The LSD Nation

A counterculture movement is characterized by the opposition of its members to the current behavioral norms and usually emerges during moments of political tension. The Merry Pranksters, as read in The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe, was a group led by Ken Kesey in the 60′s. It represented the beginning of a new counterculture in America, as the Pranksters started a trip on a bus named Furthur, experimenting LSD as a way of transcendence. The objective of their leader is to spread his idea to the whole nation. However, basic features of the Pranksters’ ideas and organizations make their goals unfeasible. Their negligence towards racial and gender issues and the obsession with power of Kesey are two factors that would lead to chaos and tyranny should the movement expand. The following paragraphs are dedicated to support this idea by analyzing an LSD Nation based on the Pranksters’ principles.

One of the main premises of this group is doing your thing, whatever you feel you are meant to in life, which leaves little room for sustainability and stability of the LSD Nation. “If somebody is an ass-kicker, then that’s what he’s going to do on this trip, kick asses . . . He can just say, ‘I’m sorry I kicked you in the ass, but I’m not sorry I’m an ass-kicker. That’s what I do, I kick people in the ass’” (pg. 73). This leads us to a big question: Would our concept of justice (our moral rightness based on ethics and our system of keeping this correctness by reward and punishment) be substituted by another concept of justice or would it simply disappear? The establishment of a fair and reasoning society is not possible if everything is accepted under the excuse of nature, and this is the first of their contradictions. Another aspect of doing your thing is the sacrifice of the production power of a nation. This would force a big scale parasitic communal system where an unstable and maybe minimal fraction of the people would actually provide money and services. Such society would eventually break down due to individualistic desires inherent to human beings, and individuals would be forced back to finding sources of survival outside their thing.

Counterculture currents reacted to World War II and the Cold War and social issues, such as discrimination for race, gender and sexual orientation. However, The Pranksters pose intersubjectivity (merging with other people, objects and beings by the use of LSD) as an answer, while completely ignoring the situation and needs of the victims of these problems. This is exemplified by the episode where the Pranksters go into a Negroes beach and therefore cause the irritation of the people there. Even though everything ends up in an integrated party, this result is not replicable in other situations or at other levels. Deep cut beliefs, such as racism, cannot be changed in short terms and they would arise at any moment, specially during bad trips, or disturbing experiences, from both sides. Another case is their alignment with the Hell’s Angels gang simply because of the outlaw condition. Put all these pieces together, we find but potentially increased violence at a psychedelic level.

Something probably more important than the features of the group is the methods of leadership by Ken Kesey, which is packed with such manipulation and control appetite that changes the original course of the voyage. Evidently, Kesey is the master mind and provider of the resources and therefore exercises coercion methods on the group. As consciousness of power arises, he tries to expand his mass psychology abilities. At this level, what the purpose of this movement is becomes arguable. No member of the Pranksters really is in power. They follow a charismatic, prophet-like man who has promised the road of self-divinity but who would become a tyrant in case of a successful expansion of the movement. It is certain that founding a complete new regime involves a hard fist and tight constraints, but the intentions behind the beautiful people alter the complete panorama. Kesey’s behavior goes along with the nurse character in his book One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, for he would command the LSD nation. This mere exchange of the predominant system does not eliminate the fact that any society shapes and controls its branches. This system too would yield societal wastes: people who would be manipulated like Billy, fight like McMurphy or disguise themselves like the Chief. Furthermore, this would occur at a higher rate, as a consequence of abuse and addiction to drugs.

It is attributed to LSD the ability to regain sensorial and creative faculties that were lost throught time under the imposition of rules of society. “We are shut off from our own world. Aand these drugs seem to be the key to open these locked doors” (pg. 44). This power of thinking beyond common sense and accessing the absoluteness of the mind could possibly trigger major changes in current reasoning and technology. An example of this is the work of Steve Jobs, a very creative and smart man who left school because of the ideas of Timothy Leary of achieving a higher spiritual level by using LSD. Jobs stated that “definitely taking LSD is one of the most important things in my life”. ¹ The use of psychedelic drugs does not necessarily lead to destructive trends and it could be the beginning of a big wave of invention and revolution.

