Day 17 March 13, 2003
1. Names. Carry on with journals, etc. I’ll carry the ones I have with me to Kansas, and have them back Tuesday.
Historical overviews Tuesday, also.
2. In the news . . . death penalty, late-term abortions,
helicopter crashes, blood type mismatches in heart transplants, shootings in Times
Square, freedom fries
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/03/11/sprj.irq.fries/index.html
and the mother of all bombs
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/12/national/12BOMB.html?th
and two neatly opposing views on war against Iraq:
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/charleskrauthammer/ck20030312.shtml
http://www.counterpunch.org/mahajan03122003.html
The first of these articles
calls for President Bush to stay firm and not
allow any more time than
previously declared for Iraq to cooperate. The
author seems to be in full support
of Bush and a war with Iraq. The second argues that no
matter what the U.N. decides, we have no right to
attack Iraq. They state that Iraq is only guilty of minor
violations,
though numerous, involving
incomplete information. The main point
is that
any action against Iraq is "illegal," a
violation of International Law.
Perry Leatherman
"Naturally the common people don't want war, neither in Russia, nor in
England, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But after all,
it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always
a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a
fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice
or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the
leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are going to
be attacked and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism and
exposing the country to danger. It works the same in every country."
n quote by Reich Marshall Herman Goering at the Nuremberg trials, a few months before he committed suicide in 1946.
The chief effect of such remarks is to make
many Americans grateful that the man now running the White House isn't Jimmy
Carter but instead is George W. Bush, who at the press conference showed his
grasp and appreciation of all that is presently at stake.
"The risk," he said, "of doing
nothing, the risk of hoping that Saddam Hussein changes his mind and becomes a
gentle soul, the risk that somehow that inaction will make the world safer is a
risk I'm not willing to take for the American people."
Now there's a commander in chief for you.
Bill Murchison, http://www.townhall.com/columnists/billmurchison/wm20030312.shtml
And one on the role of religion in current foreign policy:
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/mar2003/nf2003037_4103_db056.htm
2. On with War
Memorials: Reading novels for ideas,
for social context, for what’s around
the plot and the characters. Writers discover that to write well about a
character, you have to fill in the whole environment around them. That
environment, that social and historical matrix, is often what’s most relevant
and interesting in reading novels like this one for a course like this.
So, what about the social matrix? The town
hierarchy? How patriarchal is it? What about class? Race?
Family? Athleticism?
A. Nolan and family: what do we learn about him in that
scene where he saves Louis, 73 ff.? He’s pretty cool and decisive in a crisis,
isn’t he?
his relatives?
Mother, 81 ff.
Grandma Vann 84 ff.
Nolan’s coldness 85 ff
With Laney: they finally talk a bit at the carnival.
117: “sometimes it takes a good tangle of lies to keep a
relationship going”
B. Steve Pitts 74 ff., 79: sports and military as closely
connected: what do they have in common, structurally? Both rites of passage,
ways of proving one’s heroism/manhood at a young age? Both activities for young
men? Both carrying dangers as well as opportunities,
personally?
How are we
supposed to think about Steve? Is he entirely unsympathetic? What complications
are there? His daddy’s in jail, 79.
C. And the historical matrix? What events are remembered
most? Is this where the “war memorials” business becomes clearest?
Col Hereford 87 ff, and “ditch
panic”—a key idea, hmm?
Memorials and wasted lives, 113.
“Patriotism had to figure into it somewhere.”
With father,
their plan to go see Horseshoe Bend. Why is it
Jimmy’s so big on visiting battlegrounds?
121: “I’d won my dishonorable discharge from his army.”
Andrew Jackson: “at Horseshoe Bend
he successfully annihilated a thousand-year-old tribal culture.” 122
Tump
shot by arrow, 124 ff. What is it
with this scene?
John Wood, Tump’s
ancestor, executed for not keeping his camp site clean enough.
D. Religion:
Brother Willis107 ff. 110 on Nolan: “The Lord makes helpers
of us all.” Wow. Is that what you
expect from him?
Rev. Sinclair’s 53rd sermon,115
ff. “war as an example of human error on its grandest scale.” The DAR sends a
letter to J. Edgar Hoover about this obviously Communist idea, and Sinclair
immediately backs down . . .
E. At the carnival:
Donna and Darwin his nephew
Laney, Steve giving her the bear 97
throwing
the candy 99, and Alma (!)
