February 4, 2010
*************************
BORN-AGAIN
****************************************
Somewhere Sartre describes the process whereby a man passively accepts values invented by others as “kneeling down like an animal to be loaded with them.” In other words, to die as a man and be born again as a jackass.
*
In everything I write I try to understand and explain myself hoping thus to understand my fellow men and the world around me. As for changing the world: even when one succeeds in that particular endeavor, one may fail in many others. Consider Marx's dream and the reality of the Soviet Union. If Marx had been a contemporary of Stalin, my guess is either he would have committed suicide or written a treatise in praise of capitalism.
*
Whenever I am insulted anonymously, I say to myself: Let's give the devil his due. Obviously the man knows how to read. He may not always understand what he reads but he has taken an important first step. It would be a mistake to give up on him. In a year or two, or in ten or twenty years, his understanding may catch up with his reading skills. Rome wasn't built in one day. My own understanding took longer than twenty years to reach the present point. What right do I have to make greater demands on others?
#
February 5, 2010
*************************
THOUGHTS AND FEELINGS
****************************************
The most valuable thoughts are those that contradict our emotions.
*
When I wrote what they wanted to read, I was happy and they were happy, until I read Einstein's remark to the effect that to aim at happiness at the expense of truth is to entertain “the ambitions of a pig.”
*
ON SOLUTIONS
********************************
The first step is the realization that, like the kingdom of God, solutions too are within you.
*
MEMO TO READERS
WHO INSULT ME ANONYMOUSLY
************************************************
Your own shadow is a much more serious threat to you than I could ever be. But then, cowards don't need a real threat to experience fear, for their greatest enemy is their own imagination.
*
TOYNBEE'S CONCEPTION OF REALITY
*************************************************
“Every human being now alive has links, however tenuous, not only with every one of his contemporaries, but also with every other human being that has ever lived. In this sense human history is one single seamless web, and any dissection of it is an arbitrary misrepresentation of Reality.”
*
MAX WEBER ON MODERN MAN
*********************************************
“Specialists without vision, sensualists without heart; this nullity imagines that it has attained a level of civilization never before achieved.”
#
February 6, 2010
*************************
MIKOYAN
*********************
In his 1959:THE YEAR EVERYTHING CHANGED (New Jersey, 2009), Fred Kaplan devotes an entire chapter to Mikoyan's 1959 visit to America. A man of “blunt words, crackling wit, and unfailing good humor,” Mikoyan is also said to have been followed by Hungarian demonstrators who called him “mass murderer!” We also read here that Khrushchev affectionately called him “my Armenian,” and my “rug merchant.”
*
ON NATIONALISM
***********************************
The trouble with nationalists is that they will be as divided as multinationalists because everyone will have his own conception of nation and patriotism that will stand in direct contradiction to another's. Hence the frequency and inevitability of civil wars.
*
SPENGLER ON DEMOCRACY
**************************************
“A small number of superior heads, whose names are very likely not the best-known, settle everything, while below them are the great mass of second-rate politicians selected through a provincially-conceived franchise to keep alive the illusion of popular self-determination.”
This may explain the popularity of conspiracy theories.
*
VERSIONS OF THE PAST
****************************************
Nationalist historians tend to be good at telling one side of the story: their own. The same applies to historians with an ideological or religious ax to grind. Which is why there are as many versions of the past as there are ideologies, religions, nations, tribes, and schools of thought, all of whom assert to have a monopoly on truth.
To say therefore that our own version of the past is true but the French, Russian, American, British, Patagonian, or, for that matter, Turkish versions of their own past is false, is to bury our heads in the sand.
#
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
notes
January 31, 2010
*************************
MORE ONE-LINERS
****************************************
To be a fool means to be at the mercy of worse fools who think they are smart.
*
The lower on the totem pole you are, the more subject to checks and balances you will be.
*
Faceless bureaucrats follow rules not because they believe in them but because their only concern is their source of income.
*
When sacred cows are in charge, they will criminalize the consumption of shish-kebab.
*
The truth? Let us say, we may never know it and as human beings we were not meant to know it. All we can hope to do is move in its direction by discarding half-truth and lies.
*
Everything makes sense if you find the right explanation.
*
The aim of all religions and ideologies is to make you say "Yes, sir!"
*
In theory, religion is meant to civilize; but in practice what it does is legitimize barbarism.
*
To acquire a faith is not the same as to see the light.
#
February 1, 2010
*************************
DIARY
****************************************
There are two Armenians mentioned in Cheever's biography: one of them is a loud-mouth phony and the other Saroyan and his “tax problems.” Elsewhere we are informed Saroyan was popular in communist countries and “all but forgotten in the West.”
Cheever and Updike were thought to be good friends but in his diary Cheever had this to say about him: “He describes erections so exhaustively that he's beginning to look like a big prick with a hair-piece” -- a remark that probably hastened Updike's death.
*
Those who say “We need solutions,” want nothing of the kind because solutions may expose them as dupes or frauds.
*
Politics seems to attract the kind of people whose role model is not Gandhi but Don Corleone.
*
A good fraction of mankind today makes a comfortable living by deceiving their fellow men.”
*
One should judge a religion not by its theology but by its history, which also means, by its crimes against humanity.
*
If I repeat myself it may be because our blunders keep repeating themselves and not repeating myself would amount to either giving up or covering up.
#
February 2, 2010
*************************
IF...
****************************************
If the West were to adopt the methods of the Ottoman Empire, all Muslims within its borders would be deported to Siberia, Sahara, and even Antarctica. This may still happen if things get worse instead of better.
When civilizations clash it is not always the most civilized that prevails but the most ruthless. Democracy and respect for human rights may be noble principles, but life-and-death situations demand not moderate measures but ruthless tactics.
It is true that most Muslims, perhaps even the overwhelming majority, are not for terrorism, they may even be against it, but so were Armenians in the Ottoman Empire during World War I and Jews in Europe during World War II.
