Marching on
Some Notes on the Silence
My new book, Some Notes on the Silence, is now available from the publisher, Kelsay Books. They tell me Amazon is running a bit behind, so the book will be available there in about a month.
Although I prefer that my poems to speak for themselves, I will say that this book begins with the atmosphere of “cancel culture,” intimidation, and foreboding that pervades our society today, and then seeks a way to surpass these things and find truth and meaning, both culturally and individually. I do so primarily (though not exclusively) through the lens of American tradition and history, not out of blind worship of these things, but out of an informed love for them.
I’m honored that some of my favorite poets—Stephen Kampa, A.M. Juster, and Jennifer Reeser—took time to say some kind words about my writing, and I was especially touched by Ms. Reeser’s comment that my “poetic voice is as authentically American as any reader could hope to encounter.” That was exactly what I hoped to evoke, and if I have managed that, I consider the book a success.
Here are a couple previously unpublished poems that you’ll find in Some Notes on the Silence.
A Lens (for Wallace Stevens)
I held a lens against the sky, and all the waves that wandered in the darkness came into alignment as they never were before,
and cannot be again; that lens with delicate exactitude carved a place against the night with its own abandoned light,
and made a thing that I could hold while all around the wild earth remained a mystery: an instant clear like nothing else. An image point.
from Three Poems from The Twilight Zone Good Living (“It’s A Good Life” starring Bill Mumy)
Within His mind is everything; outside Him is nothing. We’re happy deep inside. Our world is what He alone decides. All we really need, He provides.
And it’s peaceful. Truly. Some have tried to find some way to reach the other side of the field. Some of them have died. Or worse. Better not to play that hide
and seek with thoughts. That’s just suicide. The real problem is your foolish pride. Stifle it and learn to clear your mind. If you pretend it’s true, you haven’t lied.
Most of all, say you’re satisfied. Try not to think about infanticide.
I’m grateful to the editors at Kelsay Books both for putting together such a lovely book and for their patience with me as I struggled to get everything just so.
Two major court victories
We won two major cases at Goldwater this month, both involving taxes. In Fann v. Arizona, the trial court issued an injunction against enforcement of Prop. 208, and I had an article in National Review Online to explain what that means. Then, in Vangilder v. Department of Revenue, the state Supreme Court declared Pinal County’s transportation excise tax illegal. I talked about that decision with Wake up Tucson’s Chris DeSimone. Of course you can read about these and other cases at Goldwater’s blog, In Defense of Liberty.
One fun personal detail about the Vangilder case: I argued it in December of 2020, only two days after Christina argued her case, Schires v. Carlat. I’m pretty certain we’re the first husband and wife team to have back-to-back oral arguments in the Arizona Supreme Court.
Fighting the Pima County “balloondoggle”
A few days ago, I argued the appeal in the lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Pima County’s subsidies to a private business. You can watch the argument here:
And you can learn more about the case here.
How the government keeps “Indian” children from loving homes
I had an article in Reason this month about the Indian Child Welfare Act, subject of the litigation before the Supreme Court that we’ll be briefing in the coming weeks. I also got to talk about ICWA with Andy Caldwell on his show; we also talked about other Indian law-related matters. You can listen here.
Crime and Punishment
My latest book review for The Objective Standard focuses on Kevin Birmingham’s new book about Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s composition of Crime and Punishment. It’s an entertaining and deeply researched book, although its main premise—that Dostoyevsky based the book on a particular 1834 murder—is a little bit gimmicky, because that case was just one of many things that went into the book:
[Crime and Punishment] is not just an exercise in psychology, let alone a reflection on the author’s personal struggles. Its claim to the status of classic arises as much from its philosophical elements. Among the most important of these is Dostoevsky’s portrayal of nihilism, a cultural fashion in his day. Nihilism—the ideological embrace of nothingness—was a movement fostered in part by the Russian government’s intense authoritarianism and in part by rising secularism and capitalism in the West. Politically excluded from the benefits of Western progress, and with their traditional faith shattered by scientific discoveries and cultural revolutions, many young, intelligent Russians opted instead for this anti-ideology—which had important consequences for literature. “Nowadays,” says a character in Ivan Turgenev’s 1862 novel Fathers and Sons, “the most useful thing of all is rejection—we reject.” Nihilists rejected not just religion, but all political, social, and moral ideals—including reason and science. “Being a nihilist meant training your attention on small facts so that you will not lose yourself in bewildering fantasies,” Birmingham writes. But this was also destined to foster a sense of alienation and impotence.
John Locke and Ayn Rand
I also gave an online presentation for the Objective Standard Institute a few weeks ago on the similarities and differences between John Locke and Ayn Rand. I wasn’t terribly happy with it—I thought I got kind of rushed toward the end, and there were some points I could have covered better, particularly the differences between the Epicurean and Nietzschean conceptions of “the pursuit of happiness” that I touched on in the Q&A portion—but I suppose it was just meant as an introduction. Anyway, it’s online here (behind a paywall).
Cecile Licad and SRV
You’ve probably seen the famous video of Stevie Ray Vaughan breaking a string while playing “Hey, Little Sister,” and switching guitars without missing a beat. But how about Cecile Licad continuing to play Rachmaninov’s Third Piano Concerto without missing a note…when the theater experiences a blackout?
Speaking of music…
My latest musical discovery is the Japanese jazz pianist Hiromi. Her most recent album, which came out in October, is called Silver Lining Suite, and it’s a string quintet that mixes a sort of chamber classical style with jazz; her performance is superb and sprinkled throughout with moments of real beauty. I have also been transfixed by her album Live in Montreal, in which she pairs up with a Cuban harpist named Edmar Castaneda. (Just the very idea of the harp being used for jazz is charming, I think; the only other jazz harpist I’ve ever encountered is Dorothy Ashby, whose “Life Has Its Trials” is delicious.) Anyway, check out this piano/harp duet:
And if you prefer something a little less lively, check out her gorgeous “Wake up and Dream”
Tortoises and flamingoes
Christina and I got a chance to visit with some animal friends at the Phoenix Zoo this month—we got to feed the flamingoes and the Galapagos tortoises, and even got to pet the tortoises. They’re also very photogenic. It’s funny how, the older I get, the more I enjoy zoos.
Vegas
Christina and I took a quick trip to Las Vegas to hear a concert by Jeff Peterson, Sonny Lim, and George Kahumoku, Jr., three of Hawaii’s leading slack key players. (If you’re not familiar with slack key, I wrote about it here.)
The event was held at the Smith Center for the Performing Arts, which I’d never seen before—a delightful Neo-Art-Deco building modeled after Hoover Dam. Very cool for those of us who love Art Deco architecture.
While there, we also went over to the Twilight Zone miniature golf place we enjoy so much (SyFy Mini Golf) at Bally’s. I mention it here because it’s not as well known as it should be, and if you’re looking for a little something different to do in Vegas, you should check it out. Their Twilight Zone décor is really first rate:
Looking forward to the Cruelest Month
We’re now in Florida, where Christina is running in the Disneyworld Marathon this weekend. I’ll be waiting at the hotel with a book and an iced tea like a normal person. That book is the oft-recommended Three Body Problem, which is so far not my cup of tea, but perhaps it’ll improve. Until then…