The funhouse 102 ff
Buried Treasure:
off with Dell and his metal detector to find stuff.
Back for Alma’s
washer and dryer, 140 ff.
She has money,
she’s just changed her priorities. And there she is with her t-shirt off, 143
She kisses him, and she has plans, she offers him a job.
Question: How many would vote for Nolan to just let Laney go
and take up with Alma?
Looking ahead: What does it take to be “a man” in
small-town, patriotic, religious America?
What does Nolan have to accomplish? How much of it is internal, and how much
has to do with his relationships with others, Laney, his father, etc.? Watch
for the scene with Jesus and the darts, if you haven’t gotten there yet.
Student Responses
This is a book that i really enjoy I can truly say this and that is hord for
me to say about books. I like how this books is a book of life and its fast
reading and keeps you into it. The only thing that I am confused about with
the book is the title, after
reading nearly 2/3 of the book I don't
understand why the title of the book
is what it is. I came up with an idea
about what it means, I think it
has soemthing to do with how the whole town
revolves around war and people that
served in the armed forces. Hopefully
it will come more clear to me
as I finish the book. I don't like how
the
town looks at Nolan as a failure
because he did not follow his father's
footsteps. I think Nolan is a great man that has had alot of bad breaks in
life and just needs to take more
control of his life and he will be okay.
The other part of the book
that I have a problem with is how when it
switches chapters Nolan doesn't
finish his story from before. Especially
with the Cottonmouth story i really want to know what happened to Louis and
Grace. I can only hope i
find out more as I read more into the book.
Overall I am glad i have an oppurtunity to read
this book.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/03/12/deathpenalty/main543695.shtml
I tried hard to find an
article not dealing the war and I finally.
This one
to me is an issue that has
been stuck on the back burner for a long time.
To me its not that the man
is on death row and people say he got a injust
trial because of an all white
jury. To me its
the death penalty issue. I
do not agree with the death
penalty at all, I feel that it does nothing to
prevent murders, I feel that it is
a way out for the prisoners who commited
the crime. To me the death penalty is only legal murder
and don't
understand where the people that put
people on death row feel that they are
in a postion
to hand out such a penalty. We are all
humans and the bible
tells us not to judge so why do
certain people think they can judge and end
another person's life to me that is
very hypocritical to everything America
is based on. This is just my opinion.
Adam Meekhof
I found War Memorials to be a very comical book. I like it much better than
the missing peice and found it similar to that of color
purple. It has a style all it's own, even from
the very beginning where the first sentance captures
your attention right away about his fathers life and deaths. Nolan comes across
to me as kind of careless. Well no that he doesn't care, he just deals with
what life has dealt him quietly and passively. he
seems broken and i'm not sure what the point of the
book was. All these terrible things in his life: wife with a boyfrined, living behind his fathers legacy, getting fired
by his father for insurance fraud, he is a repo man.
Sounds like he killed his mom accidentally by giving her a drug in her IV she
was allergic to, i wonder if he even communicates
with his wife much, do they even have sex, or is the baby obviously not his? He
doesn't have a close relationship with anyone, he may
have used to with his father as a child but him not being a vetran
or having anything to do with the war or service sets him apart and looked down
upon. It is kind of depressing the life he leads but the book keeps my attention,
kind of funny somehow.Also interesting how the war
and religion plays a part of people in the town. I'm not sure where the book
went or what the point was, maybe just showing the life of a struggling man
figuring out who he is and his purpose in this world.
I responded previously to an abortion issue a couple weeks ago. Well the
article i'm repondidng to
this week was found in the salon.com called "challenges to abortion bill
defeated." It gives information about how the senate brushed aside twin
challenges proposed to banning a controversial abortion procedure that occurs
later in pregnancy during the 20th and 26th week of pregnancy.
With a 60-38 vote, the senate first shot down this propsal
with the exceptions for health of the mother, but moment later with a 56-42
vote lawmakers rejected a call to have it rewritten .
It cleared for passage to ban partial birth abortion. One doctor commented that
it is not medically necessary and the bill doesn't protect the health of women.
This bill prohibits doctors from commiting an
overt act designed to kill a partially delivered fetus described where the
entire fetal head is outside the body of the mother. The legislation includes
an exemption in cases in which the procedure is neccesary
to save the kife of the mother. Supporters say the
bill wouls outlaw an act that is not neccasry and in which the fetus would survive if pregnacy were allowed to continue. This bill wouldn't ban
abortion and doesn't get government out of the picture it just draws a line on
late-term pregnancies.
