Ig Nobels

[Mark Kohut]

And with that I, for one, wholeheartedly agree....It was too early for Mr. Obama, even if he does ultimately 'earn' it in some people's minds......

--- On Sun, 10/11/09, kelber at mindspring.com <kelber at mindspring.com> wrote:

> From: kelber at mindspring.com <kelber at mindspring.com>
> Subject: Re: Ig Nobels
> To: pynchon-l at waste.org
> Date: Sunday, October 11, 2009, 10:49 AM
> Idealism and realpolitik might have
> been better served by awarding it symbolically to those
> Iranians (not their purported leader) who, knowing they
> could be beaten or shot, peacefully marched on the streets
> of Teheran in an anti-government protest.  They showed
> the world what courage looks like and how peaceful change is
> made.
> 
> Laura
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> >From: Mark Kohut <markekohut at yahoo.com>
> >Sent: Oct 11, 2009 8:03 AM
> >To: pynchon -l <pynchon-l at waste.org>,
> Joseph Tracy <brook7 at sover.net>
> >Subject: Re: Ig Nobels
> >
> >To quote the head of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee:
> It is a combination of idealism and realpolitik that changes
> the world....
> >
> >--- On Sun, 10/11/09, Joseph Tracy <brook7 at sover.net>
> wrote:
> >
> >> From: Joseph Tracy <brook7 at sover.net>
> >> Subject: Re: Ig Nobels
> >> To: "pynchon -l" <pynchon-l at waste.org>
> >> Date: Sunday, October 11, 2009, 1:01 AM
> >> I appreciate the reasoned argument
> >> here.  I am not looking for a savior and my vote
> cast
> >> for Obama was not a product of naivete though
> every vote
> >> expresses some degree of wishful thinking . But
> something
> >> important happened in the financial meltdown that
> created an
> >> opening for dynamic leadership and change. The
> opportunity
> >> was squandered, a great lie was perpetrated and
> Obama became
> >> a participant in the  biggest financial fraud in
> >> history. This was followed by escalating a failed
> military
> >> policy in Afghanistan, continuing to hire
> mercenaries,
> >> to  practice torture and to fail to prosecute
> war
> >> crimes, backing off his stand on Israeli
> settlements,
> >> refusing to honor the UN investigation into war
> crimes in
> >> Gaza, and recently undermining climate change
> >> protocols.  Somewhere along the line  I came to
> >> realize that putting a friendly smart 
> Democratic
> >> party, multicultural face on the US colonial
> >> enterprise  and the corporate state was  as
> >> meaningless as I had begun to suspect.
> >> 
> >> I also agree that change is a local enterprise 
> and I
> >> find myself working for that change with others in
> my
> >> Vermont town. But I refuse to give praise where
> none is due.
> >> Justifying failed leadership does not change its
> miserable
> >> ineffectiveness. The problem is not that Obama
> tries and
> >> fails to make the serious changes which are needed
> in the
> >> US. The problem is that he has not tried in a
> single area to
> >> contend for the best possible outcome.  Obama's
> support
> >> is dwindling not for the lack of awards but for
> the lack of
> >> courage, he does not support the best interests of
> voters
> >> and they are losing interest in supporting him.
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >> > On Sat, Oct 10, 2009 at 8:33 PM, rich <richard.romeo at gmail.com>
> >> wrote:
> >> >> if no one is gonna rock the boat, what's
> the
> >> point? Yes, I understand
> >> >> the vampire like suck the entrenched
> interests
> >> have in the US but if
> >> >> the prez can't do it, who is?
> >> >> 
> >> >> we want more--that so hard to
> understand?
> >> >> 
> >> > You are quite right, if, perhaps a bit
> overzealous,
> >> given that you are
> >> > actually preaching to the choir. Yes, we want
> more,
> >> but are we willing
> >> > to make that more happen? National change
> does not
> >> happen from the top
> >> > down, as zealous Alice likewise overstates,
> change of
> >> the sort you are
> >> > on about is a national thing that requires
> more than a
> >> vote, more than
> >> > a man with a few allies.
> >> > 
> >> > 
> >> > 
> >> > On Sat, Oct 10, 2009 at 8:33 PM, rich <richard.romeo at gmail.com>
> >> wrote:
> >> >> if no one is gonna rock the boat, what's
> the
> >> point? Yes, I understand
> >> >> the vampire like suck the entrenched
> interests
> >> have in the US but if
> >> >> the prez can't do it, who is?
> >> >> 
> >> >> we want more--that so hard to
> understand?
> >> >> 
> >> >> 
> >> >> On Sat, Oct 10, 2009 at 7:55 PM, alice
> wellintown
> >> >> <alicewellintown at gmail.com>
> >> wrote:
> >> >>> But surely you understand that
> Presidents of
> >> the US don't have the
> >> >>> power needed to make the kinds of
> changes we
> >> would love to see, right?
> >> >>> Having a set of brazen Brunswicks
> doesn't mean
> >> the Prez can knock the
> >> >>> pins down. He doesn't get to roll in
> most
> >> frames. And, some of the
> >> >>> pins are glued to the lane. It ain't
> as easy
> >> as it looks on TV. The
> >> >>> Nobel folks might just hekp the guy
> get
> >> re-elected. Right now it looks
> >> >>> like he's lost a lot of support from
> the Peace
> >> vote, the gay voter,
> >> >>> the anti-wall street vote, and other
> left,
> >> liberal, democractic,
> >> >>> Reagan Democratic working class folk.
> The
> >> Nobel may help him win some
> >> >>> of that vote back. He needs more
> support not
> >> less. Otherwise, it's
> >> >>> back to Bush & Co. full tilt
> boogey.
> >> >>> 
> >> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> >
> >
> >      
> >
> 
> 
>