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MILT'S
FILE
December 2001
December
28, 2001:
GO AFTER SADDAM? That seems to be the foremost question as
we enter the clean-up phase in Afghanistan. Perle, former second-in-command
in the Department of Defense and an occassional guest on Extension 720,
is one of the leaders of the "go after him now" group in and around the
policy elite in Washington. (registration required)
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/28/opinion/
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN 2001: HOW FAR HAVE WE COME? We're
not quite at Kubrick's vision from '2001: A Space Odyssey' but as this
article from The Economist points out, technology has evolved at
an unbelievable pace in recent years, and may eventually lead us in the
direction of H.A.L.
http://www.economist.com/science/
ELVIS TOWARD THE END. A full hour video recording of a live
concert! A great find from a corner of the internet.
http://www.presley.de/elvis/event/index.htm
THE ROLLING STONES! When rock and roll was music--the early
Stones. Don't miss Keith Richards doing Route 66.
http://members.chello.nl/~f.dejonge/ra.htm
December 27, 2001:
RADICAL ISLAM IN THE WEST: This article is a "must read" for
anyone who wants to understand the long range prospect in the continuing
war against terrorism.
http://www.city-journal.org/html/11_4_our_islamic.html
COULD THE SEPTEMBER 11TH DISASTER HAVE BEEN PREVENTED? The
question will be asked for many years--and Schoenfeld's analysis will
probably be a major source in the continuing discussion.
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/pschoenfeld.htm
A GREAT VOICE ARCHIVE: Everyone--or almost everyone-- from
Kingsley Amis to William Butler Yeats-- who was ever heard on the BBC
is heard again here. A delightful browse.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/cgi-bin/voices/artsearch.pl?act=listall
MUSIC: AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT! Here is some very modern
music performed at the University of Calgary. Of special interest is the
video of Four Degrees of Freedom. Try it--you may not like it--but....
http://www.gkti.com/landsend/past_concerts.html
December 26, 2001:
IDEAS DO HAVE CONSEQUENCES--and nowhere in modern life is this
more evident (often in a disturbing way) than in examining where Nietzsche
led Heidegger and where Heidegger led such thinkers as Marcuse who, in
turn, led the youth of the sixties toward a mad imitation of revolution.
One of those young radicals of the sixties was Bernadine Dohrn, whose
exploits as a bomb-wielding terrorist and, now, as Professor of Law at
Northwestern were recently discussed on Extension 720. We are told that
this Friday's Tribune will carry a major story about the Dohrn controversy.
(registration required)
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/16/
NOW IF YOU REALLY WANT TO DEPRESS YOURSELF--READ THIS.
Perhaps this story has some connection (potentially causal?) to the matters
covered in the first of today's selections. Are we, in fact, really approaching
the coming of the post-literate society?
http://www.salon.com/books/feature/
PURCELL MOURNS THE DEATH OF QUEEN MARY. The greatest English
composer of the 17th century (or perhaps of any other) offered up this
very simple and moving dirge. You activate the recording by linking on
the arrow.
http://perso.wanadoo.fr/michel.lemeu/salle_ra/maryman.htm
December 24, 2001:
WAS
IT ALWAYS REALLY THIS BAD? Student bloopers indicative of the post-literate
style. Is Henriksson right when he asserts that it was ever thus? Henriksson,
by the way, will appear on this program next month, Friday, January 18.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
WHO IS HAMID KARZAI? This story from the Egyptian AL-Ahram is quite informative.
The one thing it leaves out is that, for a little while Karzai helped
run the family restaurant (Helmond) in Chicago. He may also have served
as a waiter at the restaurant at the top of the Hancock building. Or so
I have heard. Can anyone confirm or disconfirm? E-mail us at extension720@tribune.com.
http://www.ahram.org.eg/weekly/2001/565/8war2.htm
POLITICAL CORRECTNESS GONE WRONG. Hahvahd University may yet have a price
to pay for its "liberal" and ill-considered pattern of fashionable appointments.
