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I've read my share of Tom Wolfe, always with pleasure - he worked hard at making sure of that. I'd say that "Mau-Mauing the Flak Catchers" is probably the sing

I've read my share of Tom Wolfe, always with pleasure - he worked hard at making sure of that. I'd say that "Mau-Mauing the Flak Catchers" is probably the single most enlightening thing he wrote about how society works after 1960. P.S. Just the note on gadrooned platters makes the interview worth reading (not even auto-correct knows what that is ...) P.P.S. "If people want stories serially they’ll go to television." ... ah well ... that's really 1991 for you.

richmarr 8y ago
Can you clarify what you found enlightening about it?
- B1FF_PSUVM 8y ago
  There was a change in the way social conflict is handled. The late-XIX century way was making a city like Paris have wide, straight avenues and "pour la canaille la mitraille" - a straight military approach to class warfare. The late-XX century is on the side of psych-warfare and pouring oil on troubled waters, i.e. buying peace on a piecemeal basis. It's right out on Wolfe's first paragraph: "They knew you were the right studs to give the poverty grants and community organizing jobs to." (I was going to quote that originally, but forty years brought that line too close to today's reality bone ...)
  - richmarr 8y ago
    There seems to be a common belief that the 'modern' era is somehow different to the past. I'm open to the idea, but in the most part it seems based on so little data that it can be discounted. Maybe Wolfe has got some evidence, but I tend to be skeptical of those kinds of arguments. My default assumption is that people are exhibiting a historical or narrative bias. The late 20th century didn't produce Sun Tzu or Machiavelli, for example, so it seems like counter-examples are available. Would love to see data.
shams93 8y ago
I couldn't stand his right wing politics however his writing style was amazing, as an artist there was a lot to appreciate in terms of how he crafted his work.

richmarr 8y ago

Can you clarify what you found enlightening about it?

B1FF_PSUVM 8y ago
There was a change in the way social conflict is handled. The late-XIX century way was making a city like Paris have wide, straight avenues and "pour la canaille la mitraille" - a straight military approach to class warfare. The late-XX century is on the side of psych-warfare and pouring oil on troubled waters, i.e. buying peace on a piecemeal basis. It's right out on Wolfe's first paragraph: "They knew you were the right studs to give the poverty grants and community organizing jobs to." (I was going to quote that originally, but forty years brought that line too close to today's reality bone ...)
- richmarr 8y ago
  There seems to be a common belief that the 'modern' era is somehow different to the past. I'm open to the idea, but in the most part it seems based on so little data that it can be discounted. Maybe Wolfe has got some evidence, but I tend to be skeptical of those kinds of arguments. My default assumption is that people are exhibiting a historical or narrative bias. The late 20th century didn't produce Sun Tzu or Machiavelli, for example, so it seems like counter-examples are available. Would love to see data.

shams93 8y ago

I couldn't stand his right wing politics however his writing style was amazing, as an artist there was a lot to appreciate in terms of how he crafted his work.