The case of Jobs, however, is exceptional. The use of LSD just coincided with an ambitious and accurate person. If psychedelic methods had as general consequences certain types of novelties, the latter would be substantial (and the amount of authors would also be exponentially higher). Moreover, it would be questionable to sacrifice the welfare and security of a big mass of people for attaining any type of ideas or objects. We are hence redirected to challenging the objective of converting the whole United States of America to an LSD Nation. It is not worth to forgo moral values to achieve an apparently less demanding society. Our actual regulated society is preferable, in spite of its flaws and inequalities. An LSD Nation would not really be able to survive with its chaos and maintain a goal of freedom.

 1CBS News. 60 Minutes: Steve Jobs. 2011. Minutes 5:03-5:30. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51J5K7VMsg4

Levels of Rationality: the Convergence of Whitman, Ginsberg and Pirsig

Our quest of what constitutes an American identity has started with the analysis of a set of literary and philosophical writings related to despair and enlightenment. The humble intention of the author is to give an overview of the texts and expose the (dis)convergent points of Walt Whitman in Song of Myself, Allen Ginsberg in Howl and Robert Pirsig in Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. We will see that two of these pieces, the ones by Whitman and Ginsberg, are the reaction to comparable historical contexts, but represent different stages of the despair/enlightenment process. In the pursuit of enlightenment, Ginsberg falls short by getting carried away by madness while Whitman takes a more rational and therefore more efficacious approach; we will also be able to appreciate how the work of Pirsig presents some relevant perspective in the subject due to his methodical address.

Howl represents the very first stage of the despair/enlightenment process. This first stage is characterized by despair, the quasi-hopelessness state of the self, is the knife of the poem. The discontent generated by racism, homophobia and World War II gives birth to a counter culture reflected in the poetry of the Beat Generation. Howl is the torn voice of demand. Demand to the system for an answer in the middle of existential crisis, need of love and freedom. It is also an attempt to escape, by the means of drugs and liberation of sexuality, from the cruel reality that yields hollow men and sufferance. All this is expressed in a prose of rupture with previous aesthetic trends, where words and ideas that would be considered coarse and irreverent predominate. The pursuit of a condition with no pain, ignorance or desire (enlightenment) is a common factor of all of the texts analyzed here. However, the self-destructiveness of Ginsberg’s approach makes it inefficient, which results in the absolute absence of a real solution and increase of desperation and irrationality.

Chronologically first, about a hundred years before Howl, we find Song of Myself, a revolt against national tensions which is on a higher stage on the road of enlightenment: it incorporates the necessary rationale to distinguish the origin of problems and the potential clarifications. The social crisis derived from slavery issues, such as the emergence of Abolitionism and the division of church, is the root of Transcendentalism, a philosophy that twirls up and down the verses of Whitman. In this case, claiming the system is neither a method nor a solution. He goes through numerous descriptions of moments of life and history, such as battle events, contact with nature and with women and men of different ages, races, origins and experiences. The declaration of the deity nature of the human being and the detachment from any kind of groups are the main axes of his proposal: “Divine am I inside and out, and I make holy whatever I touch or am touch’d from/ The scent of these arm-pits aroma finer than prayer/ This head more than churches, bibles, and all the creeds”. Whitman takes a trip of merging with nature and preparing the soul for happiness. Even though Whitman’s work has traces of Romanticism, it is far off from the initial phase of disorientation present in Howl, bringing promises and breezes of consolation.

Last in both historical time and resolution there is Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, a philosophical narration that digs in romantic vs. classical appreciations and the conflicts between them, the concept of quality and other issues. The main character of this book embarks on a motorcycle trip with his son and friends. On the way to Bozeman, Montana, he develops his ideas and gets closer to identifying his old identity. According to the character, classic understanding is based on reasons and objective laws, while romantic understanding is mainly guided by perceptions and emotions. For the first time along the texts a theory about despair driven by a social/political system is given: “To some extent the romantic condemnation of rationality stems from the very effectiveness of rationality in uplifting men from primitive conditions. It’s such a powerful, all-dominating agent of civilized man it’s all but shut out everything else and now dominates man himself. That’s the source of the complaint”. This is, people do not understand the reason-based development of cultures and hence are in imbroglios of identity and purpose.

