Perhaps the United States'
only true 20th century renaissance man, Vidal's intellect was
boundless, informed by his prodigious reading, writing and intimate
understanding of history, philosophy, and ancient civilizations - among
so many other unfashionable disciplines these days.
A writer of such singular breadth, nuance and virtuosity, Vidal never shied away from using his pen as a tool to first expose, then eviscerate the one-party oligarchy and surveillance state the US had long ago become and the propagandists who populate it.
Of course, I couldn't help but think of what Vidal would have made of the absurd spectacle of 20 Democrats "debating" in 60-second soundbites over two nights on television last week - all vying to establish their bona fides to lead an imperial nation, rather than a mythic republic.
Vidal's acidic verdict would, necessarily, have been the first and lasting word on the cockeyed proceedings. If anyone should doubt this, they need only recall what an older, but still dynamic Vidal said instantly after watching Barack Obama's victory speech delivered in Chicago on November 4, 2008.
"I would like to think of him as completely virtuous. I suspect he is not. Why do I suspect that? Because I know how politics works," Vidal said, while other "liberals" were swooning. "It was not his jib that got them. Americans are farcical when faced with force majeure and money. Two things that they worship. You can't expect a democracy from a society like this."
Note EU-Digest: Eugene Luther Gore Vidal born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his patrician manner, epigrammatic wit, and polished style of writing.
Read more at: 2020 will be the 'no, we won't' US election | USA | Al Jazeera
A writer of such singular breadth, nuance and virtuosity, Vidal never shied away from using his pen as a tool to first expose, then eviscerate the one-party oligarchy and surveillance state the US had long ago become and the propagandists who populate it.
Of course, I couldn't help but think of what Vidal would have made of the absurd spectacle of 20 Democrats "debating" in 60-second soundbites over two nights on television last week - all vying to establish their bona fides to lead an imperial nation, rather than a mythic republic.
Vidal's acidic verdict would, necessarily, have been the first and lasting word on the cockeyed proceedings. If anyone should doubt this, they need only recall what an older, but still dynamic Vidal said instantly after watching Barack Obama's victory speech delivered in Chicago on November 4, 2008.
"I would like to think of him as completely virtuous. I suspect he is not. Why do I suspect that? Because I know how politics works," Vidal said, while other "liberals" were swooning. "It was not his jib that got them. Americans are farcical when faced with force majeure and money. Two things that they worship. You can't expect a democracy from a society like this."
Note EU-Digest: Eugene Luther Gore Vidal born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his patrician manner, epigrammatic wit, and polished style of writing.
Read more at: 2020 will be the 'no, we won't' US election | USA | Al Jazeera
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Turkish-Digest
For additional information, including advertising rates - e-mail: Freeplanet@protonmail.com
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