Last week, I took a few days off to give a talk at a library conference in Jackson, Wyoming.
I decided to drive. The library had gotten a complaint about a multiple-CD book, and this would give me a chance to listen to it.
The name of the book was "Light in August," by William Faulkner. Somehow, I'd never gotten around to reading Faulkner before.
I remember the night (right before the test, as it happened) when I realized I'd probably better get going on Moby Dick. Then, to my astonishment, I got hooked, and spent the whole night reading it, and in fact aced the test. A wonderful book!
That's been my experience with most of the classics. That's why they're classics.
About the only one I really disliked was "Ethan Frome," by Edith Wharton. (I once found a two sentence summary I still think nailed it: "I met a man named Ethan Frome. His life sucked.")
Now there are two. I have been listening to "Light in August" for almost 18 hours, and it makes me want to scream.
Has there ever been a more mannered, maddening, mumbling author? Has there ever been a fictional universe so inhabited by profoundly brain-damaged people? Has there ever been an omniscient narrator so clueless about his own characters?
Mannerisms: "His voice ceased." "Her voice ceased." Faulkner is the only writer I've run across whose idea of dialog is to tell you that somebody has STOPPED talking. Over and over and over.
Inhabitants: the characters chew on some perfectly ordinary phenomena for a chapter or two, then finally SAY, "Huh." Then their voices cease. They watch the dust behind a wagon for awhile. Then they commit an act of incomprehensible violence.
Omniscience: look, Faulkner created these people, right? He can make them say, or do, or want, anything he pleases. But in virtually every scene, he starts opining about POSSIBLE motives for his characters. "Perhaps Joe was thinking [something improbable].... Or perhaps not." Well, which is it? If it's stream of consciousness, fine, OK, swell, but are we talking the AUTHOR'S stream of consciousness? If so, shouldn't the author BE conscious?
Oh, and on occasion, Faulkner waxes philosophic. I studied philosophy for years. I got a degree in it. It is my expert opinion that Faulkner is absolutely unintelligible.
Then there's the story itself. There is not one single person in this book I would choose to spend 5 minutes with. And I have now been in their unrelieved company for 18 hours.
Maybe I'm being too subtle here. I hate this book.
But here's the kicker. Somewhere out there, I just KNOW one of you is thinking, "But I LOVE Faulkner! He's my favorite author! And 'Light in August' is my favorite book!"
OK. Fine. We've got it. Come and get it.
I finally had to cheat and look up the ending in Cliff's Notes because I could not stand to subject myself to another minute of the genuine article. (Cliff's Notes, incidentally, are available from our website, 24/7, and for free, if you've got a library card.)
According to Cliff's Notes, "Faulkner is considered one of the world's greatest novelists." I WEEP for mankind.
Friday, October 28, 2005
Friday, October 21, 2005
October 14, 2005 - Masons value private and public sector
My grandfather spent all this life as a business man. He dropped out of 10th grade to support his disabled mother. For awhile, Granddad worked through a correspondence course to become an attorney. Then the Depression hit.
So though he never became a lawyer, he got a taste for self-education. He remained a voracious reader.
Most of his working life, he drove a pastry truck, and considered himself lucky to have the job. Eventually, he wound up in appliance sales at a big department store, where he worked until his death at 72.
I tried to visit him every summer. Sometimes, I talked my folks into leaving me there for an extra week. I was crazy about Granddad.
For one thing, he would take me with him to meet his friends. He taught me the importance of a handshake. I got to practice it with the local police chief, the fire chief, the mayor, and even the library director. Granddad knew them all, and made a point of taking me to their offices.
Once, while walking together down the street, Granddad stopped me in front of a fire hydrant. "How do you think that got there?" he asked me. I admitted I didn't really know.
Then he talked me through all the things it took to have a working hydrant: a water supply, installation and maintenance, regular checking. It was a complex system that existed for a reason, he said: to help save lives and property in the event of an emergency.
"Whenever you walk past a hydrant, or a streetlight, or even a mailbox, just stop and think about all the thought, effort and purpose behind it."
I realize now that Granddad was giving me practical civics lesson. He put a face on politics, talking about the people that held office, and how much work it was to get it. He talked about the many people, of many skills and backgrounds, necessary to translate plans into working systems.
He was a business man who understood the value of the public sector.
Here's another thing not often noticed. On occasion, I run across building cornerstones and plaques placed by the Masonic Lodge in Castle Rock. I like seeing those plaques -- they communicate a sense of continuity and tradition, of consecration to a use.
There is a plaque at the Chamber of Commerce. There's one on the police station. There's one on the Philip S. Miller Library. There are others.
The Masons also occupy one of my favorite buildings in the county, the former First National Bank, located on the corner of 3rd and Wilcox. It was originally built in 1904, faced with rhyolite, and designed by former Denver architect George Louis Bettcher.
