" Cradle of Civilization " and THE EXORCIST

      For a baby boomer letter writer in the Boston Globe today the magic

    phrase " cradle of civilization " takes him back to an old school building

    in 1959. Yes, they did teach Ancient History back then and what pupil

    -even half awake in the dingy old school room - can forget the significance

    of " the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers -now modern  Iraq " ?

    I can almost SMELL the old textbook : " History of Western Civilization ".

    A copy of it is probably still around  gathering dust in some obscure

    section of the public library.

              There was nothing smug about that discredited course. In the

    spirit of the Greek Historian Herodotus it was lively, interesting,

    sympathetic and cosmopolitan -giving credit where it is due, finding

    VIRTUE even in the barbarian. A contagious thought : " Isn't the world

    an interesting place ? "

              But " modern Iraq " I also associate with the Peter Blatty

    horror story " The Exorcist " .The movie begins at an archaeological dig

    in Iraq. Father Merrin has just found a small , gargoyle-like statuette.

     " Suddenly an eerie wind begins to blow, and dogs begin fighting among

    themselves... a demonic force has been loosed upon the world "

            Once again " ancient evil manifests itself ". ( Magill's

    Survey of Cinema  )

              I'll bet that hideous gargoyle was recently stolen from

    the Museum of Iraq. Its new possessor - the next Saddam ?

                  What was the name of the ancient god of Darkness ? I'll

    check the old textbook on " Ancient History ".

Cicilline's own dirty tricks dept. ?

In some ways the " reform " mayor of Providence, David Cicilline,

    despite his many good qualities - is already beginning to show ethical

    narrow mindedness and even CLASS prejudice on certain issues. Being openly

    gay does not make you immune to the prevailing snobbery of your social

    background. When asked on Talk Radio ( WHJJ ) about the nearly impossible

    rental rates in Providence ( the caller was a struggling young artist) ,

    Cicilline did not even suggest the possibility of RENT CONTROL . Now THAT

    is a taboo idea for New Democrats everywhere - enough to make any two bit

    slum lord apoplectic !

              Also the new REFORM mayor wants to raise money for Providence

    by old fashioned dirty tricks -worthy of any creepy bureaucrat in the

    Rhode Island Registry of Motor Vehicles. Beware the not so hidden cameras

    at confusing intersections ! The cops will catch poor foolish violators of

    the law -not for the sake of public safety so much as for the purpose of

    balancing the city budget.

         And are we to believe that a traffic fine of one hundred dollars is

    EQUAL PUNISHMENT for all offenders, whatever their economic class ? Too

    often the logic of the law affronts common sense and common decency.

            The new REFORM mayor, David Cicilline, lacks the common touch.

    No surprise here. " Buddy " Cianci  could at least fake it - with the help

    of booze, cigarettes, and cuss words.

              Can't " Buddy "  host a talk show from jail ? Fill the void

    left by " Providence " ?

Atkins -sure sign of a charlatan

In 1972 the GREAT REBELLION was waning and I might have

    despaired thinking that the only real revolution in town was the

    Atkins Diet Revolution.  Science as a human institution with a well

    established SCIENTIFIC METHOD for finding relative -if not absolute

    TRUTH -will be the final judge of the Atkins diet. But just look

    around you at FAT America. Clearly ALL diet revolutions can claim

    as much obvious success as the WAR ON POVERTY.

               When I read that Dr. Atkins  said that God wanted HIM to

    eradicate obesity - with all due respect for the dear departed - I

    smelled a charlatan.  And the very circumstances of his death - falling

    on ice - suggest that God Himself is helpless to fight gravity.

              The American life style -not metabolic mutation - has given

    us this epidemic of obesity. The other day I could not fail to notice

    an obese man - whom I love as a person - voraciously wipe his dinner

    plate of all visible gravy. I wanted to yell at him : " Please leave

    just a little of that precious gravy for the GERMS ! "

              Outside  an Asian-American - they are usually thin when

    they arrive here - with a middle aged gut was drinking  a coke.

                 Pop psychologists  write that for many people food is

    LOVE. And we are loving ourselves to death !

               Another Great Depression will cure obesity faster than any

    Atkins Diet Revolution. Isn't a high protein diet elitist to begin

    with ?  Of course rice is cheaper than roast beef or lobster.

                 What does the good doctor tell fat poor people ? " Let

    them eat cake !  "

Omar Bradley's politics

Watching the war news on TV, I often caught references to

    the Bradley Tank - a formidable " smart " weapon , I understand . Time

    will tell just how wise  was this pre-emptive attack on Iraq - led by

    the bloody megalomaniac, Saddam Hussein. I do " support the troops " -

    but with great reservations. Patriotism is a poor excuse for brainlessness.