If this idea is considered, we could say that Ginsberg’s breakdown and Whitman’s disjoining of institutions are the results of a superficial conception of the world. There is no reasoning behind the abuse of hallucinogens and desperate protest; overthrowing the current system is not possible if no changes are made to the underlying mesh of everything, it would imply the establishment of a completely new reasoning scheme and the subsequent societal structure. Such a revolutionary path is more of a constituent of the Transcendentalist point of view. However, it is not completely rational and further crisis would result from the inability of the people of America to feel that it is one with the universe, when heterogeneity is one of its intrinsic qualities.

It can be argued about this model of conjunction of authors that although there are different reactions to crisis among Whitman and Ginsberg, the more or less rational profile of them is not a sufficient criterion to determine a true solution. The set of ideas, feelings and ways of looking for an answer grows from not only macro factors in society, but also from individual features shaped by personality and experience. The mere fact that emotions are involved in the whole approach does not make it invalid or false and therefore dividing them into “stages” of acquirement of enlightenment stands on quicksand. Defining the steps of a process requires previous knowledge of it and consequently having the solution.

Whether any of the routes analyzed here is the one actually guiding to enlightenment is a matter outside our competency. Nevertheless, subjectivity is unable to provide any type of guidance about what is enlightenment, how to achieve it and what the elements are related to the process. Only by reasoning manners is it possible to do so. The pursuit of enlightenment is a road of revising and revisiting our concepts of reality, society and meaning of being human by objective analysis, while keeping our most primitive impulses aside.

Usando Okular

Hace un par de siglos ya que Jzarecta me había recomendado Okular, un tal visor de pdf con una tal metadata que se veía muy bien. Este verano decidí leer a Poe. Esta vez pisado, en serio  y en su idioma (traductor: traidor).  Pronto caí en cuenta de la densidad de los textos y de las veces que tenía que volver al diccionario. También noté muchas estructuras graciosas y Poeismos que quería resaltar y escribirle notas al lado. Pero no podía porque estaba en un pdf  :’(. Fue el momento en que recordé a Okular. Me fascinó esta herramienta tan útil, que también es software libre. No detallaré todo lo que hace, ni las observaciones que tengo. Mejor que la imagen hable por mí.

Leyendo a Poe en Okular- Software Libre

dANCING fEET – tHE corto.

Preludio a una Peste

Un lagarto de sol y miedo en la sabana.

Habías regresado,

todo beso de tierra

todo cárcel de aromas.

Todo un abismo de cáncer y misterio

entre las jarras azulfurosas de mi gracia.

Era el otoño de mieles incurables

de las cuencas de tu brisa infértil.

Los has visto, vestidos de piel y pelo,

y has llorado en tres fases y

un placebo.

Habías llegado,

camarada del chillido eterno

disfrazado de espina o rollo de mimbre

disfrazado de pera.

Cuántas armas no son de sol o viento

o fuego o sueño?

Calla las voces de la noche,

que la mierda aún resuena.

Resuena todo tú,

todo un nuestro baldío.

Cállalas a todas, que vuelven,

esta vez sin las pieles.

Tormenta ecuatorial de pelos

y pesos de media cuna.

Vienen.

Ya vienen.

Desviste tus huellas y haz un vestido de arcilla,

el llano se perpetúa en esta cresta.

Te verás perpetuado,

reptil infeliz,

cola de azote, lengua de azote,

en las negras espaldas de alguna piedra.

 

Instrucciones para Subir al Metro

La efectividad de las instrucciones explicadas en este documento aumenta exponencialmente según el conocimiento del usuario de la estructura de la estación, los hábitos y habilidades de los operadores de metro y la distancia entre las puertas del tren. Su prioridad crece indefinidamente si se trata de la estación Mamá Tingó a hora pico.

