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ATHF Boston Bomb Analysis - Puritan Remix? Psychology of a Witch Hunt? by skullaria at 2:18 am EST, Feb 10, 2007 |
This is an excellent take on the situation, by a very ballsy Dion Dennis, an Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice in MA. "First, we can see the historical and hysterical echoes of the 17th Century Salem witch trials. The two artists, the long-haired, bearded Belorussian immigrant Berdovsky and his sidekick, Stevens, stand publicly accused of producing, as defined by Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 266, Section 102, an "infernal machine." (Etymologically, the term "infernal" refers to Hell and the identities and products of the demons of said residence). So, like Arthur Miller's John Proctor, they will undoubtedly be asked to "make a deal" with official reality, to acknowledge their "infernal" (demonic) specific intent (as defined by the statute) and, in doing so, externalize the demons of the populace as they reaffirm the dominant symbolic order. [3] Contemporary ritual exorcisms will be performed in court, press conferences and press releases, and remixed and expanded by local and 24 hour news media, as they are archived for subsequent use. " |
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RE: ATHF Boston Bomb Analysis - Puritan Remix? Psychology of a Witch Hunt? by Dagmar at 8:58 pm EST, Feb 10, 2007 |
skullaria wrote: This is an excellent take on the situation, by a very ballsy Dion Dennis, an Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice in MA. "First, we can see the historical and hysterical echoes of the 17th Century Salem witch trials. The two artists, the long-haired, bearded Belorussian immigrant Berdovsky and his sidekick, Stevens, stand publicly accused of producing, as defined by Massachusetts General Law, Chapter 266, Section 102, an "infernal machine." (Etymologically, the term "infernal" refers to Hell and the identities and products of the demons of said residence). So, like Arthur Miller's John Proctor, they will undoubtedly be asked to "make a deal" with official reality, to acknowledge their "infernal" (demonic) specific intent (as defined by the statute) and, in doing so, externalize the demons of the populace as they reaffirm the dominant symbolic order. [3] Contemporary ritual exorcisms will be performed in court, press conferences and press releases, and remixed and expanded by local and 24 hour news media, as they are archived for subsequent use. "
Frankly, I think the creators of the displays are probably going to continue to mock the proceedings at every turn. This would be giving both the situation and it's creators the seriousness it deserves. Fear of the unknown is something only a primitive peoples are supposed to be afflicted by, and this is exactly what that is. |
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ATHF Boston Bomb Analysis - Puritan Remix? Psychology of a Witch Hunt? by Decius at 1:25 pm EST, Feb 10, 2007 |
The Generational Warfare Strategies of a Greying Populace This remix of Puritanism and the neo-liberal imaginary (obsessed with what Ericson dubs "the myth of certainty and security") is a necessary but not sufficient set of conditions for declaring this peculiar "state of emergency." [6] The remaining variable is demographic. It pits an aging, declining and reactive population (the third or fourth generation descendants of Irish, Italian, German, and English immigrants) straining to secure the slipping remnants of a mid-20th Century state-centered set of expected benefits, against a more vigorous and adaptable creative subculture within the Millennial Generation. Not surprisingly, there's been a steady outflow of educated Millennials from the Bay State to points South and West, where a younger, educated demographic is welcomed and treated with greater public courtesy.
Get out of Massachusetts. |
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RE: ATHF Boston Bomb Analysis - Puritan Remix? Psychology of a Witch Hunt? by flynn23 at 2:51 am EST, Feb 11, 2007 |
Decius wrote: Get out of Massachusetts.
I did. In 1992. Boston is a wonderful city, but there's a reason why they call people who live in that state Massholes. Another place where I notice a lot of people leaving is SF. Sorry Charlie, but there's only so much gridlock, $2000/ft2, and taxes that you can stand before you look for greener pastures. |
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