Some of us may not live long enough to witness this apocalyptic denouement. That does not mean it may never happen. On the contrary, it may even be thought of as inevitable.
#
February 3, 2010
*************************
FRAGMENTS
****************************************
As children we are brought up not to questions the words and conduct of adults. The trouble is, some of us never quite grow up. That's the only way to explain the popularity of men like Hitler, Stalin, and Mao (who is said to have slaughtered more people than the other two combined, or so I read in today's paper).
One could sum up the work of all great thinkers with two words: “Grow up!” Or, as the Scriptures tell us: “When one grows up, one should put aside the toys of one's childhood.”
*
I am a man without a country and without a neighborhood, if one defines a neighborhood not as a collection of houses but of homes. Every house in which I have lived at one time or another has been torn down by either war or real-estate developers; only my alma mater stands but it is no longer an educational institution but a cheap motel. As for my present neighborhood where I have lived for fifty years: the old are either dead or in nursing homes; the young have moved on to better neighborhoods or have been arrested on drug charges and taken away never to be seen again, and the immigrants have returned to their homeland.
*
Gresham's Law, named after the 16th-century English merchant Sir Thomas Gresham, states, "Bad money drive out good money," meaning: adulterated gold drives out pure gold, for the simple reason that it is cheaper. By extension, opportunists drive out men of principle, and mediocrities drive out those who seek to achieve excellence.
*
An extension of Gresham's Law: Evil knows how to organize itself because it appeals to the selfish instincts of the majority.
*
Likewise, recycled crap drives out objective judgment, and hoodlums and their verbal abuse drive out dialogue.
#
*************************
MORE ONE-LINERS
****************************************
To be a fool means to be at the mercy of worse fools who think they are smart.
*
The lower on the totem pole you are, the more subject to checks and balances you will be.
*
Faceless bureaucrats follow rules not because they believe in them but because their only concern is their source of income.
*
When sacred cows are in charge, they will criminalize the consumption of shish-kebab.
*
The truth? Let us say, we may never know it and as human beings we were not meant to know it. All we can hope to do is move in its direction by discarding half-truth and lies.
*
Everything makes sense if you find the right explanation.
*
The aim of all religions and ideologies is to make you say "Yes, sir!"
*
In theory, religion is meant to civilize; but in practice what it does is legitimize barbarism.
*
To acquire a faith is not the same as to see the light.
#
February 1, 2010
*************************
DIARY
****************************************
There are two Armenians mentioned in Cheever's biography: one of them is a loud-mouth phony and the other Saroyan and his “tax problems.” Elsewhere we are informed Saroyan was popular in communist countries and “all but forgotten in the West.”
Cheever and Updike were thought to be good friends but in his diary Cheever had this to say about him: “He describes erections so exhaustively that he's beginning to look like a big prick with a hair-piece” -- a remark that probably hastened Updike's death.
*
Those who say “We need solutions,” want nothing of the kind because solutions may expose them as dupes or frauds.
*
Politics seems to attract the kind of people whose role model is not Gandhi but Don Corleone.
*
A good fraction of mankind today makes a comfortable living by deceiving their fellow men.”
*
One should judge a religion not by its theology but by its history, which also means, by its crimes against humanity.
*
If I repeat myself it may be because our blunders keep repeating themselves and not repeating myself would amount to either giving up or covering up.
#
February 2, 2010
*************************
IF...
****************************************
If the West were to adopt the methods of the Ottoman Empire, all Muslims within its borders would be deported to Siberia, Sahara, and even Antarctica. This may still happen if things get worse instead of better.
When civilizations clash it is not always the most civilized that prevails but the most ruthless. Democracy and respect for human rights may be noble principles, but life-and-death situations demand not moderate measures but ruthless tactics.
It is true that most Muslims, perhaps even the overwhelming majority, are not for terrorism, they may even be against it, but so were Armenians in the Ottoman Empire during World War I and Jews in Europe during World War II.
Some of us may not live long enough to witness this apocalyptic denouement. That does not mean it may never happen. On the contrary, it may even be thought of as inevitable.
#
February 3, 2010
*************************
FRAGMENTS
****************************************
As children we are brought up not to questions the words and conduct of adults. The trouble is, some of us never quite grow up. That's the only way to explain the popularity of men like Hitler, Stalin, and Mao (who is said to have slaughtered more people than the other two combined, or so I read in today's paper).
One could sum up the work of all great thinkers with two words: “Grow up!” Or, as the Scriptures tell us: “When one grows up, one should put aside the toys of one's childhood.”
*
I am a man without a country and without a neighborhood, if one defines a neighborhood not as a collection of houses but of homes. Every house in which I have lived at one time or another has been torn down by either war or real-estate developers; only my alma mater stands but it is no longer an educational institution but a cheap motel. As for my present neighborhood where I have lived for fifty years: the old are either dead or in nursing homes; the young have moved on to better neighborhoods or have been arrested on drug charges and taken away never to be seen again, and the immigrants have returned to their homeland.
*
Gresham's Law, named after the 16th-century English merchant Sir Thomas Gresham, states, "Bad money drive out good money," meaning: adulterated gold drives out pure gold, for the simple reason that it is cheaper. By extension, opportunists drive out men of principle, and mediocrities drive out those who seek to achieve excellence.
*
An extension of Gresham's Law: Evil knows how to organize itself because it appeals to the selfish instincts of the majority.
*
Likewise, recycled crap drives out objective judgment, and hoodlums and their verbal abuse drive out dialogue.
#
Saturday, January 30, 2010
notes
January 28, 2010
*************************
AN HONEST ANSWER
***************************************************
Asked how he had managed to survive the Stalinist purges when so many of his contemporaries had perished, Avedik Issahakian is said to have replied: “By applauding the murderers.”
For more on this remarkable interview, see Antranig Chalabian, DRO (DRASTAMAT KANAYAN), page 269.
*
To be read by friendly readers: nothing unusual in that.
To be read by hostiles: That’s where the money is,
because it means being allowed the opportunity
to introduce thoughts where none exist.
*
Even after you prove to him that his position is untenable,
an Armenian will go on defending it to the bitter end,
like a captain going down with the ship.
That’s his way of asserting his manhood.
I don’t write for readers whose central concern is their own manhood.
That would be like writing about hallucinations.
#
January 29, 2010
*************************
FROM MY NOTEBOOKS
****************************************
Even when we speak of others, we speak of ourselves.
*
Martin Luther (1483-1546): "I am more afraid of my own heart than of the Pope and his cardinals. I have within me the great Pope, Self."
*
If the Turks say what really matters is only their side of the story, we should not say the same about our side of the story.
*
The cruelest thing that has happened to Armenian writers after they were systematically and ruthlessly slaughtered by Talaat and Stalin was to become dependent on the charity of swine.
*
There are those who think membership in a party qualifies them as experts on Armenian history, culture, and human nature.
*
I believe in progress. I believe in human perfectibility. I believe in the ultimate triumph of reason. These are my three greatest illusions.
*
I wish God existed so that He would punish all those who dared to speak in His name.
*
To speak the truth privately but not publicly is to compound the felony of perjury with cowardice.
*
Gordon W. Allport: "Many studies have discovered a close link between prejudice and patriotism. Extreme bigots are almost always super-patriots."
*
It is only by confronting our dark side that we may see the light.
*
Commissars and mullahs are philistines, that is to say, killers who adopt an ideology or religion to legitimize their killer instincts.
*
It is the height of non sequitur to call Turks barbarians and to demand justice from them.
*
There will come a time when people will reject all religions and ideologies simply because imams and commissars believe in them.
*
Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), political philosopher: "Under conditions of tyranny it is far easier to act than to think."
*
Kingsley Amis (1922-1995), English novelist: "If you can't annoy somebody with what you write, I think there's little point in writing."
#
January 30, 2010
*************************
ONE-LINERS
****************************************
A good diplomat can charm a cobra or it takes one to know one.
*
“Armenians of the world unite, you have nothing to lose but your dividers.” What if this slogan succeeds only in producing our own Stalin?
*
My favorite genre: brevity.
*
To be self-righteous and to be wrong might as well be synonymous.
*
Arrogance allows a man to think he has all the answers even when none of them is right.
*
To be sure means to ignore one's doubts.
*
One way to define freedom of speech is by saying even the ablest statesman is not qualified to tell even the worst scribbler what to write.
*
The spirit of contradiction in some Armenians is so highly developed that if you were to agree with them they would disagree with you.
*
It is now time that we think of lamentation and hatred as experiments that failed and try another approach.
#
*************************
AN HONEST ANSWER
***************************************************
Asked how he had managed to survive the Stalinist purges when so many of his contemporaries had perished, Avedik Issahakian is said to have replied: “By applauding the murderers.”
For more on this remarkable interview, see Antranig Chalabian, DRO (DRASTAMAT KANAYAN), page 269.
*
To be read by friendly readers: nothing unusual in that.
To be read by hostiles: That’s where the money is,
because it means being allowed the opportunity
to introduce thoughts where none exist.
*
Even after you prove to him that his position is untenable,
an Armenian will go on defending it to the bitter end,
like a captain going down with the ship.
That’s his way of asserting his manhood.
I don’t write for readers whose central concern is their own manhood.
That would be like writing about hallucinations.
#
January 29, 2010
*************************
FROM MY NOTEBOOKS
****************************************
Even when we speak of others, we speak of ourselves.
*
Martin Luther (1483-1546): "I am more afraid of my own heart than of the Pope and his cardinals. I have within me the great Pope, Self."
*
If the Turks say what really matters is only their side of the story, we should not say the same about our side of the story.
*
The cruelest thing that has happened to Armenian writers after they were systematically and ruthlessly slaughtered by Talaat and Stalin was to become dependent on the charity of swine.
*
There are those who think membership in a party qualifies them as experts on Armenian history, culture, and human nature.
*
I believe in progress. I believe in human perfectibility. I believe in the ultimate triumph of reason. These are my three greatest illusions.
*
I wish God existed so that He would punish all those who dared to speak in His name.
*
To speak the truth privately but not publicly is to compound the felony of perjury with cowardice.
*
Gordon W. Allport: "Many studies have discovered a close link between prejudice and patriotism. Extreme bigots are almost always super-patriots."
*
It is only by confronting our dark side that we may see the light.
*
Commissars and mullahs are philistines, that is to say, killers who adopt an ideology or religion to legitimize their killer instincts.
*
It is the height of non sequitur to call Turks barbarians and to demand justice from them.
*
There will come a time when people will reject all religions and ideologies simply because imams and commissars believe in them.
*
Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), political philosopher: "Under conditions of tyranny it is far easier to act than to think."
*
Kingsley Amis (1922-1995), English novelist: "If you can't annoy somebody with what you write, I think there's little point in writing."
#
January 30, 2010
*************************
ONE-LINERS
****************************************
A good diplomat can charm a cobra or it takes one to know one.
*
“Armenians of the world unite, you have nothing to lose but your dividers.” What if this slogan succeeds only in producing our own Stalin?
*
My favorite genre: brevity.
*
To be self-righteous and to be wrong might as well be synonymous.
*
Arrogance allows a man to think he has all the answers even when none of them is right.
*
To be sure means to ignore one's doubts.
*
One way to define freedom of speech is by saying even the ablest statesman is not qualified to tell even the worst scribbler what to write.
*
The spirit of contradiction in some Armenians is so highly developed that if you were to agree with them they would disagree with you.
*
It is now time that we think of lamentation and hatred as experiments that failed and try another approach.
#
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
meta
January 24, 2010
*************************
METAPHYSICS
***************************************************
Disagreement is inevitable when we search for meaning in the meaningless, or
when we reduce an infinite number of factors into only a handful.
