I don’t read a lot of non-fiction, but I’m tempted to buy Alexander Cockburn’s A Short History of Fear.
From the Spiked Review of Books:
Here in the West, the so-called ‘war on global warming’ is reminiscent of medieval madness. You can now buy Indulgences to offset your carbon guilt. . . . This kind of behaviour is demented. . . . Since I started writing essays challenging the global warming consensus, and seeking to put forward critical alternative arguments, I have felt almost witch-hunted. . . . One individual, who was once on the board of the Sierra Club, has suggested I should be criminally prosecuted. . . . ‘Climate change denier’ is, of course, meant to evoke the figure of the Holocaust denier.
Anyone remember the hysteria that surrounded the PMRC? Anyone remember that, too, was spearheaded by a Gore?
Who better than Dee Snider to state the obvious to shrill übernanny Tipper Gore?
The full responsibility for defending children falls on the shoulders of my wife and I, because there is no one else capable of making these judgments for us.
Unfortunately, Tony Barrett’s assessment is spot on regarding what’s happened to a once-proud club:
Everyone at Liverpool must take responsibility . . . the absentee owners who have sent shockwaves of uncertainty rippling through the club; those who not only handed them the keys to Anfield, but also rolled out the red carpet; the manager who has failed to deliver on his promise to create a title challenging side and the players who have allowed themselves to be distracted by the ongoing circus off the pitch.
Motoko Rich reports on Titlepage.tv, which sounds like an interesting idea:
Daniel Menaker, who left his post as executive editor in chief of the Random House Publishing Group in June, is moving online in March to be the host of a new Web-based book show. . . . “Titlepage” will combine elements of “Apostrophes,” a popular French literary program; “The Charlie Rose Show” on public television; and “Dinner for Five,” in which a group of actors discussed their craft, on the Independent Film Channel.
I’ll be tuning in on 3 March.
From the New York Times via Seinfeld:
“The way I would put it is, before you have some dip at a party, look around and ask yourself, would I be willing to kiss everyone here? Because you don’t know who might be double dipping, and those who do are sharing their saliva with you.”
Celebrate the art, not the artist. (Via io9.)
(On a side note, the portmanteau “hatespeech” used in the first link is so hilariously overwrought that I can’t take seriously anyone who uses it.)
Despite an inauspicious start (four-hour delay due to weather), our weekend trip to San Francisco was, as always, fantastic.
The Slanted Door is quickly becoming a regular stop; my grilled Australian free-range lamb rack with crispy potatoes and tamarind sauce was the evening’s best dish. On the cheap end of the Vietnamese spectrum stands the Golden Flower which makes the best pho I’ve tasted in a restaurant. Redolent of star anise and cinnamon, this is one heady pho; ahh . . . why couldn’t they have added just one more ladleful of broth? If I were forced to eat a single dish for the rest of my life, it’d be pho.
Saturday night we met Dave and Heather at Massawa before heading to see Toumani Diabaté’s Symmetric Orchestra. . . . Massawa skipped some of the heat I like in my Ethiopean/Eritrean cuisine, but it was still delicious. Diabaté, however, was Saturday night’s star. How often do you get to see an acknowledged master musician perform, especially in such an intimate setting? Of all the “world” shows I’ve seen, this was certainly the most laidback, bordering on the hypnotic. Diabaté shouldn’t be for fans of West African music alone. All music fans should embrace his art.
A brisk Sunday morning walk led us to Dennis Leary’s lauded Canteen for brunch. Inventive and delicious; we’ll be making dinner reservations for our next trip (perhaps the weekend of 4 April).
Any trip to San Francisco must also involve perusing bookstores. As much as I love City Lights, Stacey’s has the better sci-fi selection. The Wife and I picked up the following:
One of the great things about living in southern California is the proximity of San Francisco. Its charm rubs off on you very quickly; and that’s a dangerous thing.