
Heard a typical example of solipsistic logic last night. A protester was being interviewed. A crowd had taken over the street, illegally by the letter, and were not heeding police requests to move. So police approached and pressed against them, trying to move them. (Ends up there were too many and police finally retreated). The protester said the police were CREATING a safety hazard by trying to get folks off the streets. In other words, whatever I do is right, whatever you do or the law says is wrong. When there is a higher moral value in the mix, this can make sense. But I see none here. Certainly the economic issue got lost long ago.
I guess I really am a die hard cynic. This has gone so well so far, but I still think the shit is going to hit the fan -- because I believe a significant number of protesters WANT it to go that way. Eventually the patience of the police will wear out. We'll see.
"They encountered almost no resistance as they took down tents in both parks. No tents appear to remain in Lownsdale, and Chapman is also almost cleared.
People remain at the parks but are standing by in stunned silence."
People remain at the parks but are standing by in stunned silence."
The more I think about it, the more ingenious this strategy strikes me. Let the kids party, let them pretend they are redistributing the income, let them pretend they are fighting capitalism, let them carry on and claim victory, and when they go home, walk in and do what needs to be done.
Now where are the kids and other folks who will REALLY fight capitalism? Where is the political vision that can take advantage of this groundswell of popular opinion before it all dissipates into factions of differences.
I bet a lot of bank presidents and corporate CEOs are lighting cigars, seeing how quickly a movement can go off message or become at best impotent symbolism.
Thus far, Occupy Portland is to progressive change as masturbation is to starting a family. I already said that. More than once. But I won't apologize. I think it's true. It's rumored that the truth will set us free.
Heard a typical example of solipsistic logic last night. A protester was being interviewed. A crowd had taken over the street, illegally by the letter, and were not heeding police requests to move. So police approached and pressed against them, trying to move them. (Ends up there were too many and police finally retreated). The protester said the police were CREATING a safety hazard by trying to get folks off the streets. In other words, whatever I do is right, whatever you do or the law says is wrong. When there is a higher moral value in the mix, this can make sense. But I see none here. Certainly the economic issue got lost long ago.
I guess I really am a die hard cynic. This has gone so well so far, but I still think the shit is going to hit the fan -- because I believe a significant number of protesters WANT it to go that way. Eventually the patience of the police will wear out. We'll see.
Occupy Portland: Police enter parks, clear tarps and tents (live updates) | OregonLive.com
Occupy Portland: Police enter parks, clear tarps and tents (live updates) | OregonLive.com:
"9:53: People at the two squares are watching as tents come down, a complete departure from the more-resistant tone of just a few hours earlier.
City Commissioner Nick Fish, on the scene, said Portland parks officials are waiting for the police to give a go-ahead that the parks are clear. Then parks officials will do a complete assessment of both parks, ideally today.
Fish, who oversees parks, said of the recent events in which police began to clear the squares: "It was almost like the fever broke. And now we're seeing people break down their camps and voluntarily move on."
Fish credited Police Chief Mike Reese for setting the non-confrontational tone.
"We set the tone at the top," he said. "The bureau was going to engage the protesters and not get into a confrontation. Patience is a virtue, and in this instance, patience is going to reap dividends.""
City Commissioner Nick Fish, on the scene, said Portland parks officials are waiting for the police to give a go-ahead that the parks are clear. Then parks officials will do a complete assessment of both parks, ideally today.
Fish, who oversees parks, said of the recent events in which police began to clear the squares: "It was almost like the fever broke. And now we're seeing people break down their camps and voluntarily move on."
Fish credited Police Chief Mike Reese for setting the non-confrontational tone.
"We set the tone at the top," he said. "The bureau was going to engage the protesters and not get into a confrontation. Patience is a virtue, and in this instance, patience is going to reap dividends.""
Quite an accomplishment to get this far with so little violence. Maybe the movement can get back on message. Still much to resolve today, so we'll see. If the message becomes law and order, the progressives lose the war even if the battle was won.
Saturday, November 12, 2011
Two high school theater productions -- in Portland and Vancouver -- put students at the center of the creative process | OregonLive.com
Two high school theater productions -- in Portland and Vancouver -- put students at the center of the creative process | OregonLive.com:
""I think we underestimate the dedication and maturity of young people too often," Matt Zrebski says, as a couple dozen young people prepare to get back to work on a recent evening at Southwest Portland's Wilson High School. "
Hear, hear! Over 20 years ago I oversaw a dozen high school seniors at the Catlin Gabel school who wrote and performed a hyperdrama that even included an original film embedded in it! Read about it here.
Stanford v. Oregon
Well, after much soul-searching, I am going to root for Stanford because I think it's athletic department is less corrupt than Oregon's -- but I predict Oregon will win. In sports, the bad guys usually win.
On the other hand, maybe I don't care who wins. College football has lost its luster.
On the other hand, maybe I don't care who wins. College football has lost its luster.
Dread
I think the removal of Occupy Portland at midnight will be a godawful mess. I think this is the very outcome a significant number of protesters are hoping for. I think there's nothing new under the sun. But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe Pdx is a unique beautiful city where the resolution of all this will have violins on the soundtrack. We'll find out soon enough.
A baked potato
I am here to praise the simple baked potato. Baked, seasoned with butter, salt and pepper, no more. My lunch. A simple baked potato is delicious. You can get fancy with a baked potato, and for variety this makes sense. But the simple baked potato still rules.
Wikipedia on the baked potato.
The official baked potato page.
The official baked potato page.
The literary landscape
We have a culture with more skilled creative writers than it knows what to do with. Many, with limited relevant opportunities, turn to teaching and thereby train and release even more skilled creative writers into the culture, which has no relevant use for them. MFA programs have exploded in the last half century, producing more and more skilled writers. What do we do with them?
At the same time, literary intelligence in the culture has declined.
When I was a young writer in the 1960s, "the literary novel" was a badge of honor. Everyone was writing one. You struggled to write literature. Publishers published them hoping to break even. It was their duty to the literary culture to publish them. All that pop lit stuff could make the money to support this more honorable responsibility.
Today "the literary novel" is a pejorative term. Tell an agent you have a literary novel and watch her run away. Publishers are no longer guardians of the culture. Indeed now most of them are minor companies owned by large corporations, where the goal is not literature but profit. It has always made bad business sense to publish novels knowing they would make little or no money, and now accountants call the shots to end such travesties.
Anyone striving to write a serious novel faces a declining audience, declining interest, a shrinking marketplace.
A few years ago I had occasion to quote W. H. Auden in my class. From the blank stares I got, I asked if anyone was familiar with Auden's work. No one. Did anyone know who he was? No one. Had anyone ever heard or read the name before? One hand went up.
More and more writers with fewer opportunities for serious writing and a shrinking lost sense of their own literary history. This, it seems to me, is where we are today.
Thank the gods I'm in my 70s!
At the same time, literary intelligence in the culture has declined.
When I was a young writer in the 1960s, "the literary novel" was a badge of honor. Everyone was writing one. You struggled to write literature. Publishers published them hoping to break even. It was their duty to the literary culture to publish them. All that pop lit stuff could make the money to support this more honorable responsibility.
Today "the literary novel" is a pejorative term. Tell an agent you have a literary novel and watch her run away. Publishers are no longer guardians of the culture. Indeed now most of them are minor companies owned by large corporations, where the goal is not literature but profit. It has always made bad business sense to publish novels knowing they would make little or no money, and now accountants call the shots to end such travesties.
Anyone striving to write a serious novel faces a declining audience, declining interest, a shrinking marketplace.
A few years ago I had occasion to quote W. H. Auden in my class. From the blank stares I got, I asked if anyone was familiar with Auden's work. No one. Did anyone know who he was? No one. Had anyone ever heard or read the name before? One hand went up.
More and more writers with fewer opportunities for serious writing and a shrinking lost sense of their own literary history. This, it seems to me, is where we are today.
Thank the gods I'm in my 70s!
Friday, November 11, 2011
Postcard from Palo Alto: Hey, do Stanford students know there's a big game tomorrow? | OregonLive.com
Postcard from Palo Alto: Hey, do Stanford students know there's a big game tomorrow? | OregonLive.com:
"I watched lots of people walk by the GameDay set and wonder out loud, "What's going on?" which is crazy to me, but also a testament to how seriously they take schoolwork around here. "
I love this! Stanford students are STUDYING instead of gathering to be on TV.
Project
Decent work on the short novel project today. Been a while actually, though I brood about it 24/7. Lots of notes about changes, large and small. It's the process.
Had to change evening plans to see a high school play. Maybe I can catch it later.
Had to change evening plans to see a high school play. Maybe I can catch it later.
Occupy Portland: Police remove truckload of broken rocks, stones from camp as tensions mount | OregonLive.com
Occupy Portland: Police remove truckload of broken rocks, stones from camp as tensions mount | OregonLive.com:
"Police said they believe protesters in the Occupy Portland camps are soliciting out-of-state reinforcements, collecting gas masks and may be preparing weapons and shields for a confrontation early Sunday morning when police are expected to evict them from Lownsdale and Chapman square parks.
