[PREV - WASTELAND] [TOP]
September 28, 2000
HONEST_JOHN
Cage, talked about how 0'00''
is really about just going on 0'0'' was the sequel to
with your day, doing whatever the infamous "silent"
you're going to do "as long as piece, 4'33".
it's not selfish".
The original score
In context the dig against was one line:
being "selfish" seems really
peculiar... he's fixated on this "In a situation
idea that "selfishness is bad", provided with maximum
so it crops up in odd places. amplification (no
feedback), perform a
Which left me thinking about how disciplined action."
some people notice a problem, and
seize on the wrong thing as the He later clarified
"cause", and become obsessed that he meant
with that one thing as their non-musical
guiding principle. action, and that
the action should
It was a common enough differ in every
obsession in the sixties: performance.
Selfishness, the source of
all the world's ills.
Transcendence of the ego.
And Cage took this to
include passion and
self-expression as well. (So, in effect, this is just
a plea for moderation, an
Then there's the argument against fanaticism;
libertarian/objectivist perhaps against principle?)
take, which is perhaps
equally insane, the idea
that anything altruistic
is necessarily evil,
that the best thing that
you can do with yourself
is to watch out for your
immediate interests.
Or to take a (perhaps?) smaller,
less grand issue: people get
stung by rudeness, they watch
many mindless flame wars break
out, and they resolve to create
situations where politeness will
be required, legislated...
Missing the point.
Assuming there can be one point.
Going for the obvious point
and only the obvious point.
Vonnegut in "Cat's Cradle", talked
about "granfalloons", but it's a
lousy sounding piece of jargon.
So screw Vonnegut.
So what's the right term? December 2, 2000
False center
False obsession
Bluntpoint
Choose one from each column:
point lost
mind less
cause false
center wrong bad mind
obsession bad
trail
way
ideology
Look for a metaphor?
mask
kissing the mask
give the water
bra a squeeze
squeezing the
silicone
neither blood from stone,
veil nor milk from silicone
curtain
The Wizard of Oz
Zardoz.
Kissing Nixon's ring.
Eh.
(June 12, 2004)
In a paper I wrote for my
undergrad "Existentialism"
I think I like class, I was going on
"false center" about "choosing a center"
the best. or some such, and the prof
scribbled in red in the
margin:
"Beware of
basket terms" Like, say
"basket term",
for example?
Beware of
basket cases, SYSTEMS_OF_THE_MADMAN
is more like it.
(The only guy who had the
nerve to give me a "B" on
a philosophy paper.)
--------
[NEXT - DYSON]