RIP Arthur Schlesinger

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― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 1 March 2007 05:38 (seventeen years ago) link

Whoa. RIP.
Very sad...the tributes should be pretty amazing.

― aimurchie, Thursday, 1 March 2007 05:45 (seventeen years ago) link

Especially from other slavish JFK devotees.

― Dr Morbius, Thursday, 1 March 2007 15:19 (seventeen years ago) link

hahaha i love fake dr morbius

― ghost rider, Thursday, 1 March 2007 15:20 (seventeen years ago) link

schlesinger was a golddigger bimbo, who cares? i do worry about that poor baby tho ;_;

― gershy, Thursday, 1 March 2007 15:29 (seventeen years ago) link

RIP

― Michael White, Thursday, 1 March 2007 15:31 (seventeen years ago) link

Gosh,
Schlesinger?
Well, he changed journalism, for starters.
I would imagine this sort of ire for Dominick Done.

― aimurchie, Thursday, 1 March 2007 18:49 (seventeen years ago) link

Meh. His abject power worship – and the wistfulness that the obit writers aren't even hiding – is galling.

I mean, really: How to convey the way public intellectuals such as Galbraith and Schlesinger loomed over American politics and ideas for the quarter-century following World War II?

The easiest way would be to point to their latter-day equivalents. But there simply is no one these days who does what they did. They were dominant figures in their intellectual disciplines, but their books were bestsellers. They emblazoned the covers of Time magazine (twice for Galbraith, once for Schlesinger). They steered the Democrats and rallied the fight against the Republicans, and when their side won, they occupied coveted positions in the government. They moved happily among celebrities such as Lauren Bacall and Angie Dickinson; they sat for Playboy interviews. They were especially close to the family -- the Kennedys -- that epitomized the merger of celebrity and politics. And, of course, they were on Richard Nixon's enemies list.</blockquote>According to reporter John F. Harris, Schlesinger was important because he was (a) a star; and (b) a party hack; (c) a martyr. Note the defensiveness of his lede: "There was a time -- it's been decades now -- when politicians or pundits would call people "liberal intellectuals" and not mean it as an insult."

It takes a strong man to keep from laughing, etc.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:16 (seventeen years ago) link

(I included some commentary in the excerpt)

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:17 (seventeen years ago) link

[Removed Illegal Link]

― gabbneb, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:18 (seventeen years ago) link

that should be, pls to demonstrate this "abject power worship" - http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0116-11.htm

(also, thanks guys for fucking up ilx)

― gabbneb, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:20 (seventeen years ago) link

show me, please, where he ragged on Old Hickory.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:25 (seventeen years ago) link

great writer, great historian, wrong about a lot of stuff but then who isn't.

― deej, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:33 (seventeen years ago) link

isn't he one of the ones who pronounced conservatism dead after the new deal

― deej, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:34 (seventeen years ago) link

I should add that The Age of Jackson, for all its kvetching, is necessary reading.

― Alfred, Lord Sotosyn, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:40 (seventeen years ago) link

(also, thanks guys for fucking up ilx)

For the moment just please remember not to use punctuation marks in the link text. The issue is being addressed.

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:47 (seventeen years ago) link

thx. mebbe that should be mentioned below?

― gabbneb, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:49 (seventeen years ago) link

This is the second starfucker thread today besides Winona.

― Dr Morbius, Thursday, 1 March 2007 19:51 (seventeen years ago) link

He had a great career. He had a good voice. He wrote well. He's dead.
This backlash is amazing!

― aimurchie, Thursday, 1 March 2007 21:52 (seventeen years ago) link

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