Guest guest Posted March 15, 2003 Report Share Posted March 15, 2003 The article appears to have been removed from the site. Which is not surprising in today's environ. - "Mary Ann" <maryann <> Saturday, March 15, 2003 11:13 AM America, Politics, Spirituality, Music > A friend sent me this link today to an article by musician Brian > Eno. I liked the article a lot and wanted to share it with the group. > > http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie > w_eno.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 15, 2003 Report Share Posted March 15, 2003 A friend sent me this link today to an article by musician Brian Eno. I liked the article a lot and wanted to share it with the group. http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie w_eno.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 16, 2003 Report Share Posted March 16, 2003 "How do you stop two armies fighting on a battlefield in a distant land?"as per a zen koan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 17, 2003 Report Share Posted March 17, 2003 I found the article and am including it here for those who couldn't access it via the link I posted. The U.S. Needs to Open Up to the World To this European, America is trapped in a fortress of arrogance and ignorance By BRIAN ENO Posted Sunday, Jan. 12, 2003; 2.09 p.m. GMT Europeans have always looked at America with a mixture of fascination and puzzlement, and now, increasingly, disbelief. How is it that a country that prides itself on its economic success could have so many very poor people? How is it that a country so insistent on the rule of law should seek to exempt itself from international agreements? And how is it that the world's beacon of democracy can have elections dominated by wealthy special interest groups? For me, the question has become: "How can a country that has produced so much cultural and economic wealth act so dumb?" I could fill this page with the names of Americans who have influenced, entertained and educated me. They represent what I admire about America: a vigorous originality of thought, and a confidence that things can be changed for the better. That was the America I lived in and enjoyed from 1978 until 1983. That America was an act of faith — the faith that "otherness" was not threatening but nourishing, the faith that there could be a country big enough in spirit to welcome and nurture all the diversity the world could throw at it. But since Sept. 11, that vision has been eclipsed by a suspicious, introverted America, a country-sized version of that peculiarly American form of ghetto: the gated community. A gated community is defensive. Designed to keep the "others" out, it dissolves the rich web of society into a random clustering of disconnected individuals. It turns paranoia and isolation into a lifestyle. Surely this isn't the America that anyone dreamed of; it's a last resort, nobody's choice. It's especially ironic since so much of the best new thinking about society, economics, politics and philosophy in the last century came from America. Unhampered by the snobbery and exclusivity of much European thought, American thinkers vaulted forward — courageous, innovative and determined to talk in a public language. But, unfortunately, over the same period, the mass media vaulted backward, thriving on increasingly simple stories and trivializing news into something indistinguishable from entertainment. As a result, a wealth of original and subtle thought — America's real wealth — is squandered. This narrowing of the American mind is exacerbated by the withdrawal of the left from active politics. Virtually ignored by the media, the left has further marginalized itself by a retreat into introspective cultural criticism. It seems content to do yoga and gender studies, leaving the fundamentalist Christian right and the multinationals to do the politics. The separation of church and state seems to be breaking down too. Political discourse is now dominated by moralizing, like George W. Bush's promotion of American "family values" abroad, and dissent is unpatriotic. "You're either with us or against us" is the kind of cant you'd expect from a zealous mullah, not an American President. When Europeans make such criticisms, Americans assume we're envious. "They want what we've got," the thinking goes, "and if they can't get it, they're going to stop us from having it." But does everyone want what America has? Well, we like some of it but could do without the rest: among the highest rates of violent crime, economic inequality, functional illiteracy, incarceration and drug use in the developed world. President Bush recently declared that the U.S. was "the single surviving model of human progress." Maybe some Americans think this self-evident, but the rest of us see it as a clumsy arrogance born of ignorance. Europeans tend to regard free national health services, unemployment benefits, social housing and so on as pretty good models of human progress. We think it's important — civilized, in fact — to help people who fall through society's cracks. This isn't just altruism, but an understanding that having too many losers in society hurts everyone. It's better for everybody to have a stake in society than to have a resentful underclass bent on wrecking things. To