Dear America,
"In a world where thrushes sing
and willow trees are golden
in the spring,
boredom should have been
included among
the seven deadly sins."
Elizabeth Gouge, writer
indeed
oh to be bored in America these days...one would have to have their head in the sand, paying absolutely no attention to the coming and going of quite the cast of characters leading the political and cultural and moral narratives -- and there are aplenty.
This girl -- is just beginning a new book, a Christmas present: On Reading Well, by Karen Swallow Prior, who is, per her bio, "an award-winning professor of English at Liberty University...a research fellow with the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, a senior fellow with Liberty University's Center for Apologetics and Cultural Engagement, a senior fellow with the Trinity Forum, and a member of the Faith Advisory Council of the Humane Society of the United States."
I'm only a few pages into her introduction.
She does say to take it s l o w, so....
She does say to take it s l o w, so....
...so I'm taking her at her word. And I just love how she critiques the act of reading too quickly right off the bat, saying, "speed-reading gives you two things that should never mix: superficial knowledge and overconfidence."
...which just so happens to bring me -- ever so gracefully, I might add -- to something mentioned only in passing just yesterday: my candid opinion awaits, of the post written by Leslie Marshall upon the democratic socialist darling, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also recognized as "AOC."
Marshall marching lock step with the AOC must have its day.
so let me give you a minute to read it....
da da dada da da da, da! da dada da da da
and take your time.
da da dada da da da, da! da dada da da da
Returning to Prior's introduction On Reading Well -- she weaves together Aristotle's Poetics, and insights of Aristotle's Poetics by Paul Taylor, highlighting this passage about "a well-crafted plot, the element of literature that Aristotle identifies as the most important," saying -- "[Aristotle's Poetics] centers on the fact that the individual actions of characters follow with probability or necessity from a combination of three factors: the characters' humanity, their individual personalities, and their involvement in the circumstances depicted in the plot." "In other words," says Prior, "plot reveals character. And the act of judging the character of a character shapes the reader's own character."
indeed
"the act of judging the character of a character shapes the reader's own character." wow.
So if the things we spend our precious time reading truly shapes us -- fiction and non-fiction alike --what is this modern world actually doing to us, as a people, as a community, as a country?
What we read and how we respond, react, and experience the things we read has dramatically changed -- now, more often than not, it's upon electronic devises and less upon the pages of real books; now, more often than not, it's through websites and news-feeds and less upon the pages of real literature. And it is all comes at a lightning pace, all the live long day. It's a rush of emotion, hastily judging this or that, and printed for the entire world to see within seconds, creating a world wide web of material, opening to a thread of responses in an instant. One after another. Who has time to read anything else, right?
We read.
We write.
We feed our curiosity through Google or Bing.
We read some more.
We write some more.
But I digress.
My first response to Marshall's Ode to the AOC, Alex from the Bronx, goes something like this:
um, Alexandria created her own image, taking advantage of her wealth of superficial knowledge mixed with a supersize level of over confidence, all by herself, Leslie.
Might I add, she's a big girl, too.
She knew exactly what she was getting into -- opening herself up to the public, freely sharing her ideological dreams to effect change, and manufacturing a certain political prowess simply by asserting her young, enthusiastic, spirit in combination with riding upon the energy and coattails of another gimmick in government -- widely recognized as a movement, in and of itself, following the political ambitions of a party of one, Bernie Sanders.
Neither one speaks to the true character of American government -- that being, America, the exception; America, the first of its kind -- let alone the foundation laid by our founders of good character, men of great knowledge of civilizations long ago, who ultimately created a political system which resoundingly relied upon a society of virtuous, educated, patriotic, and compassionate people, to keep and care for America, generation after generation.
"Our world was built on the solid pillars of three great civilizations: Jerusalem, Athens, and Rome. The first taught us to pray; the second, to think; and the third, to govern. Yet, as strong as they are, these pillars require our respectful study, contemplation, and defense, if they are to continue bearing the tremendous weight of the West. Absent this attention, we will continue to witness our ongoing decay and eventual collapse." this being said by a local book guy...Maxwell House of Books is coming to mind, but that is all I remember. oops, my bad. Must read more s l o w l y and take better notes.
