The Hollow Men

New World Notes #297 (November 12, 2013):

Broadcast quality MP3 (40 MB)
Decent quality MP3 (13 MB)

Morris Berman

In Brief

KD's brief reflections on folk holidays (Halloween--good) vs. corporate holidays (Black Friday--bad) set the stage for a brilliant and witty short talk by historian Morris Berman.

Berman sees the essential hollowness of America's leaders as a reflection of the hollowness at the core of many of us--and the hollowness of The American Dream.  In its present form The American Dream is little more than a wish for more stuff.  The current political/economic system does seem to be unsustainable and collapsing--leaving Morris with decidedly mixed emotions.

Then singing comic-satirist Roy Zimmerman offers a more upbeat view of the oddness of American life.  The show ends with a few lines of T.S. Eliot's 88-year-old poem, from which we've swiped our title.

Thanks to Robin Upton and Unwelcome Guests for Berman's talk.