Anyhow, this has been going on simce 1995 and has
almost torn Americans like slavery did and still there is no action, no banning
but lots of opinions and bitterness. It's still a mothers right. This just
seems like one of those issues that isn';t going
anywhere, the senate and supreme court, the people, ect
just keep turning circles aroudn the issue whatever
happens not everyone will be satistfied. Personally
yeah i think partial birth
abortions is not right, although i am
pro-abortion in the earlier statges, when the fetus
is able to survive i find it barbaric.
Brooke Diller
So far I have been extremely
surprised by the book “War Memorials”. When I first read the name I figured it
would be a boring book with facts and dates, but this book is really
entertaining. I find myself very amused by Nolan and the other characters and I
am consistently picking up the book and reading it at random times.
One area in the book that I was
amazed by was when Tump gets the arrow in his back.
At first I was very confused about what was going on because no one seemed to
be taking the situation to seriously including Tump. Tump for the most part is just joking around about the
floors being dirty. There are only a few times when he seems to be seriously worried.
But I thought this fit into the mode of the book perfectly. Every issue in this
book seems to be taken in a not panicky way. A perfect example would be the
fact that Nolan knows that his wife, Laney, is having an affair but just keeps
on going with his life like nothing is wrong. For most people this would be a
huge deal. This section of the book also does a great job of illustrating how
important war heroes are. While Tump is sitting in
pain he finds out that one of his relatives who died in the Jackson
war did not die being a hero, but instead was executed by his officers for not
cleaning his area. There are little moments in the book like that that points
out how important war veterans are and how respected they are in the community.
Another new thing that is taking
place in the book is Alma. Alma
is the woman that Nolan is taking an interest in. This is very surprising
because Nolan this whole time has seemed only into Laney even though she is
with Steve Pitts. So him being interested in Alma
is very shocking especially since she does not seem like the type of girl he
would go for. One can tell Nolan is starting to care less and less about Laney
as Alma enters the picture. A good
example of this is when Nolan and Dell are going to help Alma
takes some stuff out to her grandpa’s and Nolan makes the comment “Even if
Laney might one day shot me dead” (149). He refereeing to the fact that he
would do anything that Alma wanted
no matter what. I think it is very good for Nolan to be getting over Laney because
apparently she is not to worried about making their
marriage last. I think them both need to talk and get
a divorce.
I found the article “Arm chopper crashes on N.Y. base” in the MSNBC News
website: http://www.msnbc.com/news/883840.asp?vts=031120031430&cp1=1.
A UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter crashed near Fort
Drum several days ago. This is the
type of helicopter that usually drops soliders off in
the middle of action. So this type of helicopter is use to landing in rough
terrain and it is surprising that it crashed. At the time of this article no
one was sure as to why the helicopter crashed. All that was known was that it
lost radio contact right before going down. No one was killed but some people
were taken to a local hospital for treatment. Local people said that the
helicopter was making funny noises before going down.
Andrea
Lehman
Becky Leatherman
Response #4
I am really enjoying reading the
novel War Memorials by Clint Mc Cown. It’s a very interesting story of a man’s life
and his struggle to find out where he belongs.
Nolan has so many issues that he is struggling with. He has strained relationships with both his
father and his wife. Nolan’s
relationship with Lacey is very interesting to me. They both refuse to talk to each other. It seems like they try to pretend the issues
are not there, in hopes they will go away.
Nolan does not tell Lacey he lost his job with his father, because he
knows it will upset her. But he also
refuses to tell Lacey about saving Grace’s son when he was bitten by a
snake. During the carnival side show,
the leader points out Nolan’s good deed, but he refuses to admit anything to
Lacey, even if it might restore him a little bit in her sight.
Nolan’s relationship with his dad
is also very interesting. I think that
Nolan deciding not to ask his father for his job back is a good thing. I think Nolan believes that all his life, he
was following in his fathers legacy. Until Nolan figures out who
he is he will not be able to live his own life.
