This is something that drives a certain segment of our society absolutely crazy..." — Thomas Frank
I caught up with Thomas Frank as the tears started to roll down the face of a certain talk-show host. Actually, that's not hard! There's a whole lot of crying and self-pity going on in the political world. And fascinatingly, it starts from the smallest of seeds, from the Mike Enzi hold on Obama nominee Labor Department solicitor nominee Patricia Smith, guilty of having been an effective advocate for labor rights, in that she helped to start the Wage Watch program, chronicled in Frank's column for the Wall Street Journal,"The GOP vs. Labor Law". There's an interesting strain of politician afoot who seems to feel the needs to be a politician while denying the import of government; sort of like if your local police thought that laws were counterproductive in terms of encouraging and enforcing lawful behavior. It's funny, in a very depressing fashion.
Frank and I also talk about The Paranoid Style in American Politics, by Richard Hofstadter, an essay writer some 45 years ago to address the then-minor-league phenomenon of the John Birch Society. It's a great essay, and it was especially fun, after reading Frank's essay for the Wall Street Journal, "From John Birchers to Birthers", to talk with him about the new ranks of the American Paranoids. These are people who have pioneered cry-on-demand television. Alas, their only reason for crying is their mind-boggling wealth. I have too much fun talking to Thomas Frank, and I trust you'll enjoy hearing his take on events as you follow this link to the MP3 audio file.
10-26-09: A 2009 Interview with E Van Lowe
"When you're writing for screen or TV, you're really only writing the cinematic." — E Van Lowe
You know, I just didn't ask his first name. After about three minutes of talking to him, I would have sworn that the "E" in E. Van Lowe stood for "Enthusiastic." And not in a smarmy way, but in that sort of genuine, really-likes-writing manner. E — that's what I'll call him here, because that's what I called him in the interview — is one of the many writers I've met who has, simply put, found his calling. In this case, writing about zombies for high-school age girls. Hey, there's a niche for everyone in this world.
The thing that sets 'Never Slow Dance With a Zombie' apart from the rest of the zombies is Van Lowe's sense of humor. It starts on page 1, and continues right through to the end of the book, and it came out in our interview at the generous digs of NPR West. E (I later found out from Scott "S. G." Browne that "E" stands in for Eric) approaches his subject with just the right combination of empathy (another good choice for lead initial fodder) and insouciance to get buy-in from readers of all ages. If you've ever been to high school, then E's got your number. Especially if that high school is infested with zombies, and you know, to my mind that's every high school in America! Just follow this link to the MP3 audio file to hear the simple rules for fighting zombies!
New to the Agony Column
02-09-10: Commentary : Douglas Clegg Returns to 'Neverland' : Is 1980's Horror Returning from the Grave?
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2009 Interview with David Drake, Part 2 / Complete : "I didn't have governor ... that is ... anything, endgame, was me killing somebody.""
02-08-10: Commentary : David Louis Edelman Completes Jump 225 : 'Geosynchron'
02-05-10: Commentary : DC Pierson is 'The Boy Who Couldn't Sleep and Never Had To' : The Insomnia Vibe
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Three Books with Alan Cheuse: Too Much Money, Dominick Dunne; The Privileges, Jonathan Dee; Adam Haslett, Union Atlantic; The Forty Rules of Love, Elif Shafak; Wild Child, T. C. Boyle
02-04-10: Commentary : David Grann and 'The Devil and Sherlock Holmes' : An Obsession with Obsession
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2010 Interview with Josh Sundquist : "It was a really amazing testament to the power of small-town America and to the power of organized religion at its best."
02-03-10: Commentary : James Rollins Unleashes 'The Altar of Eden' : Monsters at the Zoo
02-01-10: Commentary : 'He Walked Among Us' : Cassandra, John Titor and Norman Spinrad
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2010 Interview with Charlie Huston : "The prospect of things becoming deeply unhinged seemed very, very immediate"
01-29-10: Commentary : Henghis Hapthorn Meets 'Hespira' : Matthew Hughes Devolves the Universe
01-27-10: Commentary : Glen Cook Walks the 'Shadowline' : Every Old (Science Fiction) Thing is New (Space Opera) Again
Agony Column Podcast News Report : An Interview with Jeff Carlson at SF in SF on January 16, 2010 : "The bad guys never consider themselves the bad guys..."
01-19-10: Commentary : Gene Wolfe Moves into 'The Sorcerer's House' : Magical Surrealism
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Three Books with Alan Cheuse : Don Delillo: 'Point Omega,' Robert Stone: 'Fun With Problems,' Douglas Preston: 'Impact'
01-18-10: Commentary : George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois Bring On 'Warriors' : An Anthology Waiting to Happen
