It reminds me somewhat of the MOO, where everyone tends to thrash about
in character and *do* rather than discourse about doing. A "conference"
on the MOO tends to intercut insightful dialogue with the most mundane
and silly action, such as goosing, kicking, shouting, throwing, tossing,
"spoofing." You have to be willing to let your hair down and hurl
yourself into the ring. But of course, you often have to get out as
fast as you got in. (I know vitruvius, by the way, from the MOO, where
she has performed many an Aztec Moon Dance, one of which crashed the
server.)
The condition of the forum also speaks for the clashes between "high
culture" and pop culture, as well as between theory and everyday
language. I'm reminded of an academic conference recently held down
south in the US, whose topic concerned Elvis and American popular
culture. It was decided that, alongside the panelists and presenters
from various universities, there would also be Elvis impersonators,
collectors of Elvis memorabilia, and other Elvis aficionados. I don't
remember what happened at the conference; I only remember hearing about
it and thinking that it was very exciting.
I've heard from some people that the forum is too theoretical, and from
others, that it's not theoretical enough. I don't mind that at all, and
I hope those who are inclined toward either extreme will be patient.
The forum has gone through several waves of personality, and this
present one, I think, will wind down soon, and flow into something
else. I hope that, in the meantime, we learn from it, because it is
something very crucial to the understanding of our topic. Space is
activated by the most heterogenous agencies, many of which erupt from
the most surprising, unexpected places. These are voices and
articulatory sites that we often dismiss because they're coming from
places where we don't expect them to be.
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