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March 6, 2006
Norman Mailer Wins France's Lifetime Achievement Award for Moonbattery
Norman Mailer has been awarded the Legion of Honor, France's highest honor. If the award can be considered a lifetime achievement award for moonbattery, he richly deserves it.
Among the highlights on his resume is making a literary hero out of convicted murderer Jack Henry Abbott. Not long after his release — which Mailer helped secure — Abbott killed again, stabbing a man to death in an argument over a toilet. "Culture is worth a little risk," Mailer shrugged. Abbott later did the world a favor by hanging himself in his prison cell.
Mailer has some stabbing experience himself: he repeatedly stabbed one of his six wives with a pair of scissors at a party, landing himself in a psychiatric ward for 17 days. He received a probationary sentence. Apparently fame and fortune have their advantages.
September 11 provided Mailer with an opportunity to regale us with nuggets of his superior wisdom. Here's what he had to say about the World Trade Center:
Everything wrong with America led to the point where the country built that tower of Babel, which consequently had to be destroyed.
To the many excellent reasons to fly Old Glory, you can add Mailer's disapproval. Regarding the post-9/11 upsurge in patriotism, he had this to say:
America has an almost obscene infatuation with itself. Has there ever been a big powerful country that is as patriotic as America? And patriotic in the tiniest way, with so much flag waving?
Whatever intellectual talents Mailer can be said to possess are now focused on undermining President Bush and his attempts to combat Islamic terrorism — no doubt a deciding factor in France's decision to grant him the award. If he keeps it up, a Nobel Prize can't be far behind.
Posted by Van Helsing at March 6, 2006 1:29 AM
Comments
A couple years ago one of the men's magazines, I think it was Esquire, did an article on Mailer.
The title was something like, "Was Mailer ever really that good?" Maybe someone else out there could dig it up.
When I was in college, I remember asking one of my English Profs what writers he hated. He came up with two:
Theodore Dreiser, "because he was such a terrible writer" and Norman Mailer, "because he was such a terrible person."
Posted by: phil at March 6, 2006 8:03 AM
I'm glad my lit. teachers made me read Chaucer instead of Mailer.
Posted by: ex-expat at March 6, 2006 10:19 AM
I have no idea who he is.
Posted by: Archonix at March 6, 2006 11:03 AM
He mentions "Tower of Babel."
I'd ask him his thoughts on how Multi-Culturalism is supposed to work and not "consequently [have] to be destroyed"?
Posted by: Doug at March 6, 2006 12:26 PM
Mailer accusing someone else of self-infatuation!?!
Posted by: SmokeVanThorn at March 6, 2006 12:37 PM
"A couple years ago one of the men's magazines, I think it was Esquire, did an article on Mailer."
What would any of you neocon shrinking violets be doing reading a men's magazine??
For that matter, what would you be doing READING?
What a bunch of skull and bones pantywaists.
Posted by: hashfanatic at March 7, 2006 1:14 AM
Gosh, tears are flowing from my eyes! It feels like somebody is ripping my heart out!
Posted by: phil at March 7, 2006 2:56 AM
The photo of Mailer here reminds me of Gollum. "Where is my precious?"
Posted by: Pam at March 7, 2006 10:08 AM
Careful--Mailor is a real "tough guy". (snort)
Posted by: nikko at March 7, 2006 1:41 PM
Just linked this, in the very last word of the post "dealt", at:
http://jeremayakovka.typepad.com/jeremayakovka/2006/04/the_last_4th_of.html
best,
JMK
Posted by: Jeremayakovka at April 8, 2006 9:42 PM