                 That  Bradley Tank had to be named after the famous mild

    mannered and thoughtful World War II American general, Omar Bradley .

    In his biography " A General's Life " he hints at his politics  which I

    do find refreshingly AMERICAN in the best sense : " I was in sympathy

    with most New Deal measures because, like my father,I always pulled for

    the little man, worker and farmer . "

                 Such a general today - assigned to rebuild Iraq  - might

    truly win the hearts and minds of the Iraqi people. Imagine an

    American general establishing a workers and farmers government in Baghdad

    -and saying " Nuts ! " to  Big Oil - like Exxon  ?

                    At least a good idea for a Hollywood movie -starring Martin

    Sheen and Jane Fonda -with music by the Dixie-chicks .

Macy's Air Head Parade

Can there be a better symbol for American capitalist values

    than Macy's department stores ?  In " The Making of the President 1960 ",

    exhausted -and not a little crazy from the campaign - we read about Richard

    Nixon standing outside Macy's in New York City .... " You know, you can buy

    anything in Macy's ... " and that's what makes this country great...blah,

    blah ".

             Perhaps if Nixon only LOOKED better on TV - had Kennedy's dazzling

    Hollywood smile - HE would have won the election. After all, radio listeners

    perceived him as the winner of the " great debate ".

                  On page G12 of The Providence Journal today ( April 16 ) we

    read an article titled " We really want a set of pearly white teeth that

    dazzle ".   And there is no excuse for not having that great smile :" Teeth

    whitening has become so cheap and easy that the only excuse these days for

    dingy gums is apathy or deliberate contrariness " .   The writer here does

    not give a fleeting thought to health and dental insurance - which logically

    should not even be separate  - the human body being an organic WHOLE .

               On the editorial page Froma Harrop writes about one middle

    aged Macy's employee, Elsa Yanowitz, who loses her job because she

    refuses to fire  an un-pretty woman doing a good job selling cosmetics.

                Capitalist society corrupts the soul in every which way, does

    it not ?  Have  pearly white teeth that dazzle - all the better to swindle

    people !  Arthur Miller's character, Willie Loman,  got it right : " It's

    a jungle out there !  " .

                A revised play might be titled : " Death of a Sales-woman "

             Everywhere in the advertising world : SMILING FACES, LYING FACES !

Seedless watermelon politics and FREE SPEECH

              Edward Achorn's  serious column this morning on the unexpected

    but inevitable consequences of " free speech " in America and Mark

    Patinkin's humorous question on " seedless watermelons "  - how do they

    propagate ?  - reminded me of the Green Party candidate for governor of

    California - one legendary 60s radical named Peter Camejo, now ironically

    a quite prosperous but  socially responsible investor. Peter -who did get

    a respectable 5 per cent of the vote -   jokingly called himself " a

    watermelon -green on the outside, red on the inside ".

             Back in the late 60s Camejo's " passionate oratory "  got him

    expelled from the UC Berkeley  - " just two quarters shy of graduating

    with a bachelor's degree in history "

                 His crime ?  " using an unauthorized microphone at a rally "

    ( see story October 22, 2002 by Louise Chu, Associated Press )

                  Like seedless watermelons left -wing politicos have a

    fertility problem in the land of the free. But they can at least SURVIVE !

                  With all due respect to Edward Achorn of Pulitzer Prize

    caliber, I prefer Gore Vidal's definition of FREE SPEECH in America : you

    are free to sing in tune with the ruling class .

                  Anyway, can't Peter Camejo FINALLY be awarded his bachelor

    degree in history ?  Now that this millionaire " socialist " can buy it ?

                 Senator Ted Kennedy -I am sure - has fond memories of Peter

    who once challenged him for his Senate seat .

                 But forget Ronald Reagan's condemnation of the 60s Camejo :

    " one of the most dangerous people in California ".

                   When Camejo ran for president in 1976 ( Socialist Workers

    Party ) , I was a presidential elector for him here in Rhode Island .

               Would anybody think I was  one of the most dangerous people

    in Rhode Island - besides my own brother who does " advertising "   ?

                 Yes indeed, that " left-wing faggot " - Gore Vidal - knows

    the heart of America.

Cianci's letters from prison

I am not a fan or a defender of the now imprisoned ex-mayor

    of Providence, Vincent " Buddy " Cianci . But I did not want him to

    languish in prison. What happens to any man's soul in prison is always

    of great human interest.  I'll bet many of your readers might enjoy a

    monthly LETTER FROM BUDDY .

              " Know thyself " , advises the ancient Greek philosopher,
    Socrates.

             What has " Buddy " discovered in prison about the REAL "
    Buddy " ?

             Any spiritual growth here ? What does he think about late at
    night

    all alone in very un-regal surroundings ?  What does he read ?

