Monday, September 19, 2005

Comedians and Villains

1.) THE RUMINATOR.
This was once a respectable group of people. They've allowed themselves to become dominated by cynical lit-establishment types-- have damaged their reputation by refusing to acknowledge a mistake. Their Editor's sole response to me, quoted further down on this blog, is a classic of bureaucratic officiousness. A sad moment for a literary journal.

2.) DAVID SEDARIS.
Daniel Handler's quote to me 9/12 regarding Sedaris: "I showed the first letter to Sedaris because I thought it was a hoot."
How great a role did Sedaris play in the publication of the fake letter? Did he arrange it? The conversation of the two men about the letter in the interview takes on greater meaning now that we know their real attitude.

3.) DANIEL HANDLER.
Not the biggest loser, as "Lemony Snicket" is obviously not very intelligent or scrupulous. One would think Sedaris, Eggers, and folks at The Ruminator would've noticed.

4.) DAVE EGGERS.
Every time he or his flunkies go after the ULA, they blunder. Serious questions have to be raised about how sharp the guy really is-- or if his success is more the product of connections with the Rick Moodys of the lit-world and publicists at Simon & Schuster.

5.) LIT-BLOGGERS.
Will they miss an opportunity to demonstrate impartiality and independence?

1 comment:

King Wenclas said...

I'm certain that many observers of this matter will be against the ULA because we're making noise about it-- we appear to be capitalizing on it. That the letter is NOT from me doesn't affect their judgement.
We're in a catch-22 situation; our kind of writer marginalized by the lit world, by society itself, yet if we dare to stand up for ourselves, to yell so that people will notice ourselves and our works, we're pegged as being as corrupt as the multi-millionaire big guys who control the machinery of literature for their own benefit.
We can be stomped on by life, or by the Daniel handlers of the lit-world, but will lose any sympathy by fighting back.
We're not supposed to expect to be treated as equals, you see. This goes against the very nature of American society. Instead we're supposed to be helpless victims awaiting rescue, grateful for crumbs; to approach our "betters" meekly, with hat in hand.
The lit world loved me, you know, when I was doing tricks for them like a J.T. Leroy or Lisa Crystal Carver circus animal, through my New Philistine newsletter. You'd be surprised at the names who subscribed to it. It was so amusing for them! They were shocked, however, to find that I actually believed what I was saying-- and would dare try to make my ideas reality.
THIS is what the Underground Literary Alliance is about: exposing corruption; forcing the Overdogs who run things to be honest. It's quite a task; an almost-but-not-quite-impossible job.