From: trumpins@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu (Barbara Trumpinski)
Subject: Re: John comes in with what he beleives to be an important message.
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Wed, 22 Jul 1992 00:06:26 GMT



>     John comes into the bar, sweaty from jogging.  He's only
>been gone 20 minutes, but that's 20 minutes longer than he's been
>jogging ever since he first lost his job back at Hampton.  And he
>almost looks happy.

[    ]   john's answers

>     "Now, Callahan's is supposed to be a special place. Maybe
>it's supposed to be a place for people who learn to be strong,
>who learn to demand their own space with a safeword when
>necessary.

>     "But I think it's supposed to be a safe place, a place you
>can go without a safeword (unless you get involved with a tickle
>fight) and where you can bare your innermost soul and speak to
>us. . . and know that we will try to understand."  John grimaces
>bitterly.

[   ]

>     "Listen, people. . . I don't agree with Spider all of the
>time. . . but Callahan's is based on understanding.

>     "Not on 'to understand all is to forgive all'.  When Adolf
>Hitler came into the bar, they understood his pain, but they
>wouldn't forgive him. . . because he wasn't willing to mend.

>     "Listen, a long time ago, a guy came in here and said he had
>rape fantasies.  Lotsa people flamed him.

>     "Damn few people tried to understand what he meant.

>     "Was he saying that he wanted his woman to struggle against
>her bonds, while he 'forced' himself upon her?  Shoot, I'll bet
>many, maybe even 'most' guys would find such a game fun.  A
>desire for rough play with another consenting adult is nothing to
>be ashamed of, something I'll bet most people here agree with.
>     "But no one would be able to tell him that until they made
>sure that this WAS what he was talking about.  And few people
>did.

>     "I dunno people.  I can understand not liking to imagine
>'consentual' rapes, but now we're talking about some pretty silly
>things.

>     "Should I be ashamed that I intend to own a gun, and that I
>intend to be a crack shot with it?

>     "Should I be ashamed that I am, at heart, prolife?  (Please,
>let's not mince words:  a murderer of young girls and an enforcer
>of poverty?)

>     "Should I be ashamed that I believe in God and in moral
>absolutes?

>     "You tell me.  But think about it. . . you can try to
>convince me not to do any of these things without flaming me,
>without being "frank".  You may be frustrated because your 'weak'
>words just aren't making an impression on me. . . 

>     "But as long as you speak weakly, as long as your words are
>soft, I will keep on listening.

>     "As soon as you are 'frank', I'll attack back.  And be more
>cemented in my position.  And be less willing to talk to you, or
>listen to you, because such talks hurt."

>     John drains the southern comfort he's collected from
>Nightstalker (you really ought to pick a shorter nickname. . .
>how about NS?)  (BTW, sorry about the 'Nighty'  It's more a
>natural shortening of your name; I'd forgotten Carole's post by
>the time I'd used it.)  and takes a deep breath.  Somone hands
>him a cold Samuel Adams, which he also drains, his throat very
>dry.

>     "To love and understanding!"  he shouts, and his glass
>shatters in the fireplace.

>     "And to Callahans. . . may it return, and last forever!"  he
>calls, and adds the mug to the mound in the fireplace.

>     "And whatever you think. . . lots of love to you all, now
>and forever."

>     He walks out of the bar, intent on the next chapter of Angel
>War.

kitten flings her glass into the fireplace...."to frank...i mean
john....and to love..." 
--
***************************************************************************
conan the librarian a.k.a. kitten           /\ /\  barbara ann 
"my life's a soap opera, isn't yours?"      {=.=}
                                              ~   trumpins@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu 
"perhaps _any_ universe becomes real in proportion 
to the number of people who believe in it and spend time there." s. robinson

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