Haven't posted on this platform for awhile, but wanted to share this bit of creative nonfiction that's now out in the world. I am deeply grateful to the editors of @ANMLY_LIT for giving it the light of day.
https://t.co/Uqvy0geTpd
Dear writers, we need your imagination, your narrative creativity and your lively thinking. We need these to create spaces of freedom and authenticity, within which divine grace can make the promise of consolation and peace resound. https://t.co/FEmCrdQ392
It strikes me that the art I am drawn to is not commerce. It is a gift. It is a transaction free from being a toll at the gate where there are no winners and losers.
@DerekKrissoff Having worked in academic publishing at the height of the open access debate, I hadn’t connected these dots, but you are spot on. Somebody needs to write about this.
Umberto Eco, who owned 50,000 books, had this to say about home libraries:
“It is foolish to think that you have to read all the books you buy, as it is foolish to criticize those who buy more books than they will ever be able to read. It would be like saying that you should use all the cutlery or glasses or screwdrivers or drill bits you bought before buying new ones.
“There are things in life that we need to always have plenty of supplies, even if we will only use a small portion.
“If, for example, we consider books as medicine, we understand that it is good to have many at home rather than a few: when you want to feel better, then you go to the ‘medicine closet’ and choose a book. Not a random one, but the right book for that moment. That’s why you should always have a nutrition choice!
“Those who buy only one book, read only that one and then get rid of it. They simply apply the consumer mentality to books, that is, they consider them a consumer product, a good. Those who love books know that a book is anything but a commodity.”
@poorerthandead One would have thought classical education would teach someone to not make arguments that are gross oversimplifications, devoid of data or real analysis, masquerading as culture-war hot takes. Oh well. Back to the drawing board.
@whyrobynwhy But they will gladly take your questions about what an ombudsperson does, then go to the appropriate person in the organization to get an answer. And this is how the universe creates black holes.
@belzpoems This is very telling and also, I think, exemplifies how far removed social media, and especially X, has become from its original value proposition.