Mamet reads Friedman: Obviously Can’t Write Anymore

Marvellous stuff – to the point of self-parody- from the Guardian’s Michael Billington:

I am depressed to read that David Mamet has swung to the right. In an essay for the  Village Voice, Mamet claims he is no longer a “brain-dead liberal” and increasingly espouses a free-market philosophy and social conservatism. As a citizen, Mamet is free to do as he likes. What worries me is the effect on his talent of locking himself into a rigid ideological position.

Surely shome mishtake? You mean the wong ideological position? Indeed so:

I’ve always seen Mamet as an inordinately complex writer: one whose apparent tough-guy, Hemingway-esque stance conceals a sensitivity to social and sexual issues. But when Mamet talks openly of his admiration for conservatives like Milton Friedman and Paul Johnson, I begin to worry that he may be painting himself into a corner.