                 I do miss his COLOR and flamboyance. But how quickly
    prison

    can break a man. A penny for your thoughts, " Buddy "  !

Awful commercials mar Channel 10 NEWS

            Watching TV for more than 10 hours a week can be hazardous

    to your health, regular viewers were warned last week. But I suspect

    that the boob tube rots your mind even faster than it ruins your

    body by insidiously transforming you into a couch potato.

              Most sensitive and intelligent people must find those

    relentless TV commercials even more tasteless than the regular

    programming. Channel 10 NEWS - I think - wins the prize for overwhelming

    its paltry, senselessly repetitive " news " with truly sub-idiotic

    commercials. If this advertising really pays off for the sponsors,

    what does that say about the general caliber of the TV audience ?

                  MUST capitalist " democracy " be also a tyranny of

    vulgarity ?  What type of " artist " makes those commercials ?

     I can't imagine this type of commercial prostitute being familiar

    with great art, music , and literature . If they have encountered

    TRUTH & BEAUTY  somewhere in life - how can they not hate themselves ?

               What a challenge for those TV news celebrities to always

    be CUTE -even when presenting the blackest news. SMILING FACES -

    LYING FACES !

                A coffee cup salute to the first one who vomits on

    camera. And not from mere indigestion !

                 Is QUALITY NEWS just asking for too much ? How I

    miss old Walter Cronkite !

Looting in Baghdad and the French anarchist

If the vulgar looting were in New York City, you could be sure

    the New York Post would be calling for martial law - not LIBERTY -

    and backing a " strong-man " to run the city. Not long ago, I recall,

    all it took was LIGHTS OUT - a major electric power problem - to

    bring out the best in human nature in the Big Apple.

         My favorite thinker on the subject of property rights is the

    Frenchman, Pierre Joseph Proudhon. His move famous quote: PROPERTY

    IS THEFT ! 

            And my favorite people for re-organizing the OLD REGIME are

    the French of 1789 - inspired -not a little - by our own glorious

    revolution.

           A Pentagon spokesman -quite sincerely I am sure - declares

    on TV that the wealth of Iraq belongs to the people of Iraq.

          I can only imagine Ralph Nader saying the same about the

    wealth of America belonging to the American people. The creep !

           While fighting to liberate other people from tyranny, we

    no longer have a  " social contract " here. The real producers of

    wealth- doing daily physical and mental work -are owed NOTHING

    by big business or the government of big business in Washington, D.C.

                You want a national health care plan ? What shameless,

    peon impudence !  But keep  reproducing the race, you all -American

    peons. For LIFE IS SACRED !

         I deplore looting and thievery and would not myself - a bleeding

    heart liberal - steal a fine napkin from the mansion of one John D.

    Rockefeller, turn of the century robber baron.  The Baghdad looters

    are indeed thieves themselves and must not be tolerated. The wealth

    of Iraq belongs to the people of Iraq - not to individual looters,

    and also not to Fort EXXON !

A Doom & Bloom war ?

                  It's was nonsense to say that NBC reporter Bloom's

    death of a cardiac embolism was not combat related. How many American

    soldiers over there in Baghdad in cramped vehicles in 100 degree

    heat - forgetting to drink enough fresh ,cold water -and very, every,

    STRESSED OUT - are also in great danger of this kind of sudden death

    -coming like a thief in the night ? How many poor Iraqi civilians

    are doomed to  NON-COMBAT deaths that really have everything to do

    with SIEGE WARFARE ?

               I am neither a flag waver nor a peacnik in this conflict.

    I hope the United Nations can get a handle on the coming human

    catastrophe over there. To be sure, the world won't miss Saddam

    Hussein. But history also plays cruel jokes on the victors.

                I note that Mr. Bloom was born in 1963 - the year JFK

    - who symbolized youth and energy - and HOPE -if only the illusion

    of it - was assassinated. 

                   Perhaps Bloom was no more a candidate for sainthood

    - a fierce competitor, they say - than JFK. But still he was too

    wonderfully young and alive to die.

                  Somebody said that real business of  America is

    show business.  Dying young was what made James Dean an immortal

    legend. A friend of mine once said that God was  ENERGY. Like

    JFK , Bloom had it in abundance - the LIFE_FORCE .

               THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES ! 

            But truly our young gods are ONLY HUMAN !

Democracy failing in America ?

          The NEWS media is just rotting the American mind. Clearly

    most Americans - for whatever reasons besides brainwashing - support

    the war against Iraq - with very little evidence that the Sadamm Hussein

    regime -tyranny that it is - had any connection with September 11, or

    that his " weapons of mass destruction " are a greater threat to our

    national security than China's . His military is clearly organized to

    perpetuate his tyranny, not to conquer the infidel for the greater

    glory of Allah. And since when did we find two-bit dictators so

    insufferable ? Look at our record closer to home in Latin America !