I think Nolan has come to realize this, too, and that is why he decides
not to ask for his job back. He knows
that he will always be in his father’s war hero shadow unless he makes a name
for himself.
http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/03/11/sprj.irq.fries/index.html
This article is about three House
cafeterias that changed the name of French fries to Freedom Fries and French
toast to Freedom toast because the US
is mad at the French government. The
article stages that Congressman Jones said, “Watching France's self -serving politics of passive
aggression in this effort has discouraged me more than I can say." I have to wonder what the French think about
our politics--if it is self serving or not.
Personally, I think that it is
ridiculous. It reminded me of what I
learned in high school about WWII when the government changed the name of
sauerkraut to liberty cabbage.
Of what I read what really
stuck out to me was the chapter Monsters of the Midway. I thought it was intresting
to see how Nolan reacted to children (concidering his
wife was pregnant). I thought the scene
where there are stuck in the ferriswheel and Nolan
clams Darwin down by throwing RedHots was funny, espically when Nolan threw the box down and they all got
stuck in the girls hair. Later on in the
chapter it was sort of a relief to see Nolan and Laney finnally
have some sort of conversation, and it was a pleasant conversation which
in-a-way shocked me. In this chapter alot of stuff happens... Nolan and Laney finally have a
conversation, and Laney finds out that Nolan had lost his job with his
father. I think her response, to finding
out was shocking as well. I almost
expected her to get mad, but instead she just says, "Maybe when he
(Nolan's Father) goes on break, you could ask him about getting your job
back."
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/12/health/12ORGA.html
This article focused on the
recent deaths of two young people, a one year old child and a 15yr old
girl. They both had died because they
had a heart transplanted in them which the blood type didn't match. They were both type A
blood and got a heart from a Type O blood donor. This type of mismatch is one of the most
dangerous types of blood mismatches. The
article stated that in the last 15 years only about 12 mismatches have
occurred, but that number could be wrong.
In 1989 Dr. David K. C. Cooper surveyed 77 heart transplant centers
around the globe. 66 centers responded
to having done 4895 transplants, they also responded that a total of 6 patients
had mistakenly been given donor hearts w/incompatible blood types. However... of those 6, only 2 of the
mismatched transplants had been reported in medical journals. There was of course
the 11 centers that did not respond to the surevey,
so the numbers could be a little different.
-Laura Prickett
War Memorial response
Jenny Lehman
3/13/03
Even though
I have not finished reading the book “War Memorials” I must say that I have
found what I have read to be quite enjoyable. I like that fact that this book
isn’t as shocking and dramatic as “The Color Purple” and that the author uses a
lot of humor. I found the part when the lizard was killed by the window to be
particularly funny, probably because it struck me as odd that a woman would
take to a lizard the way that Laney did and also the fact that it climbed to
the window to hear her voice was also amusing.
In the midst of this humor there are many issues that delve deeper than
just the everyday occurrences of some random guy. The issue of war and its
effect, not only on the soldiers involved, but also on rural communities is
quite interesting. I thought it also interesting that the author portrays
Nolan’s father as a valiant soldier who isn’t entirely proud of the fact that
he had killed people. Too often do we glorify soldiers when what they do is
kill people? Not that I am not thankful for the freedoms and liberties that
were given to me by those who fought in wars, but I think that everyone should
recognize the fact that war is not a glorious thing, however necessary it may
be at times.
There is not much to really say about
the book at this time without rehashing the entire thing but I do think that
many important issues are being addressed in such a way that the book is
actually quite enjoyable to read.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/13/national/13UTAH.html
This story was about
Elizabeth Smart, who was abducted from her home in Salt
Lake City, Utah this past June.
She was actually found alive which is definitely exciting. The odd thing is she
wasn’t very far away from her home so I am curious as to how she wasn’t found
sooner.
I was concerned that this
book was going to be really boring, but I was
pleasantly surprised. I found the plot captivating, and I was
especially
fascinated by the complex serious of
lies he was living out. The way he and
his wife left all those
important things left unsaid just kept my attention.
i
was pretty shocked by the way things turned out between nolan
and his
wife. I felt bad for the guy, mostly. His wife was having an affair, his
dad fired him, he really had
nowhere to go to get everything off his chest.
He was always watching to
make sure his lies weren't discovered.
