NP Left responses "disgraceful" says Hitchens

[Phil Wise]

----- Original Message -----
From: "jbor" <jbor at bigpond.com>
To: <pynchon-l at waste.org>
Sent: Monday, October 15, 2001 12:39 AM
Subject: Re: NP Left responses "disgraceful" says Hitchens



[snip]
> > However, attacks from
> > the "right" (and I don't mean you here, I refer to pundits who are
> > publishing, and I'll take your word that you're not among any
"conservative
> > readership") have had a significant minority accusing the "left" and
those
> > who don't agree of hatred of America or some such, a similar rhetorical
> > dishonesty.  It is bullshit, to be frank.
>
> The point I draw from the article, and agree with, is that the Left has
> offered no solutions, no practical alternatives, only antagonism and
> diatribe.

Yes, that is what he's asserting.  Difficult to prove, it being a negative
and all.  But much of the commentry from the left, indeed often negatively
cased, is reasoned and argued.  Just because you or PP Mc don't agree with
the reasons doesn't mean they are not there.  It is inaccurate to case the
discourse from the left as "diatribe", even though it would be perfectly
accurate to say that such diatribes do get published (on both sides of the
fence - let me put you in touch with Michael Kelly).
>
> > But if you said that they hated
> > many of America's actions overseas, and that they don't trust the same
> > corporations that put their money in after the Government's bulldozed
> > striking Tanzanarian miners into a pit to suddenly become the savour of
the
> > workers and the poor, or after a CIA sponsored massacre of hundreds of
> > thousands of Indonesian leftists, then you'd largely be right.  There's
a
> > huge and multifaceted difference between hating that sort of shit and
hating
> > "America".  To conflate the two is a cheap shot in this climate.
>
> Isn't this exactly what bin Laden is doing? But while none of this is
being
> argued, it does strike me that all that the Left seem capable of, as far
> you're characterising them here at least, is hate.

Yes, that's perceptive.  Rightist commentators like Tom Appleyard are closer
rhetorically to bin Laden than they'd be comfortable with, therefore.  But,
no, your second point, clever as it is, mischaracterises my terminology: I
claimed they hated mass murder, as I have absolutely no doubt you do too,
and that they are accused of hating America, which I refuted.  I make no
claim to the range of tones to less absolute issues in between, beyond a
"mistrust" of corporate motives.

phil