many Americans, this sounds like socialism, big government, the nanny state. But so what? The result is: Europe has less gun crime and homicide, less poverty and arguably a higher quality of life than the U.S., which makes a lot of us wonder why America doesn't want some of what we've got. Too often, the U.S. presents the "American way" as the only way, insisting on its kind of free-market Darwinism as the only acceptable "model of human progress." But isn't civilization what happens when people stop behaving as if they're trapped in a ruthless Darwinian struggle and start thinking about communities and shared futures? America as a gated community won't work, because not even the world's sole superpower can build walls high enough to shield itself from the intertwined realities of the 21st century. There's a better form of security: reconnect with the rest of the world, don't shut it out; stop making enemies and start making friends. Perhaps it's asking a lot to expect America to act differently from all the other empires in history, but wasn't that the original idea? Brian Eno is a musician who believes that regime change begins at home , "Thomas M. Fiddler" <tfiddler@c...> wrote: > MSNBC and other major networks and newspapers are covering up and > re-editing gaffes, statements, lies and truths regarding the Bush junta. > > This is hardly shocking. George Orwell would be upset for having his > novel "1984" ripped off. > > Be well, be safe, Become. > > -Tom > > Felix qui potuit rerum cognoscere causas... > > > Sandeep Chatterjee [sandeepc@b...] > Saturday, March 15, 2003 12:16 AM > > Re: America, Politics, Spirituality, Music > > > The article appears to have been removed from the site. > Which is not surprising in today's environ. > > > - > "Mary Ann" <maryann@m...> > <> > Saturday, March 15, 2003 11:13 AM > America, Politics, Spirituality, Music > > > > A friend sent me this link today to an article by musician Brian > > Eno. I liked the article a lot and wanted to share it with the group. > > > > HYPERLINK > "http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie'>http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie "http://www > .time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie > > w_eno.html > > > > > Sponsor > > > HYPERLINK > "http://rd./M=246920.2960106.4328965.2848452/D=e groupweb/S=1705 > 075991:HM/A=1481659/R=0/*http://www.gotomypc.com/u/tr/yh/cp m/grp/300_yh1 > /g22lp?Target=mm/g22lp.tmpl" > HYPERLINK > "http://us.adserver./l?M=246920.2960106.4328965.28 48452/D=egrou > pmail/S=:HM/A=1481659/rand=447948038" > > > > > > > HYPERLINK > "" > > > > --- > Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). > Version: 6.0.461 / Virus Database: 260 - Release 3/10/03 > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 17, 2003 Report Share Posted March 17, 2003 Thanks Maryann ... I read the link you'd originally sent over the weekend. Thank you for bringing it to our attention. I've always been a fan of Mr. Eno's brilliant musical work over the years, but I didn't know he was such an eloquent political advocate (much like his frequent collaborator, U2's Bono). My wife, who's European (from Moldova), read the piece and commented that everything Eno says makes perfect sense, but that -- unfortunately -- the current Administration governing "the land of the free" could not care less about what "the People" (in the U.S. or elsewhere) say or think. The world will be reeling from the fallout of Mr. Bush's belligerent, under-informed foolishness for many decades after he leaves the world stage (and hopefully, that will be sooner rather than later; neither the U.S. nor the world had time to wait through his administration's backward thinking and bull-in-a-china-shop policies at this delicate point in history) ... Aum Maatangyai Namahe -- In , "Mary Ann" <maryann@m...> wrote: > I found the article and am including it here for those who couldn't > access it via the link I posted. > > The U.S. Needs to Open Up to the World > To this European, America is trapped in a fortress of arrogance > and ignorance > > > By BRIAN ENO > > Posted Sunday, Jan. 12, 2003; 2.09 p.m. GMT > Europeans have always looked at America with a mixture of > fascination and puzzlement, and now, increasingly, disbelief. > How is it that a country that prides itself on its economic success > could have so many very poor people? How is it that a country so > insistent on the rule of law should seek to exempt itself from > international agreements? And how is it that the world's beacon > of democracy can have elections dominated by wealthy special > interest groups? For me, the question has become: "How can a > country that has produced so much cultural and economic > wealth act so dumb?" > > I could fill this page with the names of Americans who have > influenced, entertained and educated me. They represent what I > admire about America: a vigorous originality of thought, and a > confidence that things can be changed for the better. That was > the America I lived in and enjoyed from 1978 until 1983. That > America was an act of faith — the faith that "otherness" was not > threatening but nourishing, the faith that there could be a country > big enough in spirit to welcome and nurture all the diversity the > world could throw at it. But