Political Fallout of the Beat Generation; Ginsberg, Burroughs, Leary, Hoffman, Krassner

It's funny what Abby said before about college and forgetting all those lines. The only thing I remember from my entire formal education is the first day in an introductory philosophy course when they gave a definition and I said philosophy is the rationalization of life. And I remember anything else. Except I guess for book reports. We always use Classic Comics and you could get away with it you just had to be careful when Hamlet stabs themselves not to have them say arc. You can get away with it. There has been a kind of trilogy of. Originally when Socrates said Know thy self and Norman Mailer in the White Negro said Be thy self and Tim Leary gave the third foot to that stool which was changed by self. Alan mentioned before people wondering how to Miriam Abbie Hoffman had made up since they've had a little bit of differences in the past but they both have. Had in recent years they both have served hard frightening time behind bars and they

have both debated G Gordon Liddy. And. So. These kinds of experiences will draw people together. So I would like to present one half of the New Age odd couple Tim Leary. Atlanta. You are. Thank you. When I heard this title the political fallout of the B generation. And. There are a million ways you can go that. I certainly couldn't help but be overwhelmed and moved by Abby's. Barmitzvah speech. Yeah. Yeah.

I think that there has been very little political change brought about by the deeds of the hippies and the hippies. I looked at the paper and television. I look to Washington D.C. and it seems to me that the same old crew is back in action. Our country has been dominating our politics and controlled for the last thirty seven or forty years by a group of men. Who have had credibly bad acid trip in World War Two. It was a wonderful war a lot of us what Afterward we won was all we came back put away the toys and went back to being America because America's always represented a country of freedom a country where the rest of the world looked to us for

independence and self-reliance. Certainly certainly what the men the politicians of World War 2 did I call them. I've diagnosed their problem. They suffer from Legionnaires disease. They have corrupted the American dream. They have somehow persuaded themselves and most of their electorate that the function of America is now the goal of America has suddenly become to go all around the world setting up this empire ever there is a political situation getting in the middle that primarily the function of America seems to be to manufacture arms for both sides in any wars. And I consider this traitorous and treasonous to the American dream and I think that during the 50s and during the 60s we had moments of triumph certainly but still the same crew of Legionnaires are in power now. But as I see the beatniks. That it is.

In nineteen fifties they were keeping the American dream alive during the dark dark ages which Abbie has so eloquently described. It was the deeds that you know reminded the rest of the world that America was about nosing at Authority disrespecting the central headquarters that America was about freedom and innovation and certainly wasn't about. Producing weapons. So I think that. The fact that we're here tonight and the fact that our future both political and culture cultural is very very optimistic in the months to come is because of what the Beets did. But we're going to have to look colloquy which is Brutus for both between us here. So if any panelist has a question or a statement with a rising inflection for any other panelist feel free.

I do have one. I think everybody even Bill made one slight shade of error in describing the movement as primarily a protest movement. Particularly Abby. And that's what that was the thing that Kerik was always complaining about because primarily the literary aspect of the spiritual aspect or the emotional aspect was not so much pride to protest at all. But a declaration of unconditioned mind beyond protest beyond resentment beyond. A. Loser beyond winner way beyond winner beyond winner or loser declaration of unconditioned mind visionary declaration declaration of unworthily love that has no hope for the world and cannot change the world through its desire. That's William Carlos Williams unworldly love that has no hope of the world and that can change the world.

