Anybody know where Chalkie is?

[Lance]

He has not been active on CMG since May 15th, 2017. I hope all is okay with him.

[jbuck919]

Dearest Lance, only you and I are privy to some aspects of Chalkie that we cannot share in the public forum. If you don't know and I don't know, then no one knows.

[lennygoran]

Dearest Lance, only you and I are privy to some aspects of Chalkie that we cannot share in the public forum. If you don't know and I don't know, then no one knows.

I went to FB and see he's posting there and quite wonderful comments they are-do hope we see him here soon--miss him alot! Regards, Len

[jserraglio]

Chalkperson alerted me to the importance of the Mike Flynn affair and to Trump's impending war on the intelligence community (CIA, FBI, DOJ, NSA, DNI). His disenchantment with CMG's silence in the aftermath of the election came thru loud and clear in a post from early 2017.

Tue Feb 07, 2017 6:37 pm: I'd post more, but the members have said zilch about the new administration, its assault on America, and the Autocracy they are forming by turning the US into a Dicktatorship (sic)
Us who resist are not using #thatman's name, but #presidentbannon is dragging this country to its knees, and no CMG member seems to care.

[lennygoran]

I'd post more, but the members have said zilch about the new administration, its assault on America, and the Autocracy they are forming by turning the US into a Dicktatorship (sic)
Us who resist are not using #thatman's name, but #presidentbannon is dragging this country to its knees, and no CMG member seems to care.

[/quote]

But we've been saying alot on this-does he know that? Regards, Len

[jbuck919]

There is nothing about this site that Chalkie does not know. I understand his frustration at the absence of ain't-it-awful discourse on the Pub. As I posted myself some time ago, the reason I don't respond to jserraglio's frequent and cogent posts there is that everyone here agrees with them since the unlamented days when we lost our right-wing cohort. By all means, j and others, continue to post these things, but to me nothing will be accomplished by nodding our heads in sad agreement. Incidentally, very recently I responded to a Facebook post by Chalkie (where his following is huge in proportion to his international fame) when he expressed shock that a twelve-year-old boy was one of the vocal white supremacist rioters. He seemed not to know that in the US this level of racism and hate is a family disease.

[jserraglio]

Though I expressed strong opinions about electing Hillary Clinton, I otherwise lived pretty much in a political limbo between presidential election cycles and had never been inclined to post anything like a series of updates about current national politics before I read Chalkperson's post of 7 February challenging CMG's deafening silence and later posts where he predicted what he thought was about to happen between the president and our national security apparatus. That subject was not on everybody's radar in late January or early February: most of our national media back then were waxing enthusiastic about how a new broom might sweep the land clean.

So Chalkperson's post kinda shook me up because I respected his laudatory and his critical opinions on many subjects: classical music in general, the Ramones, Patricia Barber, David Bowie, Simon Rattle, Bob Dylan, etc. Turns out, his predictions about Trump and national security not only turned out to be right but the bitter tone of that February post convinced me that my silence was tantamount to looking the other way and giving tacit consent.

[jbuck919]

Though I expressed strong feelings about electing Hillary Clinton, I otherwise lived pretty much in political hibernation between presidential election cycles and had never been inclined to post anything like a series of updates about current national politics before I read Chalkperson's post of 7 February challenging CMG's deafening silence and predicting what he thought was about to happen between the president and our national security apparatus. That subject was not on everybody's radar in late January or early February: most of our national media were waxing enthusiastic about how a new broom might sweep the land clean.

Chalkperson's post kinda shook me up because I respected his laudatory and his critical opinions on many subjects: classical music in general, the Ramones, Patricia Barber, David Bowie, Simon Rattle, Bob Dylan, etc. Turns out, his predictions about Trump and national security not only turned out to be right but the bitter tone of that February post convinced me that my silence was tantamount to looking the other way and giving tacit consent.

My dear friend, it was extremely obvious to me and, I assume, virtually all of our membership that the election of Trump would be the disaster of our mature time. Don't think for a minute that I did not wake up to the results of the election wishing I was 102 instead of 62 so that I would not have to live through this. You should not read too much into our failure to post obvious thoughts about impending Armageddon. What is to be accomplished by belaboring the unavoidable outcome of a Greek tragedy (a question I already asked when Ronald Reagan was elected)? Here at least we are in good company.

[jserraglio]

What others choose to say or not say is their prerogative and NOMB.

[lennygoran]

my silence was tantamount to looking the other way and giving tacit consent.

By breaking your silence you've helped me stay informed and I thank you-just because we agree quite a bit doesn't mean we don't have to talk about it and it sure helps to discuss these matters at this terrible time in our country-I feel it's essential right now when each day brings new serious developments. Regards, Len

[John F]

My silence is the opposite of tacit consent. After last fall's stolen election, this isn't my country any more, whatever I might say won't make a nickel's worth of difference, so I'm boycotting the news - especially out of Washington - and focusing on music. Which after all is what this forum is supposed to be about.

My senators and congressman, with my encouragement through IssueVoter, are doing all that can be done to keep the country on the rails. There's nothing I can do until November 2018, when I will vote to reelect them, and 2020, when we have a chance to undo the unfair result of the last presidential election. Maintaining a state of perpetual outrage for 15 or 29 months is a waste of emotional and intellectual energy, as I see it - obviously some here see it differently, and I have no argument with them. But I'll thank you not to impute to my silence motives that I don't have and that are rather insulting.

[jserraglio]

The topic of this thread is Lance's inquiry about Chalkperson's absence from CMG, not classical music per se. So we are very much on topic.

I am suggesting that Chalkperson's absence may have something to do with what he stated about Washington politics on Feb 7, as quoted above. But I could be very wrong about that. Maybe somebody will ask him. In any event, Chalkperson's subsequent posts about how our national security apparatus had Trump within its sights from the get-go might have been old hat to some here, but they were totally new to me.

The eye-opening info Chalkperson provided involved a whole lot more than feeding any condescending, concocted notion of a "state of perpetual outrage" imputed to those who choose to speak out.

Chalkperson heard what he thought to be an uncaring silence. I disagree with him about that, though I respect his opinions otherwise.

[maestrob]

I'm basically with JohnF on this. I am in no position physically to attend protests (Because of a bad back, I cannot stand/walk for more than 1/2 hour, and my sleep disorder leaves me dysfunctional during the business day except for several hours in the afternoon.). The truth is that I do not recognize what my country has become under this president, yet I am powerless to do anything about it except at the ballot box.

Anti-Google demonstrations are planned for this Saturday next door to my residence. I plan on hunkering down all day inside as I cannot risk participating and getting arrested. Very sad, but there it is.

[barney]

I've never spent much time in the corner pub, but I go there more often since the election of that vile imbecile because I appreciate the articles posted there. For example, I hadn't realised till this minute, thanks to jserraglio, about the moving of the FBI investigator. I spend at least two hours a day following news websites (NY Times, Washington Post, Australian papers), and still miss a lot. So I say thanks to all who put up interesting and important articles, even if it changes little.