The Politically Incorrect Show - 26/11/2001

It's that time of the month again. This morning I went into labour. This time next week a bonny new issue of The Free Radical will have been born. This one's rather special. It's the 50th. Fittingly, it begins with an interview with a special person - Barbara Branden, who discusses life, the universe & everything with me briefly, as a prelude to her coming to New Zealand to be keynote speaker at the first-ever SOLO conference.

My own editorial this issue reflects on the fact that it IS the 50th. A time to take stock & regroup, review mistakes, celebrate victories, dispense thanks, & look ahead. I consider several blunt criticisms of the magazine that were presented to me recently.

The rest of this edition is the usual mix of bureaucratic horror stories, politics, economics, art & philosophy. There are several takes on the terrorism question, from the "take no prisoners" approach of former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to the questioning of Chris Sciabarra who, while in no way condoning Osama bin Laden, argues that the U.S. should never have gotten embroiled in foreign conflicts to begin with. Michael Newberry, in Terrorism & Postmodern Art, draws some salient parallels between the enemy without & an enemy within:

"Ominously, the postmodernists are as clever as bin Laden ... Postmodernists have INFILTRATED our civilisation's greatest art institutions. And they have done it with our naive blessings. They now represent America's art culture, its soul. They are the spiritual voice of America. And that voice is sending a message out to the world: 'NOBODY IS HOME. Go ahead & dump on us. There is no one here to mind; in fact, us nobodies welcome it.' How long do you give a country whose leading art institutions project the self-abasement of hatred, of self-pity, of cynicism, & of the living dead?" Michael recounts how the Twin Towers attacks induced in him a calm, uncompromising resolve "to stand up proudly & defend the values of civilisation against the onslaught of a species of human beings who romanticise destruction." For my money, his article is the highlight of an outstanding issue.

Subscription details are at the bottom of this message. If you want to join the battle of which Michael speaks, & help one of its standard bearers, The Free Radical, on its way to another 50 issues, I would urge those of you who haven't done so to sign up now. Those who have - why not subscribe a friend for Xmas? What better gift than freedom?

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