Lamar W. Hankins : Right-Wing Rants and the Abominable Straw Man

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
The abominable Straw Man argument. Image from Linda’s Bees.

Frosty the Straw Man:
How right-wing rants
poison political discussion

If we could have civil discourse about our disagreements and try to understand why we have differences of opinion, perhaps we would have fewer rants from all sides of the political divide.

By Lamar W. Hankins | The Rag Blog | December 10, 2013

The Internet is a marvelous tool when used honestly and correctly, and with recognition of its limitations. Not a week goes by that I don’t find in my email inbox ridiculous and false political narratives about some atrocity or other going on in Washington or directed by Washington. Our politicians are purveying plenty of nonsense without anyone making up stories about what they do.
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HISTORY / Bob Feldman : A People’s History of Egypt, Part 12, Section 1, 1947-1948

Posted on December 10, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
Police crack down on strikers in Mahalla, 1947, killing three workers. Image from Hossam el-Hamalawy / Flickr.

A people’s history:
The movement to democratize Egypt

Part 12: 1947-1948 period/Section 1 — Anti-imperialist left grows; Muslim Brotherhood collaborates with Egyptian regime.

By Bob Feldman | The Rag Blog | December 10, 2013

[With all the dramatic activity in Egypt, Bob Feldman’s Rag Blog “people’s history” series, “The Movement to Democratize Egypt,” could not be more timely. Also see Feldman’s “Hidden History of Texas” series on The Rag Blog.]
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Harry Targ : My Nelson Mandela

Posted on December 9, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
Nelson Mandela, 1918-2013.

My Nelson Mandela

Real historic figures get lionized, sanitized, and most importantly redefined as defenders of the ongoing order rather than activists who committed their lives to revolutionary changes…

By Harry Targ | The Rag Blog | December 10, 2013

One of the ironies of 21st century historical discourse is that despite significantly increased access to information, historical narratives are shaped by economic and political interest and ideology more than ever before.
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Michael James : Back to Uptown, 1965-1966

Posted on December 8, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
Two men, Uptown Chicago, 1966. Photos by Michael James from his forthcoming book, Michael Gaylord James’ Pictures from the Long Haul.

Pictures from the Long Haul:
Back to Uptown: Bye-bye California,
Chicago here I come, 1965-1966

I was glad to be back in Uptown, progressing along my path with another left turn and a big step into America.

By Michael James | The Rag Blog | December 9, 2013

[In this series, Michael James is sharing images from his rich past, accompanied by reflections about — and inspired by — those images. This photo will be included in his forthcoming book, Michael Gaylord James’ Pictures from the Long Haul.]
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Alan Waldman : ‘Last of the Summer Wine’ Has Kept Millions Laughing for 37 Years

Posted on December 3, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer

 
Waldman’s film and TV
treasures you may have missed:

British national treasure, Roy Clarke, created and wrote all 295 episodes of this droll series about three elderly Yorkshiremen with too much time on their hands.

By Alan Waldman | The Rag Blog | December 3, 2013

[In his weekly column, Alan Waldman reviews some of his favorite films and TV series that readers may have missed, including TV dramas, mysteries, and comedies from Canada, England, Ireland, and Scotland. Most are available on DVD and/or Netflix, and some episodes are on YouTube.]
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Alice Embree : Chile and the Politics of Memory

Posted on November 19, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
Me gustan los estudiantes. This painting by Austin’s Carlos Lowry is the cover art on the Fall 2013 NACLA Report on the Americas.

The contradictions of Chile
and the politics of memory

The elections in Chile take place as the country marks the fortieth anniversary of the bloody military coup that happened with covert U.S. assistance.

By Alice Embree | The Rag Blog | November 20, 2013

“[T]he battle over memory is a struggle over meaning…” — Steven S. Volk, “The Politics of Memory and the Memory of Politics,” Fall 2013 NACLA Report on the Americas.

On Sunday, November 17, Socialist Michelle Bachelet received 47% of the vote in a field of nine Chilean presidential candidates. She will go into a December 15 run-off with a candidate from the hard right, Evelyn Matthei, who received 25% of the vote. Bachelet will likely serve a second term as president of Chile. Continue reading →

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Paul Krassner : A Tale of Two Alternative Media Conferences

Posted on November 19, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
Event organizer Larry Yurdin at the 1970 Alternative Media Conference at Goddard College. Yurdin, who later managed Pacifica radio station KPFT in Houston, also attended the 2013 conference. Image from goddard.edu.