Gates, the annoyed chairman of the Black Studies Program there is, by
one estimate, the highest paid faculty member at any American university.
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/
HOW OUR UNIVERSITIES ARE FAILING AMERICA. Here is the "controversial
report" from ACTA (the American Council of Trustees and Alumni) which
we think to be a valuable and worrying commentary on the American professoriat
and its considerable, sometimes malign, influence. BUT--as always, the
legitimate question of academic freedom does require that we be very,
very careful about any possible interventions affecting the free speech
rights of professors.
http://www.goacta.org/Reports/defciv.pdf
IS A "SCIENTIFIC" OPPOSITION TO EVOLUTIONARY THEORY POSSIBLE?
Here is a very informative article from the Chronicle of Higher Education
that does review the issue quite responsibly.
http://chronicle.com/free/v48/i17/17a00801.htm
December 21, 2001:
THE
FULL(ER) STORY OF THE BIN LADEN TAPE. It would be good, if only for psych-war
purposes, to have full biographies and action histories of all the Al
Queda plane hijackers.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
IN THE KINGDOM OF SAUD. The fellow who provided the fuller
translation of the Bin Laden tape (Ali al-Ahmed) runs an institute which
is the main source for this revealing picture of the internal challenges
to the Saudi regime.
http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/
BILL BENNETT ON THE AMERICAN FAMILY. Both Bennett and Hymowitz
have been guests on Extension 720 and both are held in very high regard
by the proprietor as sharp and forthright social observers.
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/bk.hymowitz.htm
SONGS
OF TCHAIKOVSKY AND RACHMANINOFF. These are movingly performed by Natalia
Erasova in a 1998 recording. Just link on the first and you get the whole
concert--or, of course, you can select individual songs.
http://classical.music.ru:8080/e/Audio/ErasovaNatalia/Romances/
December 20, 2001:
MORE AMMO FOR THE "HIT SADDAM" FACTION. Alarming information
from The New York Times about possible Iraqi WMD research and development.
With many in the administration already convinced that Saddam is attached
to September 11th, such revelations will only increase calls to hit Iraq
hard--and sooner rather than later.
(registration required)
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/20/
THE ETERNAL QUESTION: WHAT'S NEXT? A panel of distinguished
experts from The Brookings Institution met this week in Washington
for an engaging debate about our next steps in Afghanistan. The panelists
included our good friend Stephen Cohen, a frequent guest on Extension
720.
http://www.brookings.org/comm/transcripts/20011218.htm
ECHOES OF THE PAST. Here's a terrific site: dozens of great
speeches and soundbytes from the twentieth century. For a good laugh,
have a listen to Casey Stengel's comments at a 1958 Congressional hearing
on anti-trust laws in baseball.
http://www.historychannel.com/speeches/index.html
MASTERFUL MADRIGAL SINGERS. A German group who perform, with
great musicality, a wide variety of choral music ranging from the 16th
to the 19th century. The Mendelsohn pieces are especially fine.
http://www.madrigalisten.de/disko.htm
December 19, 2001:
PRAISING
OUR PERFORMANCE "AT THE END OF THE BEGINNING." The Economist
offers a well-stated analysis of the campaign against terrorism to date--even
if much remains to be done.
http://www.economist.com/opinion/
DEFENDING THE HOMELAND: HOW PREPARED ARE WE? Another article
from The Economist is less positive, noting a number of security
concerns that still need to be addressed if future disasters are to be
avoided.
http://www.economist.com/world/
IN TORA BORA. A fascinating look at the fighting in Tora Bora
that, appearances to the contrary, may not be completely finished. (registration
required)
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/19/international/asia/19BORA.html
THE FORGOTTEN WAR?
