On Oriental Rugs and Politics

[MineralMan]

Over the years, I've found some real bargains on real oriental rugs at garage sales and other places, so I have a very small collection, all being used for their original purpose - covering the hardwood floors in our old mid-50s house.

All of these rugs have condition problems, of course, or I wouldn't have been able to buy them so cheaply. One, a 7' x 9' rug, from the Caucasus region, is one of my favorites. It has an interesting rose base color, and designs depicting crude animal forms. All in natural dyes, since the rug is about 120 years old.

The base of the rug is in pretty good shape, with decent pile depth and no fading or staining. It is pretty much as it was when it was first woven. What it does have, though, is a fringe that is beginning to unravel. The weft threads of the rug have begun to come loose from the warp. Now, it hasn't lost any of the pile knots, and there is part of the plain border that is OK. The photo below isn't my rug, but the problem shown is similar.



The only real solution to this problem, and it's one normally handled by rug repair professionals, is to reweave the weft threads, then carefully knot the warp threads to prevent further unravelling. If not repaired, eventually the weft that unravels will reach the pile and the body, or base, of the rug will begin to fall apart.

In a way, it's something like what's happening to the Democratic party right now. The base of the party is intact, and is still showing its orginal design with no part of it missing yet. But the fringe of the party, the part along the very ends of both ends of the main part, is beginning to unravel. The weft is separating from the warp. Eventually, once the fringe is gone, the damage can begin to extend to the base or main part of the rug...the part that is still holding together solidly so far.

As I'm going to have to do with my old oriental rug, the base of the Democratic party is going to need to reweave what's left of the weft threads that make up the fringe, then tie the actual fringe, which are warp threads, to end any further deterioration. Some of the plain border area will be lost forever, but we can save the base weaving of the party, just as I can with my rug. The party can be saved, but there's no time to waste. If we allow the fringe to unravel, soon we'll begin losing parts of the base design. That can't be good, and can destroy the carefully woven party.

[nightrain]

1. nice attempt at an analogy, but sooo demeaning to the fringe.

That's a not-so-subtle attempt at psychological assessment of fringers, kinda like Robert Gibbs' remark, if I am reading you correctly... Lefties being the fringe?

Actually, I believe the "New Democratic Coalition" members and "Blue Dogs" are the fringes and have forgotten traditional Democratic values, finding more respite in protecting business, militarism, and unraveling traditional Democratic safety nets.

[MineralMan]

2. As with a Oriental rug, there is a fringe on both ends.

We need to repair both fringes and keep them sound, or we run the risk of losing part of the pile, or the really important part of the party (or the rug). The fringe is important, too, since it's there to keep from losing the edges of the pile. That is its function. It's important, but is not part of the overall design. It's purely functional, but of little interest to the eye. If it unravels, the main part of the rug begins deteriorating, too, and the design begins to disappear.

No analogy is perfect, of course.

[nightrain]

3. the analogy doesn't work for me because of how psychologically-demeaning the

"unraveling" sounds. Is that intentional on your part? Is that what you believe professional and regular lefties are demonstrating--that we're unraveling?

[MineralMan]

4. As the fringe's weft thread begin to come unraveled, parts of it break off and

disappear. When that happens, they're not part of the rug any longer. Nobody really notices the loss, since the main body, or base, of the rug remains intact, with its design still complete. Those lost parts can't ever be repaired. But, what's left can be rewoven into the fringe and can be secured through knotting of the fringe. It's a problem with rugs that were woven by tribal weavers, primarily, especially in rugs that are very, very old. Proper knotting of the fringe wasn't done, so unraveling is inevitable. It's easy enough to repair though and, if caught in time, the rug doesn't really suffer much, if any damage. There's always excess fringe on both ends, by design.

[nightrain]

5. Guess I'm close to your intent. Thanks. We're not disappearing. Even if you want to tie a knot

around the left's throat. Perhaps the DLC on DU is unraveling instead.

[HughMoran]

13. Seemed quite accurate and reasonable to me

:shrug:

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

14. I agree with you entirely. I've been a member of the Democratic Party for close to 40 years

and I have always been a proud Liberal with true Liberal ideals. I am the center of the rug and the pragmatic, conciliatory neoliberals of the party have dragged the rug to the right, therefore causing the fraying.

[quiet.american]

6. Nicely-written, MineralMan. But what does reweaving look like?

Especially if there is a fringe that seems hell-bent on the unraveling of the entire rug?

[nightrain]

7. or, perhaps the demeaned fringe is hell-bent on preserving traditional Democratic values....

kinda depends on one's perspective-- if one subscribes to the DLC/New Dem/Blue Dog approach or not.

[quiet.american]

15. You know, that's the problem right there.

'Nuff said.

[JNelson6563]

8. Well said Mineral Man.

I enjoy reading your posts. :toast:

Julie

[babylonsister]

9. Very nice, MM. Rec'd. nt

[NJmaverick]

10. Very good analogy

[MineralMan]

11. Thanks to everyone who has posted. I really appreciate your

comments.

[HughMoran]

12. K&R

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

16. I'll be frank. I don't think these metaphorical waxings serve any useful purpose. -nt

[MineralMan]

17. OK. Thanks for your input. It's a posting style I have always used,

and so I think I'll just continue. Some of my OPs get good responses. Some don't.

I think there's room on DU for all sorts of ways to express things. But I do appreciate your candor, even if I disagree with it.

[rug]

18. It's a terrible thing when a rug tries to sweep you under it.

And I should know.

[Touchdown]

19. Wow. That's about the dumbest allegory I've ever read.

I want my 5 minutes back.

[MineralMan]

21. It took you five minutes to read that?

Oh, well...

[Touchdown]

22. It took 40 seconds To read it and 4:20 to vomit and clean the toilet

:hi:

[Hekate]

20. Nice analogy

:kick: