Thursday, November 17, 2011

My lovely office

Here at 1, class not until 430. Love my time in my office. A former student stopped by, now a grad student, to tell me he'd just signed up for grad screenwriting. Be good to see his work again.

The trouble with contributing an op-ed piece is that it attracts comments, which in turn can be distracting if you have other things to do. I should learn to shut up! Really. Very few if any minds ever get changed in these exchanges. it's just mental masturbation for the most part. Including my own.

Better to vent here than in an op-ed piece -- not many folks come here, compared to the traffic at the paper. But better not to vent at all. It's hopeless. This pattern is going to continue ad nauseam, just as Brown has it, this sad historical hysterical repetition, and not I nor anyone else is going to change it. Grab what coins I've still got and cash myself out of this poker game, man.

But before I go, one last hopeless wish: that the Occupy movement begins to protest much smarter and in ways that won't alienate or hassle allies. This should be like a recall movement, gathering support to recall the government and put in a new one. There should be tables with petitioners gathering support all over the country instead of marches that put protesters against police (who themselves are part of the 99%). The numbers are there but they won't be for long if this continues off message into a law and order conflict. Progressives will never win a law and order debate.

Now it's going to be hard but I'm really going to try and shut up about this. Or at least shut up in any public arena. It's too depressing to watch a potentially important, well-meaning movement for change act out and accelerate its own demise.

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