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Paul Auster takes on serious taboos his new genre-defying novel Invisible.
Falling Out of Love With Cars
By Virginia Prescott on Monday, June 1, 2009.
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Most of today's Word of Mouth was pre-empted by NPR's airing of President Obama’s remarks on the bankruptcy of General Motors, along with GM President Fritz Henderson.
After months in downward slide, GM’s bankruptcy comes as no shock. The company was struggling well before the current recession struck. Author and political satirist P.J. O'Rourke says that if we want to understand what doomed the American automobile, we should give up on economics and turn to melodrama.
In the 1950’s, cars like GM's Chevrolet were symbols of freedom and adventure. Now, P.J. believes, the romance has turned to tragedy. Americans have fallen out of love with our cars. He's just released a collection of essays, Driving Like Crazy, about our fixation with lead sleds and muscle cars - a fixation on the wane in the age of the Prius. P.J. O'Rourke joins Word of Mouth on the phone from his home in New Hampshire.
Wall Street Journal: The End of the Affair
(Photo by Frank Stahlberg via Flickr/Creative Commons)
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Word of Mouth is all about what's new. Online and on-air, the show looks at our fascinating and ever-changing world, and puts the latest ideas under a microscope. Word of Mouth investigates everything from science and technology, to health and the environment, to new trends in popular culture. The show airs Monday through Thursday at noon and is hosted by Virginia Prescott.
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Detroit needs to build cars that people want. I bought a new car Jan 09 not because I needed it but because for the first time in 30 years they built my dream car. Even knowing that the company that built it may not be here later.