Let's hope not. But with many Al-Queda warriors supposedly
having entered Pakistan (including Bin Laden?), the tense situation in
South Asia may enter a more prominent--and dangerous--phase.
http://www.janes.com/security/international_security/
A WONDERFUL ECLECTIC MIX. Early Sinatra, eternal Armstrong,
Benny Goodman and, believe it or not, John Phillip Sousa.
http://www.foxlink.net/~bobnbren/1940s.html#R
December 18, 2001:
VERY
SIGNIFICANT IF TRUE. Is the "dump Saddam" plan really being developed?
And is there a growing tendency toward support from Arab nations?
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/htx/nyt/20011218
THE PROPER TRANSLATION! Here's what Osama and Sheik Suleyman
really said to one another. Chris Buckley is a chip off the old block,
only funnier. And, incidentally, a fairly frequent guest on Extension
720.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial
SHOULD "ACADEMICS OF COLOR" BE JUDGED BY SEPARATE STANDARDS?
Check out the case of Lionel Jeffries and the recent recommendations of
the Modern Language Association. If you teach in, contribute to or plan
to send your child to a particular college, you might want to check them
out to see if they handle such matters any better than the City University
of New York.
http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-goldblatt121801.shtml
EDUCATION NORTH OF THE BORDER. It sounds like honest Canadian
professors have the same worries and complaints as their American colleagues.
http://nationalpost.com/search/story.html
YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A SCOT TO PLAY (OR LISTEN TO) THE BAGPIPES.
Try this for some fascinating music from France, Bulgaria, Spain, etc.--and
all on the bagpipes.
http://www.rootsworld.com/bagpipes/
December 17, 2001:
THE
ANTHRAX THREAT: This is a valuable analysis put forward by a well-informed
Israeli counter-terrorism institute.
http://www.ict.org.il/
AND
WHAT ABOUT THIS THREAT? Here's something else to worry about--or is Ale
Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani just whistling Dixie?
http://www.iranmania.com/News/
ONE
OF THE MOST SIGNIFICANT MEN EVER TO TEACH AT THE UNIVERSITY OF CHICAGO.
Is the reference to Chandrasekar? or Milton Friedman? or Leon Lederman?
or John Dewey? Or Saul Bellow? None of the above. Link on and discover
a thinker who had great influence and died far too young.
http://www.antiwar.com/stromberg/s022701.html
WINDY
GERMANS. Here's a cluster of mostly German saxophone jazz men with a few
trombonists and trumpeters thrown in. Actually, some very tasteful jazz.
http://www.jazzagentur-berlin.de/blaeser.html
December 14, 2001:
AN
ALMOST COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT OF THE BIN LADEN TAPE. This has just been made
available on various web-sites.
http://www.washingtonpost.com
THE PRESENT BANKRUPTCY
OF LIBERALISM. George Will has more than a sharp mind and a punchy writing
style: he has rich historical knowledge and here he puts our reactions
to the undertakings of our "war government" in revealing perspective.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/
SOME
FINE CHOPIN. With a Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody thrown in for bombast contrast!
http://faculty.rmwc.edu/tmichalik/chopin.htm
December 13, 2001:
BIN
LADEN'S SMOKING GUN. As if one were needed--but here, for their intrinsic
and chilling interest, are the crucial portions of the tape released today.
Just click on "PLAY".
http://www.cnn.com/video/netshow/
"ENVIRONMENTALIST" SCAMS AND OTHER DECEITFUL APPEALS TO YOUR ALTRUISM.
Maybe, behind every "good cause" there is an untold story that complicates
things. Or: Do you know where your dollar went?
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/
December 12, 2001:
WITH FRIENDS LIKE THIS. Here's what Egypt's leading TV commentator
is telling the people over the state-run television system. Check it out.
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/htx/ap/
DON'T
NOBODY HERE KNOW HOW TO PLAY THIS GAME? Casey Stengel's plaintive query
was never more pertinent. Apparently we are going to show representatives
of "terrorist governments" our nuclear reactors and their operating plans!