Along with developer Brad Brown, I was a guest there recently. We each had the unexpected privilege of being recognized as the "Man of the Year" -- Mr. Brown in the private sector, and me in the public.
There are many traditions in our culture. But I think the idea of an interdependence between private and public sector, each with its distinct, but important roles, is something that today's society doesn't "get" very well.
I'm grateful to my Granddad for being the first to clue me in, and to the Masons, both for their kindness to me, and their dignified acknowledgment of the civic significance of key buildings in our county.
So though he never became a lawyer, he got a taste for self-education. He remained a voracious reader.
Most of his working life, he drove a pastry truck, and considered himself lucky to have the job. Eventually, he wound up in appliance sales at a big department store, where he worked until his death at 72.
I tried to visit him every summer. Sometimes, I talked my folks into leaving me there for an extra week. I was crazy about Granddad.
For one thing, he would take me with him to meet his friends. He taught me the importance of a handshake. I got to practice it with the local police chief, the fire chief, the mayor, and even the library director. Granddad knew them all, and made a point of taking me to their offices.
Once, while walking together down the street, Granddad stopped me in front of a fire hydrant. "How do you think that got there?" he asked me. I admitted I didn't really know.
Then he talked me through all the things it took to have a working hydrant: a water supply, installation and maintenance, regular checking. It was a complex system that existed for a reason, he said: to help save lives and property in the event of an emergency.
"Whenever you walk past a hydrant, or a streetlight, or even a mailbox, just stop and think about all the thought, effort and purpose behind it."
I realize now that Granddad was giving me practical civics lesson. He put a face on politics, talking about the people that held office, and how much work it was to get it. He talked about the many people, of many skills and backgrounds, necessary to translate plans into working systems.
He was a business man who understood the value of the public sector.
Here's another thing not often noticed. On occasion, I run across building cornerstones and plaques placed by the Masonic Lodge in Castle Rock. I like seeing those plaques -- they communicate a sense of continuity and tradition, of consecration to a use.
There is a plaque at the Chamber of Commerce. There's one on the police station. There's one on the Philip S. Miller Library. There are others.
The Masons also occupy one of my favorite buildings in the county, the former First National Bank, located on the corner of 3rd and Wilcox. It was originally built in 1904, faced with rhyolite, and designed by former Denver architect George Louis Bettcher.
Along with developer Brad Brown, I was a guest there recently. We each had the unexpected privilege of being recognized as the "Man of the Year" -- Mr. Brown in the private sector, and me in the public.
There are many traditions in our culture. But I think the idea of an interdependence between private and public sector, each with its distinct, but important roles, is something that today's society doesn't "get" very well.
I'm grateful to my Granddad for being the first to clue me in, and to the Masons, both for their kindness to me, and their dignified acknowledgment of the civic significance of key buildings in our county.
Friday, October 7, 2005
October 7, 2005 -- Douglas County Libraries support C and D
During the recent recession, the Colorado State Legislature reduced state funding for libraries by almost 79%. Libraries were not, of course, the only services to take a hit.
That recession, along with various competing mandates -- federally mandated increases in Medicaid funding, State Constitutionally mandated increases in education funding, and TABOR mandated tax cuts -- meant that there simply wasn't enough money to go around.
Acting to head off what was called "the perfect fiscal storm," a coalition of State Senators and Representatives, as well as the Governor, crafted two proposals called Referenda C and D. In brief, C permits the state to keep, rather than refund, the TABOR refunds over the next five years. D is a bonding question that articulates how the money will be used for various, mostly capital, projects.
The Referenda have garnered a lot of attention. Given the importance of the question, the library district spoOctober 7, 2005 -- Douglas County Libraries support C and D
During the recent recession, the Colorado State Legislature reduced state funding for libraries by almost 79%. Libraries were not, of course, the only services to take a hit.
That recession, along with various competing mandates -- federally mandated increases in Medicaid funding, State Constitutionally mandated increases in education funding, and TABOR mandated tax cuts -- meant that there simply wasn't enough money to keep funding many other programs at historic levels.
Acting to head off what was called "the perfect fiscal storm," a coalition of State Senators and Representatives, as well as the Governor, crafted two proposals called Referenda C and D. In brief, C permits the state to keep, rather than refund, the TABOR refunds over the next five years. D is a bonding question that articulates how the money will be used for various, mostly capital, projects.
The Referenda have garnered a lot of attention. Given the importance of the question, the library district sponsored or co-sponsored four debates.
