Blog Comments

  1. Dark Muse's Avatar
    Thank you much!
  2. tailor STATELY's Avatar
    Intriguing title
    tragic tale
    enjoyed your villanelle

    Ta ! (short for tarradiddle),
    tailor
  3. tailor STATELY's Avatar
    Enjoyed

    Ta ! (short for tarradiddle),
    tailor
  4. Dark Muse's Avatar
    Thank you!
  5. tailor STATELY's Avatar
    Poignant poetry... well done.

    black are the days
    and black their deeds
    when politics wrests
    the law as weeds

    Ta ! (short for tarradiddle),
    tailor
  6. Dark Muse's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by Buh4Bee
    DM, Good to see you on here again. Always enjoy your blog.
    Thank you! Good to be back!
  7. Buh4Bee's Avatar
    DM, Good to see you on here again. Always enjoy your blog.
  8. Dark Muse's Avatar
    I will admit that I have never been given to being particularly patriotic. I have always had a tendency towards rebellion with a touch of anarchism but about now I honestly think one of the only reasons I am staying here is because I cannot afford to do otherwise. Granted my feelings might be different if I lived in what I dubb one of the "Good states." I am a California native (and how I miss it particularly now) but circumstances have placed me in one of those unfortunate states in the middle of the country. And right now finances does not allow a relocation.
  9. tailor STATELY's Avatar
    I was reading an article in the Times online about how the Muslims and Hindus are currently getting along in India and it brought to my mind how Pakistan and Bangladesh (once East Pakistan) sort of came about (using my naiveté here) splitting the Indian sub-continent 3-ways...

    Anyway, thinking hypothetically and purely politically in the U.S. - the West Coast and the East Coast are already sundered from the greater Mid-West ideologically, with enclaves in the great Mid-West analogous to the disputed regions of Pakistan and India; Hawaii (and other Pacific Island territories) might be analogous to independent Sri Lanka (all in the most general sense, of course). Alaska's sparse population would likely ebb and flow politically and would be typified as a wildcard state.

    Of course there are discrepancies within states too. My state of California has all the votes in the most populous coastal cities which are (mostly) sundered politically from the vast non-coastal population. I live in the California foothills (Gold Country) which would declare an independent State of Jefferson if it could.

    Not condoning a split in the least... I do love my country's ideals, they unfortunately often fall flat on both sides of the aisle; but I'd be hard pressed to think of living elsewhere (as one of my brothers has), no matter how untied we are.
  10. PeterL's Avatar
    The 4th of July and Independence Day are two different things. Congress voted the Declaration into law on the 2nd of July, and they sent it to the printer after Hancock signed it. The printer brought the printed copies back on the 4th.

    But it would be better, if I were acclaimed Emperor.
  11. PeterL's Avatar
    If you find the way to reality, could you publish that? Otherwise, it is all maya.
  12. Dark Muse's Avatar
    Quote Originally Posted by tailor STATELY
    I almost wrote "Untied States" instead of "United States" when writing this poem as another departure.

    Ta ! (short for tarradiddle),
    tailor
    I think Untied States is a rather apt description. I wonder why we even bother pretending to be a united country anymore. Sometimes I think it would be better if we just said to hell with it, and became individual sovereign nations.
  13. tailor STATELY's Avatar
    I hadn't heard of this movement. I've been conflicted for years also, but continue to celebrate the 4th with friends, and BBQ, from church. A poem I may have posted on LitNet somewhere is recalled here:

    My Conflicted Independence

    In the battle for these United States' independence
    I had, most likely, family on both sides of the fence

    One-half Brit and the bloodline of a founding father
    Should I enjoy the fireworks or act up ? Oh, the bother !

    6/18/2016 r.7/6/2016


    I almost wrote "Untied States" instead of "United States" when writing this poem as another departure.

