Venal Scene

Thursday, September 18, 2003

Hungry

(LUKE, 20s, speaks to a co-worker in the break room of an office.)

LUKE
Could it be that we�re not getting the whole story? Could it be that somebody�s lying to us? Get on the internet, left-click, right-click, world-news-information. Follow the links. Follow the money. Follow the bias.

What�s going on? Ask yourself. I ask myself every day. On line. Getting information. Getting first-hand reports from the desert. From the city. From a military compound in the foothills of Faroffistan. It�s all there. There�s no excuse for ignorance. There�s information, restless, roving packs of information, howling, fruitful, free. Find it. Take four, five, six hours, take lunch too, and mornings before anyone�s shown up, before all the lights are on. Pick up a tray and start sifting for gold. Start sifting the ever-shifting sands. Shifting from winds of punditry, momentum, spin. Winds of ones and zeros, alphanumeric storms, millions of particles forming hills, mountains, colossi, then whoosh, a wind from the north blows, and they�re gone.

It�s the new millennium. An educated populace is the only way democracy can survive. Left-click, right-click, whichever side�s click you�re on, get in there and start mixing it up. Get informed. Get knowledge. Blogs, chats, boards. Get your opinions buffed out. Drag race �em on the information superhighway. Step on the gas -- joooooom! -- 426 hemi down the commentary line! Run you down! What�d you say six months ago?! Can�t remember! I remember! It�s in my web cache! I got your ass, hypocrite! The pleasure of watching your opponent�s arguments catch on fire, burning up on self-deception, exploding into a fireball as he slams into the concrete truth barrier at five-hundred kilobytes a second! Who�s next?! Who wants a piece of this?!

That�s right. I am not confused. I am not deceived. I know exactly what is going on.
(Blackout.)

posted by Dan 1:16 PM
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Tuesday, September 16, 2003

Worse Than War or Failure

(A local tavern. MIN and CARRIE sit at the bar, two women of any age over twenty-one. MIN drinks a martini. CARRIE has a glass of scotch and water, and a beer. They smoke, sharing an ashtray. Nothing agitates CARRIE.)

MIN
Did you hear about Ben and Jennifer?

CARRIE
No.

MIN
Do you want to hear?

CARRIE
Sure.

MIN
They broke up.

CARRIE
Oh.

MIN
How do you feel �bout that?

CARRIE
I don�t know.

MIN
You don�t?

CARRIE
No.
(Pause to drink cocktails and drag on smokes.)

MIN
Do you care about Ben and Jennifer?

CARRIE
I don�t know.
(Another pause for drinking and dragging.)

MIN
Should I have told you about Ben and Jennifer?

CARRIE
Tell me whatever you want.

MIN
Why do you think I told you about Ben and Jennifer?

CARRIE
�Cause you care.

MIN
Why do I care?

CARRIE
I don�t know, why do you?

MIN
I�m asking you.

CARRIE
What to uh...to speculate? I don�t got a clue.
(Short pause.)

MIN
I�d like to get back to Ben and Jennifer.

MORE...

The New Orleans Channel.com Discussion Board; "Why Do People Care About Celebrities� Private Lives?"

posted by Dan 1:16 PM
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