Walls. Camels. Opera vs. Trump. Best Meme of the Summer. Greatest Albums by Women. Journey to Peace. NYC IN 1939 & more.
LETTY COTTIN POGREBIN NEWSLETTER # 51 SEPT 6, 2017
It's been three months since I went on hiatus to give myself more time to write. Though the calamitous events of the summer often plunged me (and everyone else) into despair, I managed to produce an outline and two chapters of my new book, a memoir entitled, SHONDA.
That's all I'll say about it. In line with my promise to keep this Newsletter a self-promotion-free zone (except for an occasional shout-out for my kids' achievements), I'm resuming my practice of curating and commenting on notable articles, videos, events, films, books, and cartoons you may have missed.
WALLS
Caption translated from the French: "Finally, the wall is perhaps not such a bad idea."
[Ed Fischer, Cartoon Stock.com]
For those whose apps cut off the
right side of this drawing, it a curve in the
wall which forms a tight towel in Bibi is hiding
POLITICS
* Catchy new slogan: ""Democrats are the party of We. Republicans are the party of Me." Buy this shirt from We not Me. and wear the message on your chest.
* Tax reform?? Don't hold your breath. "250 members of Congress are millionaires, and their median net worth accounts for roughly $891,000, or nine times that of the average American. Asking politicians to enact changes that would reduce the wealth of the upper classes is a conflict of interest.... People with high incomes want to keep the money that they have made, and this includes the men and women who control the country." -- Alan Dunn, Forbes magazine
*Cheers to Cher for this Tweet. Cher ✔@cher
Those Who Can Must Take a DREAMER In2 Their Home & Protect Them. I'm Ready 2Do This & Others in MY BUSINESS WILL DO THE SAME SANCTUARY.
* Support America's Dreamers. Don't have room in your house? You can still help. Protest POTUS's heartless decision and Jeff Session's bloodless announcement yesterday. Tell Congress they must pass the Dream Act of 2017, both the House and Sentate. Sign this petition now!
TRUMP WATCH
(You're probably sick of reading about POTUS and his kids but I can't resist passing these on.).
* Why not throw in a race horse & a show dog? Saudi Prince offers 200 camels to sleep with Ivanka. “We both come from great lineage," he says. "Our offspring would certainly be an exceptional foal.”
* Fake Feminist Strikes Again. This time Ivanka renegs on equal pay promise. Watch her lie.
* Best Meme of the Summer --
* Speaking for his compatriots, Grand Dragon Emeritus David Duke said on Aug 14, "We voted for President Trump because he has promised to take our country back ...and he will!" The question is, back to what? Does anyone doubt the connection between DJT and KKK? (note shadow below)
* Urgent message from Michael Chabon & Ayelet Waldman. The prominent literary couple recently released an Open Letter calling on their fellow Jews to publicly decry and disavow Trump after his reprehensible reaction to events in Charlottesville. Key quote: "Now he’s coming after you. The question is: what are you going to do about it? If you don’t feel, or can’t show, any concern, pain or understanding for the persecution and demonization of others, at least show a little self-interest. At least show a little sechel. At the very least, show a little self-respect." Read full text here.
* Huge ego, bit parts. Matt Damon reveals Donald Trump's perrenial demand of movie directors: "The deal was that if you wanted to shoot in one of his buildings, you had to write him in a part. Martin Brest had to write something in ‘Scent of a Woman’ – and the whole crew was in on it. You have to waste an hour of your day with a bullshit shot: Donald Trump walks in and Al Pacino’s like, ‘Hello, Mr. Trump!’ – you had to call him by name – and then he exits."
RACISM and ANTI-SEMITISM
* Black man embraces his white attacker. I'm not big on forgiving racists; "Lock 'em up!" is my first impulse Rakeem Jones, a self-described "little young black dude, dreadlocks, tattoos" had a different reaction. It didn't clear the streets of racists but it went viral. (click link, not photo)
* History refresher. I'm not happy about besmirching my Newsletter with this photo of the Charlottesville hate-monsters (below) but I wanted you to see the great comment someone posted beneath it and I couldn't figure out how to detach the words from the picture.
* AntiSemitism is racism, writes the African-American scholar-activist, Eric K. Ward, in a ground-breaking analysis of the central role of Jew-hatred in the belief system of white supremacy. Ward's piece is a meandering blend of memoir, rhetoric, and peroration, but stick with it to understand more clearly why blacks and Jews must make common cause rather than fall for the divide-and-conquer tactics of the Alt-Right.
VIDEOS (All short, all terrific)
* Opera vs. Trump. This parody of Figaro's aria took the internet by storm this summer. It's hilarious. Even composer Rossini (below) would have smiled. If you're interested, here's the real aria from Barber of Seville.
Gioachino Antonio Rossini * The animal world is telling us something. "Can't we just get along?" If only diverse human beings could overlook and honor our differences as the oddly paired creatures do in this delightful video.
* Take a warm bath in nostalgia. Beautiful color footage of NYC in 1939 when men and women wore hats, buses were double-decker and a Pina Colada cost 5 cents.
* Great musicians (and a burst of ethnic pride). Couldn't help but qvell after seeing all the super-stars who happen to be Jewish.
WOMEN
* The 150 greatest albums by women between 1964 and today. This remarkable consciousness-raising list, compiled by nearly 50 women from NPR and the public radio system in partnership with Lincoln Center."rethinks popular music to put women at the center."
Donna Summer's album Bad Girls (Casablanca, 1979) is #75 on the list.
* Sisterhood lives! "Lean on Me" Photos and comments from twelve women celebrating mentorship.
* Sheila Michaels dies at 78. The woman who invented the term Ms.(which became the name of the magazine I helped start in 1972) received a page 1 obit in the New York Times.
* Only 49 states to go. Oregon passes historic bill protecting abortion rights and funding for all.
ISRAEL-PALESTINE
* Women Wage Peace describes their upcoming mass demonstration Journey to Peace: "On 24 Sept, tens of thousands of Israelis will ‘get off the couch’ and into action, ensuring that our unstoppable demand – a diplomatic agreement to end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict – reaches Jerusalem on 8 Oct in a swell of public support. Along the way, there will be unique local events throughout the country; construction of a peace village in the desert … Read more about Journey to Peace and see who’s "ready for peace" in this one-minute clip.Then support our new crowdfunding campaign." Do it!
* We Shall Not Be Moved. Israeli woman who sued El-Al for sexism wins landmark ruling. Note to all airlines: you can't ask a woman to change seats to spare a man from sitting next to her.
* Young women's Israeli/Palestinian dialogue, Creativity for Peace , is an an inspiration.
BOOKS
* Blurb-worthy. Here's an excerpt from the rave I gave The Communist and the Communist's Daughter, a captivating new memoir by Jane Lazarre: "You need not have lived through the Red Scare to appreciate the impact of deeply held politics on the dynamics of family life, the contemporary relevance of Jane Lazarre's personal story, and the lyrical grace with which she tells it. "
* Next on my list of must-reads. The Unwomanly Face of War: An Oral History of Women in World War II by Nobel Prize Literature Laureate, Svetlana Alexievich, who chronicles the experiences of Soviet Women on the battlefront and the homefront.
HAPPY SEPTEMBER.