Read this and tell us what you think. E-mail for posting to:
extension720@tribune.com.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/
THE COSTS OF JOURNALISTIC POLITICAL CORRECTNESS. Former Governor
DuPont is onto something important here.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pdupont/
LOUIS AGAIN! Here's a great find--Armstrong and some reliable
sidemen doing classic King Oliver tunes, and with unbeatable authenticity
and joy.
http://user.icx.net/~bcassady/satch_oliver.html
December 11, 2001:
THE
OTHER SIDE OF THE IRAQ ISSUE. Here are some important cautionary considerations.
Where do you stand on the question of going after Saddam? We will post
interesting e-mails. Send them to: extension720@tribune.com.
http://www.usatoday.com/news/
SO, HOW MANT MUSLIMS ARE THERE IN THE U.S.? We have touched on this before.
Here is a fairly definitive article, particularly if you follow some of
the links given in the text.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public
ONE OF MY FAVORITE SITES! Just hit on "this link" and get a computer-generated,
post-modernist essay with which to confound your friends. Or, you could
ask your English professor to explain its meaning.
http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/
BRING ON THE FIDDLERS:
Here's some quite lively violin performances from a famous Russian competition.
Catch the Sarasate fantasy on Carmen, especially.
http://classical.music.ru:8080/e/
December 10, 2001:
GOING
AFTER IRAQ: The debate continues as to whether we should target Hussein's
regime NOW. Here's an important contribution from Lawrence Kaplan at the
New Republic.
http://www.thenewrepublic.com/121001/kaplan121001.html
A
PROFESSOR'S CRITIQUE OF "MIDDLE EASTERN STUDIES." Martin Kramer's important
book criticising the way the middle east(i.e. Israel and the Palestinians)
is studied by U..S. scholars gets a good review in Reason Magazine.
http://www.reason.com/hod/my112701.shtml
AND
IT SHAKES THEM UP AT THEIR ANNUAL MEETING. Here's a revealing account
of how those academics responded--particularly at the University of Chicago
Middle East Studies Center where Kramer has served as visiting professor!
http://www.prospect.org/webfeatures/2001/11/tuller-d-11-29.html
IRRESISTABLE
MUSIC FROM ZIMBABWE. Try it--you will like it and you will be struck with
its similarity to West Indian styles.
http://www.geocities.com/TheTropics/Beach/2521/
December
9, 2001:
IS
HUSSEIN AFTER NUCLEAR WEAPONS? The former director of his nuclear weapons
research program ought to know.Let's have some e-mail exchange on the
basic question: what, if anything, should we do about Iraq. We will post
your e-mails here. Just send to: extension720@tribune.com.
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-000097673dec09.story
December
7, 2001:
WHAT'S
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN AN 80-YEAR OLD GRANDMOTHER AND A TWENTY-FIVE YEAR
OLD ILLEGAL FROM IRAQ? The politically-correct answer is "Don't ask."
Dorothy Rabinowitz of the Wall Street Journal knows better and says so
in this sharp essay.
http://opinionjournal.com/medialog/?id=95001569
A
CHRISTIAN HERESY TO MATCH THE WAHABBIS. If you think modern Islamic cults
get rather peculiar, here's a scholarly review of a scholarly book about
an odd turn taken centuries ago in France. This is just to remind you
that religious innovation has been stirring things up for a long time.
http://www2.h-net.msu.edu/reviews/showrev.cgi?path=31035997374341
THE
MOST PERTINENT BOOK. Huntington's Clash of Civilizations remains the book
most discussed since September 11th. Here is a very valuable summary and
review of that book written some four years ago and all the more relevant
today.
http://www.leaderu.com/ftissues/ft9705/reviews/bacevich.html
A
GREAT CLASSICAL SPANISH GUITARIST. Just turn this one on and enjoy some
beautiful renderings of the Spanish master composers on THE Spanish instrument.
