Should you want to tear down a conservative woman at the next cocktail party, here are the steps. The first step is to argue that the woman does not believe what she claims; she’s just a “submissive little doll of the White Male Hierarchy. . . .” That’s classy.
All posts by Phil
Esquire Use E-Ink on Anniversary Issue Cover
Gearlog takes the cover apart and hacks it onto another cover.
Put Down the Pen, Step Away from the Keyboard
The site, 101 Reasons to Stop Writing, has not be updated in months, but it still has some good demotivators ala Despair, Inc. Here’s an excellent new example. [via Books, Inq.]
Sir Henry Taylor’s ‘The Hero’
This poem is a bit humanistic, but it strikes a resonate chord for today. The men we remember today were some of those good men we hear about often, the good men who did something in order to keep evil men from prevailing. This is “The Hero,” by Sir Henry Taylor.
What makes a hero?—not success, not fame,
Inebriate merchants, and the loud acclaim
Of glutted Avarice,—caps toss’d up in air,
Or pen of journalist with flourish fair;
Bells peal’d, stars, ribbons, and a titular name—
These, though his rightful tribute, he can spare;
His rightful tribute, not his end or aim,
Or true reward; for never yet did these
Refresh the soul, or set the heart at ease.
What makes a hero?—An heroic mind,
Express’d in action, in endurance prov’d.
And if there be preeminence of right,
Deriv’d through pain well suffer’d, to the height
Of rank heroic, ’t is to bear unmov’d,
Not toil, not risk, not rage of sea or wind,
Not the brute fury of barbarians blind,
But worse—ingratitude and poisonous darts,
Launch’d by the country he had serv’d and lov’d:
This, with a free, unclouded spirit pure,
This, in the strength of silence to endure,
A dignity to noble deeds imparts
Beyond the gauds and trappings of renown;
This is the hero’s complement and crown;
This miss’d, one struggle had been wanting still,
One glorious triumph of the heroic will,
One self-approval in his heart of hearts.
Footnote Evangelism
Tony Woodlief writes about Penguin Classics.
It struck me recently, however, that the editors at Penguin assume—most likely with good reason—that their readers have virtually no biblical knowledge. Thus when the Count says, in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, “But a stranger in a strange land, he is no one,” the editor dutifully provides a footnote to explain that this alludes to the book of Exodus. . . . maybe this will prove to be a postmodern form of evangelism. We can’t get most intellectuals within spitting distance of a church any more, but maybe we can reach them through footnotes.
Everything’s More Political Now
Nobel Prize Winner Orhan Pamuk on life after Nobel: “It made me more famous, it brought me so many new readers and it made it slightly difficult — it made everything I do more political than I’d expected.” Says something about the prize, doesn’t it?
The Big Day
Susan Wise Bauer talks about the myth of the publican date (I mean, publication date). The publication date used to be the day one could first find a book at his favorite bookstore. She writes, “‘Publication date’ now means: That window of opportunity during which the book is at the front of the store and also featured on as many media outlets as possible.”
Dark Horse, A Political Thriller
In Dark Horse, political strategist and author Ralph Reed included the first African-American presidential nominee in history, a controversial black pastor that stirs up the presidential race, and a GOP nominee with strong national security credentials who has problems with conservatives in his own party. Many commentators and reviewers have noted the eerie similarities to the 2008 campaign. With the selection of Sarah Palin to be John McCain’s running mate, Dark Horse has now correctly predicted the selection of only the second woman as a running mate in American history. In the book, the character is Betsy Hafer, who like Palin had been a governor for less than two years.
The book has been out since June 3, and it appears to be a winner. I heard Reed say that if you want to know what really goes on in the back rooms of a presidential campaign, read Dark Horse.
Olbermann, Matthews Will No Longer Cover Presidential Campaign
MSNBC has replaced Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews after what appears to be several instances of unprofessional behavior and liberal invectives. Olbermann was reportedly “very uncomfortable” during the Republican Convention. I gather Matthews got a bit tense lately too (more so than usual). David Gregory will replace the two men, which perhaps means he is twice the liberal as either of the first two.
Poll on Lit Mags
Do you read literary magazines? Give your reason through the link here.