The Invisible Counterpoint

On the last day of fourth grade, my youngest daughter was tying her shoes while I stood waiting with her lunchbox. "Do you remember fourth grade, Mom?"she asked, as she struggled to lace up the Chuck Taylors. My answer surprised both of us. "I hated it. It was the worst year of school I ever had." My fourth grade tormenter looked like a Gap Kids model. "C" had porcelain skin, perfect white teeth, cornflower eyes, and blond hair that hung thick and straight, regardless of weather conditions. She arrived in Mrs. McKenna's classroom, took one look around, and decided she wanted my best friend Kitty to be her best friend. And she went about driving me away from the herd the way only elementary school mean girls can. She teased me for being fat, for wearing glasses. For days at a time, she would be kind to me, inviting me to birthday parties and sleepovers. Then, BAM -- I would be back in the doghouse, with no idea what happened. I later found out t...

I'm wondering if he understands that if you post on OS, you're insufficiently independent--perhaps by definition, not so worthy, or at least not a real writer. I know writers who'll do blogger but would never consider OS -- it would make you too much one of a bunch, never sole proprietor. Old-fashioned understanding of what a real writer's identity is all about. I have a strong hunch that that's it. My sense of Kerry Lauerman right now is that he still likes to flag posts which seem like they could fit in with Salon's front stories, rather than recognize posts which carry more of the indigenous OS flavor/genius. It's more, "look, we have some people here near as good as you guys”; and not, “look, here at OS is emerging THIS sort of communally-inspired charisma." (I'm posting this for my own consideration, too.) Scott's a good guy, but even from someone who helped start up OS, this could be it. Other things that come to mind: It is possibl...

carpet dog. She did, the bitch!

talladega nights (columbia pictures) If OS ended up having 300 000 members, revenues that were off the charts, but had come to seem loud and obnoxious, even if still liberal, would the editors at OS care? My guess is they'd be toasting the times, congradulating one another on their entrepreneurial acumen and evidenced democratic sentiment, excusing/assessing all the noise as democracy in action. EPs would bring in some bucks, feel more like published authors, and show how all -- if you look at it the right way -- has actually matured and progressed over time ("Sure, we'd all like to live in Utopia, but it's really about time you came to appreciate that with adulthood comes compromise, kids"). You'll lose a lot of the truly decent, the inspiringly hopeful and ethical; hopefully they'll be off to start up a non-profit, and keep us in the know about it. Ads in the middle of the page -- how obnoxious. "This sticker is dangerous and inconvenient, b...