Man in Hightower Netflix

Tue Dec 8 16:22:13 CST 2015

Kind of typing on the go but I feel like a lot of people hold to the view
that something in the collective western consciousness changes in early to
mid twentieth century (as literature they call modernism transitions to
postmodernism). I mean a huge amount of academic brainpower is spent
studying when and why that change happens. Obviously I have no idea but the
art seems to be as good a record of that sort of thing as any. Gotta think
war and weapons on the scale of both world wars but especially the latter
(rockets, war suddenly becoming not only total or societally ubiquitous but
atmospherically ubiquitous, physically/literally global) leads to a psyche
that grows up profoundly different.

I mean I feel like a lot of preceding centuries post-dark-ages lend to
greater feelings of understanding toward the world, more feelings of
control over it, maybe primarily: it feels more knowable and thus more
controllable/utopiable. Renaissance. Ages of Reason/Enlightenment. Lots of
good humanistic stuff in there. Then westward expansion, the new world, and
(hugely) the industrial revolution all take this in horrifying new
directions. There are other mixed things: the rise of globalism,
journalism, the rise of the academy, scientific method, Freud... The
machinery and logic involved in the horrors of the world wars, genocide, so
forth, I think must have some rug-pulling effect on the human mind.
Suddenly everything we've been working for/toward is revealed to have
possibly been not only for nothing but for evil. Suddenly our belief that
we can understand, control, improve the world, etc., is shown to be an
utter fallacy. And for those of us who have built our lives on our faith in
that notion--what do we have left? What can we really believe in?

This is one of the things academics whiff on regarding what you might call
postmodernism--how human it is. How much it's a desperate, rock-bottom
response to the inability to trust or believe anything. We have food, we
have ourselves, our communities, but what do we have to make sense of the
world? The art, maybe. The world of the novel, the right novel, which makes
no claim to objectivity, and which strives for no truth other than to
itself, to the experience of itself...

Sorry to ramble. I know I can get really wind-baggy.

On Dec 8, 2015, at 2:07 PM, Perry Noid <coolwithdoc at gmail.com> wrote:

The making sense of it, I'm wondering, for the less younger, when did that
sense of friction reconciling the current events of childhood with the less
triumphant view of it, like in GR, occur? I mean, for me there were no
triumphs of society growing up. My generation was born into the same world,
still pre-Internet, but post-Vietnam and political scandal and such. We
were already stained. Or is my thinking flawed in that sense, that it was a
more innocent (or just ignorant) time back then?

On Tuesday, December 8, 2015, Monte Davis <montedavis49 at gmail.com> wrote:

