M&D, the Internet&W.A.S.T.E.

[Catherine P.]

Andrew Dinn sez: 

.... (I'll follow Pynchon in
>discounting TCOL49). So, the obvious conclusion to draw wrt Mason &
>Dixon is that it should centre on the Internet as the next logical
>progression (and/or regression) in the chain of communication media.
>

I'm interested in your connection, but I wouldn't discount COL49, no
matter if you say are following Pynchon's lead  (i.e. there's reason to
believe that Slow Learner's aw-shucks forward and title itself are
crocodile tears of humility).  

The posthorn could perhaps fit into your mention of 'mythology and
(iconic) images' in V., with it's own brand of wingless Hermes symbolism.
A-and though not 'mass media,' W.A.S.T.E. was a system of lo-tech
communication as well, an underground network of interpersonal messages. 
If M&D is indeed about the web/Internet, than COL49/W.A.S.T.E. seems like
a direct precursor to it.  With encryption and list-cliques, e-mail can
be anonymous and secretive (or as susceptible to eavesdropping as
mailbags under interstate highways, for hackers or bridge dwellers). 
Then there's the creative concept of communicating via live-on-stage
tragedy...  On the other end of the internal/external spectrum, the
Internet could be the backdrop for a marriage of all of TP's mass media
themes--worldwide websites instead of WWII film noir or gonzo TV, with
animated computer pixels replacing 24 fps and downloading files instead
of satellite feeds....  E-mail posts usurping graffiti posthorns of the
past....  I guess we'll soon see.

--Catherine