ATDTDA (3) The way it happens, 91-96

[robinlandseadel at comcast.net]

One of the constant themes of Pynchon is slavery,
and the great waves of social change left in the wake
of emancipation and other attempts at freedom.

"Neither party expected for the war the magnitude or the 
duration which it has already attained....Both read the 
same Bible and pray to the same God, and each invokes 
His aid against the other....
   If we shall suppose that American slavery is one of 
those offenses which, in the providence of God, must 
needs come, but which, having continued through His 
appointed time, He now wills to remove, and that He 
gives to both North and South this terrible war as the 
woe due to those by whom the offense came, shall we 
discern therein any departure from those divine attributes 
which the believers in a living God always ascribe to Him? 
Fondly do we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty 
scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills 
that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman's
 wo hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, 
and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be 
paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three t
housand years ago, so still it must be said "the judgments 
of the Lord are true and righteous altogether."

Thanks, Monte, for the last two weeks. Seems like the p-list 
has more than enough collective hot air (and trust me, I know
all about the hot air of collectives) to keep this dirigible afloat 
for at least the duration. It's been interesting
watching the forking paths of our dia(trio? multi?)logues,
with some lines about Lake in the 1890's running into Frenesi
in the 1960's, then suddenly up out of nowhere we've 
wandered into Nordhausen, the p-list collectivly forking 
off into some kinda time travel. Which is just as it should be, 
all the echos of Pynchon's previous writing being such a large
theme (an "overview") in Against the Day.  I better start 
hustling up some notes 'n' quotes, October will be here before 
you know it. Hope some of them math geeks come out of the 
closet, something tells me I'm missing something here. . . .