> oops, that shoulda been "dream and nightmare" in the last sentence
>
> On Tue, Dec 8, 2015 at 1:32 PM, Monte Davis <montedavis49 at gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
>> Perry: The dominant recent-history / current events memes of my 1950s and
>> early 1960s childhood were, as you'd expect, mostly Cold War, post-WWII US
>> triumphalism, and space. All became problematic as the 1960s went on,
>> creating the perfect setup for GR as "where it all began" when I was 23.
>> I've been unpacking them (and their successors) ever since, with Pynchon as
>> constant reassurance that burlesque and pastiche, dream and pastiche, make
>> more sense of it than the historians do.
>>
>> On Tue, Dec 8, 2015 at 12:39 PM, Perry Noid <coolwithdoc at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> I don't doubt that a lot of the tradecraft in The Americans is inspired
>>> by former spy consultants but at the end of the day, like all historical
>>> dramas on the tube, it's pastiche. Doesn't mean it's a bad thing, it's a
>>> good thing, would be boring otherwise. George Smiley though makes the
>>> boring bits of espionage entertaining too and I like that. It's a cut above
>>> I agree but even he is pastiche.
>>>
>>> The meme thing Monte was talking about does make me wonder too. The
>>> television news of my childhood plays back like the opening credits
>>> montage. Big wall being hammered, princess being murdered, white Bronco
>>> speeding on a highway, separatists being killed and buildings blowing up. I
>>> was a junior in high school on 11 sep. I might not be remembering this very
>>> accurately but I recall the adults being much more traumatized than me and
>>> my peers that morning. Could just be that we were jaded teenagers, don't
>>> know for sure.
>>>
>>>
>>> On Tuesday, December 8, 2015, rich <richard.romeo at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> I do like the Americans, too. and I agree some plots seem far-fetched
>>>> but when you hear about what went on/does go on in the intelligence
>>>> community in real life you do wonder sometimes. both leads are wonderful.
>>>> I would place George Smiley a cut above Bond and the rest. There's a
>>>> new bio out on LeCarre which I hope to start soon. Knowing a bit more about
>>>> places like Oxford and Cambridge really helped me understand alot about
>>>> British intelligence during the Cold War and  the cast of rogues and odd
>>>> ducks in LeCarre's books. The British series is of course peerless TV
>>>> unlike the recent movie which was utter crap.
>>>>
>>>> rich
>>>>
>>>> On Tue, Dec 8, 2015 at 10:38 AM, Perry Noid <coolwithdoc at gmail.com>
>>>> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> I can tell you that myself and my friends who were born in the 80s are
>>>>> well aware that The Americans is utter fiction. To me it's like Bond
>>>>> or George Smiley.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Tuesday, December 8, 2015, Monte Davis <montedavis49 at gmail.com>
>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> I wonder about the demographics for The Americans -- i.e., how many
>>>>>> 20- or 30-somethings are getting their "historical" view of the late Cold
>>>>>> War from it? I'm thinking of meme complexes such as the Wild West,  or
>>>>>> "Untouchables" crime in the Roaring Twenties (both quite limited and
>>>>>> transient in fact, but huge in cultural weight)... or for that matter "24"
>>>>>> and some other post-9/11 portrayals of the Global War on Something or Other.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I think I was paying attention in the 1980s -- and I don't remember
>>>>>> 1% of The Americans level of espionage-related violence in and around
>>>>>> Washington, DC. I thought the whole point of superpower empire was that we
>>>>>> got to offshore the dirty work to Beirut, San Salvador, Kabul, Luanda,
>>>>>> etc...?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Tue, Dec 8, 2015 at 10:10 AM, Monte Davis <montedavis49 at gmail.com>
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Tue, Dec 8, 2015 at 9:49 AM, Perry Noid <coolwithdoc at gmail.com>
>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Ooh that looks good and it reminds me. I also love the TV show The
>>>>>>>> Americans. It's junk television and totally preposterous at times but
>>>>>>>> very very entertaining.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On Tuesday, December 8, 2015, Monte Davis <montedavis49 at gmail.com>
>>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FppW5ml4vdw
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> On Tue, Dec 8, 2015 at 9:10 AM, David Morris <fqmorris at gmail.com>
>>>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Behind Winston's back the voice from the telescreen was still
>>>>>>>>>> babbling away about pig-iron and the overfulfilment of the Ninth Three-Year
>>>>>>>>>> Plan. The telescreen received and transmitted simultaneously. Any sound
>>>>>>>>>> that Winston made, above the level of a very low whisper, would be picked
>>>>>>>>>> up by it, moreover, so long as he remained within the field of vision which
>>>>>>>>>> the metal plaque commanded, he could be seen as well as heard. There was of
>>>>>>>>>> course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given
