A Promised Land

America as a Developing Country

My Indian TV Interview About the Kamala Harris CNN Interview: She Wisely Played It Safe

There's a Method to the Vagueness.

As I’ve previously noted, I’m sometimes interviewed by a leading Indian broadcaster, WION, about U.S. current events and foreign policy. WION recently contacted me to comment on the August 29 Harris/Walz CNN interview. Here’s the video. (Apologies for the fact that I’m slightly out of focus, which actually might be better for my appearance, and for the sound being occasionally glitchy.)

I hope that my observations are worth considering, but in any event you might find it of interest to learn a bit about what educated Indian audiences are interested in regarding our presidential campaign.

Fly Me to the Moon

In a blast from the past, a hopeful film resonates as Kamala's campaign takes off.

 

For a fun, relaxing time the other day, my wife and I went to see Fly Me to the Moon, the lighthearted Scarlett Johansson/Channing Tatum flick about an attempt at faking the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing. Despite the enjoyable escapism, I couldn’t help comparing it with our troubled times.

A Time of Darkness, Division, Promise and Progress

I’ll start, though, by acknowledging that 1969 was far from untroubled. We were in the depths of the Vietnam war, wreaking havoc on that country while absorbing over 50,000 deaths of our own. The war and a host of other issues bitterly divided the United States. President Richard Nixon was hardly a unifying figure.

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Kamala’s Prospects: The Good, the Bad and the Maybe

Summing up how Harris can win, can lose and what she needs to do.

Good things Harris has going.

Humanity. It’s a cliche for a politician to play up their human qualities, especially in the context of a campaign ad, but this one offers an insight about Harris that’s personal, poignant and a powerfully clear contrast with her opponent:

Enthusiasm. I’d bet that many of us have never experienced a surprising, joyous, politically driven emotional leap like we did the moment we learned that Biden dropped out; I’ll never forget getting my wife’s “OhMyGosh!” text.

Change. In a year when a vast number of voters were sick of their two alternatives, which this Jon Stewart rant aptly and furiously framed as a choice between a “megalomaniac and a suffocating gerontocracy,” Harris is a breath of fresh air compared to the tired, toxic cloud that’s Trump.

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A Dark Day

The Trump assassination attempt and its possible aftermath are so horrific on so many levels. For what it’s worth, here are two excerpts from my interview with the Indian TV station WION (World Is One News) a few hours after the attack. As you might imagine, they capture just a slice of my views on the matter. The American woman who’s also contributing is WION’s U.S. correspondent – with whom, you might note, I disagree on a couple of points.

 

In one of the clips, I refer to a Washington Post article that ironically appeared earlier in the day, on Trump-supporting, violence-advocating Christian nationalists. In its own way, it’s just as frightening as the shooting.

The days just seem to be getting darker lately. But let’s not give up on our creating light down the road.

Seeing the Light and Springsteen

Pushing 75, His Concerts Still Deliver Solace, Hope and Dreams...and Inspiration for 2024

 

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He had me at “Light of Day.”

It’s one of my five favorite Bruce Springsteen songs. He opened his March 31 San Francisco concert with it. I was lucky enough to be there.

The high-octane tune is about a trucker driving hard after a week on the road, determined to get down to good times in Galveston by Saturday night. But it’s more generally about pushing ahead with hope after getting “a little lost along the way” and about turning the corner to find the light of day.

Similarly, Bruce’s entire performance was about far more than just putting on a show, as I learned from both him and a fellow audience member over the course of the evening. More on that in a minute.

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