Colóquese detrás de la línea amarilla. Como es de conocimiento general, al dividir sucesivamente una longitud encontrará que siempre puede ser más pequeña. La distancia entre la línea y usted debe ser de su número favorito entre menos impar infinito, de manera que el oficial no le llame la atención (cualquier descuido puede derivar en pérdida parcial o definitiva de un asiento) y se encuentre presto al abordaje. Necesitará hacer uso de todos sus sentidos y facultades en lo adelante. Con disimulo, observe las personas a su inmediatez. Embarazadas, ancianos, personas con discapacidad y mujeres en tacones no representan ningún tipo de obstáculo; al contrario, procure estar rodeado por personas con estas características, lo cual le dará ventajas al acelerar y esquivar. Mantenga la cabeza sacada y los pies atentos. Una vibración constante y un obvio desplazamiento del cuerpo blanco, azul y rojo indicarán el inicio de la siguiente etapa, que no debe causarle sobresalto si ha visto por tv o presenciado el encierro en la calle mercedes. El tren se aproximará a velocidad decreciente, por lo que debe calcular con premura cuál de las puertas le quedará cerca, y aprovechar el pequeño rango de segundos donde es posible violar la raya amarilla persiguiendo la puerta objetivo. Considere que otros intentarán hacer lo que usted. Si los puestos preferenciales han sido ocupados, tome la libertad de gentilmente empujar o halar al de alante o al de al lado o presionar la parte media de su espalda hasta que sea posible agacharse, deslizarse y/o correr hacia un asiento. No olvide gritar o utilizar una de las frases contenidas en el anexo A-20 para apresurar al vecino. Una vez sentado, tome una posición recta y elegante, lea el periódico o comente lo caluroso del tiempo. Si lograr un asiento no ha sido posible, no se desmoralice, todavía tiene las opciones de elogiar burlonamente la velocidad de los sentados o esperar el próximo tren.

La Ciencia en la Poesía Dominicana

Inspirado en “La Ciudad en la Poesía Dominicana”

por Soledad Álvarez.

,                             ,

.

.                                                  ,                               ,                                          ;                                ,                    ,

.

“                                                                                                                                             “(1)

…

,                                                                 ,

.

,                              ,                                 ,

(                                                                                     )

.                           ,

“                              “, “                                “        “                                       “

.

-                                                  -

.

¡                                                                                   !

,                                      ,                                                 .

_

(1)                                                         ,                                          ,                             ,                             .

Aceptar, Acetar o Ácido Acético

Porque de tal manera amó Dios al mundo, que ha dado a su Hijo unigénito, para que todo aquel que en él cree, no se pierda, mas tenga vida eterna.

Juan 3:16

Juré que en el metro se cantaban los números de la lotería. En el último vagón hablaba una mujer demasiado alto, pero no llegaba a comprender lo que decía. <<¡Primeeerrrr número!: veiiiinticinco, primer número: veinticinco. ¡Segundo número!…. trrreinta y sie….>> ¿A las 2 de la tarde?

A mí qué me importa lo que está diciendo o qué números salieron en la loto, mejor me concentro en el libro. La tipa se cambió de vagón, se oye más cerca. Todavía es muy bajito para averiguar qué dice y no perderé mi tiempo en medio de un cuento de… mierda, vino pa’cá.

“¿Usté cree que se va a quedar? ¡dioss le ha puessto la opciones en su manos! Usté decide si acetarrrr o no acetarrr” (fuck man, no te rías, tú puedes, no te rías). Leo con dificultad, es difícil ignorar la voz teatral casi forzada comedora-de-eses, más que ahora la tipa notó que no la escuchaba y se movía trazando quesiyocuantas figuras al frente mío. “No se distraiga de las cosas del mundo” (what?) “los estudio, la música, la cosas de la carne no se van con usté; yo aceté y me mantengo ¡fiel!, ¡FIEL! A la palabra del señor jesucrito amén gloria a dioss glorificado santo sea señor dador de todo oh tuya es mi vida ¡ALELUYA! Yo aceté y seré salva…”

Había estado en actitud de héroe de batalla, subiendo los brazos como el que levanta pesas y eventualmente dejando que su índice pareciera alguna especie de zanahoria de hule temblorosa. Me horrorizaban el “amén” que colectivamente replicaban y la tranquilidad del oficial junto a la puerta. Idiotas de mente corta. Nadie tiene derecho a hacerme escuchar lo que no me interesa y menos, mucho menos, interrumpir mi lectura de Cortázar.

