Because the important thing about MLK Day is how it affects the 2008 election......
posted by mikevotes at
3:06 PM
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7 Comments:
Like the Super Bowl, we all rally and cheer and make great talk. But then the day is over and we all go back to what we were doing.
It seems MLK has become a folk character, and once a year all the politicians come out, make great and moving speeches, pat him on the back. Then they go back to ignoring everything he stood for... Black and White.
By
-epm, at 2:41 PM
Yeah. I just flipped across CNN and was struck at how they were playing the MLK story, starting with the presidential candidates.
As we go forward through tie, we will continue to see a historical compression of MLK until his entire life is condensed into a small number of small anecdotes and factoids that comprise what we have collectively decided he represents.
Like George Washington. General of the revolutionary army, father of our country, cherry tree...
Or Reagan, tax cuts, tear down this wall, ketchup is a vegetable....
That's how it works.
By
mikevotes, at 2:50 PM
Sad. But you sum up things quite well.
By
-epm, at 2:55 PM
Yes, it's true. Washington chopped down the cherry tree; Lincoln returned a nickel.
That's how it goes in history. Nero fiddled while Rome burned.
We've collectively forgotten that both the CIA and FBI regarded King as a threat to the nation, that he was wiretapped and shadowed, that rumors about him were placed in the newspapers by his enemies, that he was known as a womanizer among his friends. He was a regular guy in so many ways.
All the colorful details of a life tangled in the short-term politics of the day are truncated to a single phrase from a single speech.
By
r8r, at 6:30 PM
You have to keep the narrative simple and concise. It has to be repeatable in a 30 second sound bite and become a mantra that will encapsulate the individual in a shallow grave of words.
I remember the fairy tales and propaganda that my willing mind accepted uncritically in public schools. As soon as I started reading and studying on my own I was so pissed about the worthless lies about history that I had been taught. When I went to a large university and was able to study in depth I was amazed at how much of American history presented as fact is garbage.
The saddest thing is that except in a university setting or with auto-didacts there really is no one around to discuss and digest current events through the long filter of history.
Mike's blog is a refuge. Thanks.
By
matt, at 6:42 PM
"Mike's blog is a refuge. Thanks"
You can say that again. Thanks Mike.
By
-epm, at 7:09 PM
8r, The most interesting thing is the process by which the salient elements are chosen, especially towards the moder figures.
One of the main reasons Reagan's condensed legacy is so glowing is because he has an entire legion promoting those 3 facts or however many the cultural condensation will carry.
This becomes interesting in a case like MLK where the primary definers of his legacy are white media people whose experience of him was quite different.
Also, I've often wondered about the Bush condensation. He will have promoters across some of his specific policies, Bill Kristol defending the kill arab policies for instance, but by and large, his strongest proponents will be pretty discredited.
....
Matt, I think the number of salient bits is determined by some function of time versus perceived importance.
And, one of the more interesting things about the official history versus lie problem, is where do you get off, you know? It's very necessary to invoke some projection to fill in some of the blanks and the question is always "how rational am I being in doing that?"
PS. Thanks for the compliment.
By
mikevotes, at 9:25 PM
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