since Sept. 11, that vision has been > eclipsed by a suspicious, introverted America, a country-sized > version of that peculiarly American form of ghetto: the gated > community. A gated community is defensive. Designed to keep > the "others" out, it dissolves the rich web of society into a random > clustering of disconnected individuals. It turns paranoia and > isolation into a lifestyle. > > Surely this isn't the America that anyone dreamed of; it's a last > resort, nobody's choice. It's especially ironic since so much of > the best new thinking about society, economics, politics and > philosophy in the last century came from America. Unhampered > by the snobbery and exclusivity of much European thought, > American thinkers vaulted forward — courageous, innovative and > determined to talk in a public language. But, unfortunately, over > the same period, the mass media vaulted backward, thriving on > increasingly simple stories and trivializing news into something > indistinguishable from entertainment. As a result, a wealth of > original and subtle thought — America's real wealth — is > squandered. > > This narrowing of the American mind is exacerbated by the > withdrawal of the left from active politics. Virtually ignored by the > media, the left has further marginalized itself by a retreat into > introspective cultural criticism. It seems content to do yoga and > gender studies, leaving the fundamentalist Christian right and > the multinationals to do the politics. The separation of church > and state seems to be breaking down too. Political discourse is > now dominated by moralizing, like George W. Bush's promotion > of American "family values" abroad, and dissent is unpatriotic. > "You're either with us or against us" is the kind of cant you'd > expect from a zealous mullah, not an American President. > > When Europeans make such criticisms, Americans assume > we're envious. "They want what we've got," the thinking goes, > "and if they can't get it, they're going to stop us from having it." But > does everyone want what America has? Well, we like some of it > but could do without the rest: among the highest rates of violent > crime, economic inequality, functional illiteracy, incarceration and > drug use in the developed world. President Bush recently > declared that the U.S. was "the single surviving model of human > progress." Maybe some Americans think this self-evident, but the > rest of us see it as a clumsy arrogance born of ignorance. > > Europeans tend to regard free national health services, > unemployment benefits, social housing and so on as pretty > good models of human progress. We think it's important — > civilized, in fact — to help people who fall through society's > cracks. This isn't just altruism, but an understanding that having > too many losers in society hurts everyone. It's better for > everybody to have a stake in society than to have a resentful > underclass bent on wrecking things. To many Americans, this > sounds like socialism, big government, the nanny state. But so > what? The result is: Europe has less gun crime and homicide, > less poverty and arguably a higher quality of life than the U.S., > which makes a lot of us wonder why America doesn't want some > of what we've got. > > Too often, the U.S. presents the "American way" as the only way, > insisting on its kind of free-market Darwinism as the only > acceptable "model of human progress." But isn't civilization what > happens when people stop behaving as if they're trapped in a > ruthless Darwinian struggle and start thinking about > communities and shared futures? America as a gated > community won't work, because not even the world's sole > superpower can build walls high enough to shield itself from the > intertwined realities of the 21st century. There's a better form of > security: reconnect with the rest of the world, don't shut it out; > stop making enemies and start making friends. Perhaps it's > asking a lot to expect America to act differently from all the other > empires in history, but wasn't that the original idea? > > Brian Eno is a musician who believes that regime change > begins at home > > > , "Thomas M. Fiddler" > <tfiddler@c...> wrote: > > MSNBC and other major networks and newspapers are > covering up and > > re-editing gaffes, statements, lies and truths regarding the > Bush junta. > > > > This is hardly shocking. George Orwell would be upset for > having his > > novel "1984" ripped off. > > > > Be well, be safe, Become. > > > > -Tom > > > > Felix qui potuit rerum cognoscere causas... > > > > > > Sandeep Chatterjee [sandeepc@b...] > > Saturday, March 15, 2003 12:16 AM > > > > Re: America, Politics, Spirituality, > Music > > > > > > The article appears to have been removed from the site. > > Which is not surprising in today's environ. > > > > > > - > > "Mary Ann" <maryann@m...