LRB Review of IV, & Pynchon's Characters

[Henry Musikar]

"As readers we may rely on our liberal humanist ability to 'empathise' with
immaterial strangers, but we can still tolerate with bland equanimity the
manifold suffering of the wretched of the earth when we put down our novels
and turn on the evening news."

This is why I don't watch the news.  We have heard it all before.  Here's
much to do with hate. Reading the Times (any city or country) and listening
to NPR and Pacifica is enough for me.  I refuse to be drawn into crying for
the Lady Di's and missing blonde cheerleaders of the world while ignoring
the crushing pain of war, poverty, and other group hate violence which is
always with us, in knowledge of which no one could function if anyone could
absorb all of the sordid details. 

Henry Mu
Sr. IT Consultant
http://astore.amazon.com/tdcoccamsaxe-20/