Police spokesman Lt. Robert King said officers took out enough stone and foundation rocks to fill a pickup truck after an Occupy Portland protester tipped off police."
Most will leave. A minority wanting a fight will stay. How can the upcoming confrontation avoid getting ugly?
Police spokesman Lt. Robert King said officers took out enough stone and foundation rocks to fill a pickup truck after an Occupy Portland protester tipped off police."
Most will leave. A minority wanting a fight will stay. How can the upcoming confrontation avoid getting ugly?
Idolatry of Joe Paterno contributed to Penn State Sandusky scandal - Stewart Mandel - SI.com
Idolatry of Joe Paterno contributed to Penn State Sandusky scandal - Stewart Mandel - SI.com:
"Paterno and his so-called bosses deserve all the blame we can muster for allowing this atrocity to occur, but the rest of us deserve blame for lionizing coaches like Paterno in the first place. We turn these mortal men into irreproachable icons. We do it with articles portraying them as something more mystical than people who happen to be good at their jobs. We do it by camping out for tickets in tent villages named in their honor. We do it by building statues of them while they're still on the job."
And coaches fail us by enabling talented jocks who keep getting into trouble and should, in fact, be kicked off the team. I put Oregon on this list of failures.
And coaches fail us by enabling talented jocks who keep getting into trouble and should, in fact, be kicked off the team. I put Oregon on this list of failures.
Missing candles
Penn State students, if they are looking for something to do, might have a candlelight vigil for the victims of child rape instead of rallying to support their justly fired, incredibly arrogant icon of a football coach. Duh.
The political landscape
Occupy Portland, which made the LA Times this morning, is calling for sympathizers to join them so they out-number the police by such large numbers that they can't be removed. Dumb idea. But it speaks to the deterioration of the message, how the Occupy movements become symbolic and impotent of actual political substance.
Look, I want the system changed more than most folks. I divorced the Democratic Party in 1968 and have never seen a reason to return. I'm an independent progressive. I want a redistribution of wealth in this country, and I think capitalism itself is part of the problem. But I'm also a realist.
Here are some political facts.
I think the Occupy movement will deteriorate into a movement of young Romantic Revolutionaries who spout the usual slogans, enjoy the usual sense of citizen superiority, get gassed, get hauled away, think of themselves as martyrs, and accomplish nothing. Most grow up, get jobs, and become another cog in the corporate machine.
It makes me wonder if the system can even be changed from within. I've been waiting for a viable progressive third party since 1968.
Look, I want the system changed more than most folks. I divorced the Democratic Party in 1968 and have never seen a reason to return. I'm an independent progressive. I want a redistribution of wealth in this country, and I think capitalism itself is part of the problem. But I'm also a realist.
Here are some political facts.
- If you want substantive change in this country, there are two ways to get it: overthrow the government by force and violence; or change the system from within by electing representatives in Congress and elsewhere who will change it.
- Neither the Democrats nor Republicans will change the system. They are, in fact, a part of the problem.
- To elect third party candidates takes great numbers of dissatisfied voters.
- Those dissatisfied voters exist now more than at any time I can remember.
- The main practical goal of the Occupy or any other progressive movement should be to organize those dissatisfied voters into a third party capable of removing Democrats and Republicans from office.
- Side issues from this central goal -- like all the symbolic gestures happening across the country -- do not contribute to making the goal a reality.
I think the Occupy movement will deteriorate into a movement of young Romantic Revolutionaries who spout the usual slogans, enjoy the usual sense of citizen superiority, get gassed, get hauled away, think of themselves as martyrs, and accomplish nothing. Most grow up, get jobs, and become another cog in the corporate machine.
It makes me wonder if the system can even be changed from within. I've been waiting for a viable progressive third party since 1968.
Veterans Day
It's still a major holiday to me but not usually in my immediate environment. Rather it's one of those official holidays given lip service but little more. There aren't many Veteran Day parades any more.
In my view, we betray our veterans as often as we honor them. Particularly the young men we send to war, who then return as damaged goods mentally and/or physically, without jobs and without the kind of unequivocal VA support that they deserve because they've earned it. The institution created to support them too often fights them for benefits they deserve. It's a disgrace.
This betrayal always comes to mind during Veterans Day, as well as memories of my family remembrances during this significant holiday.
Let's remember Eric Hoffer
Hoffer was something rare, a blue collar philosopher, a longshoreman turned important cultural thinker. Like Baldwin, he told us true things we'd rather not hear. We still need to hear them today.
A chilly very foggy day, as a shivering Sketch and I headed out to get coffee. Back in a warm house for the day. I look forward to reading scripts: a glance at them suggests that several students are "getting it" for the first time.
I met another student who had a former screenwriting class in which he was told screenwriting was like writing a novel. I want to kick these wrong teachers in the butt!
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Quotation of the day
"What happened, or more accurately did not happen, goes to the core of evil that major college sports programs in this country have become, equivalent to Mafia families in which the code of omertà rules and coaches and staff always close ranks around their own, even if it means letting someone who was first accused of inappropriate sexual conduct in 1998 continue to roam." -- Buzz Bissinger in "Good riddance, Joe Paterno"
Busy weekend
I anticipate picking up quite a few scripts in class today, making for a busy weekend evaluating them. Which is fine.
I think my most recent flirtation with illness has ended. Feeling pretty good. In good spirits, too, despite all the horrors in the airwaves. The fall leaves remain gorgeous, a better object of contemplation than the daily news. This is one of the lessons my protagonist learns.
I need to reread Aeschylus. His plays are so good at cosmic tragedy.
The horror of human depravity can be trumped by the marvel of works from the human spirit. This just sells less products.
I think my most recent flirtation with illness has ended. Feeling pretty good. In good spirits, too, despite all the horrors in the airwaves. The fall leaves remain gorgeous, a better object of contemplation than the daily news. This is one of the lessons my protagonist learns.
I need to reread Aeschylus. His plays are so good at cosmic tragedy.
The horror of human depravity can be trumped by the marvel of works from the human spirit. This just sells less products.
Daily Kos: Portland OR Mayor and Chief of Police Draw the Line
Daily Kos: Portland OR Mayor and Chief of Police Draw the Line:
"I, personally, think this is exactly what Portland has needed for quite some time. Confrontation will happen Saturday night. We can only hope the same reaction that happened in NYC when the "park cleaning that needs to be done" event happened, comes to Portland."
Apparently the assumption is that a confrontation will result in sympathy for the protesters, especially if violence occurs. Invite violence to help the cause. I've seen this movie before.
Mark Madden nailed it last April!
Madden: Sandusky a State secret - Timesonline.com: Mark Madden::
Worst-case scenario: Sandusky is charged. Then it seems reasonable to wonder: Did Penn State not make an issue of Sandusky's alleged behavior in 1998 in exchange for him walking away from the program at an age premature for most coaches? Did Penn State's considerable influence help get Sandusky off the hook?
Don't kid yourself. That could happen. Don't underestimate the power of Paterno and Penn State in central Pennsylvania when it comes to politicians, the police and the media."
This column was written ... last April!
"Best-case scenario: Charges are never brought, and Sandusky walks away with his reputation permanently scarred. The rumors, the jokes, the sideways glances - they won't ever stop. Paterno and Penn State do the great escape.
Worst-case scenario: Sandusky is charged. Then it seems reasonable to wonder: Did Penn State not make an issue of Sandusky's alleged behavior in 1998 in exchange for him walking away from the program at an age premature for most coaches? Did Penn State's considerable influence help get Sandusky off the hook?
Don't kid yourself. That could happen. Don't underestimate the power of Paterno and Penn State in central Pennsylvania when it comes to politicians, the police and the media."
This column was written ... last April!
Oregon University System enrollment hits record-high 100,000 students | OregonLive.com
Oregon University System enrollment hits record-high 100,000 students | OregonLive.com:
Portland State University grew by only 1.5 percent, but remains the state's largest university with 28,958 students.
Worth repeating
In my email signature ...
My good friend, the late Ger Moran, thought I should do a one-man show on Chesterton because I resembled him so much. This does look like me! It would have been a potentially good show because he said so many juicy and witty things. Too old now, except maybe to write it, but that takes more energy than I can imagine having for a project like that. I'm barely crawling through my Opus Major of a short novel.
"I believe what really happens in history is this: the old man is always wrong; and the young people are always wrong about what is wrong with him. The practical form it takes is this: that, while the old man may stand by some stupid custom, the young man always attacks it with some theory that turns out to be equally stupid." -- G. K. Chesterton
My good friend, the late Ger Moran, thought I should do a one-man show on Chesterton because I resembled him so much. This does look like me! It would have been a potentially good show because he said so many juicy and witty things. Too old now, except maybe to write it, but that takes more energy than I can imagine having for a project like that. I'm barely crawling through my Opus Major of a short novel.
