“One and only rebel child,
From a family, meek and mild:
My Mama seemed to know what lay in store.
Despite all my Sunday learning,
Towards the bad, I kept on turning.
‘Til Mama couldn’t hold me anymore.”
The left is stuck between long-term efforts for “progressive reform” on the one hand and spectacular but largely one-off expressions of direct action on the other. A fanatical approach to politics justifies and defends taking action—including direct action—in defense of principles that cannot be compromised. But it uses that action to build a constituency and transform public opinion, not simply to “inspire” people. Effective extremism provides people with an entrée into a movement where they can put their inspiration into practice.
(Source: lovesexdeathpassionfearobsession, via hotcornbutter-deactivated201109)
“Sluttering (May 4th)”
One of these days I’m going to start a library-themed Jawbreaker cover band and we’ll play a song called “Cuttering (May 4th)”
Disaster, Privilege, and Normalcy
Disclaimer: I’m speaking to my own experience and from my own experience here. My experiences are no more valid than anyone else’s. Quite frankly, I’ve been kind of scatterbrained over the past few days and what I’m sharing here is how I feel in this particular moment; if it seems either callous or mawkish, cold or over-dramatic, I’m sorry, but I wanted to use the very solemn medium that is Tumblr to express my thoughts.
RIP Poly Styrene
After that last post, I need a little Mystikal to cheer me up.
Tuscaloosa has the Blurst Letters to the Editor
Tuscaloosa, Alabama: Home of the World’s Dumbest Letters to the Editor
This gem appeared in the Tuscaloosa News (which often features writing which appears to have been written by sixth-graders):
http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20110425/NEWS/110429831/1028/opinion?Title=LETTER-Civil-War-caused-by-culture-clash&tc=ar
ROCK N ROLL LIBRARY SCHOOL. My term paper for Collections Development talks about: the development of queer theory in the context of publishing, anarchism, the Marxist press, zine libraries, and makes liberal use of Jurassic Park references. My paper’s so punk that I’m going to have to bind the pages with studs and spikes instead of staples.
Johnny Cash is not “old country” or even “good country”
I wound up at a pretty good bar last night and saw some pretty rad bands (the Deep South is, after all, that very special part of the country where garage-punk bands have wailing harmonica solos and where hardcore bands can cover the Zombies’ “She’s not There”), but beforehand I decided to get a drink at a bar that was cheaper than the one where the show was. I wound up having a hackneyed, annoying conversation that I’ve had before VERBATIM at least a dozen times. It went something like this:
