That Alien Virus Dear lord have mercy on our souls but it is damned hard to lie without language. Words, I am afraid, lend themselves to mistruth at least as well as truth. Animals can't lie simply because they don't have the equipment. They can be deceptive, they very often are, but they cannot break reality like we can because they cannot describe it like we can. In fact, without written language it seems that they can create nothing of lasting impact at all, other than new animals. And while that in and of itself is a fantastic miracle it rather pales in comparison to the Mona Lisa and space stations. Of course I would love to give up language if only possible in order to stop the 'progress' of toxic waste and environmental catastrophe. But I can't, we can't, this fabulous experiment in which we indulge is a one-way street in many more ways than that. Language has been growing since its inception, and I don't see how anyone can argue that architecture and industry are not some results. And so you precious right brainers, you who maintain that the holiness of boundless creation exceeds any description or rationality, allow me to slam this dimantine stake through your rugged individualist heart and leave you impaled and suspended leaking your pretensions: you are nothing without language. I love my right brain too, I nurture it as much as I can and do fight for its survival, but I am not a fool, not in this regard at any rate. Language is all that sets us apart from the animals and we are a hell of a lot more interesting and less predictable than they are.

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