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But Before we Begin
Lewis
Goldberg
09/08/2003
We
live in a marvelous age of information, one in which everything from
theology to recipes is available 24 x 7 at the click of a mouse. It is also
an age of plenty as regards the old print media. We can use our computers
to order piles of paper, delivered right to our door - and the range of
topics is limitless. But there are certain topics that require handling
with care, or at least that's how our Great Protectors in the media view
things. I'm talking about Forewords.
Yes...Forewords.
You know - those first few pages of a book where the author is supposed to
get one of his colleagues to write a glowing report of the author's genius
prose. The Foreword has become the New Censorship, while allowing the
offensive text to remain unobscured.
When
was the last time you picked up a Civil War book [not a recent book, but a
reprint of something written by someone who was there] that wasn't
Foreworded by Union lackey James McPherson? Or how about books written by
former Nazis who may not toe the line on every doctrine of holocaust? How
about Bibles? Have you checked your Bibles lately - I have one that
instructs me in how important the literature of the Bible is to many
people. Thanks...I had no idea.
The
Foreword is the 21st century publisher's way of sanctifying works that they
ordinarily would not want to print, but can't bear to turn down the money
you'll pay for the book. It is their way of saying what you are about to
read is a load of horse****, and we just wanted to make sure you understood
that.
I
just wonder...and I haven't explored this avenue...are books by Satanist
Aleister Crowley foreworded by Bob Jones to warn readers of the dangers of
the Prince of Darkness? Now that would be a Foreword that was
honest. But then again, in that case, do we really need to be told?
For instance, does Mein Kampf need a Foreword? I mean, it's Hitler,
for goodness sakes.
It
is precisely because information is so freely available that the Foreword
[and its sinister cousin, the Afterword] have been employed to 'educate'
the unwashed masses. They can't keep it from us, but they sure can skew our
perception - if we let them...
Your comments and questions are encouraged. [editor@patriotist.com]
Patriotist
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