1. Last week I took possession of my new apartment and have been moving in piecemeal ever since. I won’t be able to get most of the furniture until next week, unfortunately, but I have almost all of my books moved.

In the meantime I live among chaos, my worldly goods vomited out upon the floor and countertops, waiting for their homes to be brought into place so we can begin to live in order again.

2. I was all set to have this be a Saturday Flotsam, but my new apartment doesn’t have internet yet, so I wasn’t able to publish yesterday.

3. If the same term is being used to mean both “disapproves of the policies of a certain nation” and “supports genocide,” then someone is not being honest.

4. A classless society can only exist in one sense of the term, and it’s not the one you want.

5. I think we need to be more intentional about what books we consider to be ‘classics’.

What is a classic? It is an exemplary of fine language and core ideas that sets the standard for the future of that language and culture. Shakespeare is the classic of English, both for his language and the cultural sentiments he expresses in that language.

Now, when considering what we include on the classics list, we need to consider both quality of language and quality of sentiment, as well as influence. My own opinion is that we should pay more attention to the second one in drawing up lists of classic literature. Which sentiments are being inculcated in this story, and are they ones that match the kind of society we want to live in?

This is, of course, the attitude of the Left, which is why people like Steinbeck, James Joyce, Fitzgerald, and so on are always on the list. I think those on the other side ought to be more active in doing the same.

There seems to me to be no reason why The Virginian, for instance, should not be a standard feature of the American classics list, much more so than, say, The Great Gatsby (which I don’t dislike, by the way). It’s at least equal in terms of language and undeniably more influential (being the origin of an entire literary genre), and certainly a better examination of core American sentiments.

6. I also would push for H.P. Lovecraft as a major American poet. His work in that field deserves much more attention than it gets, in my opinion (though that honestly may be said of his work in general). I much prefer his poetry to that of many a more familiar name

One might almost say that Crafting Love is something the White Man can’t top, if you know what I mean.

7. In considering any social or political issues, taken simply as issues, the first questions to ask are “What kind of society and what kind of people do we want to have?” and “Will this help us achieve that?”