It's like, Alexandria -- seriously? Socialism -- the politics you choose to preach -- is nothing more than "a philosophy of failure, with the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy. It's inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery." which is simply something once said by Winston Churchill
To change America, a republic, into whatever Utopian dream you believe will come of transforming our government by policies that will surely make the American people more dependent upon government in their life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, the more the American people will suffer.
You frequently question America's moral character, judging this or that -- guess what? What's unquestionably immoral is our level of national debt! The growing liabilities --the twenty trillion dollars in debt itself, the interest on our debt, our long list of entitlements and unfunded liabilities that we cannot afford...including social security...and heaven forbid we add Universal Healthcare for all, for all these things are essentially burying us; this simply personifies the kind of immorality that no nation can survive.
And Leslie -- Leslie, Leslie, Leslie -- this title...
Marshall marching lock step with the AOC must have its day.
so let me give you a minute to read it....
da da dada da da da, da! da dada da da da
and take your time.
da da dada da da da, da! da dada da da da
indeed
"the act of judging the character of a character shapes the reader's own character." wow.
So if the things we spend our precious time reading truly shapes us -- fiction and non-fiction alike --what is this modern world actually doing to us, as a people, as a community, as a country?
What we read and how we respond, react, and experience the things we read has dramatically changed -- now, more often than not, it's upon electronic devises and less upon the pages of real books; now, more often than not, it's through websites and news-feeds and less upon the pages of real literature. And it is all comes at a lightning pace, all the live long day. It's a rush of emotion, hastily judging this or that, and printed for the entire world to see within seconds, creating a world wide web of material, opening to a thread of responses in an instant. One after another. Who has time to read anything else, right?
We read.
We write.
We feed our curiosity through Google or Bing.
We read some more.
We write some more.
But I digress.
My first response to Marshall's Ode to the AOC, Alex from the Bronx, goes something like this:
um, Alexandria created her own image, taking advantage of her wealth of superficial knowledge mixed with a supersize level of over confidence, all by herself, Leslie.
Might I add, she's a big girl, too.
She knew exactly what she was getting into -- opening herself up to the public, freely sharing her ideological dreams to effect change, and manufacturing a certain political prowess simply by asserting her young, enthusiastic, spirit in combination with riding upon the energy and coattails of another gimmick in government -- widely recognized as a movement, in and of itself, following the political ambitions of a party of one, Bernie Sanders.
Neither one speaks to the true character of American government -- that being, America, the exception; America, the first of its kind -- let alone the foundation laid by our founders of good character, men of great knowledge of civilizations long ago, who ultimately created a political system which resoundingly relied upon a society of virtuous, educated, patriotic, and compassionate people, to keep and care for America, generation after generation.
"Our world was built on the solid pillars of three great civilizations: Jerusalem, Athens, and Rome. The first taught us to pray; the second, to think; and the third, to govern. Yet, as strong as they are, these pillars require our respectful study, contemplation, and defense, if they are to continue bearing the tremendous weight of the West. Absent this attention, we will continue to witness our ongoing decay and eventual collapse." this being said by a local book guy...Maxwell House of Books is coming to mind, but that is all I remember. oops, my bad. Must read more s l o w l y and take better notes.
It's like, Alexandria -- seriously? Socialism -- the politics you choose to preach -- is nothing more than "a philosophy of failure, with the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy. It's inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery." which is simply something once said by Winston Churchill
To change America, a republic, into whatever Utopian dream you believe will come of transforming our government by policies that will surely make the American people more dependent upon government in their life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, the more the American people will suffer.
You frequently question America's moral character, judging this or that -- guess what? What's unquestionably immoral is our level of national debt! The growing liabilities --the twenty trillion dollars in debt itself, the interest on our debt, our long list of entitlements and unfunded liabilities that we cannot afford...including social security...and heaven forbid we add Universal Healthcare for all, for all these things are essentially burying us; this simply personifies the kind of immorality that no nation can survive.
And Leslie -- Leslie, Leslie, Leslie -- this title...
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez deserves to be praised, not constantly criticized
really?
