Month: August 2014

Snooty Don’t Read

Snooty doesn’t have to think.  Snooty knows.  Snooty knows everything in matters common sense, because it is their common sense.  Snooty knows that.

Snooty sees a mouth and asks why it does not work.  Snooty does not have to work but that is another matter.  Snooty never had to ask what if not.  Snooty always had.  Others don’t work.

Snooty doesn’t argue.  There is not need to argue.  Arguing shows you don’t know and Snooty knows.  There is no matter of opinion in matters of truth, and this matter of truth is common sense – common sense is their common sense, and in that there is truth.

Snooty don’t care.  Snooty don’t care if others don’t work.  Snooty knows they don’t want to work, Snooty knows they want Snooty’s fortune.  Snooty don’t care if others work, so long as they work for what they get.

Snooty doesn’t have to read.  Snooty knows.  Snooty knows everything in matters taste, because it is their taste.  Snooty knows that.

Snooty sees a cross and there is no matter of opinion.  Faith is bourgeois and God is dead.  It was said long ago by the long dead, but these long dead were not dogmatic.  That is truth.

Snooty doesn’t argue.  There is no need to argue.  Arguing shows you don’t know and Snooty knows.  There is no matters of opinion in matters of truth, and this matter of truth is a matter of taste – taste is their taste, and in that there is truth.

Snooty don’t care.  Snooty don’t care if others love.  Snooty knows they are wrong, and it is better to be in good taste than wrong.  Snooty don’t care if others love so long as they love what is in taste.

Snooty don’t think.  Thinking complicates judgment.  Judgment is quick and easy if you don’t have to think or be wrong. 

Snooty judge.  The rest is ignorance.

Snooty done.

Snooty forgotten.

Why I Am Done With Story Telling

What I mean to say is that I am done with spontaneous story telling in public places.  In good story writing one must take risks.  In taking risks, half the time you look at what you’ve done and say “I can’t say that.” and the other half of the time you say “I can’t say that, but if I change just this, it’s brilliant!”

This risk-taking is not made for an impromptu stage, it is made for paper and small gatherings in private among friends.  This is not to say you cannot be risqué, but such must first be vetted with thought and sleep.  But after watching the first season of Game of Thrones, I suppose I don’t truly feel bad about including cliché references to a Haram and Midgets in my latest foot-in-mouth tale.

Just Liberty: part lll

The fundamental issue has always been the balance of liberty with protection, or better, safety.  The protection need not always be in the form of military protection, it can at times be in the form of social welfare protection, which allows one the safety of income when they do not have work or the funds to deal with difficult disease, but how the balance is struck  is always the issue.  For the Republican, the balance is thus: enforce conservative values so that social welfare costs are minimal and strengthen our military to prevent outside disruptions.  For the Democrats the balance is thus: strengthen our social welfare so that folks can live their civil liberties to the fullest and make friends with our world, so that they like us enough not to attack.

If you take either of these positions on their own, you will notice that they are frankly implausible.  On the one hand, you can’t force people to live risk free lives and this is by-n-large what you would need for no welfare.  On the other side, you cannot simply be friends with your neighbors, for you cannot simply allow yourself to be trampled on – as occasionally and unfortunately happens in this world.  Of course, no one would ever take only positions on the right or the left, since they would get killed in a political forum by someone more towards the middle.  Who is this person in the middle?  They go by “Democrat” or “Republican” or “Independent”, but they are sometimes at heart the Libertarian.

The Libertarian does not play only on the let or only on the right.  The Libertarian sees that the compromises of liberty can be addressed head on and not through the polar political dynamic.  They do this by realizing that effectively the political space is not appropriately filled.  What is missing is one who attaches foremost importance to liberty, but realizes that protection of all sorts are necessary and compromises need to be made in the sphere or taxation as well as civil liberty, and that they can be made and addressed directly, and at the same time.

What goes by “Libertarian” these days is something of a head scratcher.  It is true that a rollback to the days of the constitution is appealing, but the issue is that you cannot have your cake and eat it too.  If you want security, you must tax.  This is true whether you are Republican or Democrat.  Whether those taxes go to a social variety or whether they go to a military variety, you still need money to fund the projects.  The Republican façade has always been that taxes should be minimized.  But these tax breaks amount to kickbacks to the rich for favors of various sorts which amount to a means to a perceived social safety ends.  The democrats deal with social matters more direct way, without as much deception, but they fail to appreciate the social costs involved in not enforcing conservative lifestyles.

***This is the final part to Just Liberty, written in early 2010.  I was inclined to remove the phrase “without as much deception” in writing it here, but I have felt compelled to leave it.  The deception is in the minimization of taxes as the best support for liberty.***

My Record Deal

“Just listening to your recording. It appears you are white.”

“Yes… Is that in my recording?”

“I gathered that from some things. Not to mention your skin color.”

“Yes, my skin is white.”

“Yes. Yes it is. Now tell me, how does a white boy know the blues?”

“Like anyone I’ve had life’s comeupin’s.”

“Nobody talks like that anymore… where are you from?”

“Wisconsin, but we have black people too.”

“Oh is that how black people talk?”

“They used to. I read it in Faulkner and Twain. They are always gettin’ their comeupin’s.”

“Ok anyhow. Did you ever work a chain gang? Or flea a coon hunt? Or overcome an addiction? Or get your heart stomped on by a woman? Or do any bluesy thing in your life?”

“That’s not really what the blues are about sir. They are about facing trials and obstacles that don’t relent. They are about that forlorn sentiment that accompanies relinquishing hope to a life of daily bludgeoning by unseen forces.”

“And you know this, this sentiment?

“Well, yes sir. I do a lot of reading on the internet. And putting aside the awful lack of general prosaic literacy, the writing tends to nurture the utmost depravity by means of insinuating my ignorance, and this leads me to indulge in a superficial vice which diverts my general frustration.”

“like?”

“like the sensual delights of the female figure.”

“Like Playboy.”

“Yes, but a little… anyway yes.”

“This ain’t the blues son. You gonna sing about that? This is plain old lack of confidence.”

“What makes you think this?”

“Please.”

“Ok. I find this a terrible judgment of my character from my otherwise homely appearance.”

“You ain’t so ugly son. Just wimpy is all.”

“Yes, I have a bit of a feeble constitution.”

“Wimpy. Just wimpy. You got to sit up straight and try to put some meat on those bones.”

“That’s fair.”

“And how can you sing the blues with those wimpy pipes? Give me a little raspy Satchmo will ya?”

“Technically Mr. Armstrong was a jazz musician. But here it goes…”

“Really terrible.”

“How do you know? You are not African American either. You’re whiter than me.”

“Ugh, now it’s a racial thing…”

“But you…”

“I know the blues son. Plenty of white artists know the blues too. Now I have a jet waiting, but if you want to send in an audition recording my staff in the foothills will look it over.”

“Tell me now sir, what will it take?”

“To make it? The grace of God.”

And with that, my life took a religious turn.

The Courage of Robin Williams

Many people don’t appreciate the courage it takes to be a good comedian. A comedian has to say things just right and also spontaneously. If they fail, they can cause themselves great difficulty.

I have hidden most my life behind the crafted word. The words fully thought through and not stepping over the line because they are so constructed not to pass that line. But in good comedy, comedy from the heart, there is always that precipice.

Robin Williams defied the fear of stepping over the line. It seemed he’d say anything, but only very rarely would he say anything truly inappropriate, and then it was not in malice, but an untimely indiscretion.

I’m very sad to see you leave before I had a chance to meet you Mr. Williams. I have to think that your passing is something we messed up, and I hope we can make amends. Love to you and your family.

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