Posted on 01/10/2002 8:09:35 PM PST by Pokey78
Edited on 04/23/2004 12:04:04 AM PDT by Jim Robinson. [history]
There's a small but telling scene in Ridley Scott's "Black Hawk Down" that contains some dialogue that reverberates, at least for me. In the spirit of Samuel Johnson, who said man needs more often to be reminded than instructed, I offer it to all, including myself, who might benefit from its message.
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
Now read it again, with the thought in mind that it's a poor metaphor, it's self-pitying, and it's and attempt to hitchike on the military. Go grade some papers.
Well, duh. What was your first clue, where Noonan wrote:
"Everybody's shot." Those are great metaphoric words. ?
You and Marple ought to get together and grade papers. To paraphrase the estimable and highly underrated Pokey 78, this wasn't one of Noonan's better efforts. It whines. Poor, poor us. We've all been through so much. We need to keep in mind How Hard It's Been for us to watch all of this on television, sigh. We need to be like the heroic Dingell of Peggy's essay:
When the story became public, the secretary of transportation called him and apologized. Mr. Dingell waved him off and told him it was OK, he understands, everyone's doing his job. Now that's someone who knows that everybody's been shot.
Gag me.
Now people accentuate the negative and eliminate the positive. Gee, that might make a good song!
It barely whimpers.
Probably due to lack of fresh meat. Hope it doesn't get fed again, because it will start howling next time.
This is not a whining article. She is saying people need to suck it up and QUIT whining.
But then, you really knew that, didn't you?
Didn't you?
No, they didn't. Just when you think she can't write another one as good as that Miss Peggy comes along and writes another one.
Just hope her "9/11" columns get published in book form some day. She is a great lyrical writer - all she needs is a contemporary Richard Rogers to put her words to music.
the line is "everybody's shot" not "been shot", everybody's shot metaphorically speaking, means everybody's worn out, run down, burdened beyond capacity to function, "shot". yes the soldiers being shot is more tragic, but nowadays, everybody's shot. i think she nailed it. thank goodness for noonans.
Take extra special notice of the last sentence in this post.
Yeah, this wanting to co-opt "everybody's been shot" is a bunch of crap. Soldiers get shot. At most "we" have been shocked by recent events, but we certainly haven't been shot. Save it for the soldiers.
I agree that the metaphor is week but it does provide the frame work for an article. What the author concludes in her article is suspicious at best.
"When the story became public, the secretary of transportation called him and apologized. Mr. Dingell waved him off and told him it was OK, he understands, everyone's doing his job.
"Now that's someone who knows that everybody's been shot."
Her message is; you lost some freedoms -- suck it up and move along, nothing more to see.
IMO, here's what she missed; due to the 9-11 terrorist attacks each person has had a shot of internal-reflective self-honesty -- each one of us is a hero in our own little world and want to share that with others. ...And a shot of healthy external skepticism regarding what the politicians, media, journalists and Hollywood had been clamoring about before the attacks -- telling us we were all deficient.
You can't appreciate good writing when you've got a chip on your shoulder.
Shoot, I didn't know you're the Final Authority on Good Writing, in addition to your other talents. I am impressed.
Hey, cut me a break Marple- I've been shot, too!
If it's one of her better efforts, it's gotta be because it has a Rohrschach quality where you can see whatever you want in it.
I will give you a break as a reward for that comment about this being a Rohrschach test. HAR! Very good!
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