> > > <> > > Saturday, March 15, 2003 11:13 AM > > America, Politics, Spirituality, Music > > > > > > > A friend sent me this link today to an article by musician Brian > > > Eno. I liked the article a lot and wanted to share it with the > group. > > > > > > HYPERLINK > > > "http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie > "http://www > > .time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie > > > w_eno.html > > > > > > > > > > Sponsor > > > > > > HYPERLINK > > > "http://rd./M=246920.2960106.4328965.2848452/D=e > groupweb/S=1705 > > > 075991:HM/A=1481659/R=0/*http://www.gotomypc.com/u/tr/yh/cp > m/grp/300_yh1 > > /g22lp?Target=mm/g22lp.tmpl" > > HYPERLINK > > > "http://us.adserver./l?M=246920.2960106.4328965.28 > 48452/D=egrou > > pmail/S=:HM/A=1481659/rand=447948038" > > > > > > > > > > > > > > HYPERLINK > > "" > > > > > > > > --- > > Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. > > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). > > Version: 6.0.461 / Virus Database: 260 - Release 3/10/03 > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 18, 2003 Report Share Posted March 18, 2003 Hi DB: Yes, I was also surprised. I hadn't ever read anything Eno said until this. And yes, Bush refuses to stop, look and listen. The magnitude of it is astounding and I confess I have simply stopped listening to Bush. I'd rather listen to Eno -- and Eisler. BTW Riane Eisler's new book The Power of Partnership is good, sort of a call to arms -- the ones on our bodies, that is. It's not as fundamental as The C&B, but it's good. I just finished it. And I've ordered what I think is her first book, called Dissolution: No-Fault Divorce, Marriage, and the Future of Women -- I can't help but be struck by the coincidence (to my own experience) of her work in family law prior to embarking on The Chalice and the Blade. And another BTW: thanks for posting the Exotic India newsletter. I was going to post it today, but noticed you beat me to it! , "Devi Bhakta" <devi_bhakta> wrote: > Thanks Maryann ... > > I read the link you'd originally sent over the weekend. Thank you for > bringing it to our attention. I've always been a fan of Mr. Eno's > brilliant musical work over the years, but I didn't know he was such > an eloquent political advocate (much like his frequent collaborator, > U2's Bono). > > My wife, who's European (from Moldova), read the piece and commented > that everything Eno says makes perfect sense, but that -- > unfortunately -- the current Administration governing "the land of > the free" could not care less about what "the People" (in the U.S. or > elsewhere) say or think. > > The world will be reeling from the fallout of Mr. Bush's belligerent, > under-informed foolishness for many decades after he leaves the world > stage (and hopefully, that will be sooner rather than later; neither > the U.S. nor the world had time to wait through his administration's > backward thinking and bull-in-a-china-shop policies at this delicate > point in history) ... > > Aum Maatangyai Namahe > > -- In , "Mary Ann" <maryann@m...> wrote: > > I found the article and am including it here for those who couldn't > > access it via the link I posted. > > > > The U.S. Needs to Open Up to the World > > To this European, America is trapped in a fortress of arrogance > > and ignorance > > > > > > By BRIAN ENO > > > > Posted Sunday, Jan. 12, 2003; 2.09 p.m. GMT > > Europeans have always looked at America with a mixture of > > fascination and puzzlement, and now, increasingly, disbelief. > > How is it that a country that prides itself on its economic success > > could have so many very poor people? How is it that a country so > > insistent on the rule of law should seek to exempt itself from > > international agreements? And how is it that the world's beacon > > of democracy can have elections dominated by wealthy special > > interest groups? For me, the question has become: "How can a > > country that has produced so much cultural and economic > > wealth act so dumb?" > > > > I could fill this page with the names of Americans who have > > influenced, entertained and educated me. They represent what I > > admire about America: a vigorous originality of thought, and a > > confidence that things can be changed for the better. That was > > the America I lived in and enjoyed from 1978 until 1983. That > > America was an act of faith — the faith that "otherness" was not > > threatening but nourishing, the faith that there could be a country > > big enough in spirit to welcome and nurture all the diversity the > > world could throw at it. But since Sept. 11, that vision has been > > eclipsed by a suspicious, introverted America, a country-sized > > version of that peculiarly American form of ghetto: the gated > > community. A gated community is defensive. Designed to keep > > the "others" out, it dissolves the rich web of society into a > random > > clustering of disconnected individuals. It turns paranoia and > > isolation into a lifestyle. > > > > Surely this isn't the America that anyone dreamed of; it's a last > > resort, nobody's choice. It's especially ironic since so much of > > the best new thinking about society, economics, politics and > > philosophy in the last century came from America. Unhampered > > by the snobbery and exclusivity of much European thought, > > American thinkers vaulted forward — courageous, innovative and > > determined to talk in a public language. But, unfortunately, over > > the same period, the mass media vaulted backward, thriving on > > increasingly simple stories and trivializing news into something > > indistinguishable from entertainment. As a result, a wealth of > > original and subtle thought — America's real wealth — is > > squandered. > > > > This