david d'heilly on Tue, 6 Apr 1999 07:03:53 +0200 (CEST)


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<nettime> Re: guess i'm not used to consuming impotence


At 20:50 -0000 04.04.99, Josselien Janssens wrote:

Thanks for the message Josselien.
You brought up a point that we in Japan have kind of worked through in
setting up a work group here. Over here, everybody has been consuming
impotence too. The primary effect of nearly all of the media coverage is to
create an feeling of overwhelming helplessless, and a struggle to define
right and wrong, the first step in mobilising people for war. What the
media has been entirely ineffective in doing is informing people about what
can actually be done this minute, by anybody to alleviate the pain and
suffering of everybody. (including impotence addicts like some of the
howlers on this list)
As a wiseman, (wise ass? Wam Kat) once told me, "war can be seen as a huge
thing that needs millions of dollars and huge operations, and it can also
be seen as an accumulation of lots of little problems, each of which can be
solved."
The dreadful shortage of bad political/military advice is not the problem
at hand. NONE OF THESE OPINIONS *CHANGE* ANYTHING. We are heaping garbage
on a trashpile that no one in their right mind will ever reference.
What there *is* a shortage of in this miserable mess is coordinated action
-- what these networks are good at -- organizing improbable logistics for
helping those in trouble, whether it's emotional/financial support for B92,
refugees, whatever. I'm guessing, but the members of nettime probably all
have something to do with "the media" at some level. We are *not* policy
makers in the conflict, or official and *correct* interpretive mechanism
for the conflict, but we *are* in a position to do something.

Love and bandages from 7sea_chickens, tokyo.

 "People that are really very weird can get into sensitive
 positions and have a tremendous impact on history."
    -- Former US Vice President Dan Quayle

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