That Lennon piece was by far the most moving and thought-provoking written response to his murder that I saw at the time, or that I've read since; some large chunks of it lodged in my memory and haven't shown any sign of moving out in the last forty-two years. Thanks, Greil, for writing it, and for re-publishing it here.
And within a year Greil was regularly reviewing books for California Magazine (formerly New West) doing great work (and finally writing the Philip Roth takedown) that as far as I know hasn't been published on this site or the last one.
"If Klansmen and Nazis had the right to kill Communists in Greensboro, and a jury said they did, then on a certain moral level you and I and Mark Chapman have the right to kill whoever it is that troubles our lives."
That Lennon piece was by far the most moving and thought-provoking written response to his murder that I saw at the time, or that I've read since; some large chunks of it lodged in my memory and haven't shown any sign of moving out in the last forty-two years. Thanks, Greil, for writing it, and for re-publishing it here.
And within a year Greil was regularly reviewing books for California Magazine (formerly New West) doing great work (and finally writing the Philip Roth takedown) that as far as I know hasn't been published on this site or the last one.
"If Klansmen and Nazis had the right to kill Communists in Greensboro, and a jury said they did, then on a certain moral level you and I and Mark Chapman have the right to kill whoever it is that troubles our lives."
Great line. Still resonates, unfortunately.