Words of uncommon wisdom (in unusual times)

Hope is a state of mind, not of the world.  Either we have hope or we don't; it is a dimension of the soul, and it's not essentially dependent on some particular observation of the world or estimate of  the situation.  Hope is not prognostication.  It is an orientation of the spirit, and orientation of the heart; it transcends the world that is immediately experienced, and is anchored somewhere beyond its horizons ...Hope, in this deep and powerful sense, is not the same as joy that things are going well, or willingness to invest in enterprises that are obviously heading for success, but rather an ability to work for something because it is good, not just because it stands a chance to succeed.  The more propitious the situation in which we demonstrate hope, the deeper the hope is.  Hope is definitely not the same thing as optimism.  It is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out.

— Vaclav Havel

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Another great speech, never delivered 2

President Obama’s moving memorial address in Tucson calls to mind other great American oratory from history, and also reminded me of an extraordinary speech that was never needed.

With men standing for the first time in history on the moon, the assignment fell to William Safire to draft remarks for the awful contingency that failure would strand and kill them there. That prospect was altogether possible.

Here is his draft of the speech Richard Nixon, thankfully, didn’t need to deliver: 

To: H. R. Haldeman

From: Bill Safire

July 18, 1969.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

IN EVENT OF MOON DISASTER:

Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace.

These brave men, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, know that there is no hope for their recovery. But they also know that there is hope for mankind in their sacrifice.

These two men are laying down their lives in mankind's most noble goal: the search for truth and understanding.

They will be mourned by their families and friends; they will be mourned by the nation; they will be mourned by the people of the world; they will be mourned by a Mother Earth that dared send two of her sons into the unknown.

In their exploration, they stirred the people of the world to feel as one; in their sacrifice, they bind more tightly the brotherhood of man.

In ancient days, men looked at the stars and saw their heroes in the constellations. In modern times, we do much the same, but our heroes are epic men of flesh and blood.

Others will follow, and surely find their way home. Man's search will not be denied. But these men were the first, and they will remain the foremost in our hearts.

For every human being who looks up at the moon in the nights to come will know that there is some corner of another world that is forever mankind.

PRIOR TO THE PRESIDENT'S STATEMENT:

The President should telephone each of the widows-to-be.

AFTER THE PRESIDENT'S STATEMENT, AT THE POINT WHEN NASA ENDS COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE MEN:

A clergyman should adopt the same procedure as a burial at sea, commending their souls to "the deepest of the deep," concluding with the Lord's Prayer.

Instead, Nixon commemorated the successful landing with typical public clumsiness in a celebratory phone call to the men on the moon:

Houston: ...We'd like to get both of you in the field-of-view of the camera for a minute. (Pause) Neil and Buzz, the President of the United States is in his office now and would like to say a few words to you. Over.

Armstrong: That would be an honor.

Houston: Go ahead Mr. President. This is Houston out.

Nixon: Hello Neil and Buzz. I'm talking to you by telephone from the Oval Room at the White House. And this certainly has to be the most historic telephone call ever made. I just can't tell you how proud we all are of what you've done. For every American, this has to be the proudest day of our lives. And for people all over the world, I am sure they too join with Americans in recognizing what an immense feat this is. Because of what you have done, the heavens have become a part of man's world. And as you talk to us from the Sea of Tranquility, it inspires us to redouble our efforts to bring peace and tranquility to Earth. For one priceless moment in the whole history of man, all the people on this Earth are truly one. One in their pride in what you have done. And one in our prayers that you will return safely to Earth.

Armstrong: Thank you Mr. President. It's a great honor and privilege for us to be here, representing not only the United States but United States but men of peace of all nations, and with interest and curiosity and with the vision for the future. It's an honor for us to participate here today.

Nixon: And thank you very much and I look forward - all of us look forward - to seeing you on the Hornet on Thursday.

Aldrin: We look forward to that very much, sir.

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Another great speech, never delivered

 President Obama’s moving memorial address in Tucson calls to mind other great American oratory from history, and also reminded me of an extraordinary speech that was never needed.

