Authenticity

That wonderfully smart and readable columnist at the New York Times, Paul Krugman, whom the NYT puts behind their TimesSelect wall, writes about authenticity in the politics of years past, as opposed to what passes for authenticity today.

Let me give you one example — a Democrat who said he’d work on behalf of workers and the poor. He even said he’d take on Big Business. But the truth is that while he was saying those things, he was living in a big house and had a pretty lavish summer home too. His favorite recreation, sailing, was incredibly elitist. And he didn’t talk like a regular guy.

Clearly, this politician wasn’t authentic. His name? Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

That was then. Authentic or not, during an incredibly difficult time, FDR put in place, policies and programs such as Social Security and the WPA that did, in the end, help millions of Americans who needed help.

Krugman goes on:

What does authenticity mean? Supposedly it means not pretending to be who you aren’t. But that definition doesn’t seem to fit the way the term is actually used in political reporting.

For example, the case of F.D.R. shows that there’s nothing inauthentic, in the normal sense of the word, about calling for higher taxes on the rich while being rich yourself. If anything, it’s to your credit if you advocate policies that will hurt your own financial position. But the news media seem to find it deeply disturbing that John Edwards talks about fighting poverty while living in a big house.

....

Oh, and as a candidate George W. Bush was praised as being more authentic than Al Gore. As late as November 2005, MSNBC’s chief political correspondent declared that Mr. Bush’s authenticity was his remaining source of strength. But now The A.P. says that Mr. Bush’s lack of credibility is the reason his would-be successors need to seem, yes, authentic.

Talk of authenticity, it seems, lets commentators and journalists put down politicians they don’t like or praise politicians they like, with no relationship to what the politicians actually say or do.

Beyond the vast amounts of money that are poured into campaigns, and the lengthy campaign period - to the point that we are all bored nearly to death by the candidates by the time we cast even a primary vote - we now have the fight for "authenticity". Of course, you don't have to actually be "authentic" - whatever meaning the word has taken on - you simply have to appear "authentic".

Krugman's advice to the media and the electorate:

Here’s a suggestion: Why not evaluate candidates’ policy proposals, rather than their authenticity? And if there are reasons to doubt a candidate’s sincerity, spell them out.

My, my, what a radical idea!

The coup de grâce, comes at the end:

The point is that questions about a candidate shouldn’t be whether he or she is “authentic.” They should be about motives: whose interests would the candidate serve if elected? And think how much better shape the nation would be in if enough people had asked that question seven years ago.

If you have access to TimesSelect, do read the entire column.

A wee confession: I have a problem with Edwards' $400 haircuts. Not because I believe that he should not get expensive haircuts - although why anyone needs a $400 haircut is puzzling to me - but because after the $400 haircut, his hair still looks so incredibly limp and lame that I wonder about his judgment.

Re the haircut: does this look like $400?



Photo by Rachel Feierman from Flickr.

Permission for use of phote from Creative Commons under these terms.

Feast Day Of Enmegahbowh.

Enmegahbowh, who was also called John Johnson, belonged to the Ojibwa Indian tribe in Minnesota.

He must have been born to some position in his tribe, as he had been set apart for a "Medicine Man" in youth, and his Indian name, Enmegahbowh, meant "The man who stands by his people," a significant name, which in time proved to be a true one.

He was sent as a missionary to Crow Wing, after two ministers before him had been unsuccessful in establishing a mission.

For a few years the mission work seemed at a stand still. From Canada Enmegahbowh received earnest invitations to go where comfort and hopeful work awaited him, but Bishop Whipple encouraged him, s[t]anding in the forefront for an unpopular cause and a hated people, and Enmegahbowh would prove the fitness of his name -- he would not desert his people.

The Ojibwa were moved by the US government to the White Earth Reservation in northern Minnesota, where:

Enmegahbowh labored earnestly, the government now aiding in the work by encouraging the Indians in civilized ways. A steam sawmill was built at White Earth Lake, where Indians were taught to run the machinery, and from which lumber was furnished for building purposes. Eastern churchmen assisted the mission, and a church and parsonage were built.

At the time of the consecration of the church in August, 1872, quite a party of the clergy and laity, through the kindness of Bishop Whipple, were enabled to visit White Earth.

The consecration was on Thursday. Friday morning, the chiefs signified to the bishop their wish to meet with him in a council, which was therefore held, that afternoon, on the hillside in front of the church. It was a picturesque scene -- the lovely landscape, the sunlight glancing through the tall oak trees on the bishop and Enmegahbowh, who sat in the centre, the chiefs and five or six clergymen grouped around. Behind the bishop three chairs were placed for the ladies of the party -- the first time, I think, that ladies were ever admitted to an Indian council.

