If you think you've seen and heard enough about Reverend Jeremiah Wright and Barack Obama, lend us your ear for a moment because on Swans, you can always count on a different perspective from that of the mainstream media. Granted, the Reverend Wright sound bites that are repeated ad nauseam succeed at portraying him as a loon and putting Senator Obama's judgment in question. However, when his comments are taken in context -- both of the entire speech/sermon, and in African-American historical context -- they take on a new meaning. We suggest you study the complete transcript of his talk and interview at the National Press Club, and then read Gilles d'Aymery's analysis of this media attack for a unique perspective that the MSM avoids. Carol Warner Christen's overview of the political process helps to explain why Obama's potential to change the status quo, whether real or imagined, is a threat; and it seemed a fitting time to repost the late Richard Macintosh's excellent essay on democracy...entitled "Delusion." Taking politics to the Wild West, Martin Murie examines the battle over the wolf as predator vs. protected species, where a greater tolerance of our own species is the first order of duty before settling the matter.
This past week was marked by May Day and the 5th anniversary of Mission Accomplished -- Jan Baughman lets out a cry for help as she critiques a typical anti-Iraq editorial that perpetuates the revisionist history of our so-called noble sacrifices, and she shares a few little-discussed facts about the world's single largest consumer of oil. Remember the US-led NATO destruction of Yugoslavia? If not, Michael Pravica's article will educate you on the consequences of our previous "humanitarian" intervention.
Next it's on to France, where Peter Byrne caught the film that's taken the country by storm, Bienvenue chez les Ch'its, and then to Hollywood, where Charles Marowitz has a critical word or two for all those actors-turned-trollops for commercial interests and the deterioration of film and television as an art form. In true form, Mr. Marowitz doesn't mince words. Finally, we land in Tyler, Texas, where Isidor Saslav attended The Eroica Trio's performance of Jay Greenberg's Triple Concerto, and we close in Italy with the haunting poetry of Guido Monte and Francesca Saieva.
As always, please form your OWN opinion, and let your friends (and foes) know about Swans. It's your voice that makes ours grow.
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Gilles d'Aymery: Obama's Jeremiads And Wright's Right Rhetoric
While sound bites of Dr. Jeremiah Wright's sermons are being used to destroy Barack Obama's campaign, considering them in context and in black historical terms, they are intelligent and indeed for the most part accurate. More...
Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr.: The African-American Religious Experience: Theology & Practice
Transcript of Dr. Jeremiah Wright's remarks delivered on April 29, 2008, at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. More...
Carol Warner Christen: How Many Connections Does It Take?
Considering how many connections it takes to get anything done on this planet, from families to board rooms to Congress, it's no wonder we the People have been silenced. More...
Richard Macintosh: Delusions
America's false sense of democracy, from that it proclaims to that it imposes. (Ed. This piece was originally published on September 22, 2003.) More...
Martin Murie: Wolf
To solve the conflicts between defenders of predator species and the likes of ranchers who support their destruction, we must first feel a greater tolerance toward members of our own species: Brief glimpses into the tangled web of wolf-human encounters, plans, political choices. More...
Jan Baughman: May Day, M'Aidez
On the 5th anniversary of Mission Accomplished, the media and the military-industrial complex continue their revisionist history on the invasion and occupation of Iraq, fuel prices continue to rise, the US military is the largest consumer of oil, while the American public is encouraged to get out and drive. More...
Michael Pravica: Censorship And The Yugoslav Civil Wars
The "humanitarian" intervention in Yugoslavia was a ruse to support NATO's continued senseless existence and illegal occupation of Kosovo to act against Russia and to serve as the strong arm of US foreign policy, and it has set a precedent for how to achieve Western foreign policy objectives using the pretence of bringing democracy to enemy nations. More...
Peter Byrne: The Real French Warm Their Hearts
France's latest film craze, Bienvenue chez les Ch'its, embraces a contrast in cultures in an idealistic setting free from colonies, empires, and the whole disconcerting world. More...
Charles Marowitz: ...And Now For A Short Commercial Break
America's actors have turned away from their art form and become snake-oil peddlers for corporate hustlers, playing the part of people like you and me to sell their wares. More...
Isidor Saslav: Jay Greenberg: A Korngold For Our Times
Jay Greenberg, 17-year-old Korngold of our times, has a world premiere in Tyler, Texas. More...
Guido Monte & Francesca Saieva: Oltre (Beyond)
Monte and Saieva describe the "wall" of death; that is not an end if we remember, along our lives, the real essence of ourselves beside the world. More...
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