*
We say God is on our side when we want to do the Devil's work.
*
The visible is one; it is the invisible that is legion.
*
Newspapers write more about criminals than law-abiding citizens. Doctors deal more with the sick than with the healthy. And critics deal more with deceivers than with honest men. I am not consistently negative; our reality is.
*
What will save us is neither our conception of patriotism nor our degree of self-esteem but our courage to confront and deal with reality.
#
January 25, 2010
*************************
A STORY WITH MORALS
***************************************************
Three friends in a tavern were arguing about the greatest evil in the world, and since they were not Armenian, they were able to reach a consensus: Death, they decided, was the greatest evil. Next they also agreed to search for Death and kill him. During their long search they met an old man who told them where Death lived. They followed the old man's directions but instead of Death they found a pot of gold. To celebrate their good fortune, one of them went to fetch a bottle of wine. While he was gone, the two friends decided to kill him to have his share of gold too. And as soon as he returned they fell on him and killed him, drank the poisoned wine, and they died, because the same idea had occurred to their victim.
MORAL I: If you look for Death, long before you find him, he will find you.
MORAL II: If after a long search you find what you were looking for, you will wish you had not found it.
MORAL III: Gold and friendship are mutually exclusive concepts.
#
January 26, 2010
*************************
ARMENIAN PHILOSOPHY
***************************************************
To express his contempt for me, one of our Turcocentric ghazetajis once called me a “philosopher.” It is true, philosophy has at no time been a favorite subject of ours. Our most famous medieval philosopher, David Anhaght, is remembered for his invincibility in argument, not his originality of ideas. And as far as I know, none of our academics (of which we have over a thousand) has ever produced a text on 20th-century Armenian philosophy, probably because it is not easy to write about nothing. If I were to sum up the dominant philosophical idea of the past century, it would have to be “I hate Turks, therefore I am.”
*
AN AMERICAN FALLACY
**********************************************
With big bucks, you can hire the best brains. But only the kind of brains willing to be subservient to big bucks.
*
THIS AND THAT
*********************************
I love my fellow Armenians as much as a good Christian loves his executioner -- with one difference: I am not a good Christian.
*
Speaking of good Christians: There are those who define a good Muslim as one who goes about murdering infidels. Christians used to do that too but not anymore. These days some good Christians murder only homosexuals, Blacks, abortionists, Jews, and Communists – remember the slogan, “Kill a commie for Christ”).
*
It is a well-known fact that swine don't have self-esteem problems.
#
January 27, 2010
*************************
INSANITY
***************************************************
Somewhere Jung explains that there is a woman in every man and a man in every woman, and that this becomes apparent when one reaches middle age.
I once had a friend (may he rest in peace) who believed one reaches middle age only by adopting some form of insanity.
Whereas I am of the opinion that we are born and raised into an insane world and we survive only by adapting ourselves to it.
(To be noted: Jung harbored pro-Nazi sentiments.)
*
Under the Sultan, our writers were free to tear our institutions to shreds. Under our own mini-sultans they are free to do so too but only to the opposition and to brainwash children into believing their side is good, the other bad.
*
I have never been psychoanalyzed. One could say avoiding shrinks is a luxury only the poor can afford.
*
Whenever I think I am smart, I remind myself of the number of times I have been taken in by idiots.
*
To believe in miracles is bad enough. To believe one is worthy of them is infinitely worse.
#
*************************
METAPHYSICS
***************************************************
Disagreement is inevitable when we search for meaning in the meaningless, or
when we reduce an infinite number of factors into only a handful.
*
We say God is on our side when we want to do the Devil's work.
*
The visible is one; it is the invisible that is legion.
*
Newspapers write more about criminals than law-abiding citizens. Doctors deal more with the sick than with the healthy. And critics deal more with deceivers than with honest men. I am not consistently negative; our reality is.
*
What will save us is neither our conception of patriotism nor our degree of self-esteem but our courage to confront and deal with reality.
#
January 25, 2010
*************************
A STORY WITH MORALS
***************************************************
Three friends in a tavern were arguing about the greatest evil in the world, and since they were not Armenian, they were able to reach a consensus: Death, they decided, was the greatest evil. Next they also agreed to search for Death and kill him. During their long search they met an old man who told them where Death lived. They followed the old man's directions but instead of Death they found a pot of gold. To celebrate their good fortune, one of them went to fetch a bottle of wine. While he was gone, the two friends decided to kill him to have his share of gold too. And as soon as he returned they fell on him and killed him, drank the poisoned wine, and they died, because the same idea had occurred to their victim.
MORAL I: If you look for Death, long before you find him, he will find you.
MORAL II: If after a long search you find what you were looking for, you will wish you had not found it.
MORAL III: Gold and friendship are mutually exclusive concepts.
#
January 26, 2010
*************************
ARMENIAN PHILOSOPHY
***************************************************
To express his contempt for me, one of our Turcocentric ghazetajis once called me a “philosopher.” It is true, philosophy has at no time been a favorite subject of ours. Our most famous medieval philosopher, David Anhaght, is remembered for his invincibility in argument, not his originality of ideas. And as far as I know, none of our academics (of which we have over a thousand) has ever produced a text on 20th-century Armenian philosophy, probably because it is not easy to write about nothing. If I were to sum up the dominant philosophical idea of the past century, it would have to be “I hate Turks, therefore I am.”
*
AN AMERICAN FALLACY
**********************************************
With big bucks, you can hire the best brains. But only the kind of brains willing to be subservient to big bucks.
*
THIS AND THAT
*********************************
I love my fellow Armenians as much as a good Christian loves his executioner -- with one difference: I am not a good Christian.
*
Speaking of good Christians: There are those who define a good Muslim as one who goes about murdering infidels. Christians used to do that too but not anymore. These days some good Christians murder only homosexuals, Blacks, abortionists, Jews, and Communists – remember the slogan, “Kill a commie for Christ”).
*
It is a well-known fact that swine don't have self-esteem problems.
