From: Platt Holden (pholden@sc.rr.com)
Date: Fri Mar 25 2005 - 17:23:55 GMT
All:
It's always interesting in a debate to reveal your opponents underlying
assumptions. Here some of Arlo's, gleaned from his posts to me and Ham:
Arloian Assumptions:
. Recognition of good music isn't learned. It just comes naturally.
. All judgments about what is degenerate are equally valid.
. All judgments about what is sexually provocative are equally valid.
. All judgments about what is biological quality are equally valid.
.Each person is a musical connoisseur.
.One person's artistic standards are as good as anyone else's.
.No one should judge the free expression of one's biological urges as
degenerate.
. If you judge a song is degenerate, then you must be degenerate.
. Art often reflects the ills of society.
. Poverty, homelessness and disenfranchisement are pervasive social ills.
.Degenerate songs are evidence of social decay caused by social strife.
.Punk rock that condemns social ills is good.
.Art that incites revolution to correct social ills is good.
.Some (unspecified) status quos need to be overturned.
.There is social decay because 1) the idea of a 'commons" has been
replaced by "everything is private property, 2) the prevailing view that
we are only responsible for ourselves and everyone else can go to hell, 3)
there's a lack of concern about labor exploitation and class
stratification, 4) and lack of concern about racial profiteering, proper
sex education, and in general, oppression, alienation, and repression.
It's abundantly clear that Arlo believes in radical equality (except about
his ideas) and social revolution. While he thinks I fits Pirsig's
characterization of Rigel, I think he fits Pirsig's description of a
Hippie whose "Contempt for rules, for material possessions, for war, for
police, for science, for technology was standard repertoire." (Lila, 24)
Oh, I'm sorry. I just committed a sin - a Platteral shift. I'll pray for
forgiveness from the tolerant, compassionate, concerned, "we're-all-equal"
left.
Platt
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