Occupy Portland holds general assembly in front of City Hall to respond to mayor's eviction notice | OregonLive.com
Occupy Portland holds general assembly in front of City Hall to respond to mayor's eviction notice | OregonLive.com:
""If they use pepper spray, make sure you're not wearing makeup and have lots of water," she said. "We have 2 1/2 days. Make sure you sleep and rest up.""
Apparently they are preparing to dig in. Bye bye focus and message. Progressives have been looking good of late, i.e. this week's election, but this is going to lose progressives ground if it gets ugly and turns into a law and order issue, which conservatives always take advantage of. Where is the creative leadership in this leaderless group that can find new ways to do things so that the message isn't changed and lost?
Apparently they are preparing to dig in. Bye bye focus and message. Progressives have been looking good of late, i.e. this week's election, but this is going to lose progressives ground if it gets ugly and turns into a law and order issue, which conservatives always take advantage of. Where is the creative leadership in this leaderless group that can find new ways to do things so that the message isn't changed and lost?
Grand jury report is not ambiguous
Some people act as if there's ambiguity in the alleged crimes at Penn State. Read the grand jury report. Warning: this excerpt is graphic. But where is the ambiguity?
Where is the ambiguity? Where is the defense of inaction when faced with a horrific crime? I mean, the grad asst didn't even yell, "Stop it!"
And the grad asst still has a job! He's supposed to coach Saturday!
The Feds are going to see this and hopefully make some arrests. Obviously Penn State will do the minimum required to save its ass.
As the graduate assistant put his sneakers into his locker, he looked into the shower. He saw a naked boy, Victim 2, whose age he estimated to be 10 years old, with his hands up against the wall, being subjected to anal intercourse by a naked Sandusky.So what does the grad asst, a 28 y/o beefy former football player do? Leave and phone his dad. What does daddy do? Tell him to get the hell out of there. The kid is left alone! The next day they tell Paterno.
Where is the ambiguity? Where is the defense of inaction when faced with a horrific crime? I mean, the grad asst didn't even yell, "Stop it!"
And the grad asst still has a job! He's supposed to coach Saturday!
The Feds are going to see this and hopefully make some arrests. Obviously Penn State will do the minimum required to save its ass.
Fall day
Rain on the way, though. I wish I were home raking leaves. Might not be able to tomorrow.
Something Is Rotten At Penn State - The Dish | By Andrew Sullivan - The Daily Beast
Something Is Rotten At Penn State - The Dish | By Andrew Sullivan - The Daily Beast:
"That the structure of Penn State - and its creepy Paterno worship - allowed this to happen is bad enough. That the student body would rather side with a negligent football coach over a raped child is beyond belief."
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
Penn State Students Take To The Streets, Chant Support For Paterno
Penn State Students Take To The Streets, Chant Support For Paterno:
Speaks to the magnitude of "football culture" at Penn State. This should be a no-brainer if protecting children were a strong value.
Speaks to the magnitude of "football culture" at Penn State. This should be a no-brainer if protecting children were a strong value.
Wednesday, November 09, 2011
As concerns grow over camp, chief, mayor plan announcement
As concerns grow over camp, chief, mayor plan announcement | Local & Regional | KATU.com - Portland News, Sports, Traffic Weather and Breaking News - Portland, Oregon: "PORTLAND, Ore. - More and more city commissioners now have concerns about activities going on at the camps in Lownsdale and Chapman squares, and a 10 a.m. Thursday news conference has been scheduled with the mayor and police chief.
The city isn't giving details about what Mayor Sam Adams and Chief Mike Reese will say, but it comes as The Oregonian reports police are drafting an "action plan" to clear out campers if ordered to do it."
May you live in interesting times.
The city isn't giving details about what Mayor Sam Adams and Chief Mike Reese will say, but it comes as The Oregonian reports police are drafting an "action plan" to clear out campers if ordered to do it."
May you live in interesting times.
Joe Paterno, president Graham Spanier out at Penn State - ESPN
Joe Paterno, president Graham Spanier out at Penn State - ESPN:
"STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- Penn State trustees fired football coach Joe Paterno and university president Graham Spanier amid the growing furor over how the school handled sex abuse allegations against an assistant coach."
About time.
About time.
ESPN's Bilas on Penn State: 'A conspiracy of cowards'
ESPN's Bilas on Penn State: 'A conspiracy of cowards':
I don't want to believe that Paterno lasts long enough to coach on Saturday. But it may well happen.
I don't want to believe that Paterno lasts long enough to coach on Saturday. But it may well happen.
Pressure mounts on Joe Paterno as tensions boil at Penn State - College Football News | FOX Sports on MSN
Pressure mounts on Joe Paterno as tensions boil at Penn State - College Football News | FOX Sports on MSN:
"“I believe in Joe Paterno!” the crowd echoed.
“I believe in Joe Paterno!” she screamed again.
“I believe in Joe Paterno!”
So it had come to this. For much of the day a thoughtful woman, her baby in hand, her husband at her side, had sat on these same steps hoping to remind anyone she could that evil can triumph when good men stay silent. And then the students came, the masses, occupying the same place she had — but now celebrating the man who had stayed as silent as anyone.
This, too, is the world Joe Paterno and his football program now inhabit: one shaped by the silence, one in which the question of culpability — of evil — rests in how easily we excuse the kind of cowardice that leads to the worst kind of crime."
“I believe in Joe Paterno!” she screamed again.
“I believe in Joe Paterno!”
This, too, is the world Joe Paterno and his football program now inhabit: one shaped by the silence, one in which the question of culpability — of evil — rests in how easily we excuse the kind of cowardice that leads to the worst kind of crime."
Excellent reflections on Penn State scandal.
Fire all of them now, starting with Paterno | Philadelphia Inquirer | 11/09/2011
Fire all of them now, starting with Paterno | Philadelphia Inquirer | 11/09/2011:
"It is over. The Paterno era, the football-as-religion era at Penn State, all of it is over now. It is hard to grasp, and it is a terrible thing, but know that Paterno and his cronies did this to themselves when they failed to deal with the situation in 1998 or 2002.
Paterno's attempted end-around, announcing his season's-end retirement in advance of possible action by the board of trustees, comes off as one more tone-deaf act of a guy who doesn't quite get it."
Hear, hear!
Paterno's attempted end-around, announcing his season's-end retirement in advance of possible action by the board of trustees, comes off as one more tone-deaf act of a guy who doesn't quite get it."
Hear, hear!
Ed Dept. investigating Penn State sex abuse case - NCAA Football - SI.com
Ed Dept. investigating Penn State sex abuse case - NCAA Football - SI.com:
"Education Secretary Arne Duncan says the allegations, if true, are a tragedy for the boys. He says it would be even worse if officials knew about the abuse and didn't report it."
TGIW
I was looking forward to today because I had nothing, absolutely nothing, that I had to do. And so I did nothing! A great opportunity for charging the battery, which I needed, which happened. Oh yeah, I did little inconsequential things: I read the LA Times in the morning, I made breakfast, I caught up on anything breaking from Penn State, I ran a couple errands with the dog, I watched an escapist TV cop thriller, I got my afternoon iced coffee (highlight of the day!) ... and now I may even go downstairs and do a little work tonight.
This was a great day.
Portland Commissioner Dan Saltzman says 'it's time to end' Occupy Portland | OregonLive.com
Portland Commissioner Dan Saltzman says 'it's time to end' Occupy Portland | OregonLive.com:
I predict an ugly, violent ending. There are enough protesters who will not move under any condition. They think the press will help their cause. "The whole world is watching." I've seen this movie before.
I predict an ugly, violent ending. There are enough protesters who will not move under any condition. They think the press will help their cause. "The whole world is watching." I've seen this movie before.
Football culture
The problem was identified with dark humor a long time ago by Ambrose Bierce:
A university president with courage could get the ball rolling immediately. Call a summit meeting of university presidents at schools with major sports programs. The topic at hand: how to make a smooth transition to changing the culture. First step, abolish all athletic scholarships. I repeat, abolish all athletic scholarships for football and basketball (worry about lesser "cash insignificant" sports later). Then work with professional sports to arrange a lease arrangement so they can use present stadiums for the new farm league system they themselves will have to start, manage and pay for. In other words, college football and basketball become intramural sports played without any scholarship players. Those who want a professional sports career go to farm leagues, which the professional leagues will be forced to create, and the university benefits financially by leasing stadiums for these new farm league games.
This changes the culture by castrating the present system. The horrific cover-up at Penn State is a direct consequence of the power and arrogance of football programs at major sports universities. This culture must be demolished.
Of course, this won't happen. There's no way in hell this will happen. But nothing less, in my view, is going to change a damn thing, and so Bierce's insight, made so long ago, will remain as the sad theme song of university major sports programs.
A final thought. I've thought it here before. If men didn't have dicks, would there be any news to report other than natural disasters?
