unthinkable thoughts

[Paul Mackin]

On Sat, 2003-05-10 at 16:07, Terrance wrote:
> 
> 
> Paul Mackin wrote:
> 
>  Each message may be seen by
> > some as unseemly. Neither message however it wrong.
> > 
> > Sounds Poly-Annist but Pynchon thinks it worth a mention.
> > 
> > P.
> 
> Well, as long as both messages are permitted.

They are permitted. You are messaging at this very instant. Keep it up.

 But that's not what
> happened. What we got was extended wiretapping authority, the power to
> detain suspicious immigrants indefinitely and without charge, powers
> enabling the Justice Department to get financial and other records
> without having to secure a warrant and show probable cause, and so on.
> How we got it was nearly as frightening as the result. Ashcroft and
> company pushed to have the Bill passed in three days and a democratic
> congress led by the democratic leadership in both chambers passed it
> without giving the nation  an opportunity to debate it. Journalist with
> political axes to grind cried foul but pointed their partisan fingers at
> Bush and Ashcroft thus  muddying the waters. Why not reconsider? It's
> well known that the power to investigate and prevent the kind of attack
> that took place on 9-11 were in place prior to the Patriot Act. But the
> mood, the passion, the anthrax, the dust and blood, blinded a Nation and
> handed the Executive branch more power than it needs, a grave danger to
> our system of government. How dangerous? Floating out there is a Patriot
> II draft. Patriot II would permit the indefinite and secret detention,
> and interrogation of anyone, even US citizens. The Bill, if passed,
> would give the government the authority to strip any citizen of
> citizenship. I don't feel to secure. I mean, with people like Doug
> around d ready to rat me out and all. I can see him now, his fishing rod
> and his 12 steps bible and his copy of Gravity's Rainbow, calling the
> INS. Immigrants are going back home. The economy is in the toilet.
> Unions people are nervous about all this. The AFL-CIO passed a
> resolution, "We can not accept excessive secrecy and unaccountable power
> that deny Americans the ability to question the authority and evaluate
> the conduct of their government." In NYC we are in desperate shape. We
> are closing out libraries. It's sad. Really sad. Pynchon live in NYC,
> lives in AMerica, but he has nothing whatever to say about all this? 
> 
>  The guy doesn't want to say anything about it. If he did he would. That
> is, unless Doug is his clone or something.


He might have said something in the forward. Not cryptically but in no
uncertain terms that all readers could understand. He obviously didn't
think see it as the right thing to do.. The reason for his reticence
wasn't one of fear. (Except perhaps fear of sounding too much like
Doug). They don't put you in jail for calling the president a fascist.
(Just don't say you intend to kill him--that's a no no) I suspect  .
Pynchon feels pretty much like I do--that if one is going on record
accusing Bush of wrongdoing one should concentrate on the real sins.
Trying to denude the American Treasure of a Trillion dollars or so of
money needed to solve huge American social problems. An almost as big
sin is is allowing the religious fundamentalist segment of his party to
influence his actions in the field of stem cell research and that sort
of thing.

A question of proportionality.

P.