Harold Bloom Talks About Bush and Jesus

[soverysneaky]

Bloom is immeasurably well read and knowledgeable regarding literature, but in this interview he demonstrates his ignorance about US law. His comment about the Florida re-count in the 2000 election is false. The US Supreme Court said Florida had to follow its own election laws. Those laws were Constitutional and in place before the vote started. They were not allowed to ignore their own Constitutional laws in order to tilt the election to Gore. Sorry Mr Bloom.

[delinquentmap]

intro was too long

[bickleschmickle]

this was a great show.

[greatsea]

This is such a crock of meta-criticism. Sweeping, broad, imprecise, conclusions from selective observations. "Harold Bloom the historian" can actually teach us a lot about the sort of intellectual discipline literary criticism is. It is a dashed lot of fanciful overgeneralizing.

[IntuitSpirit]

"Where shall wisdom be found?"

Let us begin with The Good Professor!

[BrianStearns]

Could you post the rest of the interview?

[SHMUJEW]

what is radical judaism?

[jeangophile]

Nothing so enlightening here. Man created Jesus in his own image and still does.

[domsooch]

woops, 3 billion.

[domsooch]

If you want to talk about harmful religious influence, what about the influence of Zionism on our middle eastern policy.

Where is that commentary? Where are those intellectuals fretting over excessive religious influence that leads to our unwavering support for israel.

All this fretting over Christian influence over foreign policy, You'd think we were sending 30 Billion in military aid to the Vatican each year.

[sllabnkcoc]

there is supposed to be a seperation of church and state.bush,and all political offices,needs to stop talking about jesus,GOD;religion in general.the president should not bully our country & world with his religious beliefs.there is more to america than christianity. though i myself am catholic,i do not believe in government persuasion to control society.(ever notice the only church services televised are christian.)wake up america,our freedom is fleeting.

[BlindEyeJones]

I didn't know that Bloom was such a Chardonnay socialist, so concerned with "social injustice." His Bush bashing says more about his politics than any insight into America's conception of God. How is the south is more intently Christian when it was the north who freed the slaves? How is Bush smart enough to steal an election but at the same time is accused of being a moron? Come on Bloom, admit you're political hack and get back to literature - at least there you may have some talent.

[GolumTR]

What's a Chardonnay socialist?

[BlindEyeJones]

It's like a limousine liberal.

[shademurtagh]

It wasn't he who stole the election for him it was his brother.

Bush is the worst president ever.

[polymath7]

Bush may well be the most incompetent democratically elected head of state in world history.

If he is not, I challenge anyone to name his rival.

[Ihatetoprocrastinate]

Franklin Pierce

Warren G. Harding

Robert Mugabe

Edward the VIIIth of England

Neville Chaimberlaine

Jaques Chirac

[chordateify]

Anyone who actually was elected.

[HolyFerdinand]

@polymath7 except he wasn't elected.

[polymath7]

@HolyFerdinand  Touche.

[emperoreitan]

@polymath7 hmm well a modern one, Hitler, oor if u want just dumb Chamberland. eat a dick.

[BlindEyeJones]

I didn't know that Bloom was such a Chardonnay socialist, so concerned with "social injustice." His Bush bashing says more about his politics than any insight into America's conception of God. How is the south is more intently Christian when it was the north who freed the slaves? How is Bush smart enough to steal an election but at the same time is accused of being a moron? Come on Bloom, admit you're political hack and get back to literature - at least there you may have some talent.

[shademurtagh]

The south is more intently Christian because they were the slavers. They hated blacks and the Northerners weren't as Christian and as freakish. THATS why slavery was freed.

Because Christianity will always breed racism when not in moderation. Now it's converted to hate to Muslims.

[BlindEyeJones]

Christians hate Muslims? Only when they are blowing up their own kids, beheading, car bombing innocent people, kidnaping, etc. I think Harold Bloom would disagree with me for literary reasons... it's all fiction for him anyway.

[shademurtagh]

You should be hating those who are perferting the religion not actually Islam or Muslims themselves.

You people are completely arrogant. Why wasn't the south the guys who freed slaves? IT WAS BECAUSE they were so christian.

[coorsbabesrule]

shut ur fuckin mouth u usueless retard!all religions when not moderated, will breed racism and hatred, look at radical islam, or radical judaism, or radical hinduism. God, i love how u want their to be tolerance, but u don't show that tolerance to christianity, wat's the matter, did u get molested by a priest?!

[paganiniGOGO]

"How is Bush smart enough to steal an election but at the same time is accused of being a moron?"

Do you realize how stupid that question is?

[BlindEyeJones]

The point is that they accused him of extremes: either a moron or a genius. The left saw Bush as totally evil whereas Obama is the savior, messiah -- again total extremes. And the extreme pitch of the emotion on the left effects their thinking, they are not rational people.

[paganiniGOGO]

He's a puppet - maybe he's supposed seem stupid, while his administration is full of evil geniuses.

[BlindEyeJones]

And Obama is a puppet too with that socialist puppeteer Soro in the wings.

[paganiniGOGO]

Obama is a puppet too, for corporations, not for socialists!

You're an idiot.

[BlindEyeJones]

And you're a bigger idiot for voting for him.

[HighFaneTribune]

BlindEye wins.

[Toughnuffet]

BlindEyeJones, I think you speak reason brother.

[Aetrion]

@paganiniGOGO Obama is most amazing in his ability to annoy everyone...

[ceberusbotcatcher]

@paganiniGOGO We just took out Osama.

And what?

[chordateify]

That's not how I saw Obama. But like most thinking people I saw Bush as evil.

[polymath7]

@chordateify

Actually I think Bush is more oblivious than evil.

Cheney, without a doubt, is a psychopath.

[hymnofashes]

@polymath7 Agree.

[alexander3131]

Maybe Harold Bloom is attempting to create a Shakespearan world where Bloom and cohorts, Greenblatt et al. keep track of all multiple identities. As criticism the criticism of Bloom delivers zip, of course.

[JDubs45]

Harold Bloom comes off really bad in this interview. I always respected him. He's very petty here and I don't understand why.

[greatsea]

Yes. But this is the same chimerical dramatization he has often engaged in in his literary criticism. It lacks the grounded in depth perspicuity of true historians of religion like Harry S. Stout or William McLaughlin. If I want American religious history I'm definitely not going to get it from Harold Bloom.

[hilltopstreets]

thank you for uploading this!