Word: noonanã
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...land” takes precedence over that of its people, and second, by the choice of Germanic word-collision over more harmonious Latinate diction such as “domestic.” And the effect does not seem to have diminished in the six years since Noonan??s column. For the listener able to ignore the term’s ubiquity, “Homeland Security” retains its sinister ring.What is more, the drive to recast our great nation as a “homeland” belittles America as an ideal. Americans have never...
Although Daniel Radcliffe fans will disagree, “December Boys”—while easy on the eyes—lacks the originality to make it noteworthy. An adaptation of Australian author Michael Noonan??s eponymous text, the film chronicles coming-of-age trials in a familiar light. And while director Ron Hardy gracefully treats the convergence of childhood ideals and adulthood disillusionment, the final package is debilitated by scattered characterization. The movie opens at the chaste, jejune scene of an Australian orphanage home to four self-named December Boys (for their birthdays) linked...
...Noonan??s dream is deferred four hours due to overcast skies. He waits in the backyard of the skydiving center, looking wistfully at the landing strip he hopes to hit on his way down. Finally, the skies clear and up Noonan goes in a six-person jet, sporting a full bodysuit, a Harvard T-shirt and an extra pair of shorts to ward off the possibility of chafed legs...
After a 15-minute ascent in the cramped six-person plane, the pilot levels off at 10,000 feet and looks for a two-mile stretch of cloudless sky through which Noonan can jump. When suitable sky is located, a professional skydiving instructor attaches himself to Noonan??s back with a network of straps and four metal clamps strong enough to tow a car. When Noonan says he’s ready, the instructor leans off the edge—and down they...
...Noonan??s first sensation, he later remembers, is the painful pressure of the wind against his cheeks as he descends. “The wind came on really strong,” he says. Yet as he grows accustomed to the feeling—and the near-freezing temperature—he begins to feel the rush of freefall. “If I could imagine the most amazing drug, that’s what it felt like,” he says. “Everything was just so beautifully clear. It was almost like a roller...