With men standing for the first time in history on the moon, the assignment fell to William Safire to draft remarks for the awful contingency that failure would strand and kill them there. That prospect was altogether possible.

Here is his draft of the speech Richard Nixon, thankfully, didn’t need to deliver: 

To: H. R. Haldeman

From: Bill Safire

July 18, 1969.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

IN EVENT OF MOON DISASTER:

Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace.

These brave men, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, know that there is no hope for their recovery. But they also know that there is hope for mankind in their sacrifice.

These two men are laying down their lives in mankind's most noble goal: the search for truth and understanding.

They will be mourned by their families and friends; they will be mourned by the nation; they will be mourned by the people of the world; they will be mourned by a Mother Earth that dared send two of her sons into the unknown.

In their exploration, they stirred the people of the world to feel as one; in their sacrifice, they bind more tightly the brotherhood of man.

In ancient days, men looked at the stars and saw their heroes in the constellations. In modern times, we do much the same, but our heroes are epic men of flesh and blood.

Others will follow, and surely find their way home. Man's search will not be denied. But these men were the first, and they will remain the foremost in our hearts.

For every human being who looks up at the moon in the nights to come will know that there is some corner of another world that is forever mankind.

PRIOR TO THE PRESIDENT'S STATEMENT:

The President should telephone each of the widows-to-be.

AFTER THE PRESIDENT'S STATEMENT, AT THE POINT WHEN NASA ENDS COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE MEN:

A clergyman should adopt the same procedure as a burial at sea, commending their souls to "the deepest of the deep," concluding with the Lord's Prayer.

Instead, Nixon commemorated the successful landing with typical public clumsiness in a celebratory phone call to the men on the moon:

Houston: ...We'd like to get both of you in the field-of-view of the camera for a minute. (Pause) Neil and Buzz, the President of the United States is in his office now and would like to say a few words to you. Over.

Armstrong: That would be an honor.

Houston: Go ahead Mr. President. This is Houston out.

Nixon: Hello Neil and Buzz. I'm talking to you by telephone from the Oval Room at the White House. And this certainly has to be the most historic telephone call ever made. I just can't tell you how proud we all are of what you've done. For every American, this has to be the proudest day of our lives. And for people all over the world, I am sure they too join with Americans in recognizing what an immense feat this is. Because of what you have done, the heavens have become a part of man's world. And as you talk to us from the Sea of Tranquility, it inspires us to redouble our efforts to bring peace and tranquility to Earth. For one priceless moment in the whole history of man, all the people on this Earth are truly one. One in their pride in what you have done. And one in our prayers that you will return safely to Earth.

Armstrong: Thank you Mr. President. It's a great honor and privilege for us to be here, representing not only the United States but United States but men of peace of all nations, and with interest and curiosity and with the vision for the future. It's an honor for us to participate here today.

Nixon: And thank you very much and I look forward - all of us look forward - to seeing you on the Hornet on Thursday.

Aldrin: We look forward to that very much, sir.

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The Beatles: best and worst

Earlier today I tweeted a random thought I had while listening to a big collection of Beatles music on shuffle:

Have been listening to lots of Beatles for the first time in 30+ years. 

Best songs are better than I remembered; the worst are much worse.

A friend asked for examples, which made me go back and think about why I said that. Truth is, it was a snap impression made without much thought. 

But on review, it does seem right.

Admittedly, any band with a few dozen LPs will have had lots of filler songs that they (and everybody else) knew were crap. Still, they’re there. In general I have tried not to pick those inconsequential songs as example of the bad, but it’s subjective.

Here’s a quick sample of one poor and one good song from a handful of albums:

A Hard Day’s Night: —You Can’t Do That; +Can’t Buy Me Love

Help: —Another Girl; +The Night Before

Please Please Me: —Misery; +I Saw Her Standing There

Revolver: —Taxman; +Elanor Rigby

Rubber Soul: —Norwegian Wood; +In My Life

(I imagine the last two will create some dispute, but for me there are personal as well as musical reasons behind those last two choices).

What would you nominate? Add them here in the same format:

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Mark Twain and the N Word

By DAVID LEIBOWITZ: 

Copyright © 1996 Cox News Service

PHOENIX (May 7, 1996 2:35 p.m. EDT) -- I can still conjure up that afternoon without much effort. The fourth grade, Public School 209 in New York City. The first time someone ever called me that word.

Kike.

I knew what it meant, had heard that anti-Semitic slur before, but never aimed at me. It scalded, shamed. I mumbled a defense: I wasn't one, my mother was Catholic, an Italian. Only my father was Jewish.

The speaker, a kid I once thought a friend, laughed at me.

I made sure not to cry until I'd gotten two blocks away.

The word surfaced again over the years. Each time, it gouged a hunk out of my self-respect, left me feeling apart, "other." It brought me to tears, to fury, and, once, to blows.

Then came the books.

Authors like Elie Wiesel and Isaac Bashevis Singer, Toni Morrison, Ralph Ellison and Richard Wright. They taught me about pride and dignity, and, more importantly, about the small-mindedness behind racism and the hurling of slurs.

In the end, their words freed me from the power of that word.

Therein lies the sadness of the controversy that continues to follow Mark Twain and the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

You felt it acutely on the sidewalk outside McClintock High School in Tempe a few mornings back, watching a thin huddle of protesters wave their signs.

"What Can You Teach About Nigger?" read the saddest placard of all.

They, the Twain haters, would like you to brand the author a racist for his use of that loaded word, at least 200 times in Huck Finn by most counts. And, for that, they would like you to condemn one of American literature's crown jewels to the rear of the pantheon.

"When you read the story, to me it's like, what is the purpose?" asks Charlie Minniefield, one of the protesters. "What is the purpose of the story?”

It's a question easily answered, and one that shows why slurring Mark Twain demands a defense.

The purpose of Huck Finn is to preach against the confines of society and the closing of the mind "sivilization" breeds, and -- front and center -- to rant against racism.

That's what Twain was doing, you see, way back in the mid 1880s, back when the slaves had been freed in the lawbooks, but not in people's hearts. Understand that we are talking about a man who paid the way of a black student through Yale, because he thought the white race owed some huge debts, who gave readings at black churches. Understand, too, the foremost tool of an author.

Irony.

I will not bore you the way my grad-school American lit profs bored me, but I assure you it is possible to say one thing and mean another, or to use a word only to show your distaste for it. Pick up Huck and turn to Chapter Six, to Pap Finn's foul-mouthed speech on "govment" and a "mulatter." It stands as the novel's most obvious example, because nowhere else does Twain's disgust for Huck's racist father edge closer to the surface: In mid-rant, Pap trips over a tub of salt pork, then stubs his toe. He ends the scene by getting "blind drunk.”

Racism equals foolishness, no?

Then, too, irony aside, we have the chapters spent on the raft, Huck and Jim, Miss Watson's slave, adrift on the Mississippi. These two stand apart from society now, and without that bondage they form a better kind of friendship, based on respect and intimacy. Simply put, they escape the handcuffs of race. Ultimately, it's Jim who spells out friendship in Chapter 15, after Huck plays a practical joke on him.

"Dat truck dah is trash," he says, "en trash is what people is dat puts dirt on de head er dey fren's en makes 'em ashamed.”

Explains Huck: "Then he got up slow and walked to the wigwam, and went in there without saying anything but that. But that was enough. It made me feel so mean I could almost kissed his foot to get him to take it back.”

That's the debt we all owe to Twain, I would argue -- a kiss. For his courage to use an ugly word to free us from its ugliness, and his vision at a time when it was in short supply. Those people bearing signs may want Huck Finn out of the classroom, and off the required reading list for honors English, for the sensitivities that slur pricks, but they should sit down and read that book one more time.

We all should. Read every word. Not just one.

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