There you have it. What is needed is a return to the earlier focus of academe. To do this, the major sports cultures -- football and basketball -- major because it is here where the university becomes a voluntary farm system for professional sports, must be demolished so something new (old!) and better can be born.From The Devil's Dictionary by Ambrose Bierce
A university president with courage could get the ball rolling immediately. Call a summit meeting of university presidents at schools with major sports programs. The topic at hand: how to make a smooth transition to changing the culture. First step, abolish all athletic scholarships. I repeat, abolish all athletic scholarships for football and basketball (worry about lesser "cash insignificant" sports later). Then work with professional sports to arrange a lease arrangement so they can use present stadiums for the new farm league system they themselves will have to start, manage and pay for. In other words, college football and basketball become intramural sports played without any scholarship players. Those who want a professional sports career go to farm leagues, which the professional leagues will be forced to create, and the university benefits financially by leasing stadiums for these new farm league games.
This changes the culture by castrating the present system. The horrific cover-up at Penn State is a direct consequence of the power and arrogance of football programs at major sports universities. This culture must be demolished.
Of course, this won't happen. There's no way in hell this will happen. But nothing less, in my view, is going to change a damn thing, and so Bierce's insight, made so long ago, will remain as the sad theme song of university major sports programs.
A final thought. I've thought it here before. If men didn't have dicks, would there be any news to report other than natural disasters?
Joe Paterno
I've been a great fan of Paterno for a long time. Stanford and Penn State were the great examples of what college football could be, competitive teams with true scholar-athletes playing who put academics first or very high.
But this scandal does not surprise me. I've seen too many "shocking" events before this to be surprised. No human depravity surprises me any more.
But Paterno's statement today, saying he will retire at the end of the season, is a self-serving mask that troubles me. He says he is giving the Board of Trustrees a break, so they don't have to decide whether or not to fire him. Forget me now, he says. I'll go. Worry about other things. IN OTHER WORDS, take me off the hook for my behavior, don't make me pay for any past mistakes.
They should fire Paterno today.
But this scandal does not surprise me. I've seen too many "shocking" events before this to be surprised. No human depravity surprises me any more.
But Paterno's statement today, saying he will retire at the end of the season, is a self-serving mask that troubles me. He says he is giving the Board of Trustrees a break, so they don't have to decide whether or not to fire him. Forget me now, he says. I'll go. Worry about other things. IN OTHER WORDS, take me off the hook for my behavior, don't make me pay for any past mistakes.
They should fire Paterno today.
Rick Reilly - The Penn State scandal - ESPN
Rick Reilly - The Penn State scandal - ESPN:
"Don't feel sorry for Paterno. He's had his life. Feel sorry for these boys, because they may never get one."
Winter class
Changing the time of my screenwriting class from 430 to noon hasn't affected enrollment -- it just filled for undergrads, with some slots for grad students left (which I can fill with undergrads if they don't fill). It always fills very quickly.
Go figure
I've always been puzzled why my play Who Forgives? bombed here. It wasn't new material to be tested, after all -- it had premiered in Cork, Ireland, and went on to be a finalist for an annual new drama award. It did well in Ireland, both popular and critically praised. The Irish director suggested that one reason it did well was that it raised an issue very much on the Irish mind, pedophilia, but in a "foreign" American context divorced from the Catholic Church. The few people here who told me they admired the play were fans who tend to like anything I do. It was a decent production here, Stark Raving Theatre liked it enough to produce it, so what was the problem? I have no idea. Fortunately the success in Ireland meant more to me than the failure here.
But it shows you what a crap shoot "success" in the arts is. You have to learn, in this reality, to take success as well as failure with a grain of salt, find and stick by your own standards and principles, and do your work without losing sleep about what audiences may or may not like. The Salinger quotation at the bottom of this blog is right on.
But it shows you what a crap shoot "success" in the arts is. You have to learn, in this reality, to take success as well as failure with a grain of salt, find and stick by your own standards and principles, and do your work without losing sleep about what audiences may or may not like. The Salinger quotation at the bottom of this blog is right on.
Moral outrage
Late last night I watched the first episode of an excellent new documentary about Vietnam on the History Channel. It was sad. The policy of Search & Destroy, take no prisoners, is sad and horrific. Early this morning I heard the excellent Mike & Mike radio show go over the Penn State scandal in great detail, including considerable sharing of passionate moral outrage. Justified moral outrage.
But even at the time, even being part of those against the war, I don't remember any visceral gut-wrenching moral outrage about dropping napalm on unarmed peasants. More recently I don't remember visceral gut-wrenching outrage at torturing prisoners. Disagreement, yes, even outrage, but not to the degree being shown now regarding Penn State.
Then is one evil greater than the other? Or in the latter two cases, does the context, War Is Hell, lessen our outrage?
Penn State also brings to mind my 1996 play Who Forgives?, which asks if pedophiles can recover, if we can forgive them (a play that bombed here after opening in Ireland and being a finalist for a drama prize. Same script, different production and most definitely a different audience.)
But even at the time, even being part of those against the war, I don't remember any visceral gut-wrenching moral outrage about dropping napalm on unarmed peasants. More recently I don't remember visceral gut-wrenching outrage at torturing prisoners. Disagreement, yes, even outrage, but not to the degree being shown now regarding Penn State.
Then is one evil greater than the other? Or in the latter two cases, does the context, War Is Hell, lessen our outrage?
Penn State also brings to mind my 1996 play Who Forgives?, which asks if pedophiles can recover, if we can forgive them (a play that bombed here after opening in Ireland and being a finalist for a drama prize. Same script, different production and most definitely a different audience.)
Tuesday, November 08, 2011
Ohio Issue 2: Controversial Anti-Union Law Defeated By Voters
Ohio Issue 2: Controversial Anti-Union Law Defeated By Voters:
"WASHINGTON -- Ohioans overturned a divisive anti-union law on Tuesday, delivering a significant defeat to Republican Gov. John Kasich and a victory to labor unions."
TGIW
Worn out. Thank the gods tomorrow is Wednesday with nothing I must get done.
The History Channel started a new series tonight, Vietnam in HD, based largely on reprocessed home movies. It's quite good, though watching it makes me very sad and very angry. One great lesson of old age is the irrefutable understanding of human stupidity, how we learn nothing from history, how each generation reinvents the wheel. This, the forest. Among the trees, stories of individuals who refuse to follow the Plans of their Institutions. Groups behave more badly than individuals?
One wonders if this might be true: the more you can avoid human institutions, the greater your chances for a sane life.
The History Channel started a new series tonight, Vietnam in HD, based largely on reprocessed home movies. It's quite good, though watching it makes me very sad and very angry. One great lesson of old age is the irrefutable understanding of human stupidity, how we learn nothing from history, how each generation reinvents the wheel. This, the forest. Among the trees, stories of individuals who refuse to follow the Plans of their Institutions. Groups behave more badly than individuals?
One wonders if this might be true: the more you can avoid human institutions, the greater your chances for a sane life.
Freedom & Responsibility -- An Existential Overview
Freedom & Responsibility -- An Existential Overview:
"Ways of Avoiding Responsibility
There are several common examples of how people avoid responsibility in American culture. Conformity is one good example. Americans pride themselves on being autonomous individuals to the point of idealizing individualism. However, upon closer analysis, Americans find extremely creative ways of giving up their freedom. Americans conform through blind allegiance to various organizations and institutions including political parties and religious institutions. This is not to say that being dedicated to either of these are bad. In fact, often they can lead to very positive outcomes. The problem comes with blind allegiance where a person gives up their responsibility to critically think through the beliefs, perspectives, and values of the organization. When this happens, the individual's values are no longer authentic."
There are several common examples of how people avoid responsibility in American culture. Conformity is one good example. Americans pride themselves on being autonomous individuals to the point of idealizing individualism. However, upon closer analysis, Americans find extremely creative ways of giving up their freedom. Americans conform through blind allegiance to various organizations and institutions including political parties and religious institutions. This is not to say that being dedicated to either of these are bad. In fact, often they can lead to very positive outcomes. The problem comes with blind allegiance where a person gives up their responsibility to critically think through the beliefs, perspectives, and values of the organization. When this happens, the individual's values are no longer authentic."
Bottom line at Penn State
Pennlive.com nails it:
And how did a university president responsible for the welfare of thousands of young people respond to the very idea that an older man was showering with a boy and engaging in “inappropriate conduct” on campus?Complete story.
They banned Jerry Sandusky from bringing children on campus.
That was all.
Here is what they did not do:
Neither Joe Paterno nor Graham Spanier called the police.
Energy
I've had low energy since my 2 mile romp thru the fog in my slippers. Not sick today, really, but just feel drained. I'm reminded of the blues song, Goin' down slow. That's what I feel like. I'm goin' down slow.
Not.
Need a battery charge!
Not.
Need a battery charge!