π = Copperish Earthling (a story by the whorish Benzene)

Por Ricardo y Lusmerlin.

CH2-CH2-CH3 y el ósculo bebía del arbusto

Pong Benceno Pang derramaba página vil en blanco o noir

y sus huellas refractando añil

-La c[ó|ú]pula verde y rayada-

ati (borrando) un aro canela bucal, piel ostra tenedor

❁  fleur de y con ella carnaval benceno [quietud de pasto]

en fui la mañana de to?o oscuro& | borrar memoria. Cuando me

encontré su mirada en la cama reposando la miel amanecida

{dijo,vino,maldijo} el suero rociaC

CH3-CH2-CH1 pa’ la cosa ala sabaneando cortinas sal y/o/y cobre!!!

…sal de cobre! , ; antes de agora labiar colmillos ding dong drum!

o qué? la tarde es de tarde et fleur

….regresa a cobre! después del musical del bambú asesino,

porque la noche es noche, y la fleur….

another piece of baby angels in fugue towards arms

あなたのキス！

hazaña, pico, seña, salto. senda. underlipping my own chemistry!

gravedad de siempre 10 en chelos reventados

and

corpiños sonambuleándole las

psique de maza que roba oscuros del señor

¡He vuelto a cobre! – dijo.

Carajoss, he vuelto a cobre.

Copperlanded freaks creating lime from dust, made the age ago

a whole entity, lived or copperish copperness woow!

Autumn infini, Cu Leaves

CuSO4 waters,

a real blue sea!

] Escena #π (  ͜  ) laughed at me cold as coldest embrace from lips

may, should, would be, calcium : herness

4km of circunference and radio

ont fait l’escène.

Copperland is nothing but stinky gorgeous place.

Talvez no,- dijo la espuma celosa de venusinas alquemizaciones

a cuarzo color sandía otoñal

/* CuSO4 makes no foam, who knows what jealousy is capable of */

je suis la nuit de la un et mille fleurs from copperness to chills

of summer en la fragante, libre soledad dual;

(oh, you fake bitch, I heard you also got some iron)

Benzeno spelled some gentlyness away, like flutter of waves

(oh, so now there are CuSO4 waves?)

easy, just mix the quark next to the paradox petal and voilà!

(Once upon a time, moon was said to be of the purest copper, yet it would love to be a bit more blue, a bit more shiny… she made a deal with Titanium and she was cursed out of orbit… now only the paradox petal is left to provide some surfing...)

-fuck poe, said la france…: its optional el cargo de ignominia o falacidad {kissed!} el artificio creó un copper last necessity et et … luv!

Copper is a whore… She’s going around mixing w/ evr1! Benzene is the ultimate weapon now, cuz of broken heart is sending diarrheas and throw ups…

Autumn is the cruelest month!

There are two types of weather here:

-When it’s autumn and leaves are copper-colored.

-When it’s other season and leaves are copper-colored.

Diatriba post gerenation Z, la poetique avec ma cherie estrena resurrectos sacos de bloodignidad je je, CH1283 et [scenes benceno whorish!] J lu, look! , for at sea melted skin and bathed sand over cities!

c[o|u]bre mis labios,

cold is gone now 2 the surface of turbinas.

¡Oh warm mistress, explain thy soul out of pipes or tubes, could i be less could i ran sand like at ur poros.

Oh, cold monsieur, my soul is restricted to compressors and valves… tubes shall be covered w/ gold, no unnoble other is allowed!

round i ro und i round i round i

round i round i round i rounded red rounds,

Oh, cold monsieur, rounding is not tempting, diamond falic statues might…

The city was putrid gold dust of tomes warmed by flares of some girls weather, calcinating bones, skins of beaches… she took a glass of wasser and kist, lo,

¿Te quedarás en cobre?

Ever wondered why diamonds are a woman’s best friends?