http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/73/francisco_burgos_classical.html
December
6, 2001:
DO
TRAITORS HAVE PARENTS? Liberal child rearing in Marin County and its sometimes
"surprising" outcomes--or, how a nice California boy became a Taliban
warrior.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/cRosett/?id=95001558
PEGGY
NOONAN'S TRIP TO CHICAGO. When she was here last week we had some idea
of the gauntlet she had to run to get here from there. But here is her
account in inevitably interesting detail.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/pnoonan/?id=95001532
SADDAM'S
WEAPONS CLOSET. This report from early this year is based upon Israeli
intelligence sources. The evidence for nuclear as well as biological and
chemical weapons development in Iraq is solid and scary. And this is surely
the best line of argument for those who argue for the "Saddam is next"
position.
http://www.israelinsider.com/channels/security/articles/sec_0007.htm
HERE'S
A WONDERFUL MUSIC SITE THAT WE HAVE FOUND: The great Wagnerian tenor,
Lauritz Melchoir in some astonishing performances. When Rosenberg was
a kid in New York it was a great boon to get "standing room" and listen
to the great Melchoir in the Ring des Niebelungen.
http://wwwsys.informatik.fh-wiesbaden.de/weber1/melchior/melsnd.htm
December
5, 2001:
MEANWHILE
BACK ON CAMPUS: Here is the report about "peacenik" preachment by some
of the "professoriat." The report was done by ACTA (American Council of
Trustees and Alumni) an important watchdog organization founded some years
ago by Lynne Cheney. There has been much press commentary on this report
and the New York Times doesn't like it.
http://www.goacta.org/Reports/defciv.pdf
(The free Adobe
Acrobat Reader is required to view this document.)
HOW
INTELLIGENT IS OUR INTELLIGENCE? Clearly the disaster of September 11th
indicates that our intelligence system needs to be much improved. This
article from the Center for Defense Information (founded some years ago
by Admiral Gene Laroque--a former colleague from the Naval War College)is
an excellent review of where the strengths and remediable weaknesses are--and
of how the structure and function of the "intelligence community" should
be transformed.
http://www.cdi.org/terrorism/phredux.cfm
HUGH
HEFNER'S CHRISTMAS CONTRIBUTION. This one is for comic relief--or maybe
cultural commentary?
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/000/645fbthe.asp
RUSSIAN
CHORAL MUSIC. A wonderful collection recorded only a few years ago and
covering a wide range of composers. Pure vocal delight!
http://classical.music.ru:8080/e/Audio/Kontarev/RussianChoralMusic/
December
4, 2001:
FROM
THE FRONT: An important report--and some of the CNN videos available here
are worth viewing.
http://www.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/asiapcf/central/
THE INTELLIGENCE FAILURE OF SEPTEMBER 11TH. How could it have happened?
Maybe "political correctness" had something to do with it. Read this and
think about it.
http://www.nationalreview.com/contributors/
BUT WHAT DOES HE REALLY THINK? Varadarajan of The Wall Street Journal
is a distinctive journalistic presence with some important--if ironic--things
to say about the Afghan war.
http://www.opinionjournal.com/columnists/
December 3, 2001:
PLAN TO TOPPLE SADDAM? According to the UK Guardian
that's what's in the works. Read this very informative account from three
British reporters. How come no American paper carried a similar story
over the weekend?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/
WHERE
WE ARE NOW. Here's a good summary and overview of the war against terrorism
so far. It comes from The Economist, England's best journal of
public affairs.
http://www.economist.com/printedition/
THE ISRAELI LEFT.
Or didn't you know there was one? The author of this piece, Steven Plaut,
is a hawk with a very critical eye for doves. There are, apparantly, plenty
of Israeli "peaceniks" who are ready to believe whatever comes from Arafat's
headquarters--at least, before his compound was destroyed early on Monday
by Sharon's missiles. Where it will all end knows Jehovah (Allah).
http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/
POP STARS OF THE ARAB WORLD. Here's a wide variety of singers
who get the heavy play on Arab radio abd television. And this site gives
you video performances. Fascinating--and musically pleasing, though slightly
exotic.
http://www.orientaltunes.com/video.html
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