Why does this sound so whiny?
Honestly, I'm not sure what the AOC "deserves"....At first glance on this -- not sure she actually DESERVES any of this fame thus far. Albeit, she campaigned hard. She got plenty of support from her neighborhood. She is attractive and well-versed on slogans and rhetoric. But let's get real, shall we? This social-justice democrat, found hopping aboard the universal take down train against Trump, the pretty little liar of a package that she is -- even if it's out of ignorance, dominated the campaign and won the day all without a shred of experience, without a trace of paying her dues whether in business or politics, and as it would appear, only accomplishing such a feat, at such a young age, on gimmicks and an abundance of free publicity.
She IS like the bright new shiny thing, right, Claire (and fellow democrat); see also, AOC, stunt girl goes to Washington.
No. To weave a little wisdom from On Reading Well -- Alexandria, in full character, personifies the two things that should not mix...a wee bit of superficial knowledge with a whole lot of overconfidence. That idea is worth repeating over and over.
Yes, fair is fair in politics -- all character assessment comes via the experience, knowledge, education, well-read or not, of the character back reading between the lines, outside of the lines, and even going so far, as erasing lines. It's all part and parcel of the game of politics. We American people read, we write, we see with our own two eyes, and we critique everything.
I mean, let's take a look at the 99% of negative coverage from the mainstream media, and liberal cable outlets, against this sitting president -- then, and only then, can we fairly talk about what is fair. eh?
Oh Leslie -- and this part --
"One of my favorite songs is by Don Henley, “How bad do you want it?” The refrain says, “How bad do you want it? Not bad enough.” Crowley didn’t want it bad enough, didn’t fight hard enough, didn’t work hard enough. AOC did. And this I know from personal experience. I was the youngest person to be syndicated on national radio back in 1992, and many thought I must have done something less than legitimate to get there. Trust me, I got there on nothing but hard work and merit."
um, how do you really know, for sure, what gave you the start on the syndicated radio program...
Just maybe -- circa '92 -- radio channels were just looking for something different, maybe needing more women represented...and then gave you a chance? Maybe it had nothing to do with your age or experience, but you were just there. Given that, from what I see and according to your own resume, you entered radio in 1988 -- by '92, you were only four years in on this career. That isn't a long time. Maybe it's just me, but maybe it wasn't from all your hard work -- no matter how young and talented you may have been at the time, that led you to the opportunity....but more like a lucky break, or good timing, having very little to do with the merits? It's been done before, you know. YOU would not be the first, or the last ...see also AOC...just sayin'. [like, Hollywood is full of lucky breaks...everyone loves the newest, shiniest face...]
Now, of course, Leslie -- to be fair, and perfectly clear -- it could also be said, that you survived all these years, remaining in radio, and now on T.V., because you HAVE worked HARD and DESERVE it based on the merits and the wealth of experience under your belt.
anywho, Back to the AOC --
she is fair game.
It is so PC to disagree, and speak freely...this makes me crazy dizzy....suddenly I can't see straight.
It's kinda what we do in America....we read, we write, we speak our mind.
And then we read some more, write some more, speak some more, and so on.
What an entertaining lot we are.
What an entertaining lot we are.
The thing is -- you know what they say about hard work -- it builds character.
That I would like to see, in all of us.
So to the L and to the A:
get over it
stop whining
put on your big girl pants, to the both of you. [BTW...nobody forced the AOC to wear that suit retailing for 3 grand....now did they...you wear it, you open yourself up to criticism for whatever reason. See also Melania.]
So thank you, girls, for being my muse(s) on the day...and that goes to you, too, Karen Swallow Prior...can't wait to read the rest of the story.
At the end of the day, there is nothing I would like more than to spend more time On Reading Well;
At the end of the day, there is nothing I would like more than to spend more time On Reading Well;
and my hope for you, is to want to do the same.
Just think of the Nation of Character that we may one day build, in it's entirety, if we show more devotion to reading slow while reading well. amen to that.
Just think of the Nation of Character that we may one day build, in it's entirety, if we show more devotion to reading slow while reading well. amen to that.
the end.
Make it a Good Day, G
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