At Lone Tree, Representative Ted Harvey squared off against Brad Young, former (Republican) chair of the State's Joint Budget Committee. At Highlands Ranch, Young debated Richard Randall of the Libertarian Party. At Parker, Senator John Evans sparred with Greg McKnight of the Colorado Department of Transportation. Finally, at the Philip S. Miller Library in Castle Rock, the Chamber of Commerce co-sponsored a debate between Senator Tom Weins and House Majority Leader Andrew Romanoff.
The library has been pleased to offer its space as the civic square, where citizens can find easy access to some of the key players in this issue.
Based in part on the information revealed from these debates, based in part on analysis provided by the Colorado Association of Libraries, based in part on discussions with other Douglas County entities, the Board of Trustees of the Douglas County Libraries has chosen to take a stand on this issue: it urges the endorsement of C and D.
It is not alone. While most of our Douglas County representatives (excluding only Representative Jim Sullivan) oppose the measures, many of the citizen leaders of various local governments support C and D. So do many business people -- for instance, the Boards of various Chambers of Commerce, and economic development councils.
That's a curious division between local community and state representatives.
I've given a lot of thought to this lately. I moderated a couple of the debates above, and learned that there are two distinct ideas of government out there. One of them is predicated on distrust. Allow politicians to decide nothing; mandate everything through direct citizen initiatives to change the Constitution. Of course, that's what got us mandates to both increase spending, and reduce revenue.
Another view is that representatives should be held accountable for their decisions, both to maintain a balanced budget, and to provide services essential to the well-being of the people who elected them. But that requires paying attention to the decisions those representatives make. It also means understanding the limits of their authority -- and that can be a complex thing.
A good place to start is the library website. Go to www.douglascountylibraries.org. Then click on "Douglas County and Community." At the bottom of that page, you'll see "Making Democracy Work." This link takes you to a comprehensive collection of links for voter registration, political candidate information, and issue analysis.
The library would like to thank our speakers for their time and participation in this vital civic discussion. Finally, the Douglas County Libraries strongly encourages all citizens to get informed -- and to vote! nsored or co-sponsored four debates.
At Lone Tree, Representative Ted Harvey squared off against Brad Young, former (Republican) chair of the State's Joint Budget Committee. At Highlands Ranch, Young debated Richard Randall of the Libertarian Party. At Parker, Senator John Evans sparred with Greg McKnight of the Colorado Department of Transportation. Finally, at the Philip S. Miller Library in Castle Rock, the Chamber of Commerce co-sponsored a debate between Senator Tom Weins and House Majority Leader Andrew Romanoff.
The library has been pleased to offer its space as the civic square, where citizens can find easy access to some of the key players in this issue.
Based in part on the information revealed from these debates, based in part on analysis provided by the Colorado Association of Libraries, based in part on discussions with other Douglas County entities, the Board of Trustees of the Douglas County Libraries has chosen to take a stand on this issue: it urges the endorsement of C and D.
It is not alone. While most of our Douglas County representatives (excluding only Representative Jim Sullivan) oppose the measures, it seems that most of the citizen leadership of various local governments support C and D. So do many business people -- for instance, the Boards of various Chambers of Commerce, and economic development councils.
That's a curious division between community and representative.
I've given a lot of thought to this lately. I moderated a couple of the debates above, and learned that there are two distinct ideas of government out there. One of them is predicated on distrust. Allow politicians to decide nothing; mandate everything through direct citizen initiatives to change the Constitution. Of course, that's what got us mandates to both increase spending, and reduce revenue.
Another view is that representatives should be held accountable for their decisions, both to maintain a balanced budget, and to provide services essential to the well-being of the people. But that requires paying attention to the decisions those representatives make. It also means understanding the limits of their authority -- and that can be a complex thing.
A good place to start is the library website. Go to www.douglascountylibraries.org. Then click on "Douglas County and Community." At the bottom of that page, you'll see "Making Democracy Work." This link takes you to a comprehensive collection of links for voter registration, political candidate information, and issue analysis.
The library would like to thank our speakers for their time and participation in this vital civic discussion. Finally, the Douglas County Libraries strongly encourages all citizens to get informed -- and to vote!
That recession, along with various competing mandates -- federally mandated increases in Medicaid funding, State Constitutionally mandated increases in education funding, and TABOR mandated tax cuts -- meant that there simply wasn't enough money to go around.
Acting to head off what was called "the perfect fiscal storm," a coalition of State Senators and Representatives, as well as the Governor, crafted two proposals called Referenda C and D. In brief, C permits the state to keep, rather than refund, the TABOR refunds over the next five years. D is a bonding question that articulates how the money will be used for various, mostly capital, projects.
The Referenda have garnered a lot of attention. Given the importance of the question, the library district spoOctober 7, 2005 -- Douglas County Libraries support C and D
During the recent recession, the Colorado State Legislature reduced state funding for libraries by almost 79%. Libraries were not, of course, the only services to take a hit.