Michael Weinreb on Joe Paterno, Jerry Sandusky, and dealing with the controversy at Penn State - Grantland
Michael Weinreb on Joe Paterno, Jerry Sandusky, and dealing with the controversy at Penn State - Grantland:
"The place where I grew up is gone, and it's not coming back."
Another moving piece.
You never know what you think you know
The Penn State family is in shock because they "thought" they "knew" the nice coach who may, in fact, be a calculating pedophile. Welcome to reality. I've had my great shock of perception (see my short film Deconstructing Sally, the subtitle of which is "reflections on memory and hallucination") and you've no doubt had yours. They usually aren't as extreme as living next door to a serial killer or pedophile, but the hard lesson is that friendship, like so many things, is a leap of faith and faith sometimes gets betrayed. No, I'd say it often gets betrayed: look at the divorce rate. Fidelity gets betrayed half the time. This is the world we live in.
If you have any blessings, thank the gods.
If you have any blessings, thank the gods.
Sandusky scandal: Washington Post suggests shutting down Penn State football program for good | PennLive.com
Sandusky scandal: Washington Post suggests shutting down Penn State football program for good | PennLive.com:
This is extreme -- and I am for it! Penn State had the reputation of being above your average football program, "winning with honor," and shutting down the program would be to start playing hardball with these corrupt football programs (and basketball) across the country. Get colleges out of the prof sports recruiting business. Yes, time to shut down programs and replace them with intramural sports, kicking stars off the team (hear that, Oregon?), it is time to play hard ball.
This is extreme -- and I am for it! Penn State had the reputation of being above your average football program, "winning with honor," and shutting down the program would be to start playing hardball with these corrupt football programs (and basketball) across the country. Get colleges out of the prof sports recruiting business. Yes, time to shut down programs and replace them with intramural sports, kicking stars off the team (hear that, Oregon?), it is time to play hard ball.
Penn State scandal
Shocking but not surprising if you've realized, as I have, that the human capacity for evil, cruelty and betrayal is limitless. We also have Shakespeare and Bach. It's a zero-sum universe.
Monday, November 07, 2011
JFK
“He was elated. He knew he’d been nominated.” Ben Bradlee, though, was stunned to see how little attention the exhilarated victor showed his wife that night. “Kennedy ignored Jackie, and she seemed miserable at being left out of things. She was then far from the national figure she later became in her own right. She . . . stood on a stairway, totally ignored, as JFK made his victory statement on television. Later, when Kennedy was enjoying his greatest moment of triumph to date, with everyone in the hall shouting and yelling, Jackie quietly disappeared and went out to the car and sat by herself, until he was ready to fly back to Washington.”
Screenwriting
A former student, now in grad school at NYU, writes:
But he has no idea how to write a screenplay. When one of the students asked if the descriptive language should go where we describe the scene, he said "Sure, all the flowery language should go there. It's no different from writing a book." I almost burst out laughing and was hard pressed to keep my mouth shut for the rest of the class.This was not in a screenwriting class but an exercise in a creative writing class -- but speaks to the widespread wrong info about screenwriting out there, even in classes in respectable schools. This was a lazy teacher because it is very easy to document that screenwriting is very different indeed from writing a book. I see this sort of thing more often than I'd like and it's always depressing. The students are the ones who suffer.
Sunday, November 06, 2011
Small pleasures
One thing about moving slower, as old age dictates, is you get to appreciate small pleasures along the way that you may have missed before. The smallest moment -- a greeting by a barista who remembers your name -- exudes positive energy.
Not sure I like gaining an hour today. So far, the only result is I made myself breakfast a 4 a.m. instead of 5 a.m.
Caught up on school work! This means I can spend some time on the short novel tomorrow.
Not sure I like gaining an hour today. So far, the only result is I made myself breakfast a 4 a.m. instead of 5 a.m.
Caught up on school work! This means I can spend some time on the short novel tomorrow.
Saturday, November 05, 2011
Football
Coach Rick must want to keep his job: UCLA, despite shooting themselves in the foot more than once, upset Ariz St 29-28. Amazing.
The LSU-Ala game was not the game of the century but was a good defensive game. I don't think either one is #1, though. I think Ok St, Stanford, even Oregon could give either one a game.
In fist half, Oregon looks good. Boise St looks bad.
Washington is hanging in, though, and may give Oregon a 2nd half to worry about. I like Price, the Wash QB, more than Oregon's Thomas. In fact, I think the 2nd string Oregon QB is better.
Boise St better watch out or they will be upset by a nobody tonight.
The LSU-Ala game was not the game of the century but was a good defensive game. I don't think either one is #1, though. I think Ok St, Stanford, even Oregon could give either one a game.
In fist half, Oregon looks good. Boise St looks bad.
Washington is hanging in, though, and may give Oregon a 2nd half to worry about. I like Price, the Wash QB, more than Oregon's Thomas. In fact, I think the 2nd string Oregon QB is better.
Boise St better watch out or they will be upset by a nobody tonight.
Keep warm
Feeling a little sicker. At least I got my scripts read today, will comment on them tomorrow.
Enjoyed Stanford beating up on Oregon State. Watching UCLA, waiting for the Big Game, Ala-LSU. But the fun game is tonight, Oregon at Washington. I think I'm going to go for the upset, Washington. Terrible thing, going against your alma mater, but I just don't like the Nike culture at Oregon. I definitely want Stanford to beat Oregon next week because I want Stanford to go all the way. This means I want Ok St to lose today.
For some reason, UCLA is looking great on its first possession.
Enjoyed Stanford beating up on Oregon State. Watching UCLA, waiting for the Big Game, Ala-LSU. But the fun game is tonight, Oregon at Washington. I think I'm going to go for the upset, Washington. Terrible thing, going against your alma mater, but I just don't like the Nike culture at Oregon. I definitely want Stanford to beat Oregon next week because I want Stanford to go all the way. This means I want Ok St to lose today.
For some reason, UCLA is looking great on its first possession.
Recovering
Have a killer sore throat, my Achilles heel, which worries me, no doubt a result of my Hike Resulting From Stupidity yesterday morning. Hanging in, reading scripts -- spirits raised by a really nice job by a student.
Great games coming up, want to finish first readings before they start.
Damn, my espresso hand press makes a good cup of coffee!
Great games coming up, want to finish first readings before they start.
Damn, my espresso hand press makes a good cup of coffee!
Election 2012 with a third party option - The Washington Post
Election 2012 with a third party option - The Washington Post:
A very interesting idea. See what happens in June.
A very interesting idea. See what happens in June.
Friday, November 04, 2011
Zero-sum universe II
The gods in powwow. Look, the old dude suffered too much, he had to walk two miles in the freezing morning without a coat, in his slippers, without a phone to get help. We have to send some positive energy his way. Send him an unexpected royalty check, suggests one. He got one earlier in the week -- he laughed! Well, make it larger, large enough so he won't laugh.
And this was done. And I didn't laugh. Ebooks generate more royalties than print books these days.
And this was done. And I didn't laugh. Ebooks generate more royalties than print books these days.
Oligarchy, American Style - NYTimes.com
Oligarchy, American Style - NYTimes.com: Paul Krugman.
"But why does this growing concentration of income and wealth in a few hands matter? Part of the answer is that rising inequality has meant a nation in which most families don’t share fully in economic growth. Another part of the answer is that once you realize just how much richer the rich have become, the argument that higher taxes on high incomes should be part of any long-run budget deal becomes a lot more compelling.
The larger answer, however, is that extreme concentration of income is incompatible with real democracy. Can anyone seriously deny that our political system is being warped by the influence of big money, and that the warping is getting worse as the wealth of a few grows ever larger?
Some pundits are still trying to dismiss concerns about rising inequality as somehow foolish. But the truth is that the whole nature of our society is at stake."
The larger answer, however, is that extreme concentration of income is incompatible with real democracy. Can anyone seriously deny that our political system is being warped by the influence of big money, and that the warping is getting worse as the wealth of a few grows ever larger?
Some pundits are still trying to dismiss concerns about rising inequality as somehow foolish. But the truth is that the whole nature of our society is at stake."
America's Young Adults Flocking To These Seven Cities: Brookings
America's Young Adults Flocking To These Seven Cities: Brookings:
Portland and Seattle make the list.
Portland and Seattle make the list.
Move Your Money Activists Prepare For Bank Transfer Day On Nov. 5
Move Your Money Activists Prepare For Bank Transfer Day On Nov. 5:
Now here is a protest that makes sense. Already got ours in a Credit Union.
Now here is a protest that makes sense. Already got ours in a Credit Union.
Chief orders police to have gas mask, baton, helmets ready
Chief orders police to have gas mask, baton, helmets ready | Local & Regional | KATU.com -
"PORTLAND, Ore. -- Citing the tone of Wednesday's march that "seemed to change from previous events," Portland Police Chief Mike Reese ordered police officers to wear different uniforms, which includes gas masks, batons and helmets, starting Friday."