>>>>>>>>>> moment. How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any
>>>>>>>>>> individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched
>>>>>>>>>> everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire
>>>>>>>>>> whenever they wanted to. You had to live -- did live, from habit that
>>>>>>>>>> became instinct -- in the assumption that every sound you made was
>>>>>>>>>> overheard, and, except in darkness, every movement scrutinized.
>>>>>>>>>> From *1984*
>>>>>>>>>> <http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/AuthorSpecAlphaList.asp?BkNum=143>,
>>>>>>>>>> by George Orwell
>>>>>>>>>> <http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/AuthorTotalAlphaList.asp?AuNum=61>
>>>>>>>>>> .
>>>>>>>>>> Published by Unknown in 1948
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> On Tue, Dec 8, 2015 at 3:23 AM, Kai Frederik Lorentzen <
>>>>>>>>>> lorentzen at hotmail.de> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> THE TUBE
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Oh ... the ... Tube!
>>>>>>>>>>> It's poi-soning your brain!
>>>>>>>>>>> Oh yes....
>>>>>>>>>>> It's dri-ving you, insane!
>>>>>>>>>>> It's shoot-ing rays, at you,
>>>>>>>>>>> Over ev'ry-thing ya do,
>>>>>>>>>>> It sees you in your bedroom,
>>>>>>>>>>> And --- on th' toi-let too!
>>>>>>>>>>>             Yoo Hoo! The
>>>>>>>>>>> Tube....
>>>>>>>>>>> It knows your ev'ry thought,
>>>>>>>>>>> Hey, Boob, you thought you would-
>>>>>>>>>>> T'n get caught ---
>>>>>>>>>>> While you were sittin' there, starin' at "The
>>>>>>>>>>> Brady Bunch,"
>>>>>>>>>>> Big fat computer jus'
>>>>>>>>>>> Had you for lunch, now Th'
>>>>>>>>>>> Tube ---
>>>>>>>>>>> It's plugged right in, to you!
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> (Vineland, pp.336-337)
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> I'm watching too much TV too, but the thread simply asked for
>>>>>>>>>>> this song. And isn't it amazing how Pynchon anticipated 'Smart-TV?'
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On 08.12.2015 05:14, John Bailey wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> A lot of people are loving Mr Robot (which I haven't seen). In the
>>>>>>>>>>> Black Mirror vein I believe.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On Tue, Dec 8, 2015 at 2:31 PM, Perry Noid <coolwithdoc at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> And oh yeah I did like Breaking bad but that was another one whose ending
>>>>>>>>>>> annoyed me. The penultimate episode worked better as an ending imo. They
>>>>>>>>>>> filmed the first season in Albuquerque during my final year at UNM and my
>>>>>>>>>>> compatriate played the bratty kid in the first episode so it was a mandatory
>>>>>>>>>>> watch. Show got harder for me to watch after moving out of Albuquerque. Was
>>>>>>>>>>> like becoming the outsider and seeing the city with a different perspective.
>>>>>>>>>>> Was a dirty place for me and it became clearer when recognizing the
>>>>>>>>>>> landmarks with a sufficient physical detachment from the place. I dunno, the
>>>>>>>>>>> show felt really icky. Great show though overall.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On Monday, December 7, 2015, David Morris <fqmorris at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Breaking Bad was superb. I don't know Luther.  Is on Netflix or Amazon?
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On Monday, December 7, 2015, Allan Balliett <allan.balliett at gmail.com>
>>>>>>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Perry - What about Luther ? Or The Wire? You didn't like True Detective?
>>>>>>>>>>> Or the "recent" BBC Sherlock Holmes shows? I agree about Man in the High
>>>>>>>>>>> Castle. Too many of the binge tv series get sidetracked into unimportant
>>>>>>>>>>> character stories. (Good to see that Luther is getting a second coming as an
>>>>>>>>>>> American series. If its anything like the clip I saw on Late Night the other
>>>>>>>>>>> night, it's going to be a good un.)
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> -Allan in WV
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On Mon, Dec 7, 2015 at 7:22 PM, Perry Noid <coolwithdoc at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> When it comes to teevee, sopranos and mad men spoiled me. Nothing else
>>>>>>>>>>> has really satisfied me.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On Monday, December 7, 2015, Perry Noid <coolwithdoc at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> I couldn't make it through the first episode.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> On Monday, December 7, 2015, David Morris <fqmorris at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> Ten episodes in, and just tolerating it. Way too slowly paced and full
>>>>>>>>>>> of irrelevant personal drama interactions.  I haven't read the book, but I'm
>>>>>>>>>>> sure the plot is more important in the book than it is in this show.
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> David Morris
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>> -
>>>>>>>>>>> Pynchon-l / http://www.waste.org/mail/?list=pynchon-l
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>
>>
>
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