Returning to the scene…
A tale of two alternative media conferences

In 1970, the keynote speech was delivered by Ram Dass, the delightfully stimulating spiritual teacher. The 2013 event began with a celebration of the original conference.

By Paul Krassner | The Rag Blog | November 20, 2013

“In the time when new media was the big idea that was the big idea.” — Lyric from U2 song, ”Kite”

In June 1970, a charter flight was on its way from San Francisco to the Alternative Media Conference at Goddard College in Plainfield, Vermont. The passengers consisted entirely of attendees. Larry Bensky, then KPFA news anchor, recalls, “It was one of the craziest trips ever taken by anyone, anywhere, I’m sure. Many on the plane were tripping on acid.”
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RAG RADIO / Thorne Dreyer : Singer-Songwriter Slaid Cleaves in Interview and Performance

Posted on November 19, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
Slaid Cleaves in the studios of KOOP-FM in Austin, Friday, November 1, 2013. Photos by Roger Baker / The Rag Blog.

Rag Radio podcast:
Acclaimed Austin-based
singer-songwriter Slaid Cleaves

Slaid spins some yarns, tells how his study of philosophy, the inspiration of Woody Guthrie, and his stint as a busker on the streets of Ireland have influenced his music and his life. And he performs live for the Rag Radio audience.

By Rag Radio | The Rag Blog | November 19, 2013

Singer-songwriter Slaid Cleaves was our guest on Rag Radio, Friday, November 1, 2013. He joined us in discussion and performed live on the show.
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Harry Targ : STEM and the Tyranny of the Meme

Posted on November 19, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
The STEM ‘crisis’ and the ‘fear of falling behind’ meme.

The tyranny of the meme:
Commies, the arms race, and now STEM

The threats of the United States falling behind some fictional adversaries is a similar ‘meme’ to those that have been articulated by economic, political, and military elites at least since the end of World War II.

By Harry Targ | The Rag Blog | November 19, 2013

A spokesperson for Purdue University testified before a Congressional research and technology subcommittee on November 13 warning that the United States is “losing a cadre of innovators that will never come back.” The university spokesperson was echoing warnings that have been coming from his university and major research universities all around the country.
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BOOKS / Ron Jacobs : Marc Myers Tells Us ‘Why Jazz Happened’

Posted on November 18, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer

 

‘Jazz, man, that’s where I’m at’:
Chronicling the history of America’s music

Myers provides the reader with a deep, rich, and broad perspective on the confluence of jazz and U.S. history in the decades following World War Two.

By Ron Jacobs / The Rag Blog / November 18, 2013

[Why Jazz Happened by Marc Myers (2012: University of California Press); Hardcover; 266 pp; $30.51.]

After a very brief introduction, Walt Myers begins his history of jazz music with the bebop era. Charlie Parker’s saxophone floats in the background as he sets the background for a unique look at the economic, cultural, and even political circumstances of the last 70 or so years of jazz in the United States.
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Alice Embree : Anne Lewis’ New Website Brings Austin Movement History to Life

Posted on November 18, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
Filmmaker Anne Lewis’ new website is called Austin Beloved Community.

‘Austin Beloved Community’:
Anne Lewis’ new website
brings movement history to life

‘This was designed as cooperative and experimental. It’s really a community organizing art project.’

By Alice Embree | The Rag Blog | November 19, 2013

Austin Beloved Community is a gift. Movement history comes alive in a digital collage of collective memory — audio, film, photos and maps, and a rich diversity of local recollection.
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INTERVIEW / Jonah Raskin : Novelist Beverly Gologorsky Was Shaped by Sixties, Feminism, and The Bronx

Posted on November 15, 2013 by Thorne Dreyer
Novelist Beverly Gologorsky. Photo by Marion Ettlinger.

An Interview with Beverly Gologorsky:
Novelist and long-time activist’s
new book shouts its presence

“Working people are as ubiquitous as Blue Jays. When they fly they’re beautiful.”

By Jonah Raskin / The Rag Blog / November 16, 2013

No one wants to be saddled with labels from the past, certainly not that ubiquitous species known as the creative writer. But even writers — or perhaps especially writers — have emotional attachments to moments and to spaces from the past. That’s true for Beverly Gologorsky, the author of the 1999 novel, The Things We Do to Make it Home — and a new novel, Stop Here (Seven Stories; $16.95), the title of which practically shouts its presence.
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