Yeah, They Were the Israelites! Wednesday, June 02, 2004

It is a sign of the degradation of my religious and cultural imagination that I feel a tremendous goofy pleasure whenever the song "All You Zombies" comes on the iPod. I mean, there's basically nothing there to recommend it aesthetically; it's the "Greatest Story Ever Told" of religious pop songs. Or, rather, "The Ten Commandments": Unlike most holier-than-thou pop tunes its referents are strictly Before Common Era. But you can tell those lovable mop-tops from Philly are singing and believing their balls off, so I guess that makes it OK. (I actually have very warm Philly associations from the year that record came out: Sister WTJ was dating soon-to-be Brother-in-Law WTJ, who was raised outside Ben Franklin's stomping grounds. We took a trip down there, crashed the car and went to a fete. The only tapes we had on the drive were "Katy Lied" and "Born in the USA." I'm sure the Hooters were on the radio at some point...)

Does anybody know what significance the title has, biblically? I know it's the name of a short story by everyone's favorite dissolute fascist, Robert Heinlein. (Put the army in charge of everything--except my pants!) Anything more than that?

A friend suggests, in response to my post below, that Mark Twain has the hallmarks of an American Kingsley Amis. I guess I just don't see it--or rather I think Amis is more immediate because he's contemporary. Twain is funny as hell but there's still a century between us. Not a well-reasoned answer, but there you go.

A paragraph from this morning's reading:

"Very odd, this whole thing. I was a shit when I met you. I still am in lots of ways. But because of you I've had to give up trying to be a dedicated, full-time shit. I couldn't make it, hadn't the strength of character. Which is a pity in a way, because when you fall back into the ranks of failed shits or amateur shits or incidental shits you start taking on responsibility for other people."

It's probaby not as profound as Huck and Jim, and Calaveras County, but...

@ 8:06:00 AM,

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