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Gore Vidal tells Bill Maher, I've seen it all. Maybe we should listen
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Gore Vidal appeared on Real Time With Bill Maher last night. It's was obvious to this viewer that Mr. Maher respects Mr. Vidal. Actually, it's hard not to. Gore reminisced about 1945 and being in WWII and thinking, "This (war) can never happen again." Sadly, he was wrong and I think he's really perplexed about Iraq, the Gulf War, Afghanistan, Korea, and Vietnam and finds it unbelievable that he's lived through all of them.
On religion, Gore Vidal told Bill Maher, "it's all we really have left, what else do we have?" Fond of calling America, "an Empire," he just can't believe that throughout his lifetime war, "came, and came, and came." Mr. Vidal pointed out that George Bush had no real idea why we were in Iraq and Dick Cheney kept the mindset that it was, "none of our business." That, my friends, is right on the mark as far as I'm concerned.
Mr. Vidal is quite the presence and at 84 comes across as a humorist. He claims to be a conservative because he can still "read the New York Times without moving my lips." A supporter of President Obama, he feels, "sorry for him." What I think he was leading to was that to wash away the Republican Party damage that he says is not really a party but a mindset, the Obama administration needs to rely on the rules our founding fathers set. In 50 years this hasn't happened so he's not real optimistic.
On Bernie Madoff, Gore said, "I like him." To clarify, much as comedians claim to pick on all classes and races, Gore likes Madoff because he was, "relentless in picking on everyone." I guess in Gore's eyes, that is a likable characteristic. If you watched the show, you saw the wisdom of an author and historian who has seen and been through a lot in his life and isn't afraid to give his opinion. He says our Bill of Rights has been taken away and we've lost the Constitution. Indeed Mr. Vidal!
When Bill Maher asked him what he thinks about Sarah Palin, Gore was true to form and replied, "I don't think she thinks at all." Gore Vidal is known for defining American politicians in his books, especially when it comes to Presidents. He liked some and has total disregard for others. On the Kennedy's, he felt they may have had wit, but not much more; and came with no leadership. That's because they were all too busy womanizing people and father Joe should have been in jail.
Coming away from the show, my admiration for Gore Vidal only grew deeper. It's hard to not like a man who has been through a lot, has seen it all, and realizes the insight he has is his but wishes others would follow. As I've said before, I do believe with life experience comes knowledge and this is especially true about Gore Vidal. A charming fellow, he still says his favorite quote is, "I never give up a chance to have sex or appear on television." We need political analysts and youthful politicians to pay more attention to men and women like Gore Vidal. They may be old folks, but their wisdom doesn't seem forced. It's a calm sort of wisdom that sends a deep message. A message that if we don't get up and start to pay attention, our "Empire" may fail; and it may fail miserably.
I think the men and women of Mr. Gore's age and life experiences have fond memories of times gone by but have a sort of inner peace that they won't have to solve the problem. Sure they can offer advice, but to them, their advice is discounted and to put it frankly, they won't be on this earth much longer. For our leaders to dismiss them it is a loss. They say life is made of mistakes and learning from those mistakes. We need to wake up people before we lose our wise old folk who have had the life experiences we all lack. We need to listen and we need to do it fast.
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