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Ashcroft on the Daily
Appearing on the Daily Show of Oct. 18, John Ashcroft defended the use of “alternative techniques” — i.e., torture — in prisoner interrogations. Very important, he argued, for interrogators to do more than just ask “would you please” of terror suspects. Must get them to divulge the plans for “the next attack.” The truth about the torture debate is that
Jazz treason
I’ve received an email from the brilliant trumpeter John McNeil, advertising a regular gig with the equally brilliant tenor saxophonist Bill McHenry. At the bottom is this wonderful critical plaudit: “Their treasonous use of pentatonics speaks volumes about their hatred of America. These guys are traitors, pure and simple.” — Ann Coulter Took the words right out of my mouth.
Lancet update
Johann Hari, in an otherwise illuminating interview with Salman Rushdie, repeats the canard: “Just after we meet, it is estimated by the Lancet that 650,000 Iraqis have been killed due to Quiet Americans (and Brits).” The number of deaths from violence, according to the Lancet, is 600,000, not 650,000. And once again, the study does not show that all the
Iraq 2006
It is as I said: Bill Maher, on this week’s “Real Time,” brought up the Lancet report showing that “we’ve killed 600,000 Iraqis.” This is outright misinformation, catching on as conventional wisdom. The issue is not simply the veracity of the number, but the allocation of responsibility for the slaughter. The report shows that the majority of killings can be
The Lancet study
A new study conducted by Johns Hopkins and published in the British medical journal The Lancet posits that Iraqi civilian deaths since the 2003 invasion may top the 600,000 mark. A pdf of the study is here. Doubt has been cast on the study’s accuracy — of course by the Bush administration but also by qualified people in the fields
Orhan Pamuk, Nobel laureate
The Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk has won the Nobel Prize for literature. Be sure to read my essay on Pamuk’s novel Snow, published this May on the weblog of Norm Geras.
Weather Report review
I have a review of the new Weather Report box, Forecast: Tomorrow, in the October Jazz Times. It’s online as well. Also, I apologize for the lack of posts. I’m writing a long piece for the next issue of Democratiya, which will appear on December 1.
Six Picks: October 2006
My monthly list of recommended CDs, as published in All About Jazz-New York, October 2006: David Binney, Out of Airplanes (Mythology) Nels Cline, New Monastery (Cryptogramophone) John Hollenbeck, Joys & Desires (Intuition) Keith Jarrett, The Carnegie Hall Concert (ECM) Rudresh Mahanthappa, Code Book (Pi Recordings) Florian Weber/Jeff Denson/Ziv Ravitz, Minsarah (Enja/Justin Time)