On the Arguing Zeitgeist.

Good stuff here by Doctorow (here's a non twitter one[1])on the laws we have for computer crimes (and the one that was misused to go after and drive Aaron Swartz to his suicide. 
So, I love Baldwin's work, but "Everyone's Protest Novel" is an essay I'm still grappling with. So this comes up on the twittering machine and I'm not only reminded of that essay, but wonder why some of these discussions never attempt to define the thing they're talking about. 
In other words, I can see some of the point that a novel shouldn't be a propaganda piece, but to say it shouldn't have any politics seems superfluous. Having one without any mention of the world, or power structures, or, well politics seems close to impossible, but yeah when you write that shouldn't be on your mind though it's probably in your mind, like it or not (saying a book has no moral take is a kind of moral take).
And there are also different societal takes on what is art and who gets to enjoy it. And when that's taken into consideration, then it all seems like a very different thing to argue about. 
And also there are hamfisted takes and there are some that are well done. Seems that the argument is against the former? If so, I agree. 
And sometimes novels are a Trojan horse where you don't outright state some moral take, you let the reader look it over, or you plant it in some wooden horse within the story so the idea hatches later. 
That being said, being read and someone telling you (not giving a take, but telling) what they see (and this is usually in the form of an accusation) is pretty annoying. 
Guess I haven't touch to say, but that no one is giving definitions of the thing they want to argue about is another thing that should be changed about the internet, but I'm guessing that much thought will end the discussion for most people and the site that does it will die. 
And finally, a map of Germany that shows how non-religious a place like East Germany still is. 


[1] As for the hypocrisy of me being off twitter, talking it down, but still referring to it here on this blog (run by google), well, yeah, I get it. But I do think that a lot of conversations do happen there (and it matters, whether I like it or not) and I do think engaging with it in an off hand way (rather than being hooked in to the algorithm) works for my thinking. 
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