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
Linus Pauling
OPB's Oregon Experience recently had a nice documentary on Linus Pauling. Pauling, it turns out, played a small but important role in my own journey.
I started my sophomore year at Cal Tech in a confused state of mind. I was doing well enough: a B-average, A's in all my math courses (my major) and Mathematics Magazine had accepted a number theory article of mine. But I was unhappy. I realized for the first time that I really wasn't bright enough to be the "pure mathematician" I wanted to be. I had no desire to be an engineer or "practical" scientist. Moreover, my good friend with whom I had gone from Pasadena High School to Cal Tech had committed suicide that summer. (In retrospect, I believe he was a closet gay.) I'd dropped football due to an injury, even through at the end of spring practice I was first string QB in the single wing, a blocking position, and second string tailback. Worse, I was still living at home, Cal Tech being in Pasadena. I felt in my gut it was time to leave home.
In this state I was sitting on a bench on campus, eating my lunch, one fall afternoon. Linus Pauling strolled by and asked if he could join me. He'd been my freshman chemistry professor. I also had become something of a groupy of his new book No More War.
He sat down and for some reason I opened up to him when he asked how things were going. I don't remember much from that encounter but what I do remember is that he gave me a pep talk about the importance of having good humanists in the world, every bit as important as having good scientists. There was nothing wrong with leaving Cal Tech for another college and majoring in philosophy or history, which is what I was thinking of doing.
His pep talk influenced my decision. I left at the end of the term and transferred to Berkeley. My wild ride of changes had just begun and by the end of the summer I'd be in the Army. But leaving home, leaving Cal Tech with a B average, needed validation and Linus Pauling gave it to me. I've always thought his pep talk about the humanities made all the difference in the world.
I started my sophomore year at Cal Tech in a confused state of mind. I was doing well enough: a B-average, A's in all my math courses (my major) and Mathematics Magazine had accepted a number theory article of mine. But I was unhappy. I realized for the first time that I really wasn't bright enough to be the "pure mathematician" I wanted to be. I had no desire to be an engineer or "practical" scientist. Moreover, my good friend with whom I had gone from Pasadena High School to Cal Tech had committed suicide that summer. (In retrospect, I believe he was a closet gay.) I'd dropped football due to an injury, even through at the end of spring practice I was first string QB in the single wing, a blocking position, and second string tailback. Worse, I was still living at home, Cal Tech being in Pasadena. I felt in my gut it was time to leave home.
In this state I was sitting on a bench on campus, eating my lunch, one fall afternoon. Linus Pauling strolled by and asked if he could join me. He'd been my freshman chemistry professor. I also had become something of a groupy of his new book No More War.
His pep talk influenced my decision. I left at the end of the term and transferred to Berkeley. My wild ride of changes had just begun and by the end of the summer I'd be in the Army. But leaving home, leaving Cal Tech with a B average, needed validation and Linus Pauling gave it to me. I've always thought his pep talk about the humanities made all the difference in the world.
Zero-sum universe
So I blog about how casual and stress free my days ahead are.
I go on an errand and on way home 2 miles from home, the car dies. I have no coat. I'm in my slippers. No cell. A long freezing walk home, then calling AAA, to the mechanic etc ... and that will teach me to say too much about good fortune.
I go on an errand and on way home 2 miles from home, the car dies. I have no coat. I'm in my slippers. No cell. A long freezing walk home, then calling AAA, to the mechanic etc ... and that will teach me to say too much about good fortune.
Occupy splitting?
A report on the morning news has a group calling itself "the Real Occupy Portland" splitting from the rest in protest of the recent aggressive tactics. I've seen this movie before.
TGIF
Glad to be home on a chilly gray day. Just enough work from class to keep me busy at a relaxed pace over the next four days, with room for work on the novel, reading, watching football and such. If I keep at it, I can do it all at a slow pace, which is what I intend to do. Too old to rush around at the last minute.
Off to mail bills, get coffee in Starbucks has a parking place, which at this hour they may not, maybe cruise to clear the mind before coming home to work.
I'm really enjoying the new book on JFK by Chris Matthews, which shatters many myths about him with considerable documentation, regarding relationships with father, Bobby, etc. Curious how he'll handle the womanizing and the assassination. Last I heard Matthews believed the single assassin theory, which no one who has looked at the medical evidence or full eye-witness testimony should believe.
Onward.
Off to mail bills, get coffee in Starbucks has a parking place, which at this hour they may not, maybe cruise to clear the mind before coming home to work.
I'm really enjoying the new book on JFK by Chris Matthews, which shatters many myths about him with considerable documentation, regarding relationships with father, Bobby, etc. Curious how he'll handle the womanizing and the assassination. Last I heard Matthews believed the single assassin theory, which no one who has looked at the medical evidence or full eye-witness testimony should believe.
Onward.
Thursday, November 03, 2011
Jonathan Hobratsch: Shakespeare Is Shakespeare
Jonathan Hobratsch: Shakespeare Is Shakespeare:
"In an effort to do my academic duty to save young minds from going astray, I present to you ten of the most obvious reasons that William Shakespeare is the author of the works of William Shakespeare."
An opera of canaries
News from The Associated Press:
"WASHINGTON (AP) -- The global output of heat-trapping carbon dioxide jumped by the biggest amount on record, the U.S. Department of Energy calculated, a sign of how feeble the world's efforts are at slowing man-made global warming."
It's become a large operatic chorus of canaries in our coal mine, folks.
It's become a large operatic chorus of canaries in our coal mine, folks.
Revealed – The Capitalist Network That Runs the World | Common Dreams
Revealed – The Capitalist Network That Runs the World | Common Dreams:
"As protests against financial power sweep the world this week, science may have confirmed the protesters' worst fears. An analysis of the relationships between 43,000 transnational corporations has identified a relatively small group of companies, mainly banks, with disproportionate power over the global economy."
'via Blog this'
'via Blog this'
An extraordinary, long forgotten theatrical event
I've had a long, productive career as a playwright. My resume lists 51 play openings between 1970 and 2005. Of course, most of these are very minor and insignificant. But the list speaks to an active career until recently.
I remind you of this to put in context a theatrical event I generated with high school seniors at The Catlin Gabel School a quarter century ago. It's one of the more extraordinary theatrical events I've ever been associated with.
In the late 80s I was invited to serve three months at Catlin Gabel, a private school with very high standards, as a writer in residence. I jumped at the opportunity. It turned out so well they wanted me to stay longer but for this had to go into another funding source, so I followed the residency with a 2nd 3-month residency as scholar in residence. Six months at Catlin Gabel, working with a dozen bright seniors interested in writing and theater, for which I was very well paid. My classroom was a CABIN at the edge of the woods near the soccer field. Talk about a gift from the gods!
For their term project, they decided to write and perform a short hyperdrama. A hyperdrama! I couldn't believe it but naturally was delighted. So I guided them through the process and directed the play. The process was incredible because these kids were so bright and so ambitious. They even wrote and produced a short film, a film within the play, which was a satire of the short film sent by the school to parents of prospective students. The film was in French with subtitles. The central conflict in the play was the rebellion of students against the Catlin administration's desire to make French the official language on campus. They all hated French ha ha.
There was one "free spirit" among the students, a hippy girl of hippy parents, who didn't want to do any but her own thing. How to fit her in? The kids came up with a brilliant solution -- she was a Catlin Gabel ghost and she would wander through the action of the play at will, reciting her poetry, and some of the cast members could see the ghost and others couldn't. It worked out great!
The play was witty, funny, complex, layered, mysterious, almost coherent, just a delight to see grow and bloom. On production night, the audience of parents and Catlin community members was mostly bewildered and lost but the kids knew what a great job they had done and I was amazed by them, a very proud director who deserved little credit.
The play got no notice anywhere except in the school newsletter. Almost no one saw it. It was only done once. And yet it is very high on my list of theatrical events I've been a part of. Those kids were amazing. I bet it's one of the few, and maybe even the only, hyperdramas ever written and performed by high school students. The film within the play was worth the price of admission. Imagine all the work they did!
What an amazing event. Seen by almost no one.
I remind you of this to put in context a theatrical event I generated with high school seniors at The Catlin Gabel School a quarter century ago. It's one of the more extraordinary theatrical events I've ever been associated with.
 |
| Back in the woods, the cabin of my classroom |
There was one "free spirit" among the students, a hippy girl of hippy parents, who didn't want to do any but her own thing. How to fit her in? The kids came up with a brilliant solution -- she was a Catlin Gabel ghost and she would wander through the action of the play at will, reciting her poetry, and some of the cast members could see the ghost and others couldn't. It worked out great!
The play was witty, funny, complex, layered, mysterious, almost coherent, just a delight to see grow and bloom. On production night, the audience of parents and Catlin community members was mostly bewildered and lost but the kids knew what a great job they had done and I was amazed by them, a very proud director who deserved little credit.
