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Sunday, January 30, 2005

Last night was Repeat Night . . .

I saw the movie "Sideways" again. It doesn't suffer the least for being seen twice. Granted, it's full-on middle-aged angst, but done with such empathy and humor and passion that the story transcends age. Virginia Madsen and Paul Giamatti sit on the back porch and talk about wine, but they are really describing themselves. That scene was good on first viewing. On second viewing, it is physical and verbal poetry; Madsen is luminescent and they are both pitch-perfect. That one scene, in its perfection, justifies the entire movie. The other realization last night was that Paul Giamatti got totally screwed over by the Academy. That he wasn't nominated for Best Actor is gross negligence. But "Sideways" is beautiful, thoughtful and funny and that's not a bad combination.

I picked up my copy of "Against All Enemies" again - the book written by terrorism expert Richard Clarke. The first chapter, an inside look at the White House command during the first hours and days of the 9/11 attacks, is as rivieting as any fiction. Even allowing for the normal self-serving prose of autobiography, it is still an insider's view of what happens during a national state of emergency.

He gives credit to Cheney and Bush for their actions during that first day (disregarding "My Pet Goat", however) but provides a clear picture of Rumsfeld and Wolfowitz beginning to lobby for the Iraq connection. Barely more than 24 hours after the fall of the WTC towers, Rumsfeld talks about "broadening" our objectives and "getting Iraq." Clarke's thoughts? "Having been attacked by al Qaeda, for us now to go bombing Iraq in response would be like our invading Mexico after the Japanese attacked us at Pearl Harbor."

"Against All Enemies" might be an appropriate read now that the Bush warmongers are floating trial balloons about invading Iran.

1:31:43 AM

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