Tragedy of the Commons

[Steelhead]

karatnytsky complains about the quality of the Village Voice (no Mailer, no
Cockburn, no Andrew Sarris, is J. Hoberman still there?--don't know, never
read it, no Jack Newfeld, what happened to Manning Marable (they're trying
to out him too, aren't they), Ron Rosenbaum defected to the Observer, Nat
Hentoff hanging on by his fingernails, bad heart and all, James Walcott
axed, and on and on):

>     It's
>     too bad the _Voice_ is such trash most of the time these days.)
>
>     Chris
>

Well, Chris, it's a Tragedy of the Commons. You _know_ that kind of tragedy
don't you, Chris. That old Malthusian Garrett Hardin wrote all about it in
that book, Spaceship Earth, where Mr. Hardin (who does a smashing imitation
of Dr. Strangelove, don't you know) says we out to require abortions for
most black pregnant folk. Or at least with-hold their food stamps and let
them starve to death. Because the alternative is so much worse...worse for
us, I mean, in the long run?

Well, they--probably some black lady in marketing--started handing out the
VV for free, mind you, FREE, and then it went to hell, the real talent
jumped ship, and what passes for their editors (ex-MS. staffers) started
askin' rank amateurs like me to scribble for it. Like I said, Tragedy of
the fuckin' Commons, broh...

Steely

Where water unravels
over gravel-beds he
is fired from the shallows
white belly reporting

flat; darts like a tracer-
bullet back between stones
and is never burnt out.
A volley of cold blood

ramrodding the current.

Seamus Heaney
from "Trout"

Now you begin to see why I love this guy Heaney.