Hightower!

For years I have been a fan of Jim Hightower.  Southern-voiced curmudgeon and straight-talker, who has been trying to get Americans to realize that they are being flam-boozled by Congress and the Presidency.  He especially likes to pick on George W. Bush's record, and has lots of data that he uses to support his view that "W" as well as lots of unscrupulous Congressmen have raped this country.

Once again, on a trip to the local Dollar Store, I came upon a $1 bargain.  A five-disk package exposing the "questionable" events of the first 4 years of the W. Bush presidency, along with a blasting of greedy Congressmen.  Two of Hightower's books were included:  Thieves in High Places (2003) and Let's Stop Beating Around the Bush (2004).

Jim is a "downhome" Texan, born in 1943.  He has "spent three decades battling the Powers That Be, on behalf of The Powers That Ought To Be."  His latest book is titled:  Swim Against the Current; Even a Dead Fish Can Go With The Flow.

In the Dollar Store package, Jim takes a lot of time talking about "sleezy" politicians, as well as a  guy currently hoping to become President in 2013: Newt Gingrich.  He mentions a lot of negative sounding  things about Newt that are just now also being mentioned by his opponents in the race to win the early primaries in 2012. 

But the main persons that Jim attacks are President George W. Bush and his close cronies.  If even part of what he says about W., Cheney, and Rumsfeld is true, one wonders why none of them is currently serving time.

Yes, Jim certainly has a lot to complain about with the politicians in the Republican Party.. but he also attacks many in the Democratic Party, and in the media, which he compares to a "tasteless joke."  He tries to rally us "common folk" to get rid of all of these "bullies" and regain the rights we have been steadily losing in the United States because of them.

Mr. Hightower is both a very serious and a very funny man.  His seriousness is hidden under a sound  curtain of hilarity.  Pull back that curtain and listen to his serious message, and THINK.  Feel the passion hiding under the humor.. the passion of an honorable man who wants to see our country come back to its former status as a nation "of the people, by the people, and for the people." 

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The Sage of Baltimore

For many years, the initials H.L.M were just as well known in America as G.B.S. in Great Britain.  The initials were for Henry Louis Mencken, the so-called "Sage of Baltimore."

Mencken was born in Baltimore in 1880 and died there in 1956.  He was a journalist, critic and noted philologist.  He worked for the Baltimore Morning Herald and the Baltimore Sun.  He co-edited The Smart Set with George Jean Nathan and founded and edited The American Mercury.  His book: The American Language is a "must-read."  He also wrote other books, including three that are autobiographical:  Happy Days,  Heathen Days, and Newspaper Days.

You may have heard of him in relation to the famous Scopes (Monkey) Trial. 

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/monkeytrial/peopleevents/p_mencken.html


Even before I moved to Baltimore, I had read The American Language volumes and enjoyed the many stories that he relates within.  However, I had never read his autobiographical works, so I was pleased to discover a copy of The Vintage Mencken at a Smith College Book Sale.  The book is a collection of pieces of the writings of Mencken, gathered by Alistair Cooke, with an informative introduction by Mr. Cooke, who dubbed Mencken, "the American Voltaire." 

The book was published as a Vintage paperback.. probably in 1956, one year after Mencken's death.

HLM loved Baltimore.  Even though he edited magazines in New York City, he almost always returned on the weekends by train to his hometown.. about a 5 hour ride.  He liked to eat the famous Wiener Schnitzel at Hausner's Restaurant, and loved everything German.  During the time when Germany was the enemy of the United States, he was not happy, because he considered German culture to be the best in the world.  He liked to read Goethe and was a member of a classical quartet in Baltimore, playing Bach and Beethoven at least once a week. 



Some people have said that he had anti-Semitic tendencies.  I have never found any indication of that.  But, I could be wrong.  He definitely did not like the separate, but not quite equal facilities for Blacks that he saw in Baltimore, and wrote scathingly about them.

If this is the first time you have encountered Mr. Mencken, let me introduce you to a few "tidbits" from some of his writings.  I'm sure you will agree that he had definite opinions about almost everything.

From: In Defense of Women, 1922

"What men mistake for beauty in themselves is usually nothing save a certain hollow gaudiness, a revolting flashiness, the superficial splendor of a prancing animal.  The most lovely movie actor, considered in the light of genuine esthetic values, is no more than a study in vulgarity. His like is to be found, not in the Uffizi gallery or among the harmonies of Brahms, but among the plush sofas, rococo clocks and hand-painted oil-paintings of the third-rate auction-room.  All women, save the least intelligent, penetrate this imposture with sharp eyes."

From: The Smart Set, April 1920

"In the face of another man's good fortune I am as inert as a curb broker before Johann Sebastian Bach.  It gives me neither pleasure nor distress.  The fact, for example that John D. Rockefeller had more money than I have is as uninteresting to me as the fact that he believed in total immersion and  wore detachable cuffs.  And the fact that some half-anonymous ass or other has been elected President of the United States, or appointed a professor at Harvard, or married to a rich wife, or even to a beautiful and amiable one: this fact is as meaningless to me as the the latest piece of bogus news from eastern Europe."

