tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post2455310038712122784..comments2023-10-18T01:52:22.751-07:00Comments on The American Dissident: Experiment in Free Speech and DemocracyG. Tod Slonehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-55307111363646973782010-03-31T08:19:46.646-07:002010-03-31T08:19:46.646-07:00Well I'm one taxi cab driver DiGangi hasn'...Well I'm one taxi cab driver DiGangi hasn't forged a connection with. I have to say, though, that of that crowd Spencer Troxell was about the only one who any sort of open mindedness.matherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16530161108492070300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-37078600562864518812010-03-29T18:44:08.174-07:002010-03-29T18:44:08.174-07:00Yeah, I remember that dude Gangi. He seemed to hav...Yeah, I remember that dude Gangi. He seemed to have a problem with clear reasoning! What else is new, right? Here's what I wrote on Gangi (it's on the AD website):<br /><br />Why do so many today prefer poetry as witty, diversionary entertainment? Does that not render poetry non-vital? Poet editor Matt DiGangi of Thieves Jargon perhaps holds the answer: "Exactly what I want to run! I want people to have fun with what they're reading on the Jargon, I'm looking to give them something to print out and read on the bus ride home, make them forget about the eight hours of neon they've just had to endure." <br /><br />"If it isn't fun, it's not poetry," wrote Beatnik poet Robert Creeley. One must wonder what the Spanish civil-war, Gulag (see two photos on right), and dissident Latin-American poets would have thought of Creeley and DiGangi. Oddly, while solo protesting C. D. Wright's reading and reception of the Robert Creeley Award in Acton, the editor was suddenly assailed by poet Martin Espada's wife. I thought she might start swinging her fists because she was angry about the flyer I'd been distributing. It had brought Robert Creeley's widow to tears (See cartoon on Robert Creeley Award page). She rapped on and on how great Creeley was (he'd helped husband Espada get tenure at the University of Massachusetts and who knows what else) and seemed utterly incapable of comprehending that to "go upright and vital, and speak the rude truth in all ways" was apt to upset somebody. She could not comprehend that a poet thus had to choose between exercising free speech and shutting his or her mouth to avoid offending. She promised to continue the debate by sending an email, which she never did. Husband Espada was too high and mighty and immersed in the dubious world of award presentations to even enter into the "debate." <br /><br />DiGangi argues "endure." But why not stand up instead, criticize, get ANGRY, step the hell out of the neon mold of enduring, and shake things up a little? How wily and successful power and its money can be! DiGangi also argues "I was with you from the start, but you use language that insulates yourself from a common reader. I've managed to forge more of a connection with cubicle geeks, barstool storytellers and taxi cab drivers, not academics and theorists."G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-67245909413424485082010-03-29T11:46:04.920-07:002010-03-29T11:46:04.920-07:00I mentioned your website on Thieves Jargon blog a ...I mentioned your website on Thieves Jargon blog a while ago and Matt DiGangi said that if I knew and liked you I must be a "cunt". That's probably where Spencer heard of the site.matherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16530161108492070300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-58818328622549788622010-03-29T07:31:28.789-07:002010-03-29T07:31:28.789-07:00Thanks, Spencer. Nothing like a strong reaction, ...Thanks, Spencer. Nothing like a strong reaction, as opposed to, oh, my, I just love what he does! <br />As for cartooning, anyone can do it. I took it up 10 years ago and had no experience in art at all. Gradually, but surely, the technique improved. Practice as they say makes perfect (or almost).G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-25822271437833411312010-03-24T05:58:18.752-07:002010-03-24T05:58:18.752-07:00I heard about you awhile ago. Someone on some webs...I heard about you awhile ago. Someone on some website mentioned your website, and it got a pretty strong reaction from a few commenters, and I decided I would look into it. I like to keep up on my gadflies. <br /><br />I guess I had forgotten about it until the other day, when the phrase 'American Dissident' (for some reason) popped into my head, so I looked you up. <br /><br />I like that each of your posts comes with a cartoon. If I had any artistic talent, I might be tempted to copycat you on my own blog.Spencer Troxellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03750605353914336538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-84024502435829019212010-03-20T12:17:32.239-07:002010-03-20T12:17:32.239-07:00Thanks Spencer for taking the time to comment. I ...Thanks Spencer for taking the time to comment. I wonder how you even found out about this post. To date and to no surprise, not one of the 19 English professors contacted has deigned to respond. Not one of the 20 student editors have responded either, which confirms my thought that likely they are well-trained editors. I haven't really had much experience with community colleges. Your observation is an interesting and understandable one. I have "hit" community colleges too. So, as far as I can tell, they're as closed-minded as 4-year colleges. The professorial mentality is a shameful one. It can easily be explained, however, by the likelihood that most professors were probably brown-nosing students from grade one right through the university. It is likely that most professors rarely if ever questioned and challenged their professors and teachers.G. Tod Slonehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08298151154368372719noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-239569862679528067.post-64192089084776505832010-03-20T07:51:34.206-07:002010-03-20T07:51:34.206-07:00Mr. Slone: Good post. I haven't been involved ...Mr. Slone: Good post. I haven't been involved with too many colleges, but I did earn my bachelor's degree from a big university, and got my associate's degree from one of it's satellite 'community' colleges. I found that the academic attitude you're challenging here was much more prevalent in the big 'official' version of the university I attended than it was in the satellite outpost. The professors at the community college were much feistier and open to debate, and generally more passionate about their subjects than their big league counterparts. The funny thing to me was that the big league professors tended to look down their noses at the professors at community colleges, although (the ones that I took classes with at least) were far superior and more memorable.<br /><br />What is your experience with community colleges, and have you hit any of them up for speaking opportunities?<br /><br />Of course my experience is totally anecdotal, so the reality could be much different.Spencer Troxellhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03750605353914336538noreply@blogger.com