Op-Ed
“What if ‘the greatest story ever told’ is a lie?”
Given the immense reactionary power of today’s Church, and the violent intolerance of its fundamentalist minions, what more radical question could be asked?
No film has ever been in position to give a more penetrating answer than THE DAVINCI CODE. And…praise the Goddess!…it largely delivers.
It will be easy to fault this flick, and many will, for all sorts of reasons, including its often ponderous tone and mournful pace.
But whatever their pitfalls, this movie is a strong companion to a book that embodies a healing challenge to the virulent virus of reactionary “Christian” fundamentalism.
With a staggering 45 million copies in print, Dan Brown’s DAVINCI is a force of nature. It’s a solid murder thriller, full of twists and gadgetry, hidden riddles and secret codas.
But that alone cannot begin to explain the story’s huge appeal. As they say in New Age circles, “there must be a reason.”
Given the immense reactionary power of today’s Church, and the violent intolerance of its fundamentalist minions, what more radical question could be asked?
No film has ever been in position to give a more penetrating answer than THE DAVINCI CODE. And…praise the Goddess!…it largely delivers.
It will be easy to fault this flick, and many will, for all sorts of reasons, including its often ponderous tone and mournful pace.
But whatever their pitfalls, this movie is a strong companion to a book that embodies a healing challenge to the virulent virus of reactionary “Christian” fundamentalism.
With a staggering 45 million copies in print, Dan Brown’s DAVINCI is a force of nature. It’s a solid murder thriller, full of twists and gadgetry, hidden riddles and secret codas.
But that alone cannot begin to explain the story’s huge appeal. As they say in New Age circles, “there must be a reason.”
AUSTIN, Texas -- I hate to raise such an ugly possibility, but have you considered lunacy as an explanation? Craziness would make a certain amount of sense. I mean, you announce you are going to militarize the Mexican border, but you assure the president of Mexico you are not militarizing the border. You announce you are sending the National Guard, but then you assure everyone it's not very many soldiers and just for a little while.
Militarizing the border is a totally terrible idea. Do we have a State Department? Are they sentient? How much do you want to infuriate Mexico when it's sitting on quite a bit of oil? Bush knows what the most likely outcome of this move will be. He was governor during the political firestorm that ensued when a Marine taking part in anti-drug patrols on the border shot and killed Esequiel Hernandez, an innocent goat-herder from Redford, Texas. That's the definition of crazy -- repeatedly doing the same thing and expecting a different result.
Militarizing the border is a totally terrible idea. Do we have a State Department? Are they sentient? How much do you want to infuriate Mexico when it's sitting on quite a bit of oil? Bush knows what the most likely outcome of this move will be. He was governor during the political firestorm that ensued when a Marine taking part in anti-drug patrols on the border shot and killed Esequiel Hernandez, an innocent goat-herder from Redford, Texas. That's the definition of crazy -- repeatedly doing the same thing and expecting a different result.
Was Jesus married to Mary Magdalene? Did they have a daughter?
Questions about Christ's love life will dominate debate over the release of the DAVINCI CODE this weekend.
The answers do matter. But what really counts is the story's pagan/feminist core, and its role in the Culture War.
The spin has begun. As freaked-out fundamentalists focus on Jesus's sexuality, and on petty documentary talking points, they'll try to obscure DAVINCI'S lethal assault on the Church's reactionary male theocracy.
What's at stake is not the fine points of documentation and detail. Rather it's the contention that male-dominated Christian/Catholic fundamentalism is a repressive dictatorship that has thrown human life and sexuality dangerously out of balance.
Fiction it may be. But with 45 million copies in print, Dan Brown's DAVINCI is a force of nature. How Ron Howard's upcoming feature film deals with its core content will have significant impact.
Questions about Christ's love life will dominate debate over the release of the DAVINCI CODE this weekend.
The answers do matter. But what really counts is the story's pagan/feminist core, and its role in the Culture War.
The spin has begun. As freaked-out fundamentalists focus on Jesus's sexuality, and on petty documentary talking points, they'll try to obscure DAVINCI'S lethal assault on the Church's reactionary male theocracy.
What's at stake is not the fine points of documentation and detail. Rather it's the contention that male-dominated Christian/Catholic fundamentalism is a repressive dictatorship that has thrown human life and sexuality dangerously out of balance.
