The Obsessed and Deranged Up Close

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 28th, 2010 @ 12:55:22 pm , using 818 words
Category: Commentary

Frank Rich in Sunday Times (2-28-10) examines some of the elements of the IRS kamikaze mission and what it might mean in terms of current politics. It is beyond disturbing to see this kind of thing, which could have easily matched the Oklahoma City massa… more »
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Health Care Unsummit

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 26th, 2010 @ 02:09:12 pm , using 831 words
Category: Commentary

Briefly viewed the so-called health summit on CNN and was amazed at the alacrity of the statistical bullshit the Republicans kept throwing out. It reminds you of some kind of debating society where the facts don't matter; it's how the dishonesty is revea… more »
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Pathological Narcissism Nationalized

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 23rd, 2010 @ 08:00:14 am , using 837 words
Category: Commentary

Roger Cohen in the 2-22-10 NY Times hits on what Otto Kernberg wrote so well about thirty years ago (pathological narcissism) which has become a central feature of American life. Everyone locked into his own privacy, unable to feel the existence of the o… more »
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How to Fix the Broken Senate

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 22nd, 2010 @ 03:03:19 pm , using 267 words
Category: Commentary

  Warren Rudman in an op-ed in the WaPo comes through with what is probably the most intelligent ingredient that might pave the wave to an improved governanace in the Senate. But who knows if there is sanity enough to rely on such suggestions?  … more »
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DEMOCRACY IN INACTION REVISITED

Posted by: Steve Belasco
Published on February 21st, 2010 @ 09:49:03 am , using 998 words
Category: Commentary

In an earlier post I expressed some relief that with the Democratic majority pared to fewer than 60 we would have our old Senate back complete with filibuster. And if its own lust to inaction proved insufficient and it appeared on the verge of doing some… more »
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Health Reform from Kristof

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 18th, 2010 @ 10:04:27 am , using 216 words
Category: Commentary

Kristof in NYTimes asks the same questions again about the stalled health care reform deal and comes back with the same dismal assessment: We can't afford not to reform the system if we want to live in a sane world. Which doesn't explain obstructionism a… more »
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Variations on themes

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 15th, 2010 @ 11:04:52 am , using 206 words
Category: Poetry, Commentary

Valentine Sunday in San Miguel, sort of a lot going on, stopped for a beer with M. Night before big fiesta R. threw at Longhorn Barbecue, lots of food and drink. Breakfast near the Jardin, diner outside M's house with pina coladas and salad. World contin… more »
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IN ANCIENT CHARGE

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 12th, 2010 @ 02:09:52 pm , using 89 words
Category: Poetry

     IN  ANCIENT CHARGE   Charged up by the daily fury. No dice if there is not another spirit or play or bodily form outpacing desire. Notions of wealth come and go, artillery and engines bought & sold for war or traffic on the byway… more »
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Politics of Fear

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 10th, 2010 @ 08:37:14 am , using 370 words
Category: Commentary

The Republicans in congress are still following the Bush/Rove playbook for how to get elected as they did in 2004: Scare the people into thinking the Democrats are soft on terror. We're the heavies and we treat these turkeys like the inhuman trash they a… more »
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Saints 31, Colts 17

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 8th, 2010 @ 03:32:19 pm , using 65 words
Category: Poetry

Saints 31, Colts 17 Drew Brees drops back in time to let the receivers loose & whips the spiraling ball downfield. So much care in the plaything, the object of joy a fathomless human gravity without error, a dance and a battle, armor… more »
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Tax Vent

Posted by: Steve Belasco
Published on February 7th, 2010 @ 11:27:07 pm , using 1252 words
Category: Commentary

Tax Day is fast approaching. It’s only a couple of months away. I have begun preparations and, as usual, feel the need to vent. Here goes. Why is April 15 not a national holiday? In any sensible country the people would have demanded long ago that on t… more »
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Deficit Hysteria

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 5th, 2010 @ 01:12:09 pm , using 484 words
Category: Commentary

Krugman on what is a constant mantra from the Republicans these days, runaway deficits. the same folks who approved unpaid for wars and tax cuts for millionaires.  BP Krugman: Let’s talk for a moment about budget reality. Contrary to what you often h… more »
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Dialogue on Creeley: Bill Dodd (in remembrance)

Posted by: Bill Pearlman
Published on February 5th, 2010 @ 07:51:48 am , using 2681 words
Category: Commentary

The following was a dialogue Bill Dodd and I had just after Robert Creeley's death in 2005. I reprint it in homage to Dodd whose insights about Creeley were so strong and to hear Dodd again in the magazine he helped create. BP “ANYWAY, LIKE THE… more »
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