From: The Smart Set, May 1919

"The allurement that women hold out to men is precisely the allurement that Cape Hatteras holds out to sailors:  They are enormously dangerous and hence enormously fascinating.  To the average man, doomed to some banal drudgery all his life long, they offer the only grand hazard that he ever encounters.  Take them away and his existence would be as flat and secure as that of a moo-cow."

From: The Smart Set, 1923

"Man, at his best, remains a sort of one-lunged animal, never completely rounded and perfect, as a cockroach, say, is perfect. If he shows one valuable quality, it is almost unheard of for him to show any other.  Give him a head, and he lacks a heart.  Give him a heart of a gallon capacity and his head holds scarcely a pint."

From: The Baltimore Evening Sun, December 1924

"...that (chiropractic) pathology is grounded upon the doctrine that all human ills are caused by the pressure of misplaced vertebrae upon the nerves which come out of the spinal cord .. in other words, that every disease is the result of a pinch.  This, plainly enough, is buncombe.  The chiropractic therapeutics rest upon the doctrine that the way to get rid of such pinches is to climb upon a table and submit to a heroic pummeling by a retired piano-mover.  This obviously, is  buncombe doubly damned."

From: Happy Days, 1940

"...they (literary tourists) all agreed, often with lubricious gloats and gurgles, (a) that its (Baltimore's) indigenous victualry was unsurpassed in the Republic, (b) that its native Caucasian females of all ages up to thirty-five were of incomparable pulchritude, and as amiable as they were lovely, and (c) that its home-life was spacious, charming, full of creature comforts, and hightly conducive to the facile and orderly propagation of the species."

(And they were right.. Baltimore is a nice comfy place to live.)

So, there you have it.  HLM was a curmudgeon, a "Crankshaft" kind of guy, and a breath of fresh air, in my opinion.  I wish that he had lived into the 1960's so I could have had a beer and 'schnitzel with him at Hausner's. 

If you do nothing else in your life... go to the library and browse through his magnum opus: The American Language.  In it you will learn how some people had their European names squeezed and stuffed into Yankee sounds.  Also, you will learn that the interns at the famous Johns Hopkins Hospital used to name all the children born to poor unwed mothers.  Some of the names that they chose were classic, such as "Positive Wasserman Johnson." (Medical persons will appreciate that.)  And, you will learn that he was the person to first categorize:

Boobus Americanus:  A subspecies of homo sapiens. Characterized as the ignorant, self-righteous, and over-credulous American middle class.

... and the category of humanoids that both the Republicans and Democrats will be trying to woo in the election year of 2012!

Good bye, from HLM!

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Common Ground?

I've mentioned before how I find great buys in books at the local Dollar Store.  Books that don't sell many copies are taken up by these stores and mixed in with Bibles and coloring books and sold for that magical one dollar bill.  Well, the other day in the store, I found a basket full of Books on Tape (actually on Disk).. and I bought them all.  If you are still with me, you know that I am ready now to talk to you about one of them.

Common Ground (How to Stop the Partisan War that is Destroying America)
Written by Cal Thomas and Bob Beckel. Read mostly by Richard Rohan.

ISBN 978-0-06-136360-3  Containing 7 CD's for 8 1/2 hours.

I spent the 8 1/2 hours listening while I drove to and fro around Maryland.

Bob Beckel has been called a rabid Liberal and Cal Thomas has been called a rabid Conservative.
However, both have set partisanship aside and have become great friends.  They wrote this book in 2007 when they thought that divisiveness in Congress had gone on as long as it could. (Unfortunately, they were wrong.  I wonder if they have written a sequel.)

Bob Beckel:  A leading Liberal DC political analyst and consultant.  I'm sure I have seen him on TV many times, but I just don't remember him.

Cal Thomas:  A leading Conservative commentator. I debated whether or not I should listen to this book because of Cal.  I have not had a good opinion of him since one time, many years ago, I felt that he had  twisted some of my words around to make it look like I was a racist.  At the time, I thought that what he said was a "cheap shot" designed to expose me as a hypocritical Liberal. I was "touchy" then, and could have just misunderstood what he said.   I can't remember if this was during an "in person" Baltimore event, a "call in", or from something written by me.  My feelings were hurt because of what he said, so I have tried to forget all about it.  (Of course, I was much younger then .. today, I am too old to let criticism, true or false, bother me.)

I liked this book.  It was many things.  Especially a history lesson. As George Santayana once said:  "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it."

Case in point: They remind us that Newt Gingrich promised a new and wonderful harmonious Congress when he became Speaker of the House.   They also remind us that he was carrying on with a young Intern while loudly picking on President Clinton for the same activity.  They also remind us that he was convicted of an ethics violation.

Since I am an Independent, I can give my opinion about Congressional and Presidential candidates from either party.  So, I will continue mentioning Newt.  On NPR today, a member of Congress reminded us that Newt  published a memo for Republican Congressmen, listing negative adjectives to be used when talking about Democratic initiatives and positive adjectives to be used when talking about Republican initiatives.

