Music + Art = Meat + Potato

The New York Times published an article yesterday about the discovery of a flute dating 35,000 to 40,000 years ago. Found in the Hohle Fels Cave in southwestern Germany, this instrument was crafted by a human living 5,000 to 10,000 years before the last Neanderthal died. It was this group of music-loving Homo sapiens to which the artisan belonged, who filled the Neanderthal niche.

The 5-hole flute, made of a 8 1/2" griffon vulture bone, is expected to have produced a variety of pitches within a fairly large range, given that a wooden reproduction of a previously-found 24,000 year old ivory 3-hole flute, discovered in approximately the same area, came close to the sounds of a modern flute. A sculpture, also from the Stone Age, was unearthed a mere few feet away from the 5-hole bone flute.

Nicholas J. Conrad of the University of Tubingen, along with other archaeologists, speculate that perhaps music helped keep the humans, who survived the Neanderthals, together in community during the Stone Age and that congregating in those bigger groups may have contributed to their longevity . Mr. Wilford quotes the archaeologists. [Music] "'could have contributed to the maintenance of larger social networks, and thereby perhaps have helped facilitate the demographic and territorial expansion of modern humans.'"

Members of the Wachusett Regional School Committee, as well as teachers who voted to accept a sacrifice, deserve to be applauded in their decision to maintain art and music within the district. As can be inferred from John Wilford's NY Times article, the arts are staples, not "frills." Let us all therefore, continue to keep the arts vibrant, alive and taught in the schools, lest we get replaced by a bunch of neanderthals.


Read about the discovery of the 35,000 year old flute and a so-called "Venus" sculpture in the caves of Germany, as well as WRSD's meeting Tuesday evening upholding music and art.

New York Times, Wednesday, June 24, 2009, "Flutes Offer Clues to Stone-Age Music" by John Noble Wilford, Science Section
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/25/science/25flute.html?_r=1&em

Telegram & Gazette, Thursday, June 25, 2009, "School committee OKs $73M Wachusett budget" p. B8, Local Meeting Roundup Section
http://www.telegram.com/article/20090625/NEWS/906250625/1101/LOCAL

New York Times, May 13, 2009, "Full-Figured Statuette, 35,000 Years Old, Provides New Clues To How Art Evolved," by John Noble Wilford, Science Section
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/14/science/14venus.html

Boston Globe June 25, 2009, "Hunters, gatherers, musicians" by Carolyn Y. Johnson, p.A1
http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2009/06/25/archaeologists_unearth_oldest_musical_instruments_ever_found/

Perhaps a Gray Figure?

I've been hearing discussion lately about whether President Obama is doing or saying enough in regards to Iran. Conservative-leaning David Brooks thinks so. As he stated in yesterday's Telegram and Gazette, "At moments like these, policy-makers and advisers in the United States government almost always retreat to passivity and caution. Part of this is pure prudence. When you don't know what's happening, it's sensible to do as little as possible because anything you do might cause more harm than good." (p.A5) I agree with Mr. Brooks in his assessment that a "wait and see" stance is the correct approach. Last thing the U.S. should do is interfere and make matters worse for those facing violent retribution on the streets of Tehran and other Iranian cities.

David Brooks writes that the United States and its allies need to engage Iran on many fronts, while at the same time promoting the downfall of the regime, not through military means but by giving positive support to the opposition. Two examples of this type of aid are the media and sanctions. In the author's words, "This approach is like Ronald Reagan's policy toward the Soviet Union, and it is no simple thing. It doesn't mean you don't talk to the regime: Reagan talked to the Soviets. But it does mean you pursue many roads at once."

"Fragile at the Core" is an article well worth reading, however some cautionary notes about encouraging the downfall of Ahmadinejad should be considered. As Americans we tend to place people into good or bad boxes, but Moussavi, rather than being a superhero, may be something in between. After all, what do we truly know about him? Would a Moussavi-led government be much different from the present one, given the clerics' rule extends over all? Should the U.S. be engaged in nation building? Mousavi wants to continue developing nuclear power. What guarantees do we have he will stop with energy and not go after nuclear weapons?

Mr. Brooks profoundly concludes his article by saying, "...election campaigns stoke the mind and fraudulent elections outrage the soul."

Please note there was no access to Mr. Brooks article through the Telegram & Gazette. The same article had been printed four days earlier in the New York Times.
New York Times, June 18, 2009, "Fragile at the Core" by David Brooks
www.nytimes.com/2009/06/19/opinion/19brooks.html

Telegram & Gazette, June 22, 2009, "Change stirring in the streets of Tehran" by David Brooks, p.A5

Irony In The Corner Office

Yesterday's Boston Globe Magazine featured an article by freelance writer Tom Keane who wrote about the failures of the Patrick administration. At the top of p.6 is a picture of Governor Patrick standing in front of a podium with the words "Together We Can" printed in white over a blue background. That campaign sign is roughly torn in two unequal parts. In the run-up to the election, Mr. Patrick suggested that a Democrat could work better and accomplish more with the Democratic majority than could a Republican. In the rest of the world, that idea certainly fits with common sense, but looking at it through the lens of the State House, the opposite is true. Mr. Keane attributes gubernatorial missteps and miscalculations as contributing reasons for the lack of accomplishment, but in addition to that states that Massachusetts needs a Republican governor to keep the Dems in check. "An insider to the party cannot simultaneously be an outsider. The pressure for jobs, political rewards, and horse-trading are too powerful." He goes on to say the GOP must have a viable candidate and names three. The first is Charlie Baker, CEO of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care. As an aside, Mr. Baker recently visited the Wachusett Community at a turn-out fundraiser in Holden for State Representative Lew Evangelidis. Second is Christy Mihos, then Scott Brown, State Senator from Wrentham.

At the close of the article, the author throws out the underwhelming figure of 11.6% of Massachusetts voters being registered Republicans. So how does he think the GOP is apt to get their candidate elected? Highlighted and bolded on p.6, "The key to GOP success in 2010 is independence, not ideology." Focus on fiscal conservativism as opposed to the far right social ideology being presented by some national figures. Mr. Keane states that the three aforementioned potential and current candidates do exactly that.

The subtitle sums up the gist of this article. "Is a GOP governor needed to balance the Democratic Legislature? One Democrat keeps bolstering the case."


Boston Globe Magazine, June 21, 2009, "Together No More" by Tom Keane, p.6
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/2008/articles/2009/06/21/is_a_gop_governor_needed_to_balance_the_democratic_legislature/