Strange Juxtapositions

WC’s immediate prior post, of course, was a Leonard Cohen song. Andrew Sullivan posted this today:

I was at the gym when the news [of Palin's announcement] broke, hence the late post. And, of course, the news was juxtaposed by the untimely death of Steve Jobs. Leonard Cohen once said of America that it was “the cradle of the best and the worst”. Today, we lost one of the very best in American history, a reticent genius and entrepreneur, an inspiration for countless of us who has changed the very fabric of our lives. And we also saw the end of the road for one of the very worst: a nasty, callow, delusional, vicious know-nothing, brewed in resentment, and whose accomplishments could fit on a postage stamp.

It’s a fitting comparison: achievement versus resentment, creativity versus narcissism, hope versus fear. I know which one will get the bigger headlines tomorrow. And there is some comfort in knowing it will pain her.

WC will miss Steve Jobs. Jobs won’t be creating any more insanely great products, although WC is confident Apple will. WC won’t miss The Quitter, although the three year national nightmare may be over. But WC is less confident than Sullivan that Alaska’s Shame will quietly go away. But we can hope.

R.I.P. Steve Jobs. Thanks for all the useful tools.

k. d. lang’s Cover of “Hallelujah”

WC praised lang’s live performance of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” at her Fairbanks concert September 15. By request, here’s a video clip of her performance at the 2005 Junos (the Canadian Grammys). You’ll have to imagine her rock and roll band, Siss Boom Bang, instead of the more staid chamber orchestra featured here. Turn the volume up..

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It’s a bit alarming to think WC might have lived life without hearing and seeing lang perform that song.