"My dear Mr. President:"

[WilliamPitt]

"A nation may be moved by its statesmen and defended by its military but it is usually remembered for its artists. It does seem to me that you, sir, have discovered or rather rediscovered this lost truth."

- John Steinbeck, 1961

[NYC_SKP]

1. Very true.

It makes me wonder which artists speak for our nation, our generation, at the present.

[WilliamPitt]

4. Banksy

for openers.

[FatBuddy]

5. if that is the case

we are well and truly fucked.

[WilliamPitt]

6. Exactly.

And that's the point he seeks to make.

[FatBuddy]

7. supremacy of mediocrity disguised as profundity

stencils do not a statement make.

[msanthrope]

8. That about captures it. nt

[FatBuddy]

9. it's that gosh darn

"my tiny genius made a poopie, let's give him a trophy" generation again.

[Rex]

14. Harsh, does Banksy owe you lunch money or something?

Jelly much?

[WilliamPitt]

15. "Get off my lawn."

^^^ That shit ^^^

[FatBuddy]

19. how do you expect people to take you seriously

when you use words like "jelly" in a sentence that has nothing to do with toast or sandwiches?

wow, just wow.

[progressoid]

12. I thought Larry the Cable Guy's book "Git-R-Done"

was a sublime treatise on the complex interactions within American society. It is a splendid compliment to his on stage oratory. His magniloquence is unmatched.

[NYC_SKP]

17. That was my first thought, too, and I couldn't think of his name to save my life.

The guy with the provocative and often political, but always aesthetically pleasing graffiti work.

Thanks!

[Mr.Bill]

11. Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus, of course.

[BrotherIvan]

16. I would say film is the medium of our time

Since it combines all the arts, craft, as well as technology. Trouble is, that has been ruined by commerce as well in the US. There are a couple of film artists who get their visions through, but it's rough going. Take a look at foreign films though, especially the amazing vibrancy from Korea, and you can see it's not dead yet.

[NYC_SKP]

18. It has been ruined, there's so much bad film.

And bad television and music, too, all ruined in large part by the commercial influences.

Banksy and other street artists might be the best examples.

[nolabear]

2. Gosh. Thanks for that lovely letter. Steinbeck must have had a lot to think about Kennedy's America

[JNelson6563]

3. Ok, that's just cool.

Wow!

[avaistheone1]

10. That's quite a deeply felt and gracious tribute from Steinbeck.

k&r

[Scuba]

13. Great find! Thanks WilliamPitt!!