#
January 27, 2010
*************************
INSANITY
***************************************************
Somewhere Jung explains that there is a woman in every man and a man in every woman, and that this becomes apparent when one reaches middle age.
I once had a friend (may he rest in peace) who believed one reaches middle age only by adopting some form of insanity.
Whereas I am of the opinion that we are born and raised into an insane world and we survive only by adapting ourselves to it.
(To be noted: Jung harbored pro-Nazi sentiments.)
*
Under the Sultan, our writers were free to tear our institutions to shreds. Under our own mini-sultans they are free to do so too but only to the opposition and to brainwash children into believing their side is good, the other bad.
*
I have never been psychoanalyzed. One could say avoiding shrinks is a luxury only the poor can afford.
*
Whenever I think I am smart, I remind myself of the number of times I have been taken in by idiots.
*
To believe in miracles is bad enough. To believe one is worthy of them is infinitely worse.
#
Saturday, January 23, 2010
reading
January 22, 2010
*************************
OUR REVOLUTIONARIES
***************************************************
Their dreams were too big,
their ability to realize them too small,
and their faith in the West misplaced.
Result: the perfect storm of genocide.
*
MY CRITICS
******************************
They are unanimous in letting me know that
I should bugger off,
get a life, and
mind my own business.
And may I confess that there are times
when I am tempted to do exactly that.
What keeps me going?
Perhaps Abovian knew better.
Instead of getting a life,
he chose death – either that
or death chose him.
*
CHILDHOOD
*************************************
They were so sure of what they were doing
and I was so confused and uncertain
as to why I felt as I did
that it never even occurred to me to ask:
“Why are you doing this to me?”
#
January 23, 2010
*************************
FROM THE MOUTH OF BABES & COMEDIANS
***************************************************
George Carlin: “Traditional American values: Genocide, aggression, conformity, emotional repression, hypocrisy, and the worship of comfort and consumer goods.”
*
RISE & FALL
******************************
In his STUDY OF HISTORY, Toynbee writes: “A growing civilization can be defined as one which the components of its culture [economic, political, intellectual, scientific, etc.] are in harmony with one another; and, on the same principle, a disintegrating civilization can be defined as one in which these same elements have fallen into discord.”
You may now decide whether we are growing or disintegrating.
*
TWO KINDS OF MEN
*****************************************
“Hell is other people,” wrote Sartre. But according to his life-long friend-enemy, Merleau-Ponty: “When a man takes an oath to exist universally, concern for himself and concern for others become indistinguishable for him; he is a person among persons, and the others are other himselves. But if, on the contrary, he recognizes what is unique in incarnation lived from within, the other person necessarily appears to him in the form of torment, envy, or at least uneasiness.”
Wars, revolutions, and massacres are committed by Sartrian men. By contrast, great spiritual leaders from Socrates and Jesus to Gandhi and Schweitzer conform to Merleau-Ponty's definition of men who choose to “exist universally.”
#
*************************
OUR REVOLUTIONARIES
***************************************************
Their dreams were too big,
their ability to realize them too small,
and their faith in the West misplaced.
Result: the perfect storm of genocide.
*
MY CRITICS
******************************
They are unanimous in letting me know that
I should bugger off,
get a life, and
mind my own business.
And may I confess that there are times
when I am tempted to do exactly that.
What keeps me going?
Perhaps Abovian knew better.
Instead of getting a life,
he chose death – either that
or death chose him.
*
CHILDHOOD
*************************************
They were so sure of what they were doing
and I was so confused and uncertain
as to why I felt as I did
that it never even occurred to me to ask:
“Why are you doing this to me?”
#
January 23, 2010
*************************
FROM THE MOUTH OF BABES & COMEDIANS
***************************************************
George Carlin: “Traditional American values: Genocide, aggression, conformity, emotional repression, hypocrisy, and the worship of comfort and consumer goods.”
*
RISE & FALL
******************************
In his STUDY OF HISTORY, Toynbee writes: “A growing civilization can be defined as one which the components of its culture [economic, political, intellectual, scientific, etc.] are in harmony with one another; and, on the same principle, a disintegrating civilization can be defined as one in which these same elements have fallen into discord.”
You may now decide whether we are growing or disintegrating.
*
TWO KINDS OF MEN
*****************************************
“Hell is other people,” wrote Sartre. But according to his life-long friend-enemy, Merleau-Ponty: “When a man takes an oath to exist universally, concern for himself and concern for others become indistinguishable for him; he is a person among persons, and the others are other himselves. But if, on the contrary, he recognizes what is unique in incarnation lived from within, the other person necessarily appears to him in the form of torment, envy, or at least uneasiness.”
Wars, revolutions, and massacres are committed by Sartrian men. By contrast, great spiritual leaders from Socrates and Jesus to Gandhi and Schweitzer conform to Merleau-Ponty's definition of men who choose to “exist universally.”
#
Saturday, January 16, 2010
observations
January 14, 2010
*************************
THE ARMENIAN MESSIAH
***************************************************
About twenty years ago I met a doctor who thought only a book like the Bible can save us. “Why do you think Jews have survived for five thousand years?” he demanded.
Shortly thereafter he sent me a thick bundle of typewritten pages. After reading a few paragraphs I put it aside.
Will he finish writing it?
Will he find a publisher?
And if he does, will he find readers?
We are a nation of writers, not readers.
Once, when asked why I did not encourage young writers, I had no choice but to reply: “We need readers, not writers.”
Neither do we need charlatans with messianic ambitions.
Consider the case of our Turcocentric ghazetajis who seem to be totally unaware of the following facts:
(one) by stressing the important role Turks have played in shaping our destiny, they may be degrading the nation;
(two) by reminding us of our trauma, they may be crippling our resolve to move forward; and
(three) by looking backward they may run the risk of turning us into pillars of salt.
*
A trauma should be discussed but only in the context of overcoming it, not of making it a permanent condition.