In the
end, however, everything comes
out, and everything improves.
http://www.townhall.com/columnists/charleskrauthammer/ck20030312.shtml
http://www.counterpunch.org/mahajan03122003.html
The first of these articles
calls for President Bush to stay firm and not
allow any more time than
previously declared for Iraq to cooperate. The
author seems to be in full support
of Bush and a war with Iraq. The second argues that no
matter what the U.N. decides, we have no right to
attack Iraq. They state that Iraq is only guilty of minor
violations,
though numerous, involving
incomplete information. The main point
is that
any action against Iraq is "illegal," a
violation of International Law.
Perry Leatherman
A Response to “War Memorials”
by Clint McCown
“War
Memorials” is the story of a man in his early thirties, whose life is on the
edge of total failure. The book is easy to read because of the simple everyday
language used and the pace of the story. What I like most about the book is how
the storyteller narrates his life in a very sarcastic and morbidly funny way,
even though his life is very depressing. He is very honest in telling the
reader about his failures and mistakes.
Alongside telling his personal story, the narrator
introduces the reader to his father and other World War II veterans, and also
to his grandmothers. I find the historical facts referred to by the veterans
very interesting since I have a curiosity for history.
“War Memorials” is a book that sparked my motivation to read
from the first pages. Clint McCown definitely did a good job grabbing my
attention in the first couple sentences. I am excited to finish reading the
book and to discover the whole story.
Media
Hahahaha!!! Even though
the plans for war are very sad and disruptive, the irony in this whole
war-situation is almost hilarious. An article in the New York Times
written by Thom Shanker covered an interesting story.
This past Tuesday, March 11, the Air Force ‘successfully’ tested
the largest conventional bomb in the American arsenal, “a munition
so massive that its 18,000 pounds of high explosives must be dropped from the
rear of a cargo plane” (Shanker). This bomb, also
called the ‘Mother Of All Bombs’, is designed to
create a wave of fire when dropped and to blow up hundreds of yards. This new
bomb, still in the test phase, could be used against Iraq
if President Bush decides to go to war. And why does Bush want to attack Iraq
again? Because Saddam Hussein MIGHT hide weapons that could be used against America
and its allies. Hahahahaha!!! Does this make any
sense?! It is ok for the USA to design and develop bombs that can “kill troops,
flatten trees, knock over structures, collapse cave entrances and, in general,
demoralize those far beyond the impact zone” (Shanker)
in a split of a second, but other countries are not allowed to posses weapons
the like? Nuclear or not, all weapons are designed intending to kill. So
someone please tell me what justifies this Mother Of
All Bombs?!
Link used: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/03/12/national/12BOMB.html?th
Caroline
Moons
I have really enjoyed
reading the first part of the book "War Memorials." Currently at this point in the book I am not
really sure what direction it is heading, but I think it is based on Nolan's different
life experiences. At the beginning of
the book he is fired by his father from his job. This causing a big strain
in their relationship. I know
that Nolan was not right in doing some of his dealings, however I have to say I
was a little shocked his own father would fire him without even a warning. Another issue Nolan continously
struggles with is the fact his wife is pregnant with another man's baby. She is pretty open about her secret
relationship, but she does not have a clue her husband knows and maybe she does
not really care for that matter. Nolan excepts the secret relationship better than most people
would and does not bother to confront his wife about it. It kind of surprised me everytime
he refers to the relationship in the book, he does not appear to care. I cannot help but wonder why, his wife
decided to have an affair, maybe the couple just was not getting along as well
as they did in the past. I hope to find
out as I continue to read the book.
Nolan's new job working for his cousin kind of sounds a little inlegal to me and I wonder how long it is going to be
before the job causes him problems or gets him in trouble. Overall I get the impression that Nolan has a
pretty carefree attitude. It also seems as if he
keeps alot of secrets from different people, for
example his wife does not know he has a different job, or that he knows about
her affair. I found it interesting when
his father started talking about his life in the military during World WarII. I think the
most interesting part was that Nolan's father never talked about it in the past
and all of a sudden started talking about it in the restrant. Overall, I think this is a very interesting
book and I am looking forward to reading the rest.
The article I chose for today was from Fox
News. It was about eight people being
shot at an arcade in New York Time's Square.
A brawl began in a nightclub above the arcade in Time's Square. Police are continuing to look for two suspects, they currently have three people in custody of
weapons. The police say the brawl was
not gang related. Gun shots were heard
in the club, leading all 350 people in there to panic and run for the excits, leaving some people to be trampled on the way. All the victims were between the ages of 17
and 25 years old.
Amanda Egley