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The Denial of Racism is the Tragic Flaw of America

  By To update

I’m not going to link to a recent op-ed by Richard Cohen that reeks with racism. I don’t want him to get any more clicks for it. Twenty five years ago, Richard Cohen was a powerful liberal voice. Now, to quote a phrase, I often have to repress a gag reflex when I read him. It’s sad. One could argue that this snafu is just a poor choice of words. I suspect he meant “old-fashioned” or “traditional” views and that he wasn’t identifying his own views with those who hold “conventional” views. But the deeper issue is his denial that those who hold those views are, in fact racists. The conventional view in this country on most matters until very recently, and certainly the “old-fashioned” or “traditional” view on most matters, reflected a deep-seated racism. Racism is as central to American thinking as our belief in liberty and equality. The… Continue reading

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The Crazy Doesn’t Go Away as You Age

  By Uncategorized

As someone who has spent a lot of time with older people over the course of my life and now takes care of an aging parent and in-law, can I give you some advice? You don’t get less crazy or personality disordered as you age. It doesn’t burn out. Old age is really hard to begin with. And whether you are obsessive or hysterical or unrealistic or narcissistic, it’s not going to get better when you are in your 70s and 80s. It’s going to get worse. So get therapy now, while you might be emotionally flexible enough to benefit from it. And before it is too late. Continue reading

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Re-Reading Roth

  By Uncategorized

Philip Roth’s novels were very important to the early thinking that eventually led to the book I’m writing Civilization and Its Discontents, mostly because I disagreed with so much of what his works seemed to imply about the tension between sexual desire and family life. (In making that argument, Roth was, of course, carrying on in the long Augustinian tradition I criticize, particularly in it’s Freudian version, although Roth is in many ways a critic of Freud.) It occurred to me to re-read some of Roth’s books, as I near the end of this project and I’ve discovered two things. One is that there are many more voices in Roth’s work than I saw when I first read him. The second is something that I’ve always known, reading Roth is an immense pleasure–so many wonderful lines, carefully constructed and beautiful sentences and paragraphs, clever but not obtrusive plots, and a… Continue reading

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Liquor Privatization and Progressive Politics

  By Uncategorized

The liquor store privatization issue is really a good test of whether you know what you are talking about when it comes to progressive politics in our state. If you support privatization then you don’t understand that: 1. There is no progressive power in this country that isn’t based in a strong labor movement. A middle class highly educated person who tells you he is a progressive but doesn’t understand what UFCW has meant to the politics of this state needs a graduate degree from the school of real politics. 2. That there is no middle class that doesn’t require government action to increase the wages of working people and that well paid public sector workers benefits all workers. 3. That our unique system means that PA’s take from liquor and wine sales is at least double that of any other state in the country and that we can’t end… Continue reading

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Pharaoh Sanders at 72

  By To update

No one sounds like Pharaoh Sanders. And he hasn’t lost that big rough but tender sound. (He’s to the tenor what Howlin Wolf is to singers.) He played a bunch of his great tunes and some standards. Although he seemed pretty tired at the end (he’s doesn’t have Sonny Rollins’ super-human energy) he was on stage for over two hours and was consistently inventive and powerful. He has what looks like a very arthritic hip (like Sonny) but when he danced or led the audience in singing or clapping to the rhythmic pieces that ended the concert he seemed to shed 20 of his 72 years. There’s always been a strong spiritual element to his music—one that draws on many traditions—and the last 30 minutes of the concert were a kind of first church of jazz. It was thrilling! Continue reading

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Shopping

  By Family Stories

My wife and I have two totally different approaches to food shopping. I make a list, go in and get what’s on the list, and am out of the coop in no more than 15 minutes. She has a list, too. But then she looks at what else is on the shelves. She compares products. She seeks out new products. She asks when something is not on the shelves. She consults with the staff about products and their alternatives. She shops as if she were in a hardware store! Continue reading

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A Last Word on the Controller’s Race

  By 2013 Controller race, Philadelphia, Progressive Politics, Ward politics

The response to our letter on Brett Mandel has been predictable, and for the most part good. Many progressives who have shared our qualms about Brett have come out and taken a public position. And many of those progressives who support Brett have denounced us for joining a “ward leader, party hack” who is backed by Bob Brady and John Dougherty. To the larger first group I say thanks and I encourage you keep getting the word out. Share our letter via email and Facebook. Join the Progressives against Mandel group on Facebook. The second group, I want to suggest you take this episode as a learning experience about politics. First, politics is about coalition building. It’s about getting people together in support of legislation or a candidate who might not agree on other matters. People don’t wear black hats and white hats in politics. With very few exceptions, all… Continue reading

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My Brett Mandel Problem—and Ours

  By 2013 Controller race, Philadelphia

Political life is sometimes difficult, especially when friendship and ideology come into conflict. I made a difficult decision the other day, to sign a statement opposing Brett Mandel’s candidacy for City Controller. Elections are blunt instruments for expressing one’s preferences because multiple concerns come into play when we decide for whom to vote. And that’s why my decision was so hard. I consider Brett a friend. I like him a great deal. I respect his mind and his commitment to the good of the city. There are a few people in the city whose ideas I always take into account when making up my own mind. Brett is one of them. I agree with Brett on many things. But I’ve decided that I can’t vote for him for Controller. Good Government If I were to focus all of my attention on good government issues like transparency, honesty, openness, and government… Continue reading

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More on Why PLCB Privatization is a Bad Idea: State Revenues

  By Pennsylvania, Politics

As I prepared to do a radio interview with Marty Moss-Cohane yesterday (which you can listen to here), I delved more deeply into the issue of privatizing the state wine and spirits stores than I had before. And it turns out that the arguments for not doing so is even stronger than I had realized when I wrote an op-ed at Newsworks. As the House of Representatives moves toward a decision about this today, I want to explain how I came to that conclusion. This, the first of two posts, will focus on state revenues and show that privatizing the PLCB will blow a huge hole in the state budget requiring us either to raise other taxes or reduce spending for education, health care, and other important common goods. The second will focus on the public harms of alcohol abuse and how privatization of the PLCB will make them worse.… Continue reading

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Allyson Schwartz and the Abortion Issue

  By Pennsylvania, Politics, Women and Health Care

I keep hearing from intelligent people who know something about politics that Allyson Schwartz can’t win statewide because she directed a women’s health center—the Elizabeth Blackwell Center—that along with providing a wide range of health services, also provided abortions. (BTW, my wife’s first job was working at the Blackwell Center. Yes, we go back with Allyson a long way.) Now, do I need to add that every one of those intelligent analysts are men? (And that a few of them appear to be working for other potential candidates for Governor who presumably support abortion but are raising questions about Allyson’s support of it?) The DGA poll that showed Allyson beating Corbett in every part of the state really pushed on that issue and it had no effect on the polls. Why not? Why are the (male) analysts wrong? The reason is that both the state and our nation as a… Continue reading