User123abc on 20/4/2007 at 01:58
Scots, I was excited to read your post. I share your sentiments, and it's been something that's been really tugging at me this year. "Diseased" or sick describes pretty well how I personally feel here. I spend part of the year out of the country, and I feel like a different person - stronger, less manic, healthier somehow. Actually the words I really want to use are "more romantic, more tragic, more alive," but I'm a bad poet so it's hard to say what exactly that means.
It's also hard to say what the problem is. You could pick out some minor causes in the traits that American culture rewards (I'm not talking about gangster rap), but maybe it's a little deeper than that, something like over-civilization leading to confusion - people getting consumumed by worries about totally irrelevant shit, in the absence of any real problems. The only response is to kind of shut yourself off emotionally. Vague idea, I know, I don't really have a more exact explanation.
And yeah, this sounds as snobbish as it does "admirable." There's always some aspect of over-romanticizing the good old days, back when when men were men and women were women.
Maybe this belongs in a different thread?
Quote Posted by fett
I got pounded one time by this huge black guy.
Yeah man, I feel your pain. I'm pretty sure he stretched something...
BrokenArts on 20/4/2007 at 02:51
Quote Posted by Dia
Like I said; they'll be crawling out of the woodwork now. Sad to say. I hope you're right Scots, and this new crazy only does video & phone threats.
Shall we place bets as to when the first copycat will take place? :tsktsk: Sad but true, you know some jackass will try it, soon enough.
fett on 20/4/2007 at 03:17
Quote Posted by User123abc
Scots, I was excited to read your post. I share your sentiments, and it's been something that's been really tugging at me this year. "Diseased" or sick describes pretty well how I personally feel here. I spend part of the year out of the country, and I feel like a different person - stronger, less manic, healthier somehow. Actually the words I really want to use are "more romantic, more tragic, more alive," but I'm a bad poet so it's hard to say what exactly that means.
It's also hard to say what the problem is. You could pick out some minor causes in the traits that American culture rewards (I'm not talking about gangster rap), but maybe it's a little deeper than that, something like over-civilization leading to confusion - people getting consumumed by worries about totally irrelevant shit, in the absence of any real problems. The only response is to kind of shut yourself off emotionally. Vague idea, I know, I don't really have a more exact explanation.
I know EXACTLY what you mean. I used to spend quite a bit of time in Israel and Jordan, and even with the horrific racial tension and unexpected violence (not as bad as TV makes it out to be), there is something very freeing about the simplicity of life there. I don't mean the absence of modern conveniences or creature comforts. It just seems that when people have a problem it's a real problem, not a broken Tivo, or somebody whining about how they're oppressed by the rich. Life is somehow more 'alive' at times, and I wonder if it's because they've not been numbed to death by media and consumerism or something. That's probably a shallow explanation for it, but like you say, it's hard to describe unless you've experienced it.
Ko0K on 20/4/2007 at 03:20
Yeah, you mean like some white guy is going to go into Koreatown and start spraying, and the media will pay disproportionate amount of attention to the fact that he is white, right?
(
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18178194/site/newsweek/) http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18178194/site/newsweek/
SubJeff on 20/4/2007 at 07:44
I think it's unfair to call this guy a pussy. The guy had issues.
Fingernail on 20/4/2007 at 08:02
The copycat thing just highlights the fact that it's one of those things in US culture to "go postal" - the fact that it's constantly talked about as a problem could contribute to some fringe, derranged elements thinking "hell, I can take more people with me than THAT guy".
Of course, it takes a little more than that to actually cause one of these, but you can't deny the showman-like elements at play; posting a multimedia package to the press - c'mon, this guy, somewhere in his confused mind, though he knew he wouldn't be around to witness the result, wanted to go down in history; notorious, mysterious, etc.
He probably felt some sort of victory whilst doing it, in the sense that "everybody ignored me before; well everybody's gonna know about me now".
Tragic, on many levels.
N'Al on 20/4/2007 at 10:31
Quote Posted by paloalto
I imagine from a reasoning point of view you would have to say that George Washington and his ragtag army never would have won against the British.I'm glad he did not give in to defeatism and held to the vision of victory.
Not to belittle what "George Washington and his ragtag army" managed to do*, but I do believe they had some help from the French in defeating the British - in some form or other (warships off the coast, supplies?), at least. How substantial this was, ultimately, I don't know, but at least it wasn't just a "pitchforks vs. tanks" scenario, even if the US army vs. British army part of the war might have been.
As I said, I don't know near enough about this part of history (and I don't want to derail this thread even further), but if true then the "pitchforks defeating tanks" analogy simply doesn't hold.
* Plus, unfortunately I'm not as well versed in the history of the American War of Independence as I'd like to be.
Fingernail on 20/4/2007 at 10:55
for a start there were no such things as tanks then.
Moi Dix Mois on 20/4/2007 at 11:32
Are you sure?
I'm pretty certain there were... :confused:
Matthew on 20/4/2007 at 11:39
Nope, just submarines.
