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September 02, 2003
Questions, questions, questions
Five questions:
The Jaquandor sent along 5 questions. I think that means I get to give 5 questions to any of my readers who write in. Any takers?
1. What is your most prized inanimate possession, and why?
This may have been the hardest question to answer, and it will confirm the worst of my Girlfriend's fears. My #1 most prized (inanimate) possession is my PC. This isn't just any PC mind. This is an AMD 2500XP PC with a Gig of RAM. My PC's case has a neon light, and a window just to see that neon light...
I do Computers the way some people do cars. No, I can't (as a friend once asked) get my PC up to 125M/H (unless my PC were in a car doing that fast). But I can play games, find alien life, and chat with people the world away...
Other than my computer, though, I don't really prize any possessions. I did spend a couple of summers wandering around Northern California living out of my car (gods, I miss that car) and crashing on the floors of friends. A trench coat makes a perfectly good blanket...
Perhaps that's why I value my Computer as much as I do; it means that I have settled a bit, and will come back to the same place every night...
2. What blogger or bloggers do you credit with inspiring you to blogging?
This may have been the easiest of the questions:
I was a dickhead.
Strike that, I am a dickhead. Fortunately, in this case, I was a dickhead to a Very cool guy, John Weidner. I saw a statement that infuriated me (I think I saw it via the InstantProf, so perhaps kudos to him?) and had to respond. I think the record bears out that I was a dickhead:
In regards to your statement ãPerhaps what I should have said was that certain people had an instant and visceral opposition to seeing Iraq liberated by the United States.ä I find myself asking who these people are. I know many people who oppose this coming war. None of them, however, are opposed to this war on the grounds that it will help the people of Iraq. Indeed, many of the people I know who oppose this war do so in the firm conviction that it will cause pain and suffering for the Iraqi people. If you can find me 5 people with written statements to the effect that they do not wish the see the US undertake actions that they believe will be a net benefit to the people of Iraq, and I will donate US$20 to the charity of your choice. Find me 100 people, and I will donate that US$20 and actively support the war.
Of course, I eventually Changed my Mind, so we see how that worked out...
3. The old "book on the desert island" question, but with a twist: What book would you banish to the island, every single copy on earth, never to be read again?
My first thought is well, that's easy! The Mein Kampf. That reaction quickly fades away, however. I can't banish a book simply for its worldview Hate it (I do) yes. Hold it up as an object for ridicule, certainly. But ban(ish) it for disagreement? I can't do that, can't really wish that...
So what crimes can a book commit that will allow me to be comfortable in banishing it? The crime of pompous unreadability comes to mind. There is one book which fits that description quite well...
At its most basic, it is a not well told story of a man trying to catch a whale. At its most complex, it is a Nietzschean struggle of Mankind's (no PC Humankind for this book. I don't think Melville knows what girls are) struggle to place himself over god, and the costs associated with this. Yes, I read Moby Dick, and so I canwith clear consciencebanish it to the ironic desert island punishment...
I'm ok with the blatant homoeroticism of Queequeg and Ishmael snuggled in bed in "the most loving and affectionate manner".
No, it is more the shear pomposity of lines like "Surely all this is not without meaning. And still deeper the meaning of that story[...]" which, yes, appear to be talking about something else, but are in actuality talking about the importance of and internal metaphor for the entire book. No. No longer can this book be inflicted upon the unsuspecting. Banish it. To the most remote, most desert island imaginable. And there let it rot.
4. What is your dream occupation, within your current field, more or less? (i.e., if you've never played baseball, don't say "Shortstop for the Cubs".)
Within my current field... I hope I am allowed to extrapolate my studies into a "future field". I'd hate to be stuck in bookselling all my life (though John Weidner seems to have enjoyed his time owning such a store)...
So. I am a student in Political Science. I'd love to be president. Of the US. Really. That's one of the reasons I use a pseudonym on this site. Something about state dinners and a cowed press corps, baby! More seriously, though, Bill Clinton and I come from similar backgrounds (though I started with more money than he), and he ended up being one of the best presidents in American history. I would love to follow his example and help American on the path of (relative) peace, smokin' economies, and American strength. If I can make the Cory era, (like the Clinton era) a Golden Age, I'd like to...
Barring all that, I'd love to be Gregg Easterbrook, or at least have his job(s). The man is paid to think and write and be witty...
Oh, hell! Just for fun, I'll mention that if I could somehow get to design legos for a living, I'd do that. But that's outside my field and requires a Degree from MIT. Still, I'll bet most people find that more of an interesting answer than any of the above...
5. Do you ever cry at movies? If so, name one that made it happen.
Sometimes. I didn't know how maligned Armageddon was until I (within the last few weeks) read reviews which just assumed that I hated it. The end scene where Bruce Willis sacrifices himself for the whole planet (not to mention his daughter's boyfriend) gets me every time...
I get the same feeling when I reach the end of Robert Heinlein's The Long Watch. Which is a short story, but could (with the right director) be a good low-key movie...
Posted by Andrew at September 2, 2003 01:18 PM
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