I guess it’s pretty obvious that Joe’s writing isn’t for everyone. But, I admire his work even more than James Walcott’s.

And yes, Moonbat, there is a “Subterranean Homesick Blues” kind of rhythm about some of his work.

Leftnecks of the world unite!

Begeant sure seems to be able to cut to the chase. Love the line about her raising her skirts. Similar to Georgie bending over and grabbing his ankles.

Then Joe is probably not your guy. I admire anyone who can cut through the noise and deftly summarize what’s going on. Poetry is one of the tightest forms of communication, and Bageant’s talent at times rises into this rarefied space. Bageant reminds me almost of Bob Dylan, who likewise didn’t propose any remedies, but who galvanized a generation. Joe has that kind of potential. If he can reach one person who “hates libruls” and can get them to think, he’s done good in my book.

As Dave O pointed out upthread, there is a huge, abandoned demographic waiting to hear from people like Bageant.

Let’s imagine I’m one of those poor souls in Southern California whose house is threatened as a wall of flame is, first, two miles off, then one mile, then a half mile, then a quarter mile. All this time I’m hauling my family heirlooms and pets and pet food and bottled water out to the driveway, and loading the car as fast as I can. And also, all this time, one after another, a line of Bageants, a veritable Bageant pageant, passes by on the sidewalk and says to me: “Hey, there’s a big fire coming…. Whoa, your house is gonna get burned up…. Wow, that’s getting really close…. Man, are you about to get screwed.” The Bageants don’t help me load the car, don’t tell me where the nearest shelter is, don’t have anything useful to contribute except an observation on something that I freaking already know.

And who is Joe Bageant, again, to decide that Barack Obama, or any other person of African ancestry for that matter, is merely “technically black”? Or condemn with one swipe everyone who attended Harvard, or was born in Chicago? I should think that would make him God, or at the very least a Yale man.

So, not a big fan of the unhelpful ranters, no matter how glibly they string together their words. If I want poetry or music, I’ll turn to Emily Dickinson or Bruce Springsteen. I want more than a “side of fries” passing as political commentary.

-me

To paint “most Americans” as nothing but amoral consumer pigs snuffling at the trough is to paint with the very same broad-ass-brush that most Republicans like to use whenever they talk about anything ickily liberal.

Also .. while I certainly have as many doubts as the next guy about Hillary’s integrity and ability to get real health care reform passed, it also happens to be true that realistically speaking, “there is no possible governmental solution that does not include the insurance industry”. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. There is only one major model of universal health care that I’m aware of that does NOT include a private insurance industry, and that model kinda sucks (hi kanuckistan!)

Yup, our society is currently tilted way, way towards corporate control, it’s true. But sitting back and smugly saying that both parties are new boss same as the old boss, and mocking anybody who actually has any hope for change by associating them with star-wishing and such nonsense, accomplishes precisely zero.

The goal should be to take the party that SHOULD stand for the common man, that USED TO stand for the common man, and remake it so that it once again stands where it’s supposed to. And the way we do that is by gradually replacing the spineless wimps currently in office with spineful he-persons of OUR choosing. The only way to do that is to stay in the fight, encourage our congress-critters when they do good and diss them when they do bad, but never, ever, EVER give in to the seductively depowering siren song of “both parties bad, a fuck you on both your houses” … the past seven years have been absolute, utter disgustingly thorough proof that “conservative” republicans with authoritah are ininitely worse than anything our guys can do when they’re in power, even at their spinelessiest wimpynessiest.
…

Heh. Apologies for the rant. The guy pissed me off.

-me

He told me that he used to have recorded spots that were carried on some NPR stations and that he would be interested in doing that again.

Maybe I am being simplistic, but I think one of Joe’s consistent themes is that it’s not so much the plan or a fresh idea. Hell, “free” markets, NAFTA and deregulation were ideas that were supposed to fix the world. The important thing is remaking the social interdependence and working together for everyone. But, the most important thing, don’t be attached to your model or idealogy, be ready to tweak it when it’s nearly working and toss it when it doesn’t.

He also farmed out in Idaho for seven years using horses instead of motorized equipment. He has my respect.