Mayday, Mayday, Mayday! Put it this way: Over 700,000 people voted for Ralph Nader. Not all read Swans, of course, but thousands do. If only 14 of them give $250 we can reach our $3,500 goal to minimally cover our operating expenses for another year (actual costs are closer to $5,000). Think about it another way: Even if you did not vote for Nader you can help. After all, twice a month you still have the opportunity to read independent and creative points of view, right? So, please, do your part to help keep this flock of ideas, opinions, thoughts, and culture flying. Please Donate Now!
It used to be, here in the west, that when one thought about stampedes it was in the form of a herd of cattle gone astray in a Gene Autry movie, or more recently, some crazed Latin football fans storming the field when their team let them down. In today's climate the stampede takes on a sickening twist, with turkey-stuffed American shoppers breaking down the doors of Wal*Mart and trampling to death the poor employee that stands between them and the flat-screen TV of their dreams. Did they return home with their bounty, turn it on, and witness the tragedy in Mumbai where apparent Westerners and the wealthy were singled out for kidnap and slaughter inside India's icon of luxury? Patterns which connect, anyone? Jan Baughman examines American society's moral hazard, where 37 million people live in poverty and 32 people live with $573 billion; where Wall Street is bailed out while millions of autoworkers are frozen in limbo. Money is not the only source of schism in this country, as Charles Marowitz maintains, and so long as there is no revolution in sensibility there can be no tangible improvements in the divided American body politic. Or perhaps division is our natural order... Will Barack Obama lead us into a new political and social era? Gilles d'Aymery has kept silent on this election's significance, which he breaks to explain why he's left the analysis to those who understand it much better than he ever can, and certainly better than all the dim-witted self-declared progressive sophists out there! Another must-read commentary sure to touch a nerve is Michael Barker's latest exposé, which reveals the influence of liberal philanthropy (i.e., indirect corporate power) on intellectual freedom in academia. Martin Murie brings nature into perspective on all the above, calling for a big dose of humility and a shift of gut and mind toward the ecosystem that controls us, not vice versa.
Turning to the culture arena, Peter Byrne reviews Chris Abani's Song For Night, a beautiful novella on the plight of child soldiers in Africa that is not meant for the complacent. And before rushing out to the latest James Bond film, Quantum of Solace, read the barbed critic Charles Marowitz's take on an obstreperous effort that represents the depth to which the classic Ian Fleming franchise has sunk (how'd you really like the film, Charles?!?). Guido Monte lures us into La vie mystérieuse as seen through his eyes and words with Orff, Euripides, Handke, and Dostoevskij; Marie Rennard's poetry measures the weight of life and the mad on the roof; and Michael Eddins shares a poem on the soul-crushing loss of a loved one. Finally, we close with R. Scott Porter's thoughts on population and the planet and your letters, with perspectives from Europe on the election of Barack Obama, and more. But before you begin, please take a moment and Donate Now!
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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Jan Baughman: Society's Moral Hazard
The moral hazard we should be debating is not the current bailout of Wall Street, but the perpetuation of a system designed to put the well being of the whole at risk for the benefit of the few. More...
Charles Marowitz: E Pluribus Unum
So long as there is no revolution in sensibility, there can be no tangible improvements in the American body politic, divided as it stands. More...
Gilles d'Aymery: Remaining Silent About Obama
Gilles d'Aymery explains his silence on Barack Obama, vowing to remain silent and leave the analysis to those who truly understand the significance of his election, and withhold judgment until he can be measured by his deeds as president. More...
Michael Barker: Progressive Social Change In The "Ivory Tower"?
Michael Barker looks at how liberal foundations have manipulated academia in the United States. More...
Martin Murie: Nature
Nature is something we are a part of -- sometimes a victim of -- but not something to be privately owned and exploited. We must take in a healthy dose of humility and acknowledge that is our only habitat, and technology alone will not save us. More...
Peter Byrne: Death Singing
Peter Byrne reviews Chris Abani's Song For Night, a beautiful novella on the plight of child soldiers in Africa that is not meant for the complacent. More...
Charles Marowitz: Quantum Of Solace
Film critic Charles Marowitz reviews the latest James Bond film, Quantum of Solace, an obstreperous effort that represents the depth to which the classic Ian Fleming franchise has sunk. More...
Guido Monte: Vie Mystérieuse
La vie mystérieuse as seen through the eyes and words of Guido Monte with Orff, Euripides, Handke, and Dostoevskij. More...
Marie Rennard: The Mad Is Standing On The Roof...
A poem that measures the weight of life by the quarter hour. More...
Michael Eddins: Without You
A poem on the soul-crushing loss of a loved one. More...
R. Scott Porter: Population Control
The author presents his personal take on what really ails this planet. More...
Perspectives on the election of Barack Obama, from an American in Italy who views Europe's embrace of Uncle Sam as sweaty and grotesque as ever, and a Parisian in France who warns it's time to jump from the Nader bandwagon to the Obama train, even if the latter is just Clinton in disguise. More...
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