Recent Blog Posts

Reader comment on:
DeLillo Confronts September 11

Submitted by middle, May 4, 2007 08:41

In response to trey. I'm unaware why disagreement with the country you live in necessarily means that one must move out. People haven't forgotten that American has great wealth or many liberties that other countries perhaps do not offer, but this doesnt mean that criticism ought to be curtailed. I tend to feel there is some kind of mantra in the States that insists on an all or nothing. I think what Mr. Roloff wrote is more than legitimate. This, however, doesn't make America a horrible place where it is impossible enjoy the benefits of its economy, or that there aren't millions of good, wonderful people here. It means that certain previous decisions made by our representatives are sometimes barbaric and poorly conceived, and that we might have cornered ourselves by our past decisions. Of course, it is impossible to draw lines when considering such complicated history, especially within the confines of a comment box, but that's basically what I'm talking about here. Argument and dialogue ought to continue, and though each argument and each history will provide only partial commentary on events that we will never be able to apprehend, we must continue to mark our maps and consider what we must do to go forward. I believe Americans and those abroad agree: we have yet to strike an agreeable balance between thought and action.


Note: Comments are screened, and in some cases edited, before posting. We reserve the right to reject anything we find objectionable.

Other reader comments on this article

Comment By Date

I think the idea that writers like Delillo perform a public service by interpreting events like 9/11 is risable. The... [MORE]

stuart munro 

May 13, 2007 02:12

"Falling Man" extends the brilliant career of America's foremost novelist. He is the only American white male to have any... [MORE]

kl 

May 28, 2007 17:56

Jonathan Safran Foer (Everything is Illuminated) has also written a post 9/11 book that is very good. I will get... [MORE]

Leslie 

May 12, 2007 22:20

Why do none of the major paper critics ever mention Paul West 's brilliant "The Immensity of the Here and... [MORE]

Dennis 

May 4, 2007 21:02

Dennis's right-on comments about Paul West's The Immensity of the Here and Now, a novel of 9.11raise two points: 1)... [MORE]

Ronald Christ 

May 5, 2007 13:33

I moved my family from New Zealand to the US less that 3 weeks before September 11, 2001. I am... [MORE]

Bruce Sheridan 

May 4, 2007 13:51

Delillo has always seemed like someone staring very hard at something I can't see. [MORE]

Mick Sherman 

May 4, 2007 12:47

DeLillo's two best passages (ok, very subjectively, since I've only read four of his books) are 1. the baseball scene... [MORE]

Bill 

May 4, 2007 10:16

The South suffered badly in the Civil War, and its fiction reflects that. I think you will begin to see... [MORE]

BH 

May 4, 2007 12:42

With all due respect to Adam Kirsch, he needs to leave the library and inhale some fresh air. Spetember 11... [MORE]

Michael Anderson 

May 4, 2007 09:36

I may be slow but I don't exactly get this piece. Kirsch is ordinarily a very fine writer. But the... [MORE]

Shalom Freedman 

May 4, 2007 08:47

In response to trey. I'm unaware why disagreement with the country you live in necessarily means that one must move...

middle 

May 4, 2007 08:41

Carl Schurz put this more eloquently than I ever could over a century ago. The quote has been misused since... [MORE]

Ef 

May 4, 2007 11:22

Have we heard, read, and seen in film (The Pawnbroker) scenarios of survivor culture shock and survivor guilt? -- at... [MORE]

Frank Joseph Routman 

May 3, 2007 10:07

was attacked for once. the question that was never dealt with was "why do they hate us"... and the answer... [MORE]

michael roloff 

May 2, 2007 10:02

america is certainly not innocent, of this we can agree. but it is the still the best country to live... [MORE]

trey 

May 2, 2007 23:58

America is certainly the best country to live in? Only an American could say that without feeling any need to... [MORE]

sharon 

May 5, 2007 17:26

Comment on DeLillo Confronts September 11

    Before submitting your comment, please provide a valid email address to complete the verification process.