Crooners, croakers and self-loathers

For a small river town, Sleepy Hollow sure lights up at Christmastime. It’s really something to see the old 3-family houses in my neighborhood all festooned for the season. I must remember to take and post some pictures.

Last night the Town Tavern had its weekly karaoke night. A brick wall of a man named Adam bested the rest of the weekend crooners and croakers, in my humble opinion. He had down pat many of the vocal acrobatics used by today’s R&B singers, and his tone was spot on. It's too bad most of the patrons were too involved with their drinks to take notice. This guy could sing; I'm sure on that even Simon Cowell would agree. His one miscue came when, at my request, he ventured into Stevie Wonder territory. Adam’s range—as well as his girth—is more in the Barry White zone. What the hell was I thinking? Sorry about that, big guy.

I also owe Donald Rumsfeld an apology. In last Sunday's post I referred to his tenure as defense secretary in the past tense. My bad. His tenure doesn't end until Robert Gates officially replaces him on December 18.

Currently in Iraq visiting the troops one last time, Rumsfeld on Friday bade a public farewell to his cohorts at the Pentagon.

About Iraq and Afghanistan he had this to say: “We have every chance in the world of succeeding in both those countries, but only if we have the patience and only if we have the staying power.”

The press account to which I’ve linked also states he listed many achievements by the US military that occurred on his watch:

“They included coming to peoples' aid after the tsunami in the Indian Ocean, the earthquake in Pakistan and the hurricanes along the Gulf Coast; deploying ‘an initial missile defense system’; creating the Northern Command to ‘better protect the homeland’; conducting the largest-ever base closure and global force change; and operating the Guantanamo detention center for terrorist suspects in the face of ‘grossly uninformed and irresponsible charges.’”

His darkest day, he said, “was Abu Ghraib, seeing what went on there and feeling so deeply sorry that that happened.”

This is the man whose head the New York Times demanded—and got—on a platter. The same New York Times whose star columnist, Frank Rich, today opines: "By prescribing placebos, the Iraq Study Group isn’t plotting a way forward but delaying the recognition of our defeat."

Not too long ago reading that kind of statement in a major US newspaper would have shocked me. Not anymore. Now it’s just the latest example of an upside-down logic of postmodern America, one that crucifies its patriots while celebrating the truly treasonous.