With the birthday parties mostly concluded and the nationalism temporarily abated, permit me to note that I never really understood how one or the other God could be on “our side.” Maybe my irreligious upbringing caused me to miss something, although I doubt it.
It always seemed to me that if the concept of God were to have any meaning, it would be with the alleged “supreme being” as a neutral overseer, and not an active handicapper in grisly conflicts that fell outside the ordained rulebook to begin with.
With that as preface, permit me also to observe that I deeply appreciate Howard Zinn’s role as American gadfly even if I’m not in lockstep agreement with him at all times. His seminal work, “A People’s History of the United States”, occupies a prominent place on my bookshelf. As topical evidence of Zinn’s intent: Put away the flags, by Howard Zinn (2006).
Any explication of hypocrisy is worthwhile, but at the same time surely it’s redundant of Zinn to spotlight atrocities committed by American soldiers. All troops in all wars commit atrocities, because war itself is an atrocity, and should be undertaken not as whim, but as a last resort. It isn’t that the Bush neo-con cabal never understood this point. It’s that they did, and proceeded to purposely ignore it, and that’ why history’s judgment is going to be unrelentingly harsh.
I don’t regard Zinn’s perspective as gospel any more than I do the obscure musings of ancient desert dwellers, but he asks uncomfortable questions … and someone should be making such queries in any society that truly values freedom of speech.
And he signs his name, too. Does that make him ineligible for residence in New Albany?
Funny, I'm actually on my way to the town Howard is a resident in - Wellfleet Ma. He always gives a couple good talks at the town library in the summer, but the folks in Wellfleet are annoyed at him right now because he hasn't been enough of a gadfly on local issues and a huge trophy house was just premitted on a magnificent piece of coastline in Wellfleet. I'm considered something of an authority on Cape Cod on Modern architecture out there, and the house they want to, or have demolished was built in the style of bauhaus, but was not a bauhaus. Of course the proposed trophy house is hideous and over-scaled and ugly, but that's only my opinion. Even in a highly prized and protected place like Cape Cod there are still many battles to fight to save the best of our past.
ReplyDeleteI need to update my copy of A People's History but I'm tempted to wait another few years to give Zinn time to deal with the current Iraq atrocity.
ReplyDeleteOur house celebrated Independence Day with a viewing of The Lives of Others by the way.
Makes me wish Howard would write a screenplay.