Fiction it may be. But with 45 million copies in print, Dan Brown's DAVINCI is a force of nature. How Ron Howard's upcoming feature film deals with its core content will have significant impact.
This day has been long coming. The graphs have shown it would soon be upon us: http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/9872 Now, here we are. With this new Harris poll, available through the Wall Street Journal http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB114735765551950179-fy1LPeyuG4da_… , President Bush claims the titlelong held by Richard Nixon: Least Liked President Ever (or at least since there have been polls). And this data comes to us from before the USA Today reported on Bush's NSA secretly monitoring our phone records http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/10210
Bush's approval rating is now at 29%, and disapproval at an astonishing 71%. Well, it's astonishing that it took so long to get there. But it's also record-setting. The best Nixon could do was 66%. Nobody else comes close. Bush is breaking new ground.
Bush's approval rating is now at 29%, and disapproval at an astonishing 71%. Well, it's astonishing that it took so long to get there. But it's also record-setting. The best Nixon could do was 66%. Nobody else comes close. Bush is breaking new ground.
Cindy Sheehan's interviews, essays, and speeches get better with each passing month, as her pain continues, her passion and insight grow, and the war that killed her son goes on – as the president who killed her son goes on being president. Cindy's latest book, "Dear President Bush," is the best of the three books by or about Cindy Sheehan that I've read.
"Not One More Mother's Child" was Cindy's first collection of essays. It's a longer book, including her writings from November 2004 to September 2005, along with some beautiful photographs and forwards by John Conyers, Thom Hartmann, and Jodie Evans. "The Vigil: 26 Days in Crawford, Texas" is a collection of newspaper reports on Camp Casey from the Lone Star Iconoclast, with a forward by Sheehan. These are both excellent books. One contains much of Cindy's brilliant and moving voice. The other comes close to setting the scene of what it was like to be in that place in Crawford last summer surrounded by so much emotion and so much hope.
"Not One More Mother's Child" was Cindy's first collection of essays. It's a longer book, including her writings from November 2004 to September 2005, along with some beautiful photographs and forwards by John Conyers, Thom Hartmann, and Jodie Evans. "The Vigil: 26 Days in Crawford, Texas" is a collection of newspaper reports on Camp Casey from the Lone Star Iconoclast, with a forward by Sheehan. These are both excellent books. One contains much of Cindy's brilliant and moving voice. The other comes close to setting the scene of what it was like to be in that place in Crawford last summer surrounded by so much emotion and so much hope.
In the red-hot debate over immigration, myth too often takes the place of truth. It is easier to rouse fears than it is to find common ground. It is time to step back, take a deep breath, and reflect before we react.
The truth is often distorted in ways that feed our divisions. For example, many contrast this generation of immigration with the Europeans who came at the beginning of the last century. That generation, we are told, came legally; whereas this generation of immigrants is coming illegally. That generation learned the language, whereas this one is writing the National Anthem in Spanish. Peggy Noonan, Reagan’s former speechwriter, writes about her Irish family that came over on the boat. “They waited in line. They passed the tests. They had to get permission to come… They had to get through Ellis Island, get questioned and eyeballed by a bureaucrat with a badge.”
The truth is often distorted in ways that feed our divisions. For example, many contrast this generation of immigration with the Europeans who came at the beginning of the last century. That generation, we are told, came legally; whereas this generation of immigrants is coming illegally. That generation learned the language, whereas this one is writing the National Anthem in Spanish. Peggy Noonan, Reagan’s former speechwriter, writes about her Irish family that came over on the boat. “They waited in line. They passed the tests. They had to get permission to come… They had to get through Ellis Island, get questioned and eyeballed by a bureaucrat with a badge.”
AUSTIN, Texas -- As I occasionally survey the pack of sycophantic shih tzus* in the Washington press corps, wriggling on their bellies to kiss the feet of those in power, I feel plumb discouraged about the future of journalism.
It's like a cross between Versailles under Louis XIV and high school: obsequious courtiers flattering their way to favor, plus the silly cliques of the "in crowd" and "out crowd." On the other hand, I am greatly cheered by the young journalists in the blogosphere who have now whelped a perfect litter of books worth paying attention to.