One of our Turcocentric ghazetajis once said to me: “All I am doing is defending our rights.” Our rights should be defended, but not by monomaniacal idiots who pretend not to see the obvious, namely that the Turks are not the only ones who have violated our human rights.
As for the possibility that a book may save us: The Bible is not a “Jewish” book. It is first and foremost a human document. The experiences and ideas discussed in it (see below) have universal application.
We don't need a “nationalist” Bible to see the light.
There is nothing “Jewish” in the dictum
“A house divided against itself cannot stand,” or
“Man does not live by bread alone,” or
“Set your house in order,” or
“Even a fool, when he keeps his mouth shut, may be thought of as wise,” or
“Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”
#
January 15, 2010
*************************
CHARITY
***************************************************
Did you know that doing charity work can be as profitable a business as working on Wall Street?
Chief executive officers of major charity organizations make millions. The official explanation is, “They know how to motivate people.”
What is it exactly that motivates these bloodsuckers, I wonder.
And if you think Armenian charity organizations are morally superior, think again. Ask an insider – if you know one – how much one of our own fund-raisers makes and be prepared to foam at the mouth with outrage.
Why is it that those who rely on our compassion are themselves such greedy bastards?
Why is it that those who pretend to be our betters are such unspeakable sh*ts?
Why is it that those who abuse me verbally on the grounds that my thoughts and feelings do not echo theirs have nothing to say about this kind of atrocity?
Once a dupe always a dupe?
There is no law that says if you were born a jerk you will die a jerk.
Dupes and jerks of the world unite, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
My guess is, if we knew what goes on behind closed doors, we would cancel our membership in the human race and consider joining a club of serial killers.
#
January 16, 2010
*************************
OBSERVATIONS
***************************************************
If our bosses, bishops, and benefactors are humorless, it may be because to be a pompous ass and to have a sense of humor are mutually exclusive concepts.
*
For the oppressed, freedom means the freedom to oppress. Which may explain why there is a great deal of Ottomanism in Armenianism.
*
Even when we are subservient to no one, we may continue to be subservient to a false image of ourselves imposed on us by others.
*
Is success conceivable in our environment?
Charents's final message of solidarity is quoted and ignored.
In a recent encounter with one of our bosses, he said something to the effect that the nation would have been better off without Naregatsi.
And whenever I paraphrase Raffi, I am accused of anti-Armenianism.
*
On the day I come to terms with our reality, I will probably say, “To each his own,” and fall silent.
#
*************************
THE ARMENIAN MESSIAH
***************************************************
About twenty years ago I met a doctor who thought only a book like the Bible can save us. “Why do you think Jews have survived for five thousand years?” he demanded.
Shortly thereafter he sent me a thick bundle of typewritten pages. After reading a few paragraphs I put it aside.
Will he finish writing it?
Will he find a publisher?
And if he does, will he find readers?
We are a nation of writers, not readers.
Once, when asked why I did not encourage young writers, I had no choice but to reply: “We need readers, not writers.”
Neither do we need charlatans with messianic ambitions.
Consider the case of our Turcocentric ghazetajis who seem to be totally unaware of the following facts:
(one) by stressing the important role Turks have played in shaping our destiny, they may be degrading the nation;
(two) by reminding us of our trauma, they may be crippling our resolve to move forward; and
(three) by looking backward they may run the risk of turning us into pillars of salt.
*
A trauma should be discussed but only in the context of overcoming it, not of making it a permanent condition.
One of our Turcocentric ghazetajis once said to me: “All I am doing is defending our rights.” Our rights should be defended, but not by monomaniacal idiots who pretend not to see the obvious, namely that the Turks are not the only ones who have violated our human rights.
As for the possibility that a book may save us: The Bible is not a “Jewish” book. It is first and foremost a human document. The experiences and ideas discussed in it (see below) have universal application.
We don't need a “nationalist” Bible to see the light.
There is nothing “Jewish” in the dictum
“A house divided against itself cannot stand,” or
“Man does not live by bread alone,” or
“Set your house in order,” or
“Even a fool, when he keeps his mouth shut, may be thought of as wise,” or
“Can two walk together, except they be agreed?”
#
January 15, 2010
*************************
CHARITY
***************************************************
Did you know that doing charity work can be as profitable a business as working on Wall Street?
Chief executive officers of major charity organizations make millions. The official explanation is, “They know how to motivate people.”
What is it exactly that motivates these bloodsuckers, I wonder.
And if you think Armenian charity organizations are morally superior, think again. Ask an insider – if you know one – how much one of our own fund-raisers makes and be prepared to foam at the mouth with outrage.
Why is it that those who rely on our compassion are themselves such greedy bastards?
Why is it that those who pretend to be our betters are such unspeakable sh*ts?
Why is it that those who abuse me verbally on the grounds that my thoughts and feelings do not echo theirs have nothing to say about this kind of atrocity?
Once a dupe always a dupe?
There is no law that says if you were born a jerk you will die a jerk.
Dupes and jerks of the world unite, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
My guess is, if we knew what goes on behind closed doors, we would cancel our membership in the human race and consider joining a club of serial killers.
#
January 16, 2010
*************************
OBSERVATIONS
***************************************************
If our bosses, bishops, and benefactors are humorless, it may be because to be a pompous ass and to have a sense of humor are mutually exclusive concepts.
*
For the oppressed, freedom means the freedom to oppress. Which may explain why there is a great deal of Ottomanism in Armenianism.
*
Even when we are subservient to no one, we may continue to be subservient to a false image of ourselves imposed on us by others.
*
Is success conceivable in our environment?
Charents's final message of solidarity is quoted and ignored.
In a recent encounter with one of our bosses, he said something to the effect that the nation would have been better off without Naregatsi.
And whenever I paraphrase Raffi, I am accused of anti-Armenianism.
*
On the day I come to terms with our reality, I will probably say, “To each his own,” and fall silent.
