Ain't no accountin' for nothin'
Geek out in a Moonage Daydream
All quite on the eastern front?
This watch has better specs...
Somewhere Between Philly and Delaware
Happy labor day morons (warning adult language?)!
Why be ordinary? German gentleman at folk night insisted that one must play a cover as close to the original as possible. Why not just listen to the original? He found Cale's transposition of Streets of Laredo to the relative minor troubling. Or my cover thereof. I would have liked to introduce him to Heartbreak Hotel. Originals are originals. Nothing is ordinary. Why attempt to be ordinary?
Covers are renditions. Interpretations, interpolations: I am interested in your voice. Mine is unique. Like everyone else's.
Kidnapping is rendition. Whenever I forget my good reasons for expatriating the news is there to remind me. Debasement of discourse, perversion of language, the chosen people. It's terrible that China tortures dissidents. Tank man was a tragedy, having seen Tianenmin Square I know I have to at least mirror The Dalai Lama's site if not publish a great firewall violation howto more widely. But I most assuredly do not have to return to my beloved country. O my bad reasons were very, very bad, we can discuss my faults whenever you like. At the moment I'm confronting faults of Merka. There can be no sane argument that Hiroshima and Nagasaki were 'necessary'. I'll be happy to explain it if you can't figure it out yourself. It's the same hubris behind Dershowitz's argument that torture can ever be justified. Does the world hate America? Does America hate the world? What is the point of hatred? What is the point of violating another country's sovereignty? Not that nationalism makes any more sense than racism. But when is a freedom fighter a terrorist? Vice versa? Harris, you fail too. No, there's no excuse for fundamentalism. But if thousands die because of a terrorist act that's the way it goes. The Dalai Lama is holy because Tibet is finished. Understand? Whatever wrong is done you can still do right. We all die. We can go with clean consciences. Can a CIA operative? The armed forces? Obama? I can't change it. But I certainly can tell it how it is. I recognize logical fallacies. Strawmen, false dichotomies, confirmation by antecedent: I can't help anyone stop them, just ask that they look, honestly. It isn't much, I'm almost helpless. Almost. I certainly could leave.
Have another three months on the visa. Though it chews another page outta the passport. I need another refill. Will the DoS keep it at some point? Spooks really should be reading my work. If this is humanity I certainly hope I threaten. It's beyond idiotic. Arrogance is a joke! A joke, where is your sense of humor? God shed his grace on thee? Trying to teach my kids to behave. That's all. I don't care what language you speak. If there's anything beautiful about Merka it's tolerance. But tolerating The Apprentice is beyond me. Sorry. Where next? I dunno, the kids just reviewed me. Did I pass this time? Monday and Tuesday off. I'll think about security. I'll write. Prolly code a little. I can't do anything to save a country founded on genocide, foundering on zionism, obsessed with its superiority. What's wrong with the International Criminal Court? What's failing here? Well, it's pretty clear what's failing here, the Chinese are not all as compassionate as their literature commends them to be. What's wrong over there? Anyone think the Western spiritual tradition is not 90% crap? Old testament, new testament, koran, crap crap and crap. I wanna go home. I have no home.
Have good food. Have no heat. Our central planners probably won't turn it on for another two weeks. There are electric options at Carrefour but I'ma try to tough it out. Pre-paid electricity here, strange thing. I'd describe the minutiae, fascinating, but I'm reeling with some slightly larger issues. Problems much much bigger than me. Bohemian Grove exists. Bitter Lemons exists. Boston Brahmins exist. Had a nice curry last night, another piece of fish that might kill me via perforation tonight. It's cold. Have long underwear. Have heat lamps in my bathroom. Have to wonder. Have to say. Have no idea.