Enmegahbowh died at White Earth at the age of 95.

The above quotes and information were taken from A Pioneer History of Becker County Minnesota, written by Alvin H. Wilcox (1907).

Prayer:

Almighty God, you led your pilgrim people of old with fire and cloud; grant that the ministers of your church, following the example of blessed Enmegahbowh, may stand before your holy people, leading them with fiery zeal and gentle humility. This we ask through Jesus, the Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God now and forever. Amen.

READINGS

Psalm 29
Isaiah 52:7-10 or1 Peter 5:1-4
Luke 6:17-23

UPDATE: Below is an icon of St. Enmegahbowh done by the Rev. Johnson Loud.

Happy Ordination Anniversary, Muthah+!

Muthah+ at Of Course I Could Be Wrong in the comments:

Also, today is the 24 aniversary of my ordination, so I reserve the right to be schloky.

May you enjoy many more years of service, and may God bless you and those you serve in your ministry beyond what you ask or imagine.

Feast Day Of St. Barnabas

Image from St. Barnabas Church, Southfields, UK.


Acts 11:19-26

Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that took place over Stephen travelled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, and they spoke the word to no one except Jews. But among them were some men of Cyprus and Cyrene who, on coming to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists* also, proclaiming the Lord Jesus. The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number became believers and turned to the Lord. News of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he came and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast devotion; for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were brought to the Lord. Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for an entire year they associated with* the church and taught a great many people, and it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called ‘Christians’.


PRAYER

Grant, O God, that we may follow the example of your faithful servant Barnabas, who, seeking not his own renown but the well-being of your Church, gave generously of his life and substance for the relief of the poor and the spread of the Gospel; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

New Orleans - The Pumps

From Scout:

Army Corps of Engineers Report: New Orleans Pumps still have mechanical flaws; also found contract improprieties

OK that banner wasn't really there at the -building trust is top priority- press conference of General Van Antwerp, commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. But it may as well have been.

Please read this post from Scout Prime at First Draft on the flaws in the new pumps installed to better "protect" New Orleans from flooding. The pumps are defective, and the US Corps of Engineers knew they were defective one year ago and lied about them and did not fix them.

The contract process was "a travesty - perhaps even criminal", and there appears to have been a cover-up.

This story is just not going away, as much as elements of ACE would like it too. It shouldn't. If the pumps fail, New Orleans floods.Yet as with too many NOLA stories it is not being heard.

If you have a blog please consider posting on it.

One final note: Matt at Fix the Pumps has worked tirelessly on tracking what has been happening with the NOLA pumps. He has filed numerous FOIA's to get information which he has posted to his blog along with analysis. It was Matt who provided the ACE memo to the Associated Press which broke the story on the defective pumps.

If my friend Scout, with whom I worked gutting a house in New Orleans, asks me to do a post concerning the safety of my home town, I can't refuse. She lives in Wisconsin, and has been follwing the story of Katrina and the flood at First Draft ever since the disaster. It's the least I can do.

Tagged!

1. I have to post these rules before I give you the facts.
2. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.


1. I'm from a rather typical New Orleans gumbo mixture of a heritage. My ancestors were French, Cajun French, Spanish, English, Portuguese, and German.

2. I was born and grew up in that great ruin of a city, New Orleans, and lived there until I was 23 years old, but I have not lived there since. I still miss New Orleans.

3. I attended Roman Catholic schools for 16 years of my life and was a member of the RCC until I was 60 years old.

4. I was a bookish child, and I am a bookish adult, but I am now a computer addict, so I don't read as many books as I did.

5. My first car was a 1953 Chevrolet Bel-Air hard-top convertible - used, with a good many miles on it.

6. I don't much care for Holy Trinity Brompton's "Alpha" course.

7. I love Dixieland Jazz, ragtime, rock and roll, Cajun and Zydeco, romantic slow-dancing music, classical music, and many other kinds of music. Do you get that I like music?

8. I love the Episcopal Church, warts and all.

OK, now I've done three out of five of the instructions. But I cannot, I cannot bring myself to tag eight other people, therefore I will fail on four and five.

Consider this: three out of five ain't bad. It's a majority.

Bishop Katharine With Bill Moyers

From Jim Naughton at "The Lead", at the Episcopal Café, here's the the link to the video of Bishop Katharine' appearance on Bill Moyers' Journal.

I find watching her an absolute joy. Comparisons are odious, so I won't do that.