#
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
voodoo
01/10/10
*************************
VOODOO
***************************************************
Every branch of learning and activity
has its voodoo counterpart.
There is voodoo economics,
voodoo medicine,
and voodoo history.
Conspiracy theories belong to the voodoo branch of history.
So does anti-Semitism – sorry! I meant to say, anti-Zionism.
There is a conspiracy theory that says
Dick Cheney directed the Mossad
to bring down the World Trade Center.
There is another conspiracy theory that says
the Young Turks were Jews
or puppets of Jews,
or student of Jews.
There is another one,
which happens to be a favorite of mine, that says
the serpent in the Garden of Eden
was a CIA agent in disguise.
Conspiracy theories attract lunatics
as surely as sh*t attracts flies.
Our Turcocentric ghazetajis pretend to know
all there is to know about Turks
and our anti-Semites expect us to believe
they know more about Jews than most Jews.
Our dime-a-dozen pundits, speechifiers,
and sermonizers, and activists are
past masters of voodoo.
Where solidarity is essential, they divide.
Where honesty is a must,
they engage in charlatanism.
Where free speech and dialogue are required,
they are dead set against both.
And when things go wrong,
our voodoo pundits explain it
by pointing their finger on alien agencies.
That may explain why
we have been going backward instead of forward;
and even as we advance towards the abyss,
we are brainwashed to brag
about our genius for survival.
Figure that one out,
if you can – and please, no voodoo!
#
01/11/10
*************************
WWIII
***************************************************
You cannot win a war against an enemy who loves death more than life. The Japanese lost because the Yanks dropped the Bomb on them. If terrorists succeed in staging more 9/11-style attacks, the Yanks will have no choice but to elect a more warlike president who will not only carry a big stick but he will also use it.
*
I say what I think;
you say what you were told;
after which we go our separate ways.
That's dialogue, Armenian style.
*
In our Ottoman phase, no Armenian would ever dare to contradict a Turk.
In our diaspora today, no Armenian would ever dare to contradict a boss, bishop, or benefactor.
As the French are fond of saying, “Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme merde.”
*
My guess is, one reason our revolutionaries lost is that they were brought up to believe they were so smart they could do no wrong. Positive feedback may work in Oriental carpet dealership but is bound to be counterproductive in politics and international diplomacy where the competition is much stiffer.
*
We have enough gold in our communities (think of Gulbenkian, Krikorian, Manoogian, & Co.) for two Golden Ages. Instead, we wallow in the recycled crap of our Panchoonies and Jack S. Avanakians.
#
01/12/10
*************************
THE BLIND LEADING THE BLIND
***************************************************
We are a failed state.
Our “brainless” leaders have been successful only in one endeavor, that of brainwashing us to channel our discontent in the direction of the enemy.
As for our press, whose main function is to expose corruption and incompetence: its favorite motto is, “No polemics, please!”
Who the hell is talking about polemics?
I am talking about facts.
But facts are not facts to those who refuse to acknowledge them.
Case in point: our genocide is a fact to us.
It is a controversy to them.
See what I mean?
I once wrote a letter to an editor questioning a fact discussed in an editorial and I received the following answer: “We don't, as a rule, publish letters that are critical of our editorial.”
Anti-Turkish venom, no matter how predictable, repetitive, and tedious is in.
Armenian reality is out.
What Jews were to the Nazis, capitalists to communists, and Armenians to the Sultan and Talaat, Turks are to us. Turks are the alpha and omega of all our problems. That's the way it is with all rotten systems. They need scapegoats and when they can't find them, they invent them.
The Turks are guilty of a crime that was committed a century ago. They have nothing to do with our divisiveness, incompetence, and intolerance of dissent and dialogue. Only the blind leading the blind and their dupes refuse to see this.
#
BOOKS RECEIVED
**********************************************
THE DARK VALLEY: SHORT STORIES by Axel Bakounts, translated from the Armenian by Nairi Hakhverdi. Preface by Victoria Rowe. (London, 2008).
*
SOUTHERN FEVER: SHORT STORIES by Abig Avagyan. (Yerevan, 2002). (In Armenian)
*
HOMO DEI or A BIBLICAL STORY: A NOVEL and
CAVE STORIES or 1993: NOVELLAS by Karen A. Simonian (Yerevan, 2006). (In Armenian)
*
COLORS OF THE PRISM: COLLECTED REVIEWS, ARTICLES, AND DRAWINGS by Krikor Keusseyan (Watertown, 2009). (In Armenian)
*
DRO (DRASTAMAT KANAYAN): ARMENIA'S FIRST DEFENCE MINISTER OF THE MODERN ERA by Antranig Chalabian, Translated by Jack Chelebian. (Los Angeles, 2009).
#
01/13/10
*************************
SARTRE ON ASCETICS
***************************************************
“The ascetic is a man rich enough to choose his poverty freely.”
Good point.
Gandhi enjoyed the financial support of a wealthy Indian industrialist by the name of Birla, who once complained that Gandhi's poverty cost him a lot of money.
As for Tolstoy: he was a multimillionaire.
*
SARTRE ON HIMSELF
***********************************
“I turned rebel later only through having pushed submissiveness to the extreme.”
In my case, I became a dissident through having said “yes, sir!” to too many idiots.
*
If I knew my words mattered, I would be more careful in my choice of them.
*
One reason Armenian writers are willing to work for nothing is that the job has other compensations, one of them being deflating noxious gasbags.
*
THREATS
*******************************
I don't believe in Armenians who send me threatening e-mails anonymously. I believe if an Armenian can do me harm, he would have done it already.
*
AN UNFORTUNATE DEVELOPMENT
************************************************
As a result of the Genocide, we have become self-righteous fanatics not only in our dealings with the enemy, but also in our dealings with our fellow Armenians.
*
ON SURVIVAL
******************************
Survival is important. But what is even important is survival with honor. To stress the importance of survival at the expense of honor is to legitimize cowardice, opportunism, moral degradation, even treason and betrayal.
