Thursday, June 13, 2013 ************************************** DIALOGUE *********************** Dialogue: I am all for it; but not with a closed mind, or a self-righteous fanatic, or a member of the party (it makes no difference which party), or a bully who believes the word compromise is for the weak and the unprincipled: in short, an Armenian. * There is a type of reader – and I have had several of them myself – who begins by saying “I read everything you write,” and ends by saying “You are a disgrace to the nation.” * There are two schools of thought: the first says “We need critics,” and the second: “The only good critic is a dead critic.” Did I say two schools? Make it one. * I am a slow-learner. It took me many years to realize that you cannot argue against a propaganda line. # A NOTE ON OUR PARTISANS AND PANCHOONIES ********************************* “We have played a key role in the preservation of our identity and culture in the Diaspora,” I heard one of our speechifiers saying. They brag a lot -- our partisans and panchoonies; they lie a lot too. I should like to hear at least one of them saying they have also alienated a few. * I once received a letter from one of our political parties that said in effect they will support me provided I first write a series of profiles of their leaders. In my reply I said that I was not qualified to do that job because I didn’t even know who their leaders were. I should have added, neither did I care to make their acquaintance. # AS I SEE IT ************************* If you say “God is on my side,” God is sure to withdraw His support. * What is our unspoken policy towards writers? Treat them like shit until they come to terms with reality. * Nothing in life happens the way things happen in books and movies. * Being an Armenian is a rare privilege, or so I was brought up to believe, until I realized it is closer to being a nightmare. * All wars need Big Lies, so do all divisions. * We are a failed nation at the mercy of a failed regime run by former KGB agents. Enjoy! #