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Ms. Sleuth -

Until now I have found myself liking very much your sideways take on many current events and public figures, but really - - this is just wrong.

As I see it, either you are trying to sick your trained snark on these two burnt out old know-it-all authoritarians - and not only missed but in the bargain have showed yourself not so much a Wagnerite and a dilletante -

or you are trying to sick your snark on this this irreducible artist splendor - and should be taking your criticism over to the WaPo editor in charge of judging who gets to post reviews.

I'm about as far as one can get from a supporter of either of these appalling egomaniacs,

except now I learn that perhaps - I repeat, perhaps - one, or both, enjoy either the greatest ever artistic achievement or at least this section of it,

and MAY even qualify as a Wagnerite.

[Wagnerites make for exceptionally strange bedfellows - - which seems apt given the awfulness of the man who composed it all and how staggeringly brilliant his achievement was at so many levels. Hitler was a enthusiast, if not precisely a Wagnerite. But it must be noted as well that every single major Jewish-born conducter since WWII has been both Wagnerite and Wagnerian - though presumably none of them Wagnerfilian.].

However, if it is truly so that one or the other or both of the Felix of War and the Oscar of Policy are Wagnerites -

of which I remain deeply skeptical, because each of them went with others, and the presence of the great Domingo may have had something to do with their attendance,

then might I suggest it possible that the worn out warrior and phatuous philanderer were scouting out the work in hopes of convincing one or both of a certain Resident of a certain local landmark and his backup might attend the final opera in the cycle,

to catch a glimpse of where they've headed the country,

or to learn irony,

or at the very least to serve as sources of amusement.

Where is Spiro when we need him to generate some Real News? Us Nattering Nabobs of Negativity are still out here nattering, we just can't seem to find a hot microphone.

I say its better that Rummy and Newt are kept busy by Opulence and Opera, because I sure don't want them near any decisions of any kind. Be retired and be quiet, please!

Richard VAHGner was a giant of the nineteenth century. Would you provide a pronunciation guide and snide suggestions for body language when discussing Darwin, Marx, Bismark, Victoria?

Cheap snotty anti-wagnerian witticism is an unavoidable infectious meme among the anglo-speaking world and this is nothing but the bazillionth sample.

*YAWN*

It's the Mona Lisa's smile of musical commentary.
Enough, really ...

I am tired of this bunch shoot them all.

You, Ms. Akers, make it obvious by your references to Wagner that you have not appreciated his music. You are to be pitied for having missed experiencing some of the greatest music ever composed, sung or played.

Ms. Sleuth, trust me: all the writing, blogging and etc. you have done and will do for your entire life will not have the meaning and depth of one bar - four beats -- of music from Mr. VAHG-ner's "Die Walkure." Just thought you'd like to know.

My dear Mary Ann, do you know that photo of the big toe on the statue of the Emperor Constantine with a tiny kitten next to it? When it comes to VAHGner, my dear, the big toe belongs to the statue of the composer and you are a flea on the kitten.

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