My one caveat is that I remain troubled by her decision to ask TEC for the moratorium:

BILL MOYERS: You've even been criticized by some of your liberal colleagues in the American fellowship because you have called for a moratorium for a season on ordaining more gay Bishops. Why did you do that?

BISHOP KATHARINE JEFFERTS SCHORI: It was a very painful thing to do. My sense was that there might be hope of some kind of broader understanding if we were able to pause. Not go backwards, but pause.

BILL MOYERS: Is it fair to ask some aspiring gay or lesbian person who wants to become a Bishop, like Gene Robinson did in 2003, to wait?

BISHOP KATHARINE JEFFERTS SCHORI: Is it fair? No. It's not fair.

BILL MOYERS: But it's necessary?

BISHOP KATHARINE JEFFERTS SCHORI: It's a crucified place to stand.

A crucified place for whom? I'm sure it was painful for Bishop Katharine to make this request, but still, it seems to me that the heavy burden is laid on the backs of lesbians and gays, and that seems pharisaical to me.

Otherwise, it was wonderful to watch. Hers is such a calm and dignified presence. I can see each time I watch and listen to her what it was that made me pick her out as the best candidate for Presiding Bishop judging solely from the TV interviews which circulated before her election.

Here's a link to the transcript.

Feast Day of Saint Columba

The icon, which is from St. Columba Orthodox Church in Lafayette, Colorado, tells the story of the life of Columba. Scroll down on the site to read the descriptions of the events in in his life that the icon depicts.


Saint Columba (7 December 521 - 9 June 597) is sometimes referred to as Columba of Iona, or, in Old Irish, as Colm Cille or Columcille (meaning "Dove of the church"). He was the outstanding figure among the Irish Gaelic missionary monks who introduced Christianity to Kingdom of the Picts during the Early Medieval period.

From Wiki

St Columba is a saint who still, after fourteen hundred years, exerts an appeal upon our imaginations. Born in Ireland, in Donegal in the year 521, he was of the blood royal, and might indeed have become High King of Ireland had he not chosen to be a priest. His vital, vigorous personality has given rise to many legends, and it is a little hard to sift fact from what is more probably fiction. We do know that he was a man of tremendous energy, probably somewhat headstrong in his youth, but with his tendency to violence curbed by a gentle magnanimity.

....

Of all the Celtic saints in Scotland, Columba's life is much the best documented, because manuscripts of his Life, written by St Adamnan, one of his early successors as abbot of Iona, have survived. Iona itself remains a place of the greatest beauty, a serene island set in seas that take on brilliant colors in the sunshine, recalling the life and background of this remarkable man whose mission led to the conversion of Scotland and of the north of England, and indeed carried its influence far further afield. It later became the site of a Benedictine Abbey and of a little cathedral. These were dismantled by the Scottish reformers in 1561, and part of Columba's prophecy was fulfilled:

In Iona of my heart, Iona of my love,
Instead of monks' voices shall be lowing of cattle,
But ere the world come to an end
Iona shall be as it was.

Columba was a poet as well as a man of action. Some of his poems in both Latin and Gaelic have come down to us, and they reveal him as a man very sensitive to the beauty of his surroundings, as well as always, in St Adamnan's phrase, 'gladdened in his inmost heart by the joy of the Holy Spirit.' He died in the year 597.

From the Catholic Information Network.

PRAYER

O God, who by the preaching of your blessed servant Columba caused the light of the Gospel to shine in Scotland: Grant, we pray, that, having his life and labors in remembrance, we may show our thankfulness to you by following the example of his zeal and patience; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

NOTE: Padre Mickey has won the posting race with a lovely tribute to St. Columba with three icons instead of one, but none of his tell the story of Columba's life. So there.

He also appears to have written his biography himself, instead of cutting and pasting as I did, which is to his credit.

Archbishop Williams Speaks Again

Time has an interview with Archbishop Williams. Fr. Jake has an interesting discussion going at his blog about the interview.

I won't say much, except to repeat what I said at the end of my comment there:

Let's hope that during his time of seclusion and study at Georgetown, that he receives a good lesson from Lady Sophia.


UPDATE: Roger, in the comments, says I should explain Lady Sophia. The book of "The Wisdom of Solomon" is not included in the Hebrew canon in the Old Testament, and is placed in The Apocrypha in the Protestant biblical canon. Readings from Wisdom are included in the Lectionary in the Episcopal Church.

"Sophia" is the Greek word for "wisdom". Since wisdom is personified in the book and is always referred to as feminine, the personification has come to be called "Lady Sophia" or Lady Wisdom". There are those who claim Lady Sophia for Gnosticism, but I don't use the name to refer to anything Gnostic.

