Whatcha reading?

Sweet action for kids 'n' cretins. Marjoram and capers.
Silent Majority
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Silent Majority »

Anyone found spreading malicious, fallacious rumours about there ever having been a "Dr Medulla" will be assisted to a special night school where education will be provided in a spectacularly unbrutal fashion.
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Dr. Medulla
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Re: Whatcha reading?

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Silent Majority wrote:
05 Jul 2018, 10:45am
Anyone found spreading malicious, fallacious rumours about there ever having been a "Dr Medulla" will be assisted to a special night school where education will be provided in a spectacularly unbrutal fashion.
Side note to the above, I'm still plodding thru that book on rock in the Warsaw Pact countries, there was a beautiful Orwellian situation where an East German band pissed off the cultural authorities, who took away their privilege to play. The group asked for confirmation that they were being banned and were told, no, you don't exist.
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Silent Majority »

Dr. Medulla wrote:
05 Jul 2018, 11:00am
Silent Majority wrote:
05 Jul 2018, 10:45am
Anyone found spreading malicious, fallacious rumours about there ever having been a "Dr Medulla" will be assisted to a special night school where education will be provided in a spectacularly unbrutal fashion.
Side note to the above, I'm still plodding thru that book on rock in the Warsaw Pact countries, there was a beautiful Orwellian situation where an East German band pissed off the cultural authorities, who took away their privilege to play. The group asked for confirmation that they were being banned and were told, no, you don't exist.
Plodding? Not a good read, then? That's a shame, could have been fascinating.
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Is ten times worse than prison


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Dr. Medulla
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Re: Whatcha reading?

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Silent Majority wrote:
05 Jul 2018, 12:26pm
Dr. Medulla wrote:
05 Jul 2018, 11:00am
Silent Majority wrote:
05 Jul 2018, 10:45am
Anyone found spreading malicious, fallacious rumours about there ever having been a "Dr Medulla" will be assisted to a special night school where education will be provided in a spectacularly unbrutal fashion.
Side note to the above, I'm still plodding thru that book on rock in the Warsaw Pact countries, there was a beautiful Orwellian situation where an East German band pissed off the cultural authorities, who took away their privilege to play. The group asked for confirmation that they were being banned and were told, no, you don't exist.
Plodding? Not a good read, then? That's a shame, could have been fascinating.
Plodding describes more my inability to just get thru it. Been distracted by other things, mainly of the paying variety. I might yet assign this because it offers such a surprising view of life behind the Iron Curtain. It's a waxing and waning of official attitudes towards decadent Western culture, offering a safety release to the demands of youth but clamping down when it gets dangerous. In some respects, rock music seems more important to these kids than in the West. If I have a complaint, it's that it's a bit tedious, going thru country after country, with the same patterns playing out over and over. But it really does suggest that to kids born after WWII, Lennon meant more than Lenin and authority figures never solved that problem.
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

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Re: Whatcha reading?

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I was about to start listening to Harvey this morning, but my eye was caught by this:
Image

The enduring scars on memory for both Americans and Vietnamese. As a pacifist, most military history doesn't interest me, but books about war's effects, especially the traumas, well, that kind of plays to my interests.
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

Silent Majority
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Re: Whatcha reading?

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The Candidate - Alex Nunns. Revised 2nd edition. A sometimes annoyingly pro-Corbyn rundown of the Labour leader's journey from backbencer to the unexpectedly decent result ine 2017 election. Funny to be reminded just how insanely hysterical the establishment, in and out of Labour, reacted to his leadership and the man's quiet strength in not compromising his stance in the face of political pressure. It's an alright book. John McDonnell's quotes add the most value, sentences talking about joyful households all over Britain add the least.
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Re: Whatcha reading?

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Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:07pm
The Candidate - Alex Nunns. Revised 2nd edition. A sometimes annoyingly pro-Corbyn rundown of the Labour leader's journey from backbencer to the unexpectedly decent result ine 2017 election. Funny to be reminded just how insanely hysterical the establishment, in and out of Labour, reacted to his leadership and the man's quiet strength in not compromising his stance in the face of political pressure. It's an alright book. John McDonnell's quotes add the most value, sentences talking about joyful households all over Britain add the least.
How does it deal with his, um, uncomfortable comments about Hamas?
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

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Re: Whatcha reading?

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Dr. Medulla wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:20pm
Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:07pm
The Candidate - Alex Nunns. Revised 2nd edition. A sometimes annoyingly pro-Corbyn rundown of the Labour leader's journey from backbencer to the unexpectedly decent result ine 2017 election. Funny to be reminded just how insanely hysterical the establishment, in and out of Labour, reacted to his leadership and the man's quiet strength in not compromising his stance in the face of political pressure. It's an alright book. John McDonnell's quotes add the most value, sentences talking about joyful households all over Britain add the least.
How does it deal with his, um, uncomfortable comments about Hamas?
In common with much of the book's tone, there's some both-sidesism ("prime ministers meet with human rights abusing saudis all the time") and paints it as all a smear dragged up to discredit him on his anti-austerity politics. Which, yeah, that's why they did it, but a less partisan writer would have held this up a dumb mis-step which could have been easily avoided. Or, as an example of just how unlikely it would be that this guy would become leader of the opposition.
a lifetime serving one machine
Is ten times worse than prison


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Dr. Medulla
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Re: Whatcha reading?

