The Wire

The wifing unit and I just finished watching Season 2 of The Wire. It is great television, a grand tragedy of amazing scope. I wouldn't say it's Shakespearean in quality, but I would say it's Shakespearean in scope and depth. You may like it if you like his tragedies and don't mind any character you like, no matter how major, being eligible for the chopping block. However, I must warn you that, on occasion, characters will have sexual intercourse outside of marriage, characters may engage in graphic acts of violence, some of them will do drugs, and some will even be impolite to each other.

Other reviews: I just read God and Man by Metropolitan Anthony (Bloom). It was quite good, as you might expect from the author. I picked it up on sale quite some time ago and never got around to reading it until now. The first chapter is a transcript of a televised dialogue he had with an atheist - it was okay. The next chapter is an essay on faith and doubt which is quite good, especially since it seems he has a good understanding of the philosophy of science rather than a bad. As an aside, if any of you ever try to mention Godel in a discussion about religion and science, I will beat you to death with a Turing machine because you are quite likely to say something foolish (though I ran into an essay by some guy recently who discussed it correctly, which made me happy). The rest is good, but not spectacular. Recommend, especially chapter 2.

More: I'm reading Hamlet right now, which I have not done in a while but which I used to do about once every year. It is, to my mind, the greatest Shakespeare play by far. At the very least, the best to read. There are some great plays which are tedious to read but fun to watch - the history plays, for instance.

Other: I've been on a Don Giovanni kick, but I haven't been able to watch it while on the kick. So I've been listening to the Vienna Philharmonic recording. Notte e giorno faticar...