detective work

[Doug Millison]

James,  I'll continue to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you
did NOT create that email yourself, although I don't quite understand what
made you leap to conclusions and call me a hypocrite -- that seems
disporportionately  hostile, given that as far as I can remember you and I
have not had any particular disagreements on Pynchon-L.

I've just done a little looking in the archives, and I think the post below
is where this particular thread started, where I first mention "Canadians
and Mexicans are also "American," on October 6.

Later, still on October 6, I wrote in another post:
"I have Canadian and Mexican acquaintances who consider themselves American
because they are from North America."

I didn't write anymore posts in this thread, but as you'll see below, Paul
Mackin did, along with slothrop666 on October 7.

So, I'll appreciate it if you'll back off from calling me a hypocrite, and
from implying that I'm a liar (and if you haven't intended to imply that, I
apologize in advance for leaping to that conclusion).

By the way, here's something Pynchon wrote in this regard:

"There was silence in that clearing I'd only felt once before.  Once, in
Mexico. The year I was in America."
[GR 488]


You're saying you received that offlist email on October 7:

- ----- Original Message -----
From: big one <slothrop666 at yahoo.com>
To: James Kyllo <plistmail at 666thebeast.com>
Sent: Sunday, October 07, 2001 12:05 AM
Subject: Re: pynchon-l-digest V2 #2118


> I've heard it both ways, from both Mexicans and
> Canadians.
> -doug
>

I don't have a clue who wrote this.  I do know that a small handful of
P-list participants have been working very hard to insult, vilify, and
slander me in recent weeks, P-list participants who have in some cases been
doing that for several years now.


Paul Mackin got involved in this thread, too, and what a surprise, on
October 7, in the wee hours of the morning, too, not long after that
slothrop666 post went to James!!!  Look what Mackin wrote:



Date: Sun, 7 Oct 2001 02:33:05 -0400
From: "Paul Mackin" <paul.mackin at verizon.net>
Subject: Re: Who's American?

- ----- Original Message -----
From: "Doug Millison" <millison at online-journalist.com>

> I have Canadian and Mexican acquaintances who consider themselves American
> because they are from North America.

Any of them named Barbara by any chance?

        P.

----------------------------------------------------------------


Paul, you surprise me.  I've just taken you for an ornery old dude and it's
beginning to look like you operate multiple personae on Pynchon-L!  Who
would have thunk it.  You might want to consider finding another hobby.


Here's where the thread started, I think, 13 hours prior to the offlist
message James received:
------------------------------

Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2001 11:05:05 -0700
From: Doug Millison <millison at online-journalist.com>
Subject: Re: pynchon-l-digest V2 #2118

 jbor <jbor at bigpond.com>
>[...]For a change most "anti-American" sentiment right now is coming from
>voices
>inside America, and that's not necessarily a good thing.

If it's coming from "Americans" (and I don't particularly like the way that
word is used, if it's U.S. residents we mean, because Canadians and
Mexicans are also "American), in a spirit of constructive criticism that
seeks to help the country live up to its ideals of democracy and justice,
it's hardly "anti-American."  Dissent has a long tradition in the U.S., in
fact lies at the heart of our nation-building project.

More accurate to call "anti-American" those voices that seek to stifle or
marginalize dissent, that wrap themselves in the flag and demand a
homogenous and uncritical patriotism that supports whatever the politicians
want to do, which is usually in the best interests of their financal
supporters, and which may or may not be in the best interest of the people.


>I think Pynchon in _M&D_ amply demonstrates the insidious ways that
>*language* creates ideology.

I'm not sure precisely what you mean by this, but it sounds good enough.
But, what creates language?




Doug Millison - Writer/Editor/Web Editorial Consultant
millison at online-journalist.com
www.Online-Journalist.com

------------------------------


Here's that later post I wrote on Oct 6, 6 hours after my first post:
------------------------------

Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2001 17:23:39 -0700
From: Doug Millison <millison at online-journalist.com>
Subject: Who's American?

I have Canadian and Mexican acquaintances who consider themselves American
because they are from North America.




Canadian James:
"Oh no we're not.  Canadians and Mexicans are North American.  Only
Americans
are American."

------------------------------



Doug Millison - Writer/Editor/Web Editorial Consultant
millison at online-journalist.com
www.Online-Journalist.com