>Anyone who still wants to speak his/her piece on the Johnson episode is
welcome to
> back-channel me
Dear Candice
I really don't think it's a matter of speaking one's piece on yet another
Johnson episode, it's rather a matter of larger issues of probity of speech
and trust, I emphasise the latter. Without confidence in another all
communication breaks down into small tribes hiding in the paranoid forests,
if we merely ascribe yet another wrecking attack to episodic status and
then, of all things, seek to find alternative solace in Faber poets (sorry
Matthew, but ...) we commit a dishonesty of response that is tantamount in
its retrospective blandness to the factory of lies that the malign deceits
of the destroyers supports.
Speaking very personally, after coming home from work tonight, and being
told three minutes before leaving when our office was being closed down,
holding on to my understandable annoyances I merely looked first of all at
b-c's tonight, a pleasant experience, I then went out for a bit, returned to
discover the contents of this day's petc, then looked up Vert again, and
found out just what changes had been made, at which point I reached utter
unbland fury, it is not a matter of Mr Johnson alone, it is a matter of what
we expect from both the literary and the whole of our culture, if one ducks
the issues it raises, and retreats into mere approbations, then we by
default fall into the same chasm of trahison de clercs that those who regard
deception as a fair tactic fall into.
And presumably end up papering over those said chasms, not just cracks.
Hope this makes sense, I _am_ really angry.
Best
Dave
----- Original Message -----
From: "Candice Ward" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, July 24, 2001 1:41 AM
Subject: Featured Poet coming up
> I'm about to post Featured Poet Matthew Francis's selection of poems,
which
> will be followed in the next day or two by my interview with him. Let's
not
> let Matthew's poetry get trampled under list politics. Anyone who still
> wants to speak his/her piece on the Johnson episode is welcome to
> back-channel me (be sure to CC Alison & Randolph too), but I'd appreciate
it
> if we could restore the front-channel space to the topic (and shared
> passion) of this list, namely, poetry.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Candice
>
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