Category Archives: mainstream media

‘Low-stoop’ fiction writer seeks agent, brand

Posted on May 16, 2011 by oddmanout215

Citations from an article about the importance of tireless self-promotion in trying to establish a brand for your work: For artists, the great problem to solve is how to get oneself noticed. — Honore de Balzac, Lost Illusions Great success … Continue reading →

Posted in arts, fiction, mainstream media, Philadelphia | Tagged Balzac, fiction, Idiot Lights, Lost Illusions, New Yorker, Philadelphia, Rodin Museum, self-promotion, self-publishing, slush pile, Stendhal | 1 Comment

What does ‘killing evil’ mean, Maureen?

Posted on May 9, 2011 by oddmanout215

Here’s the Beltway sage Maureen Dowd, defending those who danced in the streets and shouted “USA!” at the news that Osama bin Laden had been killed by the U.S. military: I don’t want closure. There is no closure after tragedy. … Continue reading →

Posted in Iraq war, mainstream media, New York Times, New York Times op-ed, Politics | Tagged Gen. Curtis LeMay, Henry Kissinger, killing evil, Maureen Dowd, New York Times, Osama bin Laden, Richard Nixon, Sideshow, William Shawcross | Leave a comment

Osama, we hardly knew ye!

Posted on May 2, 2011 by oddmanout215

Put on your waders, here comes the presidential bullshit: Tonight, let us think back to the sense of unity that prevailed on 9/11. I know that it has, at times, frayed. Yet today’s achievement is a testament to the greatness … Continue reading →

Posted in economic collapse, Great Recession, Iraq war, mainstream media, Obama, Politics | Tagged Afghanistan, Bible Belt, CNN, Iraq, killing, Navy SEALS, Osama bin Laden, Pakistan, Wolf Blitzer | Leave a comment

A Python-esque rite in South Philly

Posted on April 28, 2011 by oddmanout215

Ah, the rites of spring in the `hood! You know — palm weaving, the Easter Parade on South Street, race riots in Grays Ferry. Here’s one that was new to me — the Good Friday re-enactment of the crucifixion of … Continue reading →

Posted in economic collapse, globalization, Great Recession, immigration, livable cities, mainstream media, NJ, Philadelphia, Politics, Wall Street, world-wide economy | Tagged Annunciation B.V.M. Church, Good Friday, Grays Ferry, Italian Market, Latinos, Monty Python, NJ, South Philly, Washington Township | Leave a comment

Brooks, the Earnest Weasel, nips at Obama

Posted on April 18, 2011 by oddmanout215

This because it’s been a long while since my last installment of the Weasel Watch: President Obama and Paul Ryan are two of the smartest, most admirable and most genial men in Washington. It is sad, although not strange, that … Continue reading →

Posted in David Brooks, economic collapse, Great Recession, mainstream media, Obama, Politics, taxes | Tagged budget reform, David Brooks, Earnest Weasel, Paul Krugman, Paul Ryan, President Obama, social safety net, spending cuts, tax breaks | Leave a comment

A plague on Republicrats!

Posted on April 13, 2011 by oddmanout215

Will Barack Obama keep the promise he made today and oppose extending the Bush tax cuts next time? Will it even matter when the Republicans are finished screwing around with the tax code? The ugly truth is that Obama and … Continue reading →

Posted in economic collapse, finance reform bill, globalization, Great Recession, Iraq war, mainstream media, Politics, taxes, unemployment, world-wide economy | Tagged Barack Obama, D.C. Democrats, infrastructure, Iraq war, Joseph E. Stiglitz, Mercutio, plague on both your houses, wealth inequality | Leave a comment

Lumet’s gone, but ‘Network’ is forever

Posted on April 10, 2011 by oddmanout215

Reading of Sidney Lumet’s death, I thought of Al Pacino chanting “Attica! Attica!” to rouse the rabble in Dog Day Afternoon; of Henry Fonda, with Obama-like cool, shrugging off Lee J. Cobb’s bully tactics in Twelve Angry Men; of Jerry … Continue reading →

Posted in arts, fiction, mainstream media | Tagged Al Pacino, Dog Day Afternoon, Faye Dunaway, Henry Fonda, Howard Beale, Network, Paddy Chayefsky, Peter Finch, Sidney Lumet | 1 Comment

How to negotiate like Neville Chamberlain

Posted on April 9, 2011 by oddmanout215

John Boehner’s target was $40 million in budget cuts. He got $38.5 million. And yet talking heads on MSNBC will almost surely try to spin the budget deal as some sort of victory for Democrats and working people, just as … Continue reading →

Posted in Congress, economic collapse, Great Recession, mainstream media, Obama, Politics, unemployment | Tagged Barack Obama, budget cuts, government shutdown, John Boehner, MSNBC, tax cuts, ThinkProgress | Leave a comment

How do Paul Ryan do that voodoo he do?

Posted on April 8, 2011 by oddmanout215

I vote “yes” on Robert Reich’s call for higher taxes on the rich: …Remarkably, taxes on the top have plummeted. From the 1940s until 1980, the top tax income tax rate on the highest earners in America was at least … Continue reading →

Posted in economic collapse, Great Recession, mainstream media, New York Times, Obama, Politics, taxes, unemployment, world-wide economy | Tagged budget plan, Congressional Budget Office, deficit, Rep. Paul Ryan, tax cuts | 1 Comment

The Obama trap is closing on progressives

Posted on April 6, 2011 by oddmanout215

From the Animals: My little girl you’re so young and pretty/And one thing I know is true/You’ll be dead before your time is due/Yes you will. From Michael Gerson in The Washington Post: Obama now has Republicans cornered in budget … Continue reading →

Posted in economic collapse, Great Recession, mainstream media, Obama, Politics, taxes, unemployment | Tagged $30 billion, Barack Obama, bonus tax cuts, budget cuts, progressives, Republican leaders | Leave a comment