#
*************************
VOODOO
***************************************************
Every branch of learning and activity
has its voodoo counterpart.
There is voodoo economics,
voodoo medicine,
and voodoo history.
Conspiracy theories belong to the voodoo branch of history.
So does anti-Semitism – sorry! I meant to say, anti-Zionism.
There is a conspiracy theory that says
Dick Cheney directed the Mossad
to bring down the World Trade Center.
There is another conspiracy theory that says
the Young Turks were Jews
or puppets of Jews,
or student of Jews.
There is another one,
which happens to be a favorite of mine, that says
the serpent in the Garden of Eden
was a CIA agent in disguise.
Conspiracy theories attract lunatics
as surely as sh*t attracts flies.
Our Turcocentric ghazetajis pretend to know
all there is to know about Turks
and our anti-Semites expect us to believe
they know more about Jews than most Jews.
Our dime-a-dozen pundits, speechifiers,
and sermonizers, and activists are
past masters of voodoo.
Where solidarity is essential, they divide.
Where honesty is a must,
they engage in charlatanism.
Where free speech and dialogue are required,
they are dead set against both.
And when things go wrong,
our voodoo pundits explain it
by pointing their finger on alien agencies.
That may explain why
we have been going backward instead of forward;
and even as we advance towards the abyss,
we are brainwashed to brag
about our genius for survival.
Figure that one out,
if you can – and please, no voodoo!
#
01/11/10
*************************
WWIII
***************************************************
You cannot win a war against an enemy who loves death more than life. The Japanese lost because the Yanks dropped the Bomb on them. If terrorists succeed in staging more 9/11-style attacks, the Yanks will have no choice but to elect a more warlike president who will not only carry a big stick but he will also use it.
*
I say what I think;
you say what you were told;
after which we go our separate ways.
That's dialogue, Armenian style.
*
In our Ottoman phase, no Armenian would ever dare to contradict a Turk.
In our diaspora today, no Armenian would ever dare to contradict a boss, bishop, or benefactor.
As the French are fond of saying, “Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme merde.”
*
My guess is, one reason our revolutionaries lost is that they were brought up to believe they were so smart they could do no wrong. Positive feedback may work in Oriental carpet dealership but is bound to be counterproductive in politics and international diplomacy where the competition is much stiffer.
*
We have enough gold in our communities (think of Gulbenkian, Krikorian, Manoogian, & Co.) for two Golden Ages. Instead, we wallow in the recycled crap of our Panchoonies and Jack S. Avanakians.
#
01/12/10
*************************
THE BLIND LEADING THE BLIND
***************************************************
We are a failed state.
Our “brainless” leaders have been successful only in one endeavor, that of brainwashing us to channel our discontent in the direction of the enemy.
As for our press, whose main function is to expose corruption and incompetence: its favorite motto is, “No polemics, please!”
Who the hell is talking about polemics?
I am talking about facts.
But facts are not facts to those who refuse to acknowledge them.
Case in point: our genocide is a fact to us.
It is a controversy to them.
See what I mean?
I once wrote a letter to an editor questioning a fact discussed in an editorial and I received the following answer: “We don't, as a rule, publish letters that are critical of our editorial.”
Anti-Turkish venom, no matter how predictable, repetitive, and tedious is in.
Armenian reality is out.
What Jews were to the Nazis, capitalists to communists, and Armenians to the Sultan and Talaat, Turks are to us. Turks are the alpha and omega of all our problems. That's the way it is with all rotten systems. They need scapegoats and when they can't find them, they invent them.
The Turks are guilty of a crime that was committed a century ago. They have nothing to do with our divisiveness, incompetence, and intolerance of dissent and dialogue. Only the blind leading the blind and their dupes refuse to see this.
#
BOOKS RECEIVED
**********************************************
THE DARK VALLEY: SHORT STORIES by Axel Bakounts, translated from the Armenian by Nairi Hakhverdi. Preface by Victoria Rowe. (London, 2008).
*
SOUTHERN FEVER: SHORT STORIES by Abig Avagyan. (Yerevan, 2002). (In Armenian)
*
HOMO DEI or A BIBLICAL STORY: A NOVEL and
CAVE STORIES or 1993: NOVELLAS by Karen A. Simonian (Yerevan, 2006). (In Armenian)
*
COLORS OF THE PRISM: COLLECTED REVIEWS, ARTICLES, AND DRAWINGS by Krikor Keusseyan (Watertown, 2009). (In Armenian)
*
DRO (DRASTAMAT KANAYAN): ARMENIA'S FIRST DEFENCE MINISTER OF THE MODERN ERA by Antranig Chalabian, Translated by Jack Chelebian. (Los Angeles, 2009).
#
01/13/10
*************************
SARTRE ON ASCETICS
***************************************************
“The ascetic is a man rich enough to choose his poverty freely.”
Good point.
Gandhi enjoyed the financial support of a wealthy Indian industrialist by the name of Birla, who once complained that Gandhi's poverty cost him a lot of money.
As for Tolstoy: he was a multimillionaire.
*
SARTRE ON HIMSELF
***********************************
“I turned rebel later only through having pushed submissiveness to the extreme.”
In my case, I became a dissident through having said “yes, sir!” to too many idiots.
*
If I knew my words mattered, I would be more careful in my choice of them.
*
One reason Armenian writers are willing to work for nothing is that the job has other compensations, one of them being deflating noxious gasbags.
*
THREATS
*******************************
I don't believe in Armenians who send me threatening e-mails anonymously. I believe if an Armenian can do me harm, he would have done it already.
*
AN UNFORTUNATE DEVELOPMENT
************************************************
As a result of the Genocide, we have become self-righteous fanatics not only in our dealings with the enemy, but also in our dealings with our fellow Armenians.
*
ON SURVIVAL
******************************
Survival is important. But what is even important is survival with honor. To stress the importance of survival at the expense of honor is to legitimize cowardice, opportunism, moral degradation, even treason and betrayal.
#
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