    Ta ! (short for tarradiddle),
    tailor
  14. Dark Muse's Avatar
    It is my hope to actually stick around and be active again.
  15. tailor STATELY's Avatar
    Wonderful to see you posting

    Ta ! (short for tarradiddle),
    tailor
  16. Logos's Avatar
    100% real here! the reality is it's very quiet now after some spam storms here lol There's still a handful of active members. Always great to see a long-time member make an appearance even if just to say hello. Maybe you'll stay a bit longer. Good to hear your're healthy and have survived your own crazy journey. I think a few others here have a similar tale to tell. cheers, /L
  17. Dark Muse's Avatar
    That is an interesting point about the idea of women characters often being used as a way to prop up male characters. As I indicated with H.G wells as long as I think the story is good, I could happily read a book which had an entirely, or predominately male cast as it were. I usually relate better to the male characters than the women anyway honestly. But it would be interesting to read a book with predominately female characters in which there was not any romance, or love-interest.

    Oftentimes books that are written by women authors featuring female characters annoy me more than the books that get criticized as being sexist. Perhaps it is in part because the author is trying too hard to create that positive, strong female role model. It would be nice to read a book featuring a female character who is indeed very humanly flawed and whose life does not revolve around finding love.

    In regards to the rape issue. I can understand where you are coming from and the point you are making but as someone who is genuinely interested in history, I think it would be naive to write a work of HF where you just pretend like rape was not very much a fact of that time period and life in that time. It is an acknowledgement of things which actually happened. I would not want to read some idealized, romanticized version of history where all the violence and bad things are swept under the rug, so not to offend anyone's delicate sensibilities.
  18. TheFifthElement's Avatar
    You see this:
    [QUOTE]and for me in a way I find it kind of refreshing to read a book in which there is not this need to create some romantic story line as a way to make the book more interesting, or appealing to women readers. [/]
    Is a classic 'sexist' comment and, perhaps, the crux of the misunderstanding about sexism in books and the reason many women rail against the portrayal of women in books (e.g. solely there to prop up male characters, to add love interest or sexual interest or sexual exploitation) or the portrayal of books for women. In fact your whole post sums it up in a roundabout kind of way. Just because you're a women doesn't mean you're interested in romance. Women manage to have whole lives filled with action, activity, intrigue, exploits and dramas which have nothing to do with men or the domestic sphere. So why do these things not exist, or seem so hard to find, in literature (and movies)? Interestingly in the movies they are now starting to understand that you can take a character which has been written as a man and cast a woman in the role and there is no need to make any changes because, you know what: women are people too. Flawed and interesting, just like men. Just poorly represented, typecast and, often, dismissed. I think this is also a problem with the idea of the 'strong, independent female role model'. I'm not too fussed about an idealistic representation of women, but a realistic and representative one would be nice. The issue with rape in books is that it's often there for male titillation, and contributes (in a roundabout way, as lots of things do) to the ongoing representation of women as being for male consumption and male desire being the primary appetite being served rather than historical accuracy.
    Updated 01-29-2016 at 12:51 PM by TheFifthElement
  19. stephofthenight's Avatar
    What a cutie!
  20. qimissung's Avatar
    Well, the whole Hunger Games trilogy seems a bit of a mirror image of a lot of things that are going on in our culture right now, with the growing divide between the wealthy and the poor and the shrinking of the middle class, and the excesses of the 1%. I'm interested in looking decent and even well-dressed (by my standards) when I leave the house. That in no way means that I have a sense of style from this or any other age because sadly I do not. I look at the designers as artists, because that is really what they are. But people who are interested in only wearing clothes that have a designer label-not interesting. I do not want a Kate Spade bag-by the way, here's an interesting read:

    http://www.slate.com/articles/busine...obscenely.html


    Or a Coach bag-why do people even think they're attractive? Or Jimmy Choo shoes, etc., etc. But as with the open design of most houses today with their stainless steel appliances and granite counter tops, these are all markers of success. I have different markers, but on the whole people are heavily influenced by the culture around them. It's hard to escape the pull of it's gravity. I like the quote (and I loved Oryx and Crake). I think there's some truth to that, but mostly if that's ALL one is interested in or if people are insistent on using that as a judgement on others, then I definitely find that shallow. And in the case of the latter, I have just two words for you. But as to the archaeology aspect of it, here's a quote from ancient Rome: "Vestis virum reddit." Or "Clothes make the man," (Quintilianus). So it's also a perception that's been around a long, long time, just as has the clash between the classes.
    Updated 08-28-2015 at 10:40 AM by qimissung
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