narrowing of the American mind is exacerbated by the > > withdrawal of the left from active politics. Virtually ignored by > the > > media, the left has further marginalized itself by a retreat into > > introspective cultural criticism. It seems content to do yoga and > > gender studies, leaving the fundamentalist Christian right and > > the multinationals to do the politics. The separation of church > > and state seems to be breaking down too. Political discourse is > > now dominated by moralizing, like George W. Bush's promotion > > of American "family values" abroad, and dissent is unpatriotic. > > "You're either with us or against us" is the kind of cant you'd > > expect from a zealous mullah, not an American President. > > > > When Europeans make such criticisms, Americans assume > > we're envious. "They want what we've got," the thinking goes, > > "and if they can't get it, they're going to stop us from having > it." But > > does everyone want what America has? Well, we like some of it > > but could do without the rest: among the highest rates of violent > > crime, economic inequality, functional illiteracy, incarceration > and > > drug use in the developed world. President Bush recently > > declared that the U.S. was "the single surviving model of human > > progress." Maybe some Americans think this self-evident, but the > > rest of us see it as a clumsy arrogance born of ignorance. > > > > Europeans tend to regard free national health services, > > unemployment benefits, social housing and so on as pretty > > good models of human progress. We think it's important — > > civilized, in fact — to help people who fall through society's > > cracks. This isn't just altruism, but an understanding that having > > too many losers in society hurts everyone. It's better for > > everybody to have a stake in society than to have a resentful > > underclass bent on wrecking things. To many Americans, this > > sounds like socialism, big government, the nanny state. But so > > what? The result is: Europe has less gun crime and homicide, > > less poverty and arguably a higher quality of life than the U.S., > > which makes a lot of us wonder why America doesn't want some > > of what we've got. > > > > Too often, the U.S. presents the "American way" as the only way, > > insisting on its kind of free-market Darwinism as the only > > acceptable "model of human progress." But isn't civilization what > > happens when people stop behaving as if they're trapped in a > > ruthless Darwinian struggle and start thinking about > > communities and shared futures? America as a gated > > community won't work, because not even the world's sole > > superpower can build walls high enough to shield itself from the > > intertwined realities of the 21st century. There's a better form of > > security: reconnect with the rest of the world, don't shut it out; > > stop making enemies and start making friends. Perhaps it's > > asking a lot to expect America to act differently from all the > other > > empires in history, but wasn't that the original idea? > > > > Brian Eno is a musician who believes that regime change > > begins at home > > > > > > , "Thomas M. Fiddler" > > <tfiddler@c...> wrote: > > > MSNBC and other major networks and newspapers are > > covering up and > > > re-editing gaffes, statements, lies and truths regarding the > > Bush junta. > > > > > > This is hardly shocking. George Orwell would be upset for > > having his > > > novel "1984" ripped off. > > > > > > Be well, be safe, Become. > > > > > > -Tom > > > > > > Felix qui potuit rerum cognoscere causas... > > > > > > > > > Sandeep Chatterjee [sandeepc@b...] > > > Saturday, March 15, 2003 12:16 AM > > > > > > Re: America, Politics, Spirituality, > > Music > > > > > > > > > The article appears to have been removed from the site. > > > Which is not surprising in today's environ. > > > > > > > > > - > > > "Mary Ann" <maryann@m...> > > > <> > > > Saturday, March 15, 2003 11:13 AM > > > America, Politics, Spirituality, Music > > > > > > > > > > A friend sent me this link today to an article by musician > Brian > > > > Eno. I liked the article a lot and wanted to share it with the > > group. > > > > > > > > HYPERLINK > > > > > "http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie'>http://www.time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie > > "http://www > > > .time.com/time/europe/magazine/2003/0120/cover/vie > > > > w_eno.html > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > Sponsor > > > > > > > > > HYPERLINK > > > > > "http://rd./M=246920.2960106.4328965.2848452/D=e > > groupweb/S=1705 > > > > > 075991:HM/A=1481659/R=0/*http://www.gotomypc.com/u/tr/yh/cp > > m/grp/300_yh1 > > > /g22lp?Target=mm/g22lp.tmpl" > > > HYPERLINK > > > > > "http://us.adserver./l?M=246920.2960106.4328965.28 > > 48452/D=egrou > > > pmail/S=:HM/A=1481659/rand=447948038" > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > HYPERLINK > > > "" Terms of Service. > > > > > > > > > > > > --- > > > Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. > > > Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). > > > Version: 6.0.461 / Virus Database: 260 - Release Date: 3/10/03 > > > > > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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