The best way I can think of to describe Lady Sophia is to allow words from the book itself and from "Proverbs" to speak the description:


Wisdom of Solomon 6:12-16(NRSV)

Description of Wisdom

Wisdom is radiant and unfading,
and she is easily discerned by those who love her,
and is found by those who seek her.
She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.
One who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty,
for she will be found sitting at the gate.
To fix one's thought on her is perfect understanding,
and one who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,
because she goes about seeking those worthy of her,
and she graciously appears to them in their paths,
and meets them in every thought


Wisdom of Solomon 7:25-30

For she is a breath of the power of God,
and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty;
therefore nothing defiled gains entrance into her.
For she is a reflection of eternal light,
a spotless mirror of the working of God,
and an image of his goodness.
Although she is but one, she can do all things,
and while remaining in herself, she renews all things;
in every generation she passes into holy souls
and makes them friends of God, and prophets;
for God loves nothing so much as the person who lives with wisdom.
She is more beautiful than the sun,
and excels every constellation of the stars.
Compared with the light she is found to be superior,
for it is succeeded by the night,
but against wisdom evil does not prevail.


Proverbs 3:13-18

The True Wealth

Happy are those who find wisdom,
and those who get understanding,
for her income is better than silver,
and her revenue better than gold.
She is more precious than jewels,
and nothing you desire can compare with her.
Long life is in her right hand;
in her left hand are riches and honour.
Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
and all her paths are peace.
She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her;
those who hold her fast are called happy.


Proverbs 7:4-5

Say to wisdom, ‘You are my sister’,
and call insight your intimate friend,
that they may keep you from the loose woman,
from the adulteress with her smooth words.

6-09-07 - 11.15 AM

Cavett On Writing Comedy

Since my husband is retired from the university here and retains a university email address, we have free access to the New York Times "TimesSelect", since they have opened the site to educators - a smart move on their part. I was not going to pay for the privilege of reading the material there, but I like having access to Paul Krugman and Bob Herbert and other features like a series of diaries written by troops who have served in Iraq.

In addition, Dick Cavett writes an online blog for "TimesSelect". Cavett's show was a must-see for me back in the day. He recently wrote a post titled "No Gagging The Gags". I can't give those of you who have access to "TimesSelect" a link for the post, because the link is operative for only a limited period, and the time has expired. I wish everyone could read the whole post.

Besides being a "three-time Emmy winner", Cavett wants us to know that he was a "gold-medal pommel horse state gymnastics champion in Nebraska." The feat that won the medal for him was his "triple-rear dismount". He says that was "the hardest thing I've ever done in my life."

On comedy writing:

Talking about comedy writing last time, I omitted an interesting phenomenon thereto: the fact that the gag-writer’s brain often works independently of his conscious mind. (Bolding mine) Sometimes alarmingly so. Because the topical joke-writer’s livelihood depends on his ability to crank out — if the show is on daily — good, current stuff, fast and for immediate use. And after a great deal of this, there’s something that develops and takes on a life of its own.

The late Steve Allen noted that the more comedy you write, the more you can write. It happened to me. Thrown instantly into the front lines, as I was, of daily writing for Jack Paar on “The Tonight Show” — a task nothing at Yale prepares you for — it seemed that each day of the week got a bit easier. Monday hardest, Friday a breeze. Friday’s jokes seemed to write themselves. Rust set in on the weekend and again, Monday wasn’t easy.

With respect to Cavett's statement about the joke writer's brain functioning outside of the conscious mind, I think it's true. I've made a funny or two in my time that seemed to come from nowhere. I'm intrigued by the workings of the brain with respect to the business of making jokes.

I think some are born with a greater capacity to come with original wit, but, according to Cavett, practice of the skill counts. The humor flows easily, when you keep your skills honed.

The weirdness that I’m getting at is most likely to happen to the experienced, professional comedy writer who, thanks to punishing practice, is in splendid condition. It’s a bit scary and it strikes on those unfortunate occasions that arch Chinese proverb calls “interesting times.”

If there’s a catastrophe — plane crash, miners trapped, kidnapping, ghastly murder — writer-brain kicks in by itself and makes jokes about it. The machinery starts without you; you hear it in your head and you feel ashamed.

....

On Memorial Day we were treated to the sight of what will surely be looked back on at some future time as the absolute, irreducible, symbolic zenith of hypocrisy: George Bush at Arlington. Whatever remains of my own joke-writing muscles produced, all on its own, a reporter asking, “Which do you prefer, Mr. President? Honoring our dead soldiers, or causing them?”


I miss his shows, but the good news is that they are collected on DVD now. You might want to look at an earlier post that I wrote about Cavett's blog.