Chris Grieb

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Blog Entries posted by Chris Grieb

  1. Chris Grieb

    Father's Day

    By Chris Grieb,

    I want to think those fathers doing their unappreciated tasks.

    I hope we all remember those fathers who are no longer with us.

    I have mentioned The Wire. Look at it and think about the young who no active father in their lives. Remember the welfare that broke up families and made millions of youth parent less. Remember this when you hear complaints about the size of our prison population.
  3. Chris Grieb

    Flag Day

    By Chris Grieb,

    Today is Flag Day. There were no American flags on display in my walk to Whole Foods this morning. If there were an Obama flag it would be flying high.
  6. Chris Grieb

    In Cold Blood

    By Chris Grieb,

    I watched the movie yesterday (May 26).

    I suspect Richard Brooks, the writer of the screenplay who was also the director, let to change of focus. The book In Cold Blood was released to great fanfare in 1966. It was called a non-fiction novel. Truman Capote the author had tried the technique before but this book.

    Capote saw a small story in the New York Times about the murder of all four members of the family of a wealthy Kansas farmer. He decided to go to Holcombe, Kansas with his friend Harper Lee who was not yet famous as the author of To Kill a Mockingbird. With Miss Lee Capote became friends with all of the people involved in the case including Alvin Dewey, the chief investigator for the Kansas Bureau of Investigation. These friendships were established despite Capote's flamboyant lifestyle. After the two killers were arrested he established a relationship with them also. Capote helped pay for one the appeals. Capote eventually witnessed the two killer's execution.

    The movie is done in a very naturalist style. Many of the original locations are used. Several of the jurors sat in the jury box for the movie trial. Capote in the movie is suggested by a reporter played by Paul Stewart.

    The most compelling moments in the film are the prosecutor's summation. I don't know whether the words spoken with great passion by Will Geer are the words actually used but the words cut through much of the blather that has gone before.

    I don't think I'll watch the movie again.
  8. Chris Grieb
    On my Face book page I have proposed that William Shatner should be honored by the Kennedy Center. Shatner should be honored for his portrayal of Captain James T Kirk on the first Star Trek TV series. He also portrayed Kirk in several of the movies.
  9. Chris Grieb

    Bonnie & Clyde

    By Chris Grieb,

    Yesterday May 23rd was the 75th anniversary of their death.

    The movie with Warren Beatty glamorized them and was not accurate. Still it does introduce most Americans to Foggy Mountain Breakdown so it wasn't all bad.
  10. Chris Grieb
    Yesterday(May 19th) Californians voted on seven tax referendum. Six of the seven were rejected. The one that was approved puts a salary cap on state officials while the state is running a deficit.

    There are a couple of reason why this important. First of all California voters saw through the hysteric campaign made among others by Gov Arnold. Second California was a very strong Obama state. When Obama has to raise taxes on everyone I suspect many will not be happy.

    California in 1978 enacted Prop 13 reducing property taxes. In 1980 Ronald Reagan defeated Jimmy Carter. If we get a "Reagan" maybe the same thing can happen.
  11. Chris Grieb

    Natural Order

    By Chris Grieb,

    Parents are supposed to die before children. When children die before parents it always distributing. I recently found that someone I know who had four sons has lost two of them. One to illness, the other to a police related shootings. You feel badly for the parents. They have to do things they never expect to do.

    In the past children because of childhood diseases would die early. My grandmother had lost three members of her family to scarlet fever. This doesn't happen now because of vaccines.
  12. Chris Grieb
    My title "The Country in the Very Best of Hands" is from a title of a song in the musical "Little Abner". "Little Abner" was taken from a popular comic strip of the same name.

    Little Abner was hugely popular comic created by Al Capp (1909-1979). He created all the characters in the strip many of whom became household names. Little Abner, Daisey Mae, Ma and Pa Yokum, Marrying Sam, and Moonbeam McSwine. Abner's favorite comic strip character Fearless Fosdick who was a great take off on Dick Tracy were the first thing many people looked at in their newspaper.

    Capp had lost leg in a street car accident at the age of ten. He was in the 40ths, 50ths, and 60ths one of the most well known cartoonists. He was at the beginning a liberal but in the '60 moved to the right mainly over issue of campus revolt. One of the characters he created was a folk singer named Joanie Phoney based on Joan Baez. In the 70ths he was accused of having sex with a female student at a university which lost him great credibility.

    Many collections of the strip are still available. It remains great commentary about life and politics in the United States.
  17. Chris Grieb
    At the ages of ten and eleven we were living in Toyko, Japan. I can remember riding the Toyko subway. While on some occasions we went with our houseboy I am sure there were times we rode it alone. I remember seeing a report about the big deal of a kid in New York City who rode the subway and bus alone and the outcry to his parents.

    What kind of little wusses are we raising today.
  18. Chris Grieb
    I just found out that I was raised as a free range kid. Apparently there are people who think kids need to watched like they have a Secret Service detail. When I was eight I walked to school. Four blocks. A girl in my class walked a longer distance. Today my mother might be charged with child neglect.
  19. Chris Grieb

    Life

    By Chris Grieb,

    Life has been canceled. At least it wouldn't be back on NBC. We won't have an enjoyable actor Damien Lewis on TV. We won't find out what was really involved in faming of Charlie Crews.
  20. Chris Grieb
    There is a story in today's(May 5) Washington Post that the Times has relented and is not planning to close the Globe.The New York Times which own the Boston Globe is pulling the plug on that newspaper. The New York Times is not doing well itself. The stock costs less than a Sunday paper. It couldn't happen to a more deserving group.
  21. Chris Grieb
    As I have said elsewhere I will not be observing his birthday. I think you should have denounced Stalin before 1993. For a further look Ronald Radosh on Pajamas Media has a great post about the old Red. I don't think he was much of a singer either.
  23. Chris Grieb
    There seems to be that because Arlen Spector's departure that the GOP is about to die.

    Don't believe it. The party has problems but they are not incurable. I remember what it like in 1964 after the Goldwater defeat. I also remember what it like in 1976 when Jimmy Carter was elected. Finally I remember what it was like after George H W Bush was defeated.

    As I said the GOP must do some work but from now on everything that goes wrong can be blamed on the Democrats. The Democrats control Congress and the Presidency.
  25. Chris Grieb

    Mary Ann Glendon

    By Chris Grieb,

    I had not heard of Mary Ann Glendon until today. Even so she is a figure of courage and she speaks truth to power.

    She has refused an award from Norte Dame University which she would have received at the same time as President Obama. She is refusing the award because she does not want to used as cover for President Obama's views on abortion. I am not taking a position on abortion but I think Catholic schools and universities should not honor individuals who attack fundamental doctrines of the church.