The play got no notice anywhere except in the school newsletter. Almost no one saw it. It was only done once. And yet it is very high on my list of theatrical events I've been a part of. Those kids were amazing. I bet it's one of the few, and maybe even the only, hyperdramas ever written and performed by high school students. The film within the play was worth the price of admission. Imagine all the work they did!
What an amazing event. Seen by almost no one.
Super committee
Has it ever been easier to be a cynic about Congress? My prediction: the super committee reaches no agreement. The automatic cuts phase in but before they become effective, Congress vetoes them. So we're back where we started, not an inch of progress or resolution, more rancor than ever, and an election coming up.
The Occupy movement is standing on a rare golden opportunity to put voter numbers and popular principles behind a viable third party, energy directed in a much more productive direction than walking into predictable confrontations with the police. Of course, a fringe in the movement wants violent confrontations and there may even be corporate spies in there because changing the focus to law and order lets corporations and the wealthy off the hook.
This really is a rare opportunity in terms of popular consensus. It will be a tragedy if it doesn't find meaningful political expression rather than the current symbolic expression.
Cynic that I am, I predict lost opportunity.
The Occupy movement is standing on a rare golden opportunity to put voter numbers and popular principles behind a viable third party, energy directed in a much more productive direction than walking into predictable confrontations with the police. Of course, a fringe in the movement wants violent confrontations and there may even be corporate spies in there because changing the focus to law and order lets corporations and the wealthy off the hook.
This really is a rare opportunity in terms of popular consensus. It will be a tragedy if it doesn't find meaningful political expression rather than the current symbolic expression.
Cynic that I am, I predict lost opportunity.
The current Occupy movement is to progressive change as masturbation is to starting a family.
Art Scatter » Blog Archive » Till death do us part: the junk’s in the mail
Art Scatter » Blog Archive » Till death do us part: the junk’s in the mail:
Happens to the best of us.
Ashes to ashesdust to dustin Portlandwe justturn to rust.
Happens to the best of us.
My Kindle newspaper
Ever since I got my Kindle I've been looking for a good fit for me for a daily newspaper. It's taken this long to find it.
The Oregonian would be the logical choice but I haven't liked the paper in decades, though I loved it in the NW Mag Bianco days, when sometimes the supplement looked more like a literary mag than a newspaper. Besides the Kindle O is over-priced. However, I get a watered-down version free M-F through a web service to keep up on local news.
For I while I bought the Sunday NY Times and let it go at that. But I missed a good paper through the week. I tried various ones -- you get a two week free trial for them all -- but either too much irrelevant "local" things didn't interest me in papers from Seattle, Chicago, DC, or I didn't like the format or the price.
Finally I found a good fit. The LA Times! The local news there is about places I know because I lived there. The layout and features, like a daily list of best cable films, suit me fine. I can follow the UCLA football disaster more closely. The price is right, less than many. So now I've become a regular reader of the LA Times. I wonder how many of us are in Portland.
My other subscriptions on Kindle are The NYorker and the NY Review of Books. I'm set!
The Oregonian would be the logical choice but I haven't liked the paper in decades, though I loved it in the NW Mag Bianco days, when sometimes the supplement looked more like a literary mag than a newspaper. Besides the Kindle O is over-priced. However, I get a watered-down version free M-F through a web service to keep up on local news.
For I while I bought the Sunday NY Times and let it go at that. But I missed a good paper through the week. I tried various ones -- you get a two week free trial for them all -- but either too much irrelevant "local" things didn't interest me in papers from Seattle, Chicago, DC, or I didn't like the format or the price.
Finally I found a good fit. The LA Times! The local news there is about places I know because I lived there. The layout and features, like a daily list of best cable films, suit me fine. I can follow the UCLA football disaster more closely. The price is right, less than many. So now I've become a regular reader of the LA Times. I wonder how many of us are in Portland.
My other subscriptions on Kindle are The NYorker and the NY Review of Books. I'm set!
Occupy Oakland Violence: Peaceful Occupy Protests Degenerate Into Chaos
Occupy Oakland Violence: Peaceful Occupy Protests Degenerate Into Chaos:
"OAKLAND, Calif. -- A day of demonstrations in Oakland that began as a significant step toward expanding the political and economic influence of the Occupy Wall Street movement, ended with police in riot gear arresting dozens of protesters who had marched through downtown to break into a vacant building, shattering windows, spraying graffiti and setting fires along the way.
"We go from having a peaceful movement to now just chaos," said protester Monique Agnew, 40."
Unfortunately I think this will become a pattern. The issue will change from redistribution of wealth to law and order.
"We go from having a peaceful movement to now just chaos," said protester Monique Agnew, 40."
Unfortunately I think this will become a pattern. The issue will change from redistribution of wealth to law and order.
Wednesday, November 02, 2011
Colbert Report
The Colbert Report
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive
This is too easy.
Get More: Colbert Report Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,Video Archive
This is too easy.
Was Shakespeare really Shakespeare? - William Shakespeare - Salon.com
Was Shakespeare really Shakespeare? - William Shakespeare - Salon.com: "A new film by the director of "Independence Day" tries to revive a literary conspiracy -- and fails disastrously"
Denisovans Mated With Humans, Study Says
Denisovans Mated With Humans, Study Says:
DUH! I don't care how prehistoric humans were, males will fuck anything that moves.
DUH! I don't care how prehistoric humans were, males will fuck anything that moves.
Loose ends
I felt good about my book of poems when it was published. Naturally I hoped it would get some attention. But things didn't start out well. The Oregonian wouldn't review it, for reasons I don't understand. Wordstock wouldn't add me to their list of dozens and dozens of writers who read there, for reasons I don't understand. Given my contribution to Portland letters over the past 30+ years, I took both as a Great Insult. I still do. You heard about Scorpios and grudges. So there was the book, ignored and dangling loose ends.
Bob Hicks to the rescue! Hicks appreciated the book and took the time to say so. And he's so smart and writes so well, his piece on it was a delight to read and he totally got the book. You can't ask for more than that. Dangling loose ends tied into a neat bow and nothing else has to happen.
As a matter of fact, I'm feeling like nothing else has to happen to me at all in the public arena. The book of poems is a kind of public literary swan song, and the short novel I'm working on is a kind of private literary swan song, and that's that. I hope to turn to animated art songs after the novel is done. A new direction. A new challenge. I think I've said about all I have to say in the traditional literary forms, and in the short novel I'm making a final statement by fooling around with the form itself. Nobody will dig it -- correction, a few may well dig it but they'll all live in Europe.
So it's not like I'm packing up or even retiring. I'm just "done" as a "writer" the way I've been writing. Half a century is long enough. Animated art songs are calling for my attention.
I'm glad I'm not younger. But if I were, I think I'd use my design for a hyperdrama theater and see if I could actually pull it off. Interestingly enough, on the world stage, my reputation in hyperdrama is greater than in anything else. They really should have given me a McArthur Fellowship for my Chekhov Hyperdrama, you know. I'm serious. Nothing wrong with my ego. But, of course, first someone would have to know about it, and as far as I know all of its fans, every single one, are in Europe and mainly in Scandinavia (where it's even used in a couple of grad theses.) I wish the design for a hyperdrama theater hadn't come to me so late in life. (I talk about the design at the end of this video.)
But hey, what a wild blessed writer's life I've had! And this convoluted thing I'm working on now may, privately, be the wildest, most fun thing yet. So I'm far from done. Just done, or feeling done, in the PUBLIC arena, and that's quite all right. I've had a hell of a lot more good press over the years than most writers. It's just that here and now, nobody respects their elders ha ha.
Well, they'll be old soon enough. Nature always wins. Nature always gets the last laugh.
Bob Hicks to the rescue! Hicks appreciated the book and took the time to say so. And he's so smart and writes so well, his piece on it was a delight to read and he totally got the book. You can't ask for more than that. Dangling loose ends tied into a neat bow and nothing else has to happen.
As a matter of fact, I'm feeling like nothing else has to happen to me at all in the public arena. The book of poems is a kind of public literary swan song, and the short novel I'm working on is a kind of private literary swan song, and that's that. I hope to turn to animated art songs after the novel is done. A new direction. A new challenge. I think I've said about all I have to say in the traditional literary forms, and in the short novel I'm making a final statement by fooling around with the form itself. Nobody will dig it -- correction, a few may well dig it but they'll all live in Europe.
So it's not like I'm packing up or even retiring. I'm just "done" as a "writer" the way I've been writing. Half a century is long enough. Animated art songs are calling for my attention.
I'm glad I'm not younger. But if I were, I think I'd use my design for a hyperdrama theater and see if I could actually pull it off. Interestingly enough, on the world stage, my reputation in hyperdrama is greater than in anything else. They really should have given me a McArthur Fellowship for my Chekhov Hyperdrama, you know. I'm serious. Nothing wrong with my ego. But, of course, first someone would have to know about it, and as far as I know all of its fans, every single one, are in Europe and mainly in Scandinavia (where it's even used in a couple of grad theses.) I wish the design for a hyperdrama theater hadn't come to me so late in life. (I talk about the design at the end of this video.)