     The Left here would have applauded a military action against Chile's

    Pinochet , just as one example.

          What if the United Nations judged our " weapons of mass destruction "

    UNACCEPTABLE ? We  arrogantly ask the whole world : " Are you for us

    or against us ? " What if THEY - armed with nuclear power in the future-

    are against us ?

                President Bush and his White House gang babble about God

    as much as those sickening Islamic fanatics. Where is FREE SPEECH

    in an atmosphere attuned to reactionary TALK RADIO ?

              In a country controlled by the Spanish Inquisition even the

    poor,lonely Jew will kiss the cross !

           I respect the peace movement and deplore the censorship of its

    opinions and insights. But I would like to think that those PEACENIKS

    are not just the mirror image of the TALK RADIO RIGHT .

                 The Left for more than a generation on college campuses

    has shown little respect for FREE SPEECH. It made POLITICAL CORRECTNESS

    a sort of screwball tyranny. And now - I guess - is payback time !

               But American democracy is rapidly fading into a pretentious

    illusion. Brainless people search their souls and find... a slogan !

                   Newspapers are almost as bad as TALK RADIO - but

    still a lot more literate. You can always find some unpleasant TRUTH

    between the lines .

                Also pathetic are Arab nationalists who find a hero in

    Saddam Hussein. They have the mind of a mule !

             Hopefully , at least CIVILIZATION - preferably WESTERN

    CIVILIZATION - will survive the coming Dark Age.

              To fix America we need a lot more than a regime change.

    How cocky will we be a year from now ?

How to sell more newspapers

     I got on a West Warwick bound bus yesterday morning with three

    newspapers - Providence Journal, Boston Globe, Boston Herald. A

    young white man sitting next to me with a ragged middle aged male

    for a companion was impressed with my appetite for newspapers.

    Reading, said the author of " The Summing Up " , was at least a

    harmless addiction. I offered the kid the Boston Herald but then-

    what a shock ! - he said with a hint of shame that he just could

    not read very well, that reading BOOKS was impossible. I encouraged

    him to open up on this serious illiteracy problem which I said-

    with some compassion - could make him a " joke " when he applied

    for a job. He said that the ragged guy next to him - who suddenly

    began to whine like a baby - was his job. He was his " caretaker ".

    The kid dropped out of high school, he said, where he was daily

    humiliated as a retard. He said that if he could just get a GED,

    he would like to be as drug counselor. He did have a gentle, caring

    manner which to some " macho " guy might be perceived as effeminate.

             Just then the bus was passing Dorcas Place on Elmwood Ave.

    I pointed it out to him, saying he could get help there with his

    reading problem. In fact the kid was 24 years old but looked even

    younger. I wrote on a piece of newspaper : " Dorcas Place - Elmwood

    Ave. ".

              Actor Robert DiNero played an illiterate rescued by

    Jane Fonda in  a Hollywood movie. This kid also needs to be rescued.

    What can be worse than the pathetic helplessness of illiteracy ?

               Don't newspapers like the Providence Journal, the Boston

    Globe, the Boston Herald have a vested interest in common literacy ?

             How do so many hardly stupid kids fall through the cracks ?

         A long time ago I read the famous classic " Why Johnny Can't

    Read "  . Is it true that the alphabet is an esoteric secret for

    modern reading teaching ?

                Expose the scandal -and double your newspaper sales !

Corporate patriotism of Honeywell

This story of corporate patriotism is familiar : " Honeywell

    to lay off 374 in Pawtucket " ( Providence Journal, front page, April 3)

             Better opportunities in France ? Nope - the jobs will be moved

    to China or Mexico. Hopefully executives who are American citizens will

    even get a big tax break - a gift from our patriotic president. Nice to

    love your country without having to give it anything, without really

    OWING it anything.

                Meanwhile a toxic emotion -militant nationalism - is aroused

    in the much abused, exploited working class. Nothing morally wrong

    with GLOBAL perspective of the capitalist ruling class. But let a

    worker THINK globally - WORKERS OF THE WORLD UNITE - and let him

    express this idea at work. How fast do you think he will get promoted?

    How fast will he be escorted out of the building -  a dangerous

    trouble-maker  ?

                  Many corporate executives love America as much as they

    love unions.If a blue-collar American moved to France - a country which

    I love as much as my own - because the minimum wage was higher over

    there, he would be judged a defective, soul-less  human being.

               And  if the blue collar worker also questioned our war

    against Iraq, he will be lucky not to be FRENCH-FRIED at work .

                I guess the real purpose of the Statue of Liberty in New

    York City - a gift of France - is to make a mockery of American capitalist

    hypocrisy.

                 God bless Honeywell !