Greg Mitchell's Blog, page 173

Can Obama Save Obamacare--And More?

Kind of getting tired of referring to "the New Yorker's great Amy Davidson," but she's at it again with  smart online piece on Obama and how he needs to handle ACA rollout disaster. 

After five years in the White House, Obama still believes that he can go into a corner, tinker with something until it’s better, and win on the merits. The long view can serve him well, but it can also leave him unprepared when the other side won’t give up on an all-out battle. Health-care reform is the President’s signature legislative achievement, and a historic one. To preserve it, he needs to fight for it politically, state by state. This time, the Obama brand alone isn’t enough.

Nuclear Bully

Benjamin Netanyahu, the leader of Israel--the Middle East's only nuclear power and non-signer of the NPT--naturally calls the Iran nuclear deal "a historic mistake, and the world has become a more dangerous place."But at least President Shimon said  morning that "this is an interim deal, and its fallout and continuation can only be discussed according to results and not according to words alone."  Despite media expectations, Iranian leader Khameini has praised the deal.  Here's full NYT piece collecting anti-deal comments from top Israelis.  Full of bluster and veiled threats about maybe striking Iran on their own.  And this:

“If five years from now a nuclear suitcase explodes in New York or Madrid, it will be because of the deal that was signed this morning,” the economic minister, Naftali Bennett, said in a statement.

I'm sure we'll get apologies tomorrow from Bill Keller and Nick Kristof of the NYT and other liberals for urging bombing Syria two months ago--which would have also killed (besides a lot of civilians) any Iran deal.  Of course, we should also recall that Obama, too, planned to bomb but was deterred by popular protest, and then had courage to change his mind.

We won't even mention the many pundits and congress members who often seem more pro-Israel than pro-America. 

Springsteen's Next

Bruce's team has announced a new album coming maybe in January, which is rumored to be collection of cover songs, cuts that didn't make previous albums, maybe a couple live tracks.  One fan who has a good track record on revealing what tunes are set has now disclosed what he thinks are the 12 on this CD--such as one I love, Bruce with Tom Morello doing "Ghost of Tom Joad." And, finally, "41 Shots." And  here's another:

Extreme 'Gravity'

Writer of Gravity with followup film short on what might have been the scene at the other end of  Sandra Bullock's distress call.

Ruby in the Rough

Entire 1978 TV movie, Ruby and Oswald, with Michael Lerner and Frederic Forrest.  No surprise ending.

Everly Brothers (and Sister)

NYT for its Sunday paper has piece on that Norah Jones-Billie Joe Armstrong tribute to the Everly Bros.  And here's a track:

Swing Low, Sweet Charlotte

Just released fairly graphic trailer--already killed by YouTube--of  ballyhooed Lars von Trier Nymphomaniac.

CBS Livesteams JFK Assassination Coverage

It's all here or if doesn't play go here.  Also:  NBC livestream here, which is less familiar.

Lou Reed and Others on "The Day John Kennedy Died"

From Lou's album The Blue Mask.   And below that:  The great Delta blues man Son House.  See also JFK assassination songs from Phil Ochs and The Byrds (with David Crosby conspiracy rant). Plus one of the oddest: Jerry Lee Lewis's "Lincoln Limousine."

The Byrds and JFK Assassination

You won't find this in the Monterey Pop film.  The Byrds' Roger McGuinn had reworked the folk classic "He Was a Friend of Mine" to update it re: JFK's death for their second album.  When they played it at Monterey, David Crosby, who was about to leave the band, introduced it with his claims of a conspiracy and shots fired from numerous directions.  McGuinn did not like this.