FUNDRAISING TIME: As a reader-supported publication we are totally dependent on the solidarity and generosity of our readers. Quite a few have often asked us to get a PayPal account. Well, we finally did. So, you can use PayPal or send us a check or some cash. We need to raise $3,000, without which we won't be able to continue to bring to you and the larger community this cogent bi-weekly magazine. Please, Donate now! Our heartfelt gratitude to Colin West and Fran Shor for their generous contributions.

 

Note from the Editors

Quand vous êtes dans le ventre de la bête, vous devez manger ce que la bête se nourrit (when you are in the belly of the beast, you must eat the beast's food), as a Swans reader and would-be donor recently told Editor Gilles d'Aymery, who has long resisted utilizing capitalist tools such as PayPal to raise funds for a publication that rails against capitalism. With principles aplenty yet finances a-dwindling, Aymery explains why we finally succumbed...so if you're a PayPal devotee, bring it on! It's only appropriate, then, to read Michael Doliner's excellent primer on why capitalism relies on infinite expansion for its survival, which automatically leads to imperialism. Charles Pearson reports from England on hypocrisy, the controversy over the BBC and the British National Party, and the potential gains for the pro-capitalist mainstream parties; while Femi Akomolafe posits an African perspective on hypocrisy, in which Western imperialists arrogate to themselves the right to be the accuser, the prosecutor, the judge, and the enforcer. Michael Barker analyzes the population myth and the shortcomings of George Monbiot, who promotes capitalist solutions for problems stemming from capitalist growth imperatives. Capitalist inequalities lead Charles Marowitz to ask when, in the course of current human events, Americans will be impelled to dissolve the political powers-that-be and declare a Jeffersonian separation, and activist Martin Murie consults the dead, from Homer to Hector, to consider American empire's global strategy.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, we watch in horror as health care reform for the People metamorphoses into a bonanza for the insurance corporations, with Medicare having taken Iraq's place in the axis of evil. Yet, thanks to Medicare Art Shay lived to describe, in true Art Shay form (and with photos), his recent diverticulitis scare and accompanying personal metamorphosis. More gems follow from Peter Byrne, who chronicles his recent East Coast tour off the beaten path and the pages of the tourist guides, and Steve Shay, who pens a humorous handbook to help Seattle newcomers navigate the complex web of neighborhoods and avoid the ultimate faux pas. Raju Peddada is tackling the classics, starting with an analysis of Giovanni Boccaccio's The Decameron, and Jeffery Klaehn's short story tells of a near death experience that turns into the renewal of an unrequited love. Finally, we close with the multilingual prose of Guido Monte, the poetry of Jay Tripathi, and a multitude of your letters.

As always, please form your OWN opinion, and let your friends (and foes) know about Swans. It's your voice that makes ours grow.



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Patterns Which Connect

Gilles d'Aymery:  Succumbing To PayPal

Considering Swans guiding principle that attempting to solve problems using the tools, techniques, and thoughts which create them is silly, Gilles d'Aymery explains his reluctance to use PayPal, and how he ultimately succumbed.   More...

 

Michael Doliner:  Orwell's Epiphany

Capitalism relies on infinite expansion for its survival, which automatically leads to imperialism. To uproot this capitalist ideology will require a revival of the body politic.   More...

 

Charles Pearson:  Rival Jingoists

Hypocrisy and patriotism and the controversy over the BBC and the British National Party.   More...

 

Femi Akomolafe:  Hypocrisy As Way Of Life!

From Iran, China, Iraq, Afghanistan, to Africa, Western imperialists arrogate to themselves the right to be the accuser, the prosecutor, the judge, and the enforcer.   More...

 

Michael Barker:  George Monbiot And The Persistence Of The Population Myth

An analysis of the population myth and the shortcomings of progressive writer George Monbiot, who readily dismisses revolutionary activism and promotes capitalist solutions for problems stemming from capitalist growth imperatives.   More...

 

Charles Marowitz:  "Comes The Revolution?"

When in the course of current human events will Americans declare that poverty, homelessness, and financial inequality has impelled them to Jeffersonian Separation?   More...

 

 
America: Myths & Realities

Art Shay:  My Medicare Diverticulosis Metamorphosis

Photojournalist Art Shay describes his metamorphosis through diverticulitis, Algren's Chicago, Hemmingway's Kilimanjaro, morphine on demand, and visions of his beloved, lost hippy son.   More...

 

Peter Byrne:  Wandering: NYC, Chicago, Albany

Peter Byrne reports on his nostalgic, non-tourist trip to Manhattan, Albany, and Chicago; his memories of the cities; and a side of the culture not covered in the guide books.   More...

 

 
Activism under the Radar Screen

Martin Murie:  What Have We Learned?

Martin Murie consults the dead, from Homer to Hector, in considering American empire's global strategy and the reality of war.   More...

 

 
Humor with a Zest

Steve Shay:  "Web Design"

A humorous handbook to help Seattle newcomers navigate the complex web of neighborhoods and avoid the ultimate faux pas.   More...

 

 
Arts & Culture

Raju Peddada:  The Monuments Of Civilization: Analysis Of Classics

An analysis of Giovanni Boccaccio's classic, The Decameron.   More...

 

 
Short Story

Jeffery Klaehn:  We'll See Each Other Again

An old woman's near death experience turns into the renewal of an unrequited love, with the help of a certain goddess.   More...

 

 
Multilingual Poetry

Guido Monte:  Bough And Leaves

Guido Monte dreams about the deep secrets of the goddess Nature, through the words of Vergil, Dante, and Blake.   More...

 

 
Poetry

Jay Tripathi:  Soul Dead

A poem about the "practical people" surrounding us everywhere.   More...

 

 
Letters to the Editor

Letters

On Graham Lea and why the French love their gallic rooster; Charles Marowitz, Michael Moore, and Obama's commitment to capitalism; Michael Barker's and Femi Akomolafe's views on America and the "major attempt at revolution taking place" (where?); some thoughts on alternative energy; and more.   More...

 

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THE COMPANION OF THINKING PEOPLE

SWANS - ISSN: 1554-4915
URL: http://www.swans.com/library/past_issues/2009/091102.html
Created: November 2, 2009