For my marbles and chalk, the pick is David Sirota's "Hostile Takeover: How Big Money and Corruption Conquered Our Government -- and How We Take It Back." Sirota is a new-generation populist who instinctively understands that the only real questions are "Who's getting screwed" and "Who's doing the screwing?"
It's like a cross between Versailles under Louis XIV and high school: obsequious courtiers flattering their way to favor, plus the silly cliques of the "in crowd" and "out crowd." On the other hand, I am greatly cheered by the young journalists in the blogosphere who have now whelped a perfect litter of books worth paying attention to.
For my marbles and chalk, the pick is David Sirota's "Hostile Takeover: How Big Money and Corruption Conquered Our Government -- and How We Take It Back." Sirota is a new-generation populist who instinctively understands that the only real questions are "Who's getting screwed" and "Who's doing the screwing?"
AUSTIN, Texas -- Of course I am above sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll. So serious a servant of the public interest am I, I can fogey with the best: On my better days, I make David Broder look like Page Six.
I don't care what anyone smoked 20 years ago, I approve of those who boogie 'til they puke, and I don't care who anyone in politics is screwing in private, as long as they're not screwing the public.
On other hand, if you expect me to pass up a scandal involving poker, hookers and the Watergate building with crooked defense contractors and the No. 3 guy at the CIA, named Dusty Foggo (Dusty Foggo?! Be still my heart), you expect too much. Any journalist who claims Hookergate is not a legitimate scandal is dead -- has been for some time and needs to be unplugged. In addition to sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll, Hookergate is rife with public interest questions, misfeasance, malfeasance and non-feasance, and many splendid moral points for the children. Recommended for Sunday school use, grades seven and above.
I don't care what anyone smoked 20 years ago, I approve of those who boogie 'til they puke, and I don't care who anyone in politics is screwing in private, as long as they're not screwing the public.
On other hand, if you expect me to pass up a scandal involving poker, hookers and the Watergate building with crooked defense contractors and the No. 3 guy at the CIA, named Dusty Foggo (Dusty Foggo?! Be still my heart), you expect too much. Any journalist who claims Hookergate is not a legitimate scandal is dead -- has been for some time and needs to be unplugged. In addition to sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll, Hookergate is rife with public interest questions, misfeasance, malfeasance and non-feasance, and many splendid moral points for the children. Recommended for Sunday school use, grades seven and above.
The Republican National Committee (RNC) has launched an aggressive campaign to smear Congressman John Conyers.
Here's the background: It is accepted common wisdom among reporters, pundits, congressional staffers, and a majority of Americans that Bush and Cheney lied us into a war. A new "smoking gun" piece of evidence makes the news on almost a weekly basis, and that has been going on for upwards of a year. Yet there has been no investigation in either branch of Congress, no oversight, no checks, no balances, no accountability.
Congressman Conyers has introduced a bill (H Res 635) cosponsored by 36 other Congress Members to create a bipartisan committee to investigate the Bush administration's use or misuse of pre-war intelligence. Should that investigation end up pointing in the same direction that an overwhelming mountain of publicly available evidence already points, then Bush and Cheney will easily merit impeachment. An impeachment is only an indictment. Following impeachment, the Senate holds a trial, and more evidence comes out.
Here's the background: It is accepted common wisdom among reporters, pundits, congressional staffers, and a majority of Americans that Bush and Cheney lied us into a war. A new "smoking gun" piece of evidence makes the news on almost a weekly basis, and that has been going on for upwards of a year. Yet there has been no investigation in either branch of Congress, no oversight, no checks, no balances, no accountability.
Congressman Conyers has introduced a bill (H Res 635) cosponsored by 36 other Congress Members to create a bipartisan committee to investigate the Bush administration's use or misuse of pre-war intelligence. Should that investigation end up pointing in the same direction that an overwhelming mountain of publicly available evidence already points, then Bush and Cheney will easily merit impeachment. An impeachment is only an indictment. Following impeachment, the Senate holds a trial, and more evidence comes out.
With the exception of Jews and African-Americans, no demographic group in the United States voted more heavily against Bush and for Gore and Kerry than did atheists, who make up 10 percent of the electorate. Atheists tend to be disproportionately progressive. So do atheistic countries.