New binarisms (aka Evil politicians)

[davemarc]

At 03:27 PM 11/13/96 PST, John wrote:
>
>And don't it look like we're falling into another of those dreaded
--binarisms--
>by 
>positioning individuality against group?  Clearly it takes a village to do
some 
>things right, and there are other things--like the way information on sex
or disease 
>is presented to my child--where I don't really give a fuck what the village
thinks, 
>but I will do what my own lights lead me to do.
>
>I think the word "village" is being used equivocally, drifting signifiers or  
>something, different images for different people using it.  Is it Happy
Town or the 
>Village of the Damned you see when the word is slung around?
>the knee-jerk acceptance of this new communalism, which, concurring w/ David 
>C., Steely and others, ain't leading to no kinda village I want to raise my
kids up in 
>(Centreville--it's really neat!!), 

Did I miss something?  What's the new communalism?  What are the signs that
it's been accepted?  What's so frightening about it?  

> I am surprised that my friend and erstwhile 
>colleague Diana York Blaine, so astute normally, stops sounding so astute
to me 
>when this topic is broached.  I say respectfully Diana that in your last
post you 
>sounded less like Diana York Blaine and more like Diana Moon Glampers. 
>Everybody should go read  Kurt Vonnegut's short story "The Big Space Fuck" 
>published I think in Harlen Ellison's DANGEROUS VISIONS (the 2nd one), 
>though Vonnegut touches on this theme i (and uses Diana Moon Glampers) in a 
>couple of other works.
>
I'm not sure what's meant as far as Vonnegut, community, and individualism
are concerned.  I think he feels equally enthusiastic (and guarded) about
community, individualism, and things in-between.

davemarc