Open Thread June 18, 2023

Last week’s opera was the last one from the Metropolitan Opera until December. But WFMT will carry on through the summer with recordings of live performances from all over the world. Yesterday, the opera was “Fidelio,” the only opera ever composed by Beethoven, from the Vienna State Opera. The announcer today said it was based on a true story from the French Revolution; that was the first I’d heard of it, so I won’t swear to it. But it’s about the wife of a man who was politically fighting a fascistic governor, who has kidnapped him and thrown him into the (unfinished) basement of his private prison. It’s been two years, and everyone thinks him dead except his wife, who dresses as a man to get a job at the prison. She doesn’t find him until the evil governor’s boss send him a message that he’s coming to inspect the prison. The governor panics and orders the jailer to dig a grave in the basement, the wife offers to help, and there he is. The line that’s often quoted occurs when the governor is about to kill him and the wife comes between them and says “First kill his wife.” (She is armed and the governor falls apart and leaves, as does the jailer, from kinder motives.) But the line that gets me every time is when they are left alone and he, still in shock, says “Leonora! What have you done for me!” to which she replies, “Nothing, my Florestan. It was nothing.” Then they go up and out, and the governor’s boss and the chorus sing in praise of marriage. And with all that in my head, I’m off to see Virgil. As always, I’ll post a comment when I get back

Cartoon –

Short Takes –

Robert Reich – The Five Elements of Fascism
Quote – How do we describe what Trump wants for America? “Authoritarianism” isn’t adequate. It is “fascism.” Fascism stands for a coherent set of ideas different from — and more dangerous than — authoritarianism. To fight those ideas, it’s necessary to be aware of what they are and how they fit together. Borrowing from cultural theorist Umberto Eco, historians Emilio Gentile and Ian Kershaw, political scientist Roger Griffin, and former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, I offer five elements that distinguish fascism from authoritarianism.
Click through for all five. Many lists have more than five – but all of the lists nail Trump** and his MAGAts as pure fascists.

HuffPost – Biden Is Having A Very Productive Presidency, And This Win On Drug Prices Shows Why
Quote – If you want to understand why the Biden administration gets so little credit for its accomplishments ― and why, perhaps, it deserves to get a little more ― pay attention to a little-noticed policy announcement from last Friday. The announcement was a list of 43 prescription drugs that are covered by Medicare and whose prices have risen faster than the rate of inflation. The list included relatively well-known drugs like Humira, which treats a variety of inflammatory conditions, plus some more obscure medications like Leukine, which helps cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy stave off infection.
Click through for details. And pass it on

Food For Thought