Copperland!, grité cual cara sinuosa en  todos ángulos.

It’s been a while since I last breathed some pure copper.

Fuck earthly humans, fuck their O2.

That baby angles prints on the wall: looked explode, vanish thy terror afuera las casas de mi era porque ¿la? en tardes au, diamond of of rounded petals rained asphalt.

It was a choko made of bassist

and drummer

…and copper babies!

Escena ᨖ [eternity is a piece of?

cake/0

long waited the shores to pull some fleurs vert et bleu et sarcasmo de la huellar gastos de piel en el estilo

ja!, rió la voz en off el omniser.

Sintaxis:

Options:                                 Add-ons:

basename [kiss|spank|hug|f-word] [H2O|lubux|flavor|scent]

Arguments:

[you,she,copper mannequins,...,....]

A pesar no discrimono [precariedad ni opulencia]

All shall be wellkommen!

WARNING!!!

IF argument = copper mannequin

THEN add-on = lubux

ELSE… Abort!

FI

exit 0

Fenomenar la mo)A(trix browny leaf soft, soothing vortex of dawn – entity # – π answered grafito et light, or

originate holy polyhedron of cake/0, + -π + ᨖ/ᨖ(3) faces and traitor moon kiss axis.

Ok, lets go!

PUJA! PUJA!

Alfombrarme el mundo avec vostra canelación

despertar antes de despertar, mordida.

After our c[ó|ú]pula vert

tutti es possible… honey, honey bee.

Everything, todo = nada, create a void

bl@k us in it, US IN IT!!

Sintaxis:

CREATE OR REPLACE [function| woman| car]

RETURNS [data type, blow job, 250 mph] AS $$

DECLARE (e.g. bitch=’maría’)

BEGIN (  , lick(jerk off?), $$$) [please not 2 much noise]

END;

$$ LANGUAGE (u find out!);

Voyeurismo Auto Etnia

Se repartieron en un largo camino de pueblo y montañas desaboridas y cabañitas de colores tropicales. Era una noche de torsión aburda, de esas que tantean la oscuridad y el claro de luna, mas no se deciden por las tinieblas, ni el farol de queso, ni una sonata. De hecho, había hecho un voto de silencio. Los cuerpos de blanco oirían la noche a través de las curvaturas del espacio y del recuerdo.

El viento trasladaba el crujir de las hojas, o al menos eso veía. Por la derecha vio una pareja llegar; la mujer delgada, demasiado blanca y de largos rectos cabellos negros derramó  una clara bata sobre  la madera barnizada, mientras él, borroso, le abrazaba desde atrás con una parsimonia digna del luto nocturno. Así la pudo descubrir, en la bella nada sonora, a la izquierda. Desnuda de piel bronceada y pelo ondulado  voluminoso, se giraba hacia él dentro de su  abrazo translúcido, y acariciaba su rostro con torpeza.

Fijó sus ojos al frente: se besaban apasionadamente, sabía sentía que aquellas manos bajaban por el tan rizado pelo, la fina espalda de ámbar y comprimían los glúteos firmes al compás del delicioso sonido hueco de lo cóncavo y convexo, irradiado bajo las telas blancas, liberado… nunca, aún así en su mente.

Arriba reconoció la gran morena de cabello cortísimo y melones tropicales, de espaldas sobre la cama, mirándola fijamente mientras gemía, aruñaba y se aferraba al volumen de aire, o en golpes súbitos temblaba y subía y bajaba la pelvis. Sintió hizo miró ese cuerpo girar y humedecerse hasta que las sábanas acompañaron las sedas  en el piso y él disparaba el último grito (quizá más grave o con menos vibrato de lo pensado, definitivamente procedente del borde de la cama).

Llegó un instante sin provocaciones de ideas de sonido, justo como lo había concebido la noche en su pacto. Ella vio los espejos, los cuatro, fieles a su imagen estática.  Quizás a él, de nebuloso a nada, era imposible verle (a consecuencia, también oírle, aunque bastaba  sentirlo),  pero ver su metaetniamorfosis en una noche silente era un placer cuadrangular.