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Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 1:07pm
Dr. Medulla wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:20pm
Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:07pm
The Candidate - Alex Nunns. Revised 2nd edition. A sometimes annoyingly pro-Corbyn rundown of the Labour leader's journey from backbencer to the unexpectedly decent result ine 2017 election. Funny to be reminded just how insanely hysterical the establishment, in and out of Labour, reacted to his leadership and the man's quiet strength in not compromising his stance in the face of political pressure. It's an alright book. John McDonnell's quotes add the most value, sentences talking about joyful households all over Britain add the least.
How does it deal with his, um, uncomfortable comments about Hamas?
In common with much of the book's tone, there's some both-sidesism ("prime ministers meet with human rights abusing saudis all the time") and paints it as all a smear dragged up to discredit him on his anti-austerity politics. Which, yeah, that's why they did it, but a less partisan writer would have held this up a dumb mis-step which could have been easily avoided. Or, as an example of just how unlikely it would be that this guy would become leader of the opposition.
The both sides argument may be fundamentally true, but it concedes that my guy isn't much more virtuous than yours. And isn't that a fine civics lesson!
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

Silent Majority
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Silent Majority »

Dr. Medulla wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 1:39pm
Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 1:07pm
Dr. Medulla wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:20pm
Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:07pm
The Candidate - Alex Nunns. Revised 2nd edition. A sometimes annoyingly pro-Corbyn rundown of the Labour leader's journey from backbencer to the unexpectedly decent result ine 2017 election. Funny to be reminded just how insanely hysterical the establishment, in and out of Labour, reacted to his leadership and the man's quiet strength in not compromising his stance in the face of political pressure. It's an alright book. John McDonnell's quotes add the most value, sentences talking about joyful households all over Britain add the least.
How does it deal with his, um, uncomfortable comments about Hamas?
In common with much of the book's tone, there's some both-sidesism ("prime ministers meet with human rights abusing saudis all the time") and paints it as all a smear dragged up to discredit him on his anti-austerity politics. Which, yeah, that's why they did it, but a less partisan writer would have held this up a dumb mis-step which could have been easily avoided. Or, as an example of just how unlikely it would be that this guy would become leader of the opposition.
The both sides argument may be fundamentally true, but it concedes that my guy isn't much more virtuous than yours. And isn't that a fine civics lesson!
Even the most principled and best intentioned in a parliamentary game of chess are a brilliant argument for toppling the board.
a lifetime serving one machine
Is ten times worse than prison


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Dr. Medulla
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Dr. Medulla »

Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 1:51pm
Dr. Medulla wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 1:39pm
Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 1:07pm
Dr. Medulla wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:20pm
Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 12:07pm
The Candidate - Alex Nunns. Revised 2nd edition. A sometimes annoyingly pro-Corbyn rundown of the Labour leader's journey from backbencer to the unexpectedly decent result ine 2017 election. Funny to be reminded just how insanely hysterical the establishment, in and out of Labour, reacted to his leadership and the man's quiet strength in not compromising his stance in the face of political pressure. It's an alright book. John McDonnell's quotes add the most value, sentences talking about joyful households all over Britain add the least.
How does it deal with his, um, uncomfortable comments about Hamas?
In common with much of the book's tone, there's some both-sidesism ("prime ministers meet with human rights abusing saudis all the time") and paints it as all a smear dragged up to discredit him on his anti-austerity politics. Which, yeah, that's why they did it, but a less partisan writer would have held this up a dumb mis-step which could have been easily avoided. Or, as an example of just how unlikely it would be that this guy would become leader of the opposition.
The both sides argument may be fundamentally true, but it concedes that my guy isn't much more virtuous than yours. And isn't that a fine civics lesson!
Even the most principled and best intentioned in a parliamentary game of chess are a brilliant argument for toppling the board.
The anarchist critique is always hard to escape.
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

Silent Majority
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Re: Whatcha reading?

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Fascism: What it is and how to Fight it - Leon Trotsky. Audiobook. As read, it seems, by Penn Gilette. A collection of bits and pieces some Marxist nerd cut from articles and correspondence. Today, the delineations between authoritarian capitalism and fascism have eroded, at least in the US, to the point where it's hard to tell the difference. Trotsky's verdict? Like a man with a hammer who sees a world of nails, he suggests a powerful centralised communist party. Oh, Trotsky, that's your solution to everything.
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Dr. Medulla
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Re: Whatcha reading?

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Silent Majority wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 1:56pm
Fascism: What it is and how to Fight it - Leon Trotsky. Audiobook. As read, it seems, by Penn Gilette. A collection of bits and pieces some Marxist nerd cut from articles and correspondence. Today, the delineations between authoritarian capitalism and fascism have eroded, at least in the US, to the point where it's hard to tell the difference. Trotsky's verdict? Like a man with a hammer who sees a world of nails, he suggests a powerful centralised communist party. Oh, Trotsky, that's your solution to everything.
I listened to that, I dunno, a year or two ago. Hey, Leon, do you think this pimple might be evidence of cancer? A worker's revolution would take care of that, comrade!
"I never doubted myself for a minute for I knew that my monkey-strong bowels were girded with strength, like the loins of a dragon ribboned with fat and the opulence of buffalo dung." - Richard Nixon, Checkers Speech, abandoned early draft

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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by eumaas »

Trotsky is the most overrated Marxist.
I feel that there is a fascistic element, for example, in the Rolling Stones . . .
— Morton Feldman

I've studied the phenomenon of neo-provincialism in self-isolating online communities but this place takes the fucking cake.
— Clashy

Silent Majority
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Re: Whatcha reading?

Post by Silent Majority »

eumaas wrote:
13 Jul 2018, 2:35pm
Trotsky is the most overrated Marxist.
I'll wrap up his history of the Russian revolution before October, sort through a few decent looking bios and leave him on the side of the road, myself.
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