Wright Or Wrong: This Time, It's Political

Fast heading to top billing on my ’Don’t Give A Fuck About This Anymore’ marquee? Barack Obama’s former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Is he anti-American? Is he pro-Black Separatist? Is he a Skrull?*

"SUPER Skrull! Not just regular Skrull. Sorry, I get a little defensive sometimes."

Who gives a fuck?! Not I, as the previous paragraph should have indicated.

First off, as a self-identified atheist it makes me uncomfortable that any and all candidates for political office tout their ’good Christianity’. "I’m agin’ it", as the prospectors say. From my perspective, a candidate who says he or she is active in their church is at best like telling me that they enjoy romance novels (distasteful but inconsequential), and at worst like telling me that they might pull off their face and *POP* reveal Pat Robertson’s*2 gremlin mug.

"What’s ’taters, Precious? What’s ’taters?"

So, who a candidate chooses as their inoculation against anti-religious bias (it exists, and it’s just as ugly as any other bias) means less than zero to me. I understand that to make it in American politics you’ve got to appeal to likely voters (old folks, zealots, rich folks who want to stay rich but seem compassionate by tithing (these people need an acronym); bonus points for the double parenthetical; eat that, English majors!), but can’t we just leave it at the comfortably vague "I’m a person of deep personal faith."? Sure, that faith could turn out to be faith in Cthulhu, The Dweller In The Darkness*3, but once again, this makes no appreciable difference to me. Besides, if the candidate was really worshipping Cthulhu, we’d vote for him as a result of the mind control.

"Cthulhu ’08! ROOOOAAAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!"

Why all the furor over Wright? He said some stuff along the lines of "America killed more in Hiroshima and Nagasaki than were killed on 9/11". I’m sorry; is this not true? He’s said some stuff along the lines of "black Americans have been marginalized and persecuted by the government". Waitaminute………that’s true too. He’s said some stuff along the lines of "9/11 woke people up to the hatred toward America that is festering around the world due to imperialist actions". Well, surely we already knew about the hatred out there for America………and what? Ignored it? Good strategy. We should blame Barack Obama because his pastor made accurate points?

Before I get carried away coming to the aid of a man of the cloth, let’s re-state the premise here. I don’t care who Barack Obama prays with. It matters the same as whether he wears an American flag pin, puts his hand on his heart during the Pledge of Allegiance, or double dips his Fritos Scoops*4. Window dressing. Unimportant.

I’m more concerned that any candidate I’d vote for as a progressive liberal feels the need to attend a church at all; chances are, the pastor/reverend/priest/minister/rabbi/preacher/houngan would more likely than not oppose equal protection and opportunity under the law for gay and lesbian couples and a woman’s right to reproductive choice. Both of these are key liberal beachheads, and we’re willing to cede them to some degree whenever we indicate preference for a candidate who subscribes to institutionalized religion. But, somehow, no one on the left needs to clarify their support of those types of ’leaders’.

Also, since Hilary*5 seems to like citing Obama’s connection to Wright………

"Thanks for your support during this whole Lewinsky thing, Reverend Wright. Rest assured, when my wife runs for president and cites her partnership in policy crafting and diplomacy during my term, this will not come back to bite her on her privileged ass in any way."

* Shapechanging aliens out to conquer Earth. Read a comic book already!

*2 Shapechanging alien out to conquer Earth. Also likes Jesus; hates Hugo Chavez.

*3 Mind-controlling Great Old One out to conquer Earth. Read some Lovecraft already!

*4 Salty corn chips out to conquer Earth………with delicious results.

*5 Clinton. "Democratic" Senator just to the left of Joe "McCain/Lieberman" Lieberman.

How Awesome Is Jack Pendarvis

My coworker just waved an advance copy of the upcoming Jack Pendarvis book, Awesome, in my face.

Huh.

So, uh………where’s my copy?

No, I don’t think you understand. Where’s my copy?!

ARRGGGHHHH!!!!

mine………minE………miNE………mINE………MINE!!!

Jack Pendarvis is so funny and such a good read that I’m considering; just considering mind you, punching and kicking said coworker until he agrees to hand over *his* copy. I don’t want to feel this way, but damn it, I do. Even the dulcet tones of Nick Drake playing on my iTunes can’t stop this jealous rage. See what you’ve driven me to, Pendarvis?! Joe’s a good guy, and he doesn’t deserve a beatin’ just on account of my urge to read your latest book months before it comes out.

Do the right thing, Pendarvis. Send me a galley*. Please. Remember, if it weren’t for me, you would never have known about the Metal Men series*2.

* Industry bigwig talk meaning advance copy of a book before it is published. Fancy, no? *2 Hinting at a prior correspondence serves to bolster this writer’s reputation as a hobnobber with literary types.

'Cuz Sometimes I Don't Wanna Talk About Books

So, I’m watching CBS Sunday Morning on the last day of a ten-day vacation (yes, I’m eighty-six years old), and saw this story by Bill Geist. Bill Geist (who is also eighty-six years old), usually has a funny *offbeat* story as a capper on the program. This week, he visited a church that has a catchphrase. Said nugget of wisdom: ’No Whining’. That’s super. The gist (not the geist) of the church’s idea is that if people can stop complaining, their lives will get better. Or is it that they’ll be happier?

Lives don’t get better due to keeping quiet about problems. And yeah, I might be overly biased against small-town churches, but this looks like "Keep your questions and concerns to yourself. We are a nation of blind faith; unquestioning and devout/patriotic/load-bearing.

If the argument is that people will be happier if they don’t complain, they may have a point. I would probably be happier in life if I never read past the front page of a newspaper, or glued my eyes and ears to ’reality television’ and listened to Toby Keith. I’d also be a gigantic asshole with nothing valuable to contribute to the world, no handle on the problems we face as a planet, and no empathy past what’s convenient.

Let’s hope these parishioners remember to stop complaining about "those damn illegals taking our jobs" or "those godless Communists in Hollywood" and "those traitors who wanna cut and run in Iraq".

Actually, I just hope they stop complaining when Barack Obama is in the White House undoing eight years of dynastic manifest destiny preceded by eight years of ideological gridlock.

Maybe I’ll pray about it.

The Resurrectionist - Jack O'Connell

The very fact that you read up on books here and on The Inside Flap says to me that you, the reader, are discerning in your tastes. Without tooting any unnecessary horns, I think it's safe to say that the contributors to the blog (myself included) know a bit about fantastic reads. In this spirit of congratulations all around on taste and meritorious reading, I'd like to ask a question…

How strange are you willing to get?

Jack O'Connell seems to ask this question at the close of nearly every chapter of The Resurrectionist; and it's not altogether unlikely that you'll ask yourself that same question while reading the book.

I hope you're willing to get so strange that a troupe of alternate reality circus freaks led by a chicken boy doesn't throw you off the exploration of what might be a window into the collective unconscious.

I hope you're willing to get so strange that the hard-riding biker gang holed up in an abandoned prosthetics factory and dealing in human bodily fluids doesn't blind you to the thoughtful meditation about fatherhood and family.

I hope you're willing to get so strange that an egomaniacal neurosurgeon and his prized salamander don't obscure the questions raised about ethics and motivation in medicine.

I hope you're willing to get so strange that you can recognize how a story within the story has the power to teach a lesson about happiness and the dangers of seeking it from a storyteller who owes you nothing.

Most of all, I hope you're willing to get so strange that all of the bells, whistles, oddities and weirdos populating The Resurrectionist serve not to distract, but steer you right to the ultimate point; forgiveness is transformative.

If the sort of insanity cited above doesn't faze you, enjoy. If it does, make the leap. You know what they say; The first three hundred four pages are the strangest.

Are They Going To Kill Batman?

Rumor has it that as part of the Final Crisis miniseries and the events spinning out of it, DC Comics will be killing Batman some time this year. Of course, at this point, it is just a rumor.

My own preference would be for DC (and Marvel for that matter) to concentrate less on killing off their icons (or turning them into Satan-bartering man-children) and more on creating interesting and exciting characters.

Who can name an interesting, meaningful, fully-involved in continuity hero created in the past three years by either of the majors? (note: Blue Beetle doesn't count; he's a new face under a mask that's been around for years.) Even better; can anyone name a character that meets the criteria above who currently appears in their own solo title?

I guess I sometimes get worried that all Marvel and DC are doing is acting as stewards for characters and ideas created before most of their staffs and readers were born. Sure, legacy is a great story element (DC excels at that aspect of superhero fiction), and traumatic change can revitalize a stagnant character (Marvel's preferred method, it seems), but familiarity breeds contempt and changes sprung from every corner devalue change as a storytelling tool.

From a selfish standpoint I'd like to be able to say twenty years from now "Yeah, I've been following 'Top Hero's Name Here' for as long as they've been around." Of course, once I shot my mouth off, the publisher would, in quick succession, make the character a killer, de-age them and reveal their hermaphroditism (who says it's not a word?) all in an attempt to appeal to 'newer readers'.

That being said, Grant Morrison (the writer of the Batman ongoing and Final Crisis) is really good at his job. I'm sure the story he's got in store will kick enough ass that I can deal with any change it brings about. I'm not railing so much at this particular change (although I can see why someone would), but more at the artistic culture holding sway in the medium I love. I appreciate blockbuster events and unexpected twists that change the four-color world and its inhabitants, but I also appreciate character study and exploration. I'd like some of both, please.