Been reading the late David Foster Wallace's 1997 A Supposedly Fun Thing I'll Never Do Again (a collection of thought-provoking and hilarious essays and journalism from the first half of the 1990s). I had forgotten the extent to which reading Wallace requires the reader to sit within relatively close proximity to a dictionary, and as … Continue reading Just reading DFW
Author: anthonypignataro
Why I feel icky
I can't believe I just read this story. Nobody made me–I just up and read the whole thing, completely of my own free will. And yes, I did indeed read the entire story. Every single thing in it, from the headline to the very last word, is appalling. Appalling! So much so that I now … Continue reading Why I feel icky
Novels are for fools
Seriously, I think I'm wasting my time writing a novel. The fame and fortune these days is in fake memoirs. Case in point: today's New York Times story on Herman Rosenblat, an actual Holocaust survivor who's not-so-forthcoming memoir Angel at the Fence: The True Story of a Love That Survived isn't so true at all. … Continue reading Novels are for fools
‘Fretful little bureaucratic douche bags’
Freelance writing is all hell. When I left Maui Time Weekly in early June after five years as editor, I figured my days of chasing and kicking people were long gone. "I'm just a writer now," I told more than one friend. "It's going to be easy now because I just get to deal with professional … Continue reading ‘Fretful little bureaucratic douche bags’
Time for a little Bible-thumping
In honor of Christmas, I'm going to do something truly radical and quote from the New Testament–that holiest of holy books for the ostensibly Christian capitalists who run our great nation: "The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they … Continue reading Time for a little Bible-thumping
Death of a strategist
William Kaufmann died a couple weeks ago, at the age of 90. Unless you're a military history and strategy nerd like myself, the name means nothing to you (click here to read his obituary, published in yesterday's New York Times). Kaufmann advised five presidents on how to fight (and presumably, win) a nuclear war. He was, … Continue reading Death of a strategist
Stalker nonsense
I know I'm probably in the minority here, but I really don't care that President-elect Barack Obama left his Kailua vacation rental at 7:15 this morning for a workout at Kaneohe or that "his shirt was soaked when sweat" when he reappeared at 8:10. I don't care that his neighbors are sitting on "lawn chairs" … Continue reading Stalker nonsense
Obama’s nutty OC antagonist
And now to plug yet another of my former OC Weekly colleagues. On Monday, according to this Associated Press story, the Supreme Court trash-canned some New Jersey wad's attempt to overturn Barack Obama's presidential election, saying Obama is not a U.S. citizen because his dad was a British national. This is well known. But did … Continue reading Obama’s nutty OC antagonist
Return of the Superferry…
... To court, that is. Today the Hawaii Supreme Court takes up the matter of whether Act 2, the state Legislature's special law passed in 2007 that grants a special exemption from state environmental laws to Hawaii Superferry Inc., is constitutional. The matter begins at 8:45 this morning–click here for live blogging of the proceedings. … Continue reading Return of the Superferry…
Cox sucks (as well as blows)
You have no idea how much I enjoyed writing that title, which refers to current Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox. See, back when I was a reporter in Orange County, California, Cox served as a U.S. Congressman representing the extremely affluent and conservative people of Newport Beach, so I learned first-hand just what … Continue reading Cox sucks (as well as blows)
Anthony Pignataro 