Tune in to CSPAN and take a few minutes to listen to the floor debates even today.. the adjective throwing continues.. "Democratic job-killing initiatives"..  "Republican job-increasing initiatives".. etc.

OK.. to be fair.. one of the reasons I became an Independent is because President Obama is not exerting the power he has to override such negativity and unite Congress.

Anyway.. this book is a call for politicians to look for and embrace the "common ground" that they have on most issues.  Of course, there may not be "common ground" for some issues like abortion and same sex marriage.

Cal and Bob are asking politicians to "get beyond partisanship, restore civility, and move our country forward."  They wish that politicians would learn to be "friends" not enemies, just as they have. 

They also discuss so-called "polarizers" like Rush Limbaugh and Michael Moore, and feel that the voters are smart enough to see beyond polarization.

As I said, I liked this book, but I think that they could have said it all in two CD's instead of 7.  One gets their point right away.  The history lesson was enlightening, but also too long.  It's fun to remember what has happened in Congress since Nixon, but some of the repetition is a bit much.  Maybe that is why this is in the "remainder" category.

In my opinion, even though some of the elected Congressmen of 2008 promised bi-partisan civility and cooperation, the situation has gone way way downhill, and I think that the public is tired of it and will vote in 2012 to get rid of some of the divisive members and perhaps get Congress back to doing its job.. which is: serving the best interests of the citizens of the United States of America, rather than narrow partisan objectives.

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The King of Schnorrers

For some time, driving down Route 32 in Columbia, Maryland, I would pass a sign that advertised Daedalus Books.  The sign said that by taking the next two right turns, one would discover a fantastic book lovers paradise.  Finally, after passing the sign for several years, I took the bait.  I made the two right turns and drove into the parking lot of a massive factory-type building. 

However, nowhere was there a sign saying that I was at Daedalus Books.  I asked someone.  "No. Never heard of it. Not here."

I backed out and drove hither and thither for a while, with no luck.  I still do not believe there is such a building for Daedalus Books.  However, I do know that there is a business with that name, because I get catalogs from them periodically.

Last month, I decided to try my luck at ordering some books from them.  Their prices are quite low and that appeals to the biblophile that I am.  I picked out ten books and sent off a check.   A few days later, I received a notice that eight of my book picks were not available.. but they would send me two of them, both by Jewish gentlemen.

One was by a Dr. Levi, who survived a German concentration camp.  The other was by a person named Israel Zangwill, a so-called Jewish-English author who wrote around the end of the 1800's. 

The Zangwill book that I received is called The King of Schnorrers. It was published in 2003 by Dover Publications, Inc.  ISBN: 0-486-42872-9 (pbk). 

I was very curious about this book.  I did not know what a Schnorrer was.  I soon found out that a schnorrer  is a beggar, a rather important person in the Jewish Ghetto of 1790 London.  To quote the cover write-up:  "Manasseh Bueno Barzillai Azevedo da Costa, (is) a proud, resourceful Sephardic schnorrer who lords it over his fellow mendicants in London of the late 1790's."

Think of Manasseh as a combination of Figaro, Jerry Falwell, Charles Ponzi, Sargeant Bilko, and Rod Blagojevich.  He is a person not to be messed with.  But don't be put off by this.  This is a funny story that I will not even begin to reveal.  You have to read it to appreciate it.  Suffice it to say that it is about tolerance and the understanding of others.

Israel Zangwill is a master wordsmith.  Just listen to this, the first paragraph of the book:

"In the days when Lord George Gordon became a Jew, and was suspected of insanity;  when, out of respect for the prophecies, England denied her Jews every civic right except that of paying taxes;  when the Gentleman's Magazine had ill words for the infidel alien; when Jewish marriages were invalid and bequests for Hebrew colleges void;  when a prophet prophesying Primrose Day would have been set in the stocks, though Pitt inclined his private ear to Benjamin Goldsmid's views on the foreign loans .. in those days, when Tevele Schiff was Rabbi in Israel, and Dr. de Falk, the Master of the Tetragrammaton, saint and Cabalistic conjuror, flourished in Wellclose Square, and the composer of 'The Death of Nelson' was a choir-boy in the Great Synagogue; Joseph Grobstock, pillar of the same, emerged one afternoon into the spring sunshine at the fag-end of the departing stream of worshippers.  In his hand was a large canvas bag, and in his eye a twinkle."

In one paragraph, Mr. Zangwill has given us an English history lesson and also led us through beautifully flowing language until we finally meet Mr. Grobstock and notice the twinkle in his eye.

This is a small book and can be devoured in a few pleasant hours.  I highly recommend it.

Israel Zangwill is also well-known for some potent sayings, among which are:

"Everything changes but change."

"Selfishness is the only real atheism; unselfishness the only true religion."

"A man likes his wife to be just clever enough to appreciate his cleverness, and just stupid enough to admire it."

My life has been enriched by learning about Israel Zangwill.  I plan to read more of his many books.  His works are divided into two parts: English life stories;  Jewish ghetto life stories.  I hope to read both types.

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