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Friday, November 07, 2003
All my heroes are dimestore philosophisers
I am sure we are all closely monitoring Too Clever by Half's doppelganger site, Gallimaufry, and Damien's unfiltered personal take on himself, the world and how they meet. I'm reminded of a description someone gave of DH Lawrence when they said, he was a " man with no masks, " and your unflinching honesty Damyon approaches that league. Pheww. Seriously, if i wasn't sitting down i would've had to.
I just want to briefly dwell briefly on your dimestore philosophising call. I did two philosophy subjects in a well mispent year of my youth. It's good exercise for the brain. I guess i have ultimately concluded intellectual rigour can only ever be an accompaniment ( and this is not a fully thought out belief as you'd expect from someone whose about to say what i'm about to say ), not a sovereign, to vigour in the "doing" .. I've always more admired the doers rather than the thinkers. More precisely, the doers who have a feeling or justification for why they "do" but one that's not necessarily that profoundly put and in many cases verges on the populist. Many philosophers would maintain their particular frame work is populist in the sense they see it has having benefits for the people but some philosophies are so remote, unworldly and inaccessible and proffered by people with much the same qualities that they can never really hope to make an impression. Take Ken Kesey, and you might throw your arms up in the air here, I have been revisiting the Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test and the spree of Kesey and Co it describes. Neil, The ' Dead, that we were recently talking about in the context of the sticker on the Cadillac in Boys of Summer, were practically the "house band" for the pranksters. I never knew this. Kesey is rendered almost as an Old Testament prophet and his trip is one that Hunter S and his lawyer could only look at and drool. Said with all respect for theirs. Y'all must read this book if you haven't already. It's full of ideas and escapades and although written in what is markedly the hippie voice of the time, which can make the reading akin to picking up The Canterbury Tales in Ye Olde English, it's a top read. Two things stick out for me and i'm only skipping through it while sitting on the bike, Kesey was a man of the people, looking to morph the various wings of Californy personality into one and he was a champion of what he put as, "Don't explain it. Do it."
I like and admire the people who can explain but see more value in the "doing."
I'm supposed to be "sick" today and am at home bludging so i wont go any further. See you for drinkies tonight, D. All you other champagne people, see you soon.
I just want to briefly dwell briefly on your dimestore philosophising call. I did two philosophy subjects in a well mispent year of my youth. It's good exercise for the brain. I guess i have ultimately concluded intellectual rigour can only ever be an accompaniment ( and this is not a fully thought out belief as you'd expect from someone whose about to say what i'm about to say ), not a sovereign, to vigour in the "doing" .. I've always more admired the doers rather than the thinkers. More precisely, the doers who have a feeling or justification for why they "do" but one that's not necessarily that profoundly put and in many cases verges on the populist. Many philosophers would maintain their particular frame work is populist in the sense they see it has having benefits for the people but some philosophies are so remote, unworldly and inaccessible and proffered by people with much the same qualities that they can never really hope to make an impression. Take Ken Kesey, and you might throw your arms up in the air here, I have been revisiting the Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test and the spree of Kesey and Co it describes. Neil, The ' Dead, that we were recently talking about in the context of the sticker on the Cadillac in Boys of Summer, were practically the "house band" for the pranksters. I never knew this. Kesey is rendered almost as an Old Testament prophet and his trip is one that Hunter S and his lawyer could only look at and drool. Said with all respect for theirs. Y'all must read this book if you haven't already. It's full of ideas and escapades and although written in what is markedly the hippie voice of the time, which can make the reading akin to picking up The Canterbury Tales in Ye Olde English, it's a top read. Two things stick out for me and i'm only skipping through it while sitting on the bike, Kesey was a man of the people, looking to morph the various wings of Californy personality into one and he was a champion of what he put as, "Don't explain it. Do it."
I like and admire the people who can explain but see more value in the "doing."
I'm supposed to be "sick" today and am at home bludging so i wont go any further. See you for drinkies tonight, D. All you other champagne people, see you soon.
