David Adler
The week in bigotry
Judeosphere points us to two interesting antisemitic diatribes in the media. First this from Jostein Gaarder of Norway, author of the novel Sophie’s World: There is no turning back. It is time to learn a new lesson: We do no longer recognize the state of Israel. […] There are limits to our patience, and there are limits to our tolerance.
This is now
Heated exchanges today in the UN chamber. Israeli ambassador Dan Gillerman said, without a trace of irony, that the Lebanese people must choose between “those who build and those who destroy.” By the latter he meant Hezbollah, indeed a destructive force. But to ordinary Lebanese, the Orwellian tinge of Gillerman’s speech must have been hard to miss. Israel has chosen
It’s Lamont
Ned Lamont beats Joe Lieberman. It’s a potential net gain for the Senate, although Lamont went on The Colbert Report last week and declared there was no difference at all between him and Lieberman on Israel. He also couched his argument for Iraq troop withdrawal in crudely isolationist terms. But Lieberman’s a disaster, and he wasn’t any better in 2000
That was then…
Jeff Weintraub recently linked to this overview of Israel/Lebanon border issues in the wake of the 2000 withdrawal. I haven’t delved in fully, but it’s worth a look for obvious reasons. From the opening summary: Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon and Lebanon’s steps towards the reestablishment of governmental control there open a new era in Israeli-Lebanese relations.… [C]urrent conditions allow
Another PS on Juan Cole
A friend alerts me to this piece by Danny Rubenstein about “the seven lost villages,” which Juan Cole alluded to in a post criticized by Jeff Weintraub (here for background). I thought I’d point it out to those interested.
Noteworthy gigs
Too much music going on in New York to mention it all, but I was struck last week by two trio performances. Bill Frisell’s show at Celebrate Brooklyn on August 3 had him playing with Tony Scherr (bass) and Kenny Wolleson (drums) in front of a giant screen, onto which were projected Buster Keaton films, several of Jim Woodring’s “Frank”
Sounds to cherish 3
Another in an occasional series… The Al Cohn Quintet Featuring Bob Brookmeyer (Verve)Reissue of a 1956 date for Coral Records. Brookmeyer’s high-art arrangements of “The Lady Is a Tramp,” “Ill Wind,” originals, etc. With Mose Allison on piano, Teddy Kotick on bass, Nick Stabulas on drums. Keeping count of Brookmeyer’s priceless collaborations (Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Jimmy Raney, etc.) is
A quick word on Juan Cole
I’m grateful to Jeff Weintraub for linking here a couple of times in recent days. In one post he quoted my critique of Lara Deeb’s primer on Hezbollah, and he termed Juan Cole’s analysis an “academic whitewash” as well. Leaving that Cole post aside for the moment, I’d like to recall my post of July 20, in which I cited