"The insolence of wealth will creep out." (Samuel Johnson)

…..Today in Florida we have a newly elected governor who spent $73 million dollars out of his own big pocket in order to buy an election!   That’s right—73 mil.  I hope he has enough left to buy himself a decent meal; or if not that, a toupee.  More money was spent in this election than any other that I can remember.  Many candidates had corporate donations to spend on media spots in order to get elected.  It appears that in American politics  in the 21^st Century one cannot get elected if not wealthy.  Consequently, I don’t believe we have a Democracy any longer in this nation.  Corporate greed is leading us more and more toward a plutocracy.  According to Webster, A Democracy is:

 a : government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b : a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections.

…..Now, anyone reading this must come to the conclusion that the “supreme power” is not vested in the people any longer—it’s invested in the wealthy politicians who will vote for any legislation that does not operate against their financial station and which does not affect the financial interests of the corporations and individuals who contribute to their election funds.  Consequently, once more, I believe that we now are governed by a Plutocracy.  If only the wealthy can afford to run for public office, are we not more a plutocracy than a democracy?  The masses of the American people go to the polls like sheep to vote for candidates they had no opportunity to choose.  They were chosen only by the vested interests in the political party to which they belong.  Oh, quiet!  I know that I don’t know what I’m talking about.  It’s all in my imagination.

"A woman is a dish for the gods." (Antony & Cleopatra)

…..I’ve often wondered who it is that does some work around here?  Who rises at almost dawn (8a.m.), has some breakfast, usually some oatmeal or cereal or cottage cheese and fruit or peanut butter and an English muffin?  Who makes the bed and who changes the linen when it’s needed?  Who is it that puts out the bath towels for whomever might wish to take a shower?  Who replaces the toilet tissue when it rolls all the way out?  Who takes clothing out of the hamper, puts it in the washer and then the dryer and then folds everything that pops out of it?  And who puts the folded stuff away?  Who cooks the meals here once or twice a week and then clears the table and puts the dishes in the dishwasher and then empties it and puts the clean plates and silverware on the proper shelves?  Who selects restaurants for dining three or four times a week and then pays for it with another’s credit card?  And who can answer these questions?  Who is it that plays cards on Monday nights and Tuesday afternoons, and who is it that goes  bowling every Thursday afternoon?  Who does this, eh?

…..And who gets her nails done every Friday and who gets her hair done every Saturday morning?  Who has been the President of the City of Hope charitable organization chapter in Huntington Lakes for the past four years, and whose chapter has raised thousands of dollars to donate to this medical research hospital in California?  Who is it that vows never to do this again, but who, nevertheless, enjoys the leadership role she plays?  Who sees to it that birthday, anniversary, and holiday cards are sent out every month when needed?  Who does all the food shopping at Publix every once in a blue Florida moon?  Who maintains at least 50 pairs of shoes in her closet?  And who can pass Marmi’s in the mall without trying on at least one more pair?  Who is it that’s computer literate and who spends several hours every week attempting to answer all the emails she receives and who is it that is addicted to a certain game on her laptop?  Who is it that carries band-aids in her purse to keep a certain party from bleeding to death.  Who lunches with every friend who loves her and holds her in high esteem?  Who is it that holds a certain party by the hand while he attempts not to fall while using a cane?  Who is it that reads one book on her kindle while reading another in large print from the library?  And who is a grandmother supreme?

…..Now if I can only find out who it is that does all this and still remains compos mentis I’d be willing to pay her a few bucks.

Bardolatry II

.....Whenever I think of Shakespeare sitting down to write a play with a goose feathered quill pen, I tend to say to myself, "This cannot happen. This cannot be done. It isn't possible."  In P.S. 39 in the Bronx when I was 10 or 11 in the sixth grade I had an inkwell in my desk and a pen with a metal disk which I had to dip into the ink and write with it--often having to use a "blotter" to soak up a bubble of ink that dripped onto the paper.  It took forever to write anything.  Shakespeare did not have the benefit of Papermate ballpoint pens or a word processor on his computer.  Now, I wonder, did he write a play all the way through without a single error or correction that needed to be made?  Did he not have whiteout? Did he not have to write and rewrite as he went along?  And did he not have to write a whole play over again after making corrections in the margins?  (I did read somewhere that Tolstoy's wife had to copy his "War and Peace" thirteen times to get it right.)

.....  Now, Shakespeare, besides writing 36 plays and 154 sonnets, was also an actor and had to take time to learn his lines.  He was a member of the Lord Chamberlain's Company--a group of actors who contributed funds for the building of the Globe Theatre and they held shares in it.  And Shakespeare, though not the accomplished actor as was Richard Burbage, still performed in many plays.   Nevertheless, after his acting and his writing, he still managed the time to share a pint of ale in a Bidford inn with his friends and to exercise his love life.

.....In November 1582, at the age of 18, he married Anne Hathaway, eight years his senior after she informed him that she was pregnant with their first child, Susanna.  There is evidence that Anne's family pressured young William to make her an honest woman.  It was the custom in Elizabethan times to announce the "banns" three times during church services over a period of three weeks as a method of giving an objector to the marriage enough time to come forward; but the banns were announced only once--very unusual--and of course, very hasty.  Twins, Hamnet (who died at the age of eleven), and Judith were born in 1585.  Shakespeare never made it to Hamnet's funeral because he was off to the countryside with a traveling troupe and there was no telling where he was at the time, and no way to get a message to him.  By 1592 Shakespeare had gone to London, already known as an actor and a playwright.  Those who try to give credit for the plays to some other "University educated" guy from Oxford or Cambridge are smoking the wrong weed.  The evidence that Will of Stratford was Will of the plays is overwhelming.  Now, I've been teaching the plays for many years and when someone complains to me that they are too hard to understand, I say to them that only the things that are above you can lift you up.  If I were to be stranded on a desert Island, I would like to bring with me my toothbrush, a roll of toilet paper, a six pack of diet Coke, several pairs of clean underwear, and a copy of Shakespeare's plays.