That recession, along with various competing mandates -- federally mandated increases in Medicaid funding, State Constitutionally mandated increases in education funding, and TABOR mandated tax cuts -- meant that there simply wasn't enough money to keep funding many other programs at historic levels.
Acting to head off what was called "the perfect fiscal storm," a coalition of State Senators and Representatives, as well as the Governor, crafted two proposals called Referenda C and D. In brief, C permits the state to keep, rather than refund, the TABOR refunds over the next five years. D is a bonding question that articulates how the money will be used for various, mostly capital, projects.
The Referenda have garnered a lot of attention. Given the importance of the question, the library district sponsored or co-sponsored four debates.
At Lone Tree, Representative Ted Harvey squared off against Brad Young, former (Republican) chair of the State's Joint Budget Committee. At Highlands Ranch, Young debated Richard Randall of the Libertarian Party. At Parker, Senator John Evans sparred with Greg McKnight of the Colorado Department of Transportation. Finally, at the Philip S. Miller Library in Castle Rock, the Chamber of Commerce co-sponsored a debate between Senator Tom Weins and House Majority Leader Andrew Romanoff.
The library has been pleased to offer its space as the civic square, where citizens can find easy access to some of the key players in this issue.
Based in part on the information revealed from these debates, based in part on analysis provided by the Colorado Association of Libraries, based in part on discussions with other Douglas County entities, the Board of Trustees of the Douglas County Libraries has chosen to take a stand on this issue: it urges the endorsement of C and D.
It is not alone. While most of our Douglas County representatives (excluding only Representative Jim Sullivan) oppose the measures, many of the citizen leaders of various local governments support C and D. So do many business people -- for instance, the Boards of various Chambers of Commerce, and economic development councils.
That's a curious division between local community and state representatives.
I've given a lot of thought to this lately. I moderated a couple of the debates above, and learned that there are two distinct ideas of government out there. One of them is predicated on distrust. Allow politicians to decide nothing; mandate everything through direct citizen initiatives to change the Constitution. Of course, that's what got us mandates to both increase spending, and reduce revenue.
Another view is that representatives should be held accountable for their decisions, both to maintain a balanced budget, and to provide services essential to the well-being of the people who elected them. But that requires paying attention to the decisions those representatives make. It also means understanding the limits of their authority -- and that can be a complex thing.
A good place to start is the library website. Go to www.douglascountylibraries.org. Then click on "Douglas County and Community." At the bottom of that page, you'll see "Making Democracy Work." This link takes you to a comprehensive collection of links for voter registration, political candidate information, and issue analysis.
The library would like to thank our speakers for their time and participation in this vital civic discussion. Finally, the Douglas County Libraries strongly encourages all citizens to get informed -- and to vote! nsored or co-sponsored four debates.
At Lone Tree, Representative Ted Harvey squared off against Brad Young, former (Republican) chair of the State's Joint Budget Committee. At Highlands Ranch, Young debated Richard Randall of the Libertarian Party. At Parker, Senator John Evans sparred with Greg McKnight of the Colorado Department of Transportation. Finally, at the Philip S. Miller Library in Castle Rock, the Chamber of Commerce co-sponsored a debate between Senator Tom Weins and House Majority Leader Andrew Romanoff.
The library has been pleased to offer its space as the civic square, where citizens can find easy access to some of the key players in this issue.
Based in part on the information revealed from these debates, based in part on analysis provided by the Colorado Association of Libraries, based in part on discussions with other Douglas County entities, the Board of Trustees of the Douglas County Libraries has chosen to take a stand on this issue: it urges the endorsement of C and D.
It is not alone. While most of our Douglas County representatives (excluding only Representative Jim Sullivan) oppose the measures, it seems that most of the citizen leadership of various local governments support C and D. So do many business people -- for instance, the Boards of various Chambers of Commerce, and economic development councils.
That's a curious division between community and representative.
I've given a lot of thought to this lately. I moderated a couple of the debates above, and learned that there are two distinct ideas of government out there. One of them is predicated on distrust. Allow politicians to decide nothing; mandate everything through direct citizen initiatives to change the Constitution. Of course, that's what got us mandates to both increase spending, and reduce revenue.
Another view is that representatives should be held accountable for their decisions, both to maintain a balanced budget, and to provide services essential to the well-being of the people. But that requires paying attention to the decisions those representatives make. It also means understanding the limits of their authority -- and that can be a complex thing.
A good place to start is the library website. Go to www.douglascountylibraries.org. Then click on "Douglas County and Community." At the bottom of that page, you'll see "Making Democracy Work." This link takes you to a comprehensive collection of links for voter registration, political candidate information, and issue analysis.
The library would like to thank our speakers for their time and participation in this vital civic discussion. Finally, the Douglas County Libraries strongly encourages all citizens to get informed -- and to vote!
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