Miscellaneous And Off Topic Subjects

[Dr. Strangelove]

I have read that all the racists were paid to be there and that it looked real because they are paid well. No fuckin joke.

They're all hired by George Soros too. Don't forget that. It's amazing how tens of thousands, if not millions of actors are on his payroll, making the Nationalist Right look bad.

[Dr. Strangelove]

DSL:

How do you think Ken Burns' documentary would be received today? It certainly didn't portray the treasonists as vile racists. Quite the contrary, he treated them with a lot of respect and even some reverence. I mean, can that possibly fly today? Or, for that matter, having Shelby Foote comment at all.

I ask that in view of the some preposterous comparisons of Confederate statutes -- "Did Germany erect Nazi statutes????" -- "Did we erect Cornwalis statutes???"

Now, I fully get the informed point against -- a lot of these were erected in Jim Crow as an overt racist symbol -- just as many states incorporated the treasonist flag into their own during that era. But, THAT's not the reason given by the masses -- it's literally, they fought for the treasonists are ergo vile.

And so I wonder how that view colors the way we would look at other treatments of the War to Suppress Southern Treason. It's a view that is increasingly popular, if not a majority, and it's one that you can't push back against w/o being labeled RACIST! So, I'm actually curious what folks would think of something as brilliant and defining as Ken Burns work if it were put out today.

BTW, if elected officials opt to remove the statutes, then I got no qualm. Just as I guess I have no qualm if elected Nevada officials want to rename McCarron Airport b/c McCarron was, apparently, racist (and, incidentally, obviously unassociated with the Civil War -- just a Senator in the 30s and 40s or something).

Gosh, it's been forever since I watched Ken Burns on this...it would certainly be different today..

Y'know, I probably wouldn't want anything really changed. But then I think..what does a black person think about all this? Maybe you or I think comparing the Nazis to the Confederates is ridiculous, but for a significant group of people, it's not ridiculous at all. If Ken Burns did a documentary on the Holocaust, would he include long segments emphasizing how noble Rommel and other German generals were during the war? Would he emphasize that he was a model gentleman fighting for a bad cause? I personally don't think slavery is significantly better than genocide.

In the end I'm all for local decision on this, not some national outside group pushing it. But if the City of New Orleans (which is majority black these days, isn't it?), decides to remove statues which glorify Confederate leaders, who the hell else in America has an equal right to demand they stay?

I've seen a lot of people (admittedly liberal) also sharing this letter from Robert E. Lee (c. 1869) himself. He appears to disdain the idea of monuments to the Confederacy being built, as they would "keep open the sores of war".

http://leefamilyarchive.org/9-family-papers/861-robert-e-lee-to-david-mcconaughy-1869-august-5

[iam416]

FWIW, I think Rommel gets a lot credit as a very good general. Heh.

I agree entirely re New Orleans. If Lafayette wants to take them and put them up, then have at it. But, it's each city's respective decision.

I mostly disagree with sanitizing down to lowest common denominator.

Anyway, thanks for the response. I just watch Ken Burns a few weeks ago so it was on my mind. Still really good. Honestly, they could have done 5 hours of just Foote talking.

[froot loops]

PBS plays that every summer, it is received well even today. Foote is the star of the show no doubt, but he's not a full Lost Causer. The most problematic of the Foote commentary is the sanitization of Forrest.

If Ken Burns were to do it today, I'm sure it would be a little different but not that much. Really these monuments were less about the Civil War and more about Radical Reconstruction/Jim Crow. It's the beauty of the Lost Cause movement.

The Civil War is rightfully looked at as the masterpiece of the Burns portfolio, but The National Parks documentary is the true masterpiece.

[iam416]

It's reputation makes it hard to think about how it'd be viewed if we're released today. It's almoat above criticism at this point.

The parks is good, but lacks Shelby. Heh.

[Dr. Strangelove]

I loved Baseball as a teenager, except for too much fucking Mario Cuomo

[iam416]

Correct and correct.

Shelby >> Mario

[froot loops]

The Parks one beats it in pure beauty and has it beat on technology. The Ken Burns effect had not been invented in software yet so the picture scanning is manual. They fixed that problem in the remaster.

Here is a post article with Burns talking about Foote and Barbara Fields. He gives some insight into Foote that you might not see in the doc. In some ways the doc shortchanges Foote to a funny anecdote teller when he was actually much more.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/act-four/wp/2015/09/11/how-two-very-different-historians-defined-the-civil-war/?utm_term=.1101fb6648aa

More statues of John Muir, Stephen Mather and Horace Albright.

[iam416]

Fields was good, too. I know Foote could have talked on much more, but damn, he is such a good story teller.

[froot loops]

Ed Bears in that crazy light blue suit cracks me up.

[Dr. Strangelove]

Spanish police shoot and kill 4 suspects in another city SW of Barcelona.

[Dr. Strangelove]

James Murdoch (yes, that family) puts out a statement ripping Trump and pledges a $1M donation to the Defamation League.

[froot loops]

James and Lucky have been trying to cajole the Fox empire into a new direction for awhile.

[hack]

When we stand back, decades from now, and have the context of time, I hope we'll see Rupert Murdoch as one of the most corrosive figures of this era. Utterly vile creature. The sons could turn into all that's fair and just and donate every penny and it still wouldn't be enough.

[CGVT]

Andy Borowitz
7 hrs ?
Confederate Statue Controversy Inspires Betsy DeVos to Google Civil War