Monthly Archives: November 2023

The Deep-Rooted Mendacity of the Weaker Sex

Swaggart. Trump. Weinstein. Epstein. Windsor. Brand. Rose… the list goes on. When will such men be spared the allegations of conniving women? It’s the one time the word “liaress,” feminine of “liar,” would be a useful addition to the language. … Continue reading

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‘Truth’ Is Straight-Up Naked, Dude

“You have said the actual truth.” (Musk) (Michelle Goldberg, “Why on Earth Are Jewish Leaders Praising Elon Musk?” New York Times, 11-20-23) UNSTABLE GENIUSES, THEY GO AND COMEThe dude bogarts a joint and jinxes X,hocks the truth with loogies of … Continue reading

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‘Cuando Me Vaya’ by Javier Sánchez

The Spanish text I translate to English here is from Las palabras de Javier (November 16, 2023). In reading poetry of the day I brace for being left in the lurch, for being denied more than a cerebral engagement, at … Continue reading

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Love the Beasts

“Fauve painting is not everything,… but it is the foundation of everything.” (Matisse) I have an affinity for the stripe of painting perpetrated by the Fauves. Their manic attack with brush and pigment gestures offhandedly toward trees, water and sky. … Continue reading

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Please, Your Majesty. Say, ‘We Are Not Amused’

… A consummation devoutly to be wished.”(Shakespeare) Evangelical euphemisms like “Grab ‘em by the prissy” and “Kiss my aft” have hopped from bully rally to pulpit rave in American discourse thanks to the God lobby. But, Britannia, oh dear! “Fuckpigs,” … Continue reading

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Badonkadonks, Ta-Tas and Bunga Bunga

Italian prime minister Georgia Meloni is in the news for rinsing her hands of longtime, live-in boyfriend Andrea Giambruno, caught prospecting for group sex. Reportage has reached again for bunga bunga, which keeps this reliable trope of male-hormonal culture merrily … Continue reading

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Cometh the Hour, Cometh the Backside

“The whole secret of politics is knowing who hates who.” (Kevin Phillips) “MY pronoun,” said Cruz, “is ‘kiss my ass.’”On Ted’s form of address I’ll take a pass.A smooch bestowed on the croup of this solonis honor paid to the … Continue reading

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‘After the Music, We Want Meaning’

“We love the balance and control of rhyme even if it unbalances us, but, after the music, we want meaning.” (Adam Gopnik) When Adam Gopnik writes, “No prosody can immunize poetry against the test of experience… What’s always at stake … Continue reading

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Keening in the Key of Claws (‘We’re Out of Things to Say’)

“The guns are available and the targets are soft.” (Stephen King) Been to the broke-heart mountain.Been to the Jesus well.Thoughts and prayersfor the Shepherd’s cause,the Founders’ flaws,the House of Laws,from We the People’s hell. (c) 2023 JMN — EthicalDative. All … Continue reading

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