making noise
JONI [first woman president of the USA]: (On stage, in front of a mike) When I was a young student I went to what was then the Soviet Union and there I was asked by another young student, a Russian, what it was like living in a democracy. I guess I was tired of being a spokesperson for America, so I just said, “It’s noisy.” I think it’s important to remember that as we go into a new campaign season. Silence is bad, except for meditation and I guess, sleep. Some people have been talking a lot about the war for control of the culture–I think it was me, actually. Anyway, long live partisanship, as long as I get to keep mine. I’m not interested in consensus or finding a common ground with some of the factions in this country. I have nothing in common with the Aryan Nation or Focus on the Family, but history and geography have stuck us together. In fact, we’re all stuck with each other, and as more and more family members–yes, I did say family–as more of the family arrives from all over the world, diversity is the only consistency. So please just look for a President of the United States, not a President of the United Culture. We will never have a United Culture. We will never be a “people.” We will always argue, and sometimes viciously. You’re waiting for me to say “But…” and end on a positive note. But I already have. The good news is the noise.
–from lips, by constance congdon
