Nov
4
2008
Mother Palin: An Election Special
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See last month’s entry, The Virgin Palin, for a precursor to this posting
IF ONE ACCEPTS the argument from The Virgin Palin that Sarah Palin is to the Republican Party what the Virgin Mary is to Christianity, and if one accepts that in earlier centuries iconography and paintings were a primary vehicle through which a largely illiterate public formed its views on the Virgin Mary, then it follows that one can explore what Sarah Palin means to the Republican Party by looking at images of the Virgin Mary from past centuries. If the transitive logic of such reasoning seems as dubious as its assumptions, it should be remembered that when dealing with matters of religion, or presidential elections for that matter, faith always trumps reason.
In light of the above revelation, I spent a number of hours in London’s National Gallery of Art, focusing my faith and mindlessness upon the numerous paintings of the Virgin Mary. I was not disappointed. The insights into the contemporary American political scene afforded by image after image of a nursing Mother Mary are too many, or at least too profound, to relay. Since not all of us have the opportunity to visit the National Gallery for a direct personal experience, I thought I would include a few of these images of Marian political edification. The acclaimed restoration artist makismakis has generously touched them up to maximize your viewing pleasure. I shall keep my commentary to a minimum to ensure an unmediated, or at least less mediated, encounter between viewer and creator. It is also The Big Day and no one has any time for reading (or writing for that matter) with all this thrill and dread in the air, thrill that the elections are finally going to end, dread that the 2012 campaign will now begin.
Oct
14
2008
The Virgin Palin
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The Virgin Palin
WHEN JOHN MCCAIN announced Sarah Palin as his running mate, a number of Doubting Thomases within the ranks questioned his judgment. But the ensuing surge of blood into the Republican Party’s worryingly flaccid and impotent apparatus (a process referred to in politer circles as “energizing the base”), quickly brought these skeptics to their senses. They welcomed the “former” beauty queen (pfff, former!) and aerial wolf hunter with a zeal of outstretched arms that was surpassed only by the engorged manhood of the Pakistan President.
Unfortunately a few Katie Couric interviews, an ethical misconduct investigation, and recent geospatial revelations that neither Russia nor Putin’s head is visible from Wasilla or Anchorage have resurfaced the murmurs of doubt over McCain’s choice, but skeptics should heed the advice of Jesus—In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world—a sanguinity that was reflected in Palin’s Straight Talk Express response when asked if she was ready to be President: “Absolutely. Yup. Yup.”
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ONE of the premiere comedy spots in the world lies in an imposing neo-Byzantine building in the old town of Nicosia, Cyprus, bearing the unjustly sonorous title ‘The Archbishopric.’ It is where the Archbishop, the head of the comedy club known as the Cyprus Church resides, and where the bishops and other higher clergy convene to ensure a ceaseless supply of spiritual hilarity. The heart of the Cyprus Church may seem an unlikely place for top-class comedy, but anyone who has witnessed any of the latest ecclesiastical acts, whether live or on television, will agree that it’s the best show running in the Eastern Mediterranean, on par with South Park, Eddie Murphy’s Delirious, or the best clips from The Daily Show. 
