I think I read the first ten pages of the late fifties UK classic The Comforters about ten times over before I really got it. As it turns out, my reaction was not uncommon. The reader is supposed to be initially confused. Spark’s novel deliberately scorns omniscient narration, opting instead for a grand experiment in Bretchtian allegory. We learn about each character, each interaction, and each conversation as though we were observing it all passively, with no foreknowledge, like some persistent fly on the wall. As the novel progresses, a basic skeletal framework gradually develops into something grander, and within the concise space of two-hundred pages, Muriel Spark’s book reaches its conclusion. The effect deliberately mimics the creative process.
Tag: secrecy
Mar 16 2010
President Sunshine and the Water Carriers
In a statement, President Obama applauded his administration’s efforts to become “the most open and transparent ever.”
“We came to Washington to change the way business was done, and part of that was making ourselves accountable to the American people by opening up our government,” Obama said.
The President then made a sweeping gesture to the heavens, noting the Moon in the Seventh House and Jupiter’s alignment with Mars, adding:
This is the dawning of a new age. Peace is guiding the planets. Love is steering the stars. Let the sun shine, let the sunshine in!
Oct 29 2009
The Point Grayson was trying to make about The Fed
The only thing Alan Grayson should Apologize for …
was not having the Fed’s Price List
for their services!
(imo)
Perhaps Grayson can be excused, since “The Fed” does favors for its clients, far from the scrutiny of prying eyes … giving away Billions to their good ole Buddies, both Foreign and Domestic, without so much as a Receipt or and IOU exchanging hands …
It’s easy to see how this shady activity just might get “mis-construed”:
Alan Grayson: Which Foreigners got the Fed’s 500 Billion?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v…
Apr 21 2009
Aliens Among Us
WASHINGTON, DC — April 19, 2009 — Retired navy captain and Apollo XIV astronaut Edgar Mitchell today called for the U. S. government to disclose to its citizens and other Earthlings what he asserts are the realities of long-standing extraterrestrial visitations and interactions with our planet.
Like duh, my parents ate totally from outer space. But it’s like God don’t you think? Don’t you think if She existed She’d have show Her face by now? Merciful my ass. The world used to be full of gods and now what? Now demagogues are all we can muster.
Feb 03 2009
New Attorney General Addresses “Secret Law” & “State Secrecy”
The new Attorney General, confirmed just the other day, Eric Holder, gave some written answers to Senator Russ Feingold concerning the latter’s questions regarding review of Bush administration policies concerning promulgation of “secret laws” and claims of “state privilege” in legal cases. I’m reproducing the exchange by Holder and Feingold, as it bears upon significant pending issues, not least the Jeppesen and al-Haramain cases.
May 01 2008
Department Of Irony: Lawlessness On Law Day
cross posted from The Dream Antilles
Today, May 1, 2008, in addition to everything else is Law Day in the United States:
Fifty years ago President Eisenhower proclaimed the first Law Day a “day of national dedication to the principle of government under law.” The ABA [the American Bar Association] invites you to celebrate this enduring principle during the 50th anniversary of Law Day.
Law Day 2008 will explore the meaning of the rule of law, fostering public understanding of the rule of law through discussion of its role in a free society.
The Rule of Law. How interesting that the Bush Administration would today inform us that one of the functions of law is to keep certain laws secret from the public. Don’t bang your head on the desk. You read that properly. On Law Day the Bush Administration announced that it could enact laws and keep them a secret from you. That’s in your very own best interest, of course.
Join me in the Irony Corner.
Mar 21 2008
Passport-Gate: Secrets In The House Of Bush
In less than 24 hours, a story that began with the disclosure that State Department employees were peeking into the passport records of Barack Obama, it has come to light that the snooping also extended to Hillary Clinton and John McCain. While there is still much that is unknown, these revelations are being treated by the victims as a serious breach of privacy and security.
The Bush administration has developed a reputation as the most secrecy obsessed administration in history. Over the past seven years they have:
- sought to withhold public records like those of Dick Cheney’s meetings with lobbyists
- reclassified thousands of documents that were previously available
- banned photos of military caskets being returned from Iraq
- thrown roadblocks in front of legislation to enhance the Freedom of Information Act
- opposed investigations into Iraq, 9/11, Katrina, wiretapping, intelligence failures, U.S. attorney firings, etc.
- instructed aides to defy Congressional subpoenas
Brought to you by…
News Corpse
The Internet’s Chronicle Of Media Decay.
Dec 01 2007
You Are Entitlted to Know NOTHING!
The Bush administration is laying out a new secrecy defense in an effort to end a court battle about the White House visits of now-imprisoned lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
The administration agreed last year to produce all responsive records about the visits ”without redactions or claims of exemption,” according to a court order.
But in a court filing Friday night, administration lawyers said that the Secret Service has identified a category of highly sensitive documents that might contain information sought in a lawsuit about Abramoff’s trips to the White House.
Does this look like government “of and by the people” to you?