Which means the basic nature of human mind which is totally open. So the. One with the space around one with life and death. So naturally having that much insight there be obvious smart remarks that might change society. As a side issue but the basic thing was beyond even like confidence. And humor. Beyond the rights and wrongs of political protest. I was always interested in political protest in a way say Timothy disapproved of at one point Bill thought was futile and that character was like a new reasons for spitefulness Actually it was his phrase new reasons for malice he thought. Out of my old socialist communist funny intellectual eyeglass background maybe. But the basic thing that I understood and took Jack for and bill for but also the country for and ultimately dug you for timothy

or anybody here that we. That I've been acquainted with for many many years. Call John the stage is unconditioned mind negative capability totally open mind beyond victory or defeat just awareness. And that was the humor I think and that's what the saving grace is and that's where there will be political after effect. But it doesn't have to win because having to win a revolution is like having to what you are complaining about having to make a million dollars. So there. But I have to ask Carl Solomon. But I mean I mean poems have a lot of different meanings to different people for me howl is a call to amps the whole boatload of sensitive that. Yes that's right. As I write. Yes all right but you know it's like it's like power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely it was very easy for a lawyer in the British court to tell that to people that had

no. Baby. It's very easy for the people in power to have that kind of thing. We saw in the 60s a great imbalance. And the only way that you could correct that imbalance was to organize people and to fight for power. Power is not a dirty word. The concept of trying to win against social injustice is not a dirty kind of concept. It all depends in terms of how you define the game. At this moment he would say I was there trouble with bugs right. Yeah. I was debating Liddy the other night and he put on the board the words Howard. It was my turn. The evolution of intelligence. And in there eating away and

Gordon have much more faith in the political system. Ability to change things. And I believe with William Burroughs that culture changes you change the way men and women relate to each other. You change the way people's consciousness can be moved by them. You change their music and their dress change the way that they relate. You change the way they relate to the land and to other forms of plants and animals. And you've got yourself a revolution in revolution that will make the politicians and the power mad people you know they what is going to happen so fast I don't know what's going to happen. You changed America's diapers. Well I don't want to because so many good vibes stand in front of the Albanian flags and everything. Everybody is so happy and high. You know it's like the Love

Boat. So. I don't know I don't know but I will say this about my debate with Chico and Lady for me it was a Voltaire Ian experience namely once a philosopher a twice a pervert and I'm never going to do it again. And I whip disaster. And now I think Damn I want to say to him if you know we got the four years you spent in prison as a political act you took one trip too many. Now because a lot of people during those times just growing your hair long. I mean I look out and I see people with long hair and short hair no hair green hair blue hair you know earrings in A has all last happened because other people had to stand up whether it was against the families their church their school cops who would drag them into alleyways and shave their heads.

They say it was a political act so to to separate what is cultural from political when we are talking about American society in the 50s in the 60s is absolutely hopeless and ridiculous task. The most interesting thing I've heard Burroughs say recently it was as a generalization in this area is. Regarding politics. Once a problem becomes a problem for once a situation becomes a problem. It is no longer soluble. What is the phrasing for that. Well it's implicit that I would say once the situation becomes a problem it thereby becomes insoluble and all attempts to solve it are going to lead to more problems. Maybe we need a bit of detergent. There are of momentum in terms of scope the vastness of scope. Martin Luther King

stressed this time and time again the necessity of not alienating the whites who are part of it. And this participation can be traced directly to the spirit of friendship engendered by books like on the road that kind of personal impulsive do something crazy in a possible spirit setting out for California with only three gallons of gas or walking through Georgia armed with nothing but a beard and a guitar. The first Freedom Ride and all the subsequent marches and demonstrations were due to this attitude this idea of doing something personal impulsive unconventional something that the same person would have previously previously thought idiotic impossible or at best as some kind of near do will vagrancy there was a certain cloying sentimentality in on the road that stuck in my craw so to speak but its significance as a moving force which has had these great effects seems obvious. That's Terry Southern who when last heard from was on the writing staff of Saturday Night Live. And. Indeed. Was most likely responsible for getting Bill Barrows

onto that show. That's another one. So as I say the Beat Generation was a reaction to the fact that on the Ed Sullivan Show you could not see the bottom half of Elvis Presley. This was to protect kids within just go out in their backyard with their hula hoops and do pelvic thrust greater than Elvis ever did. OK before I introduce the panel I thought it would be appropriate to read from Kerouac's last article which was published shortly before he died on the day after he died the day after he died. Right. Get