But hey, what a wild blessed writer's life I've had! And this convoluted thing I'm working on now may, privately, be the wildest, most fun thing yet. So I'm far from done. Just done, or feeling done, in the PUBLIC arena, and that's quite all right. I've had a hell of a lot more good press over the years than most writers. It's just that here and now, nobody respects their elders ha ha.
Well, they'll be old soon enough. Nature always wins. Nature always gets the last laugh.
Venus, the morning star
In high school, I was one of a handful of teenagers accepted as a member of Harvard Observatory's AAVSO, the American Association of Variable Star Observers. I was assigned three variable stars to observe throughout the year, estimating their brightness and sending my results to the observatory. I did this religiously, frequently having to arise between midnight and four in the morning to make my observations. Other guys were chasing girls and swilling beer. I was at my telescope at 3 a.m., estimating a star's brightness.
In retrospect, this solitary experience shaped my comfort with solitude throughout my life. In fact, it was booze, discovered in the Army, more than anything else that made me highly social and when I quit drinking, I recaptured my earlier appreciation of solitude, so that today were it not for teaching, which gets me out of the house, I'd be damn near an urban hermit. This is an observation, not a complaint.
At the end of the year the AAVSO distributed a ranking of its members by number of observations. One year I was in the top three in California. The number one observer, during my membership, was always someone from Africa. I really liked doing this. I felt I was "making a contribution" to science, which in fact I was in my small way. It was enough. And the nice thing about it, unlike contributions to literary culture, the contribution was clear, quantifiable, unambiguously appreciated. Writers never get this kind of security.
I always expected to become an astronomer through high school. Then I learned that professional astronomers spend very little time actually looking through telescopes. End of that dream. I decided to become a "pure mathematician." I even published in Mathematics Magazine as a sophomore at Cal Tech, my first publication, about a new solution to an obscure number theory problem. But math is nothing if not clear and at Cal Tech I learned that, despite publishing so early, I really didn't have what it took to become a significant mathematician. I would've made a great math teacher, I think, but I also was living at home at the time, Cal Tech being in my home town of Pasadena, and it was time to break away and live on my own and discover myself. With a B average at Cal Tech, I transferred to Berkeley, broke my mother's heart, quickly went nuts at Berkeley and became a street person instead of a student, spent all my money, lived in a tree house, finally joined the Army and broke my mother's heart again (we were a Navy family), and in the Army my future life finally found early definition. It was quite a ride.
Hell, it still is quite a ride.
No Love For November, Sports' Drama-Free Month : NPR
No Love For November, Sports' Drama-Free Month : NPR:
Frank DeFord nails it at the end of this audio story. Sports events butcher the national anthem and God Bless America so much, someone should write a movie claiming that Francis Scott Key and Irving Berlin did not write them!
DeFord's novel Casey on the Loose, a whimsical tale about the writing of "Casey at the Bat," may be the funniest baseball novel ever written. Out of print, you can pick up a hard copy at Amazon for a penny! Highly recommended. Not sure why it didn't do well.
DeFord's novel Casey on the Loose, a whimsical tale about the writing of "Casey at the Bat," may be the funniest baseball novel ever written. Out of print, you can pick up a hard copy at Amazon for a penny! Highly recommended. Not sure why it didn't do well.
Tuesday, November 01, 2011
Keeping the faith
If there's one thing I have faith in, it's the value of my literary archive (here).. There are things in there that will work as well far down the timeline as now. I'll never know, of course, so this is an irrational belief of faith. Call me egocentric or wrong or defensive or delusional or even a Republican, but I believe this to my core. The wonderfully mysterious scene of Sirc discovering my essay in a basement library, about which I've written before (here), will be repeated. And that's pretty cool, even if I'm not around to enjoy it. I'm enjoying it now, which is why I sometimes can be seen smiling as if for no reason.
I'm learning that all those seemingly mad old coots on the street may not be so mad after all. They just know something I don't know.
I'm learning that all those seemingly mad old coots on the street may not be so mad after all. They just know something I don't know.
My warm office
Man, it is winter outside! I froze my ass off on my circuitous hobble from bus stop to Starbucks to university. But did I bring hot coffee? Nope. The usual ICED coffee. Go figure.
Met another hobbling old man along the way. It was like being young and jogging around a track, a guy comes beside you, you go faster, he goes faster, and the next thing you know, you're racing. This must have been hilarious to watch! I forfeited first, with a pain in my knee. He hobbled to victory without a word. I need to turn this into a vignette for the book. It's all material. It all comes from whole cloth. (It's the difference between writing inside-out and writing outside-in.)
I have a couple hours before class and I am delighted to have them. Some web work to do.
Met another hobbling old man along the way. It was like being young and jogging around a track, a guy comes beside you, you go faster, he goes faster, and the next thing you know, you're racing. This must have been hilarious to watch! I forfeited first, with a pain in my knee. He hobbled to victory without a word. I need to turn this into a vignette for the book. It's all material. It all comes from whole cloth. (It's the difference between writing inside-out and writing outside-in.)
I have a couple hours before class and I am delighted to have them. Some web work to do.
Mellow Tuesday
A few hours to kill before heading out to the university. Lately I catch the once-an-hour bus that comes nearby, parking the car on the street. Get to campus about 2. Get home about 730.
Probably will catch up on reading, rather than writing or proofing. Might even squander some time on TV.
We had so little summer this year, depressing to realize how many months I have to wait for a return to warm weather. I didn't get my quota.
Think I'll read the new book on JFK by Chris Mathews, even though he's one of those stubborn traditional journalists who buys the single assassin theory despite all the medical evidence against it.
Maybe I'll go back to bed.
Probably will catch up on reading, rather than writing or proofing. Might even squander some time on TV.
We had so little summer this year, depressing to realize how many months I have to wait for a return to warm weather. I didn't get my quota.
Think I'll read the new book on JFK by Chris Mathews, even though he's one of those stubborn traditional journalists who buys the single assassin theory despite all the medical evidence against it.
Maybe I'll go back to bed.
Remarkable Monday
Yesterday was full of twists and surprises. Quite a day.
- I started early and by ten had my class work done.
- My check, which is automatically deposited, didn't show up. I later found out I was not "in the system" -- this after 14 years of teaching there! Amazing. The wonderful office manager in the Eng Dept got it all fixed for me.
- Bob Hicks wrote generously about my book of poems. This raised memory of my irritation at being rejected to read from the book at Wordstock. I mean, dozens and dozens of writers read there, they couldn't find fifteen minutes for "one of Portland's literary lions," "one of Oregon's most precious natural resources," which is what I've been called in the press (mean things as well), fifteen minutes for an old fart to read a few poems as a personal gesture of something ending? Nope. I was stunned. But I surely got the message. So it was terrific to get support from Hicks, an arts writer as good as any in town (and beyond for that matter).
- I got a small royalties check. They always surprise me. They always crack me up. Coffee money.
- I did Skype with H in New Hampshire. She is surviving the storm.
- I got some good work done on Sodom, Gomorrah and Jones , which is beginning to feel a tad like my Finnegans Wake, that is, a work of layered self-indulgent complexity and fun.
I hope the rest of the week is quieter than Monday.
Turning point
Looks like Occupy Portland has reached a turning point with a new focus on expanding into more parks. More arrests this morning when this was done. Those arrested wear it like a badge of honor. I've seen this movie before.
I've become pretty cynical about the truly progressive future of this movement. What protesters must realize is this:
I also think Norman Brown is probably right: politics itself is the problem. History is a self-repeating nightmare, as Joyce said. It's all been said before. And the madness continues.
Perhaps there are no social solutions, only individual ones. You learn to live "out of society" as much as possible .Self-reliance. Thoreau.
These are the same questions my protagonist wrestles with.
As in almost everything I think these days, I hope I am wrong about my prediction of future violence.
I've become pretty cynical about the truly progressive future of this movement. What protesters must realize is this:
- 99% is a misleading emblem of support. Change the question -- should we have socialism? should capitalism end? or even should laws be obeyed? -- and they will discover they are in the minority.
- The protesters live in a culture with an established strong anti-intellectual tradition. I hear romantic notions of radical workers, slogans popular in the 30s. (When my labor play was performed to longshore union members in the 70s, younger members thought it was a commie play!) I hear "the people" used without notions of reality.
- I see self-indulgence, getting arrested being its own goal and focus, romantic revolutionaries in the zone.
I also think Norman Brown is probably right: politics itself is the problem. History is a self-repeating nightmare, as Joyce said. It's all been said before. And the madness continues.
Perhaps there are no social solutions, only individual ones. You learn to live "out of society" as much as possible .Self-reliance. Thoreau.
These are the same questions my protagonist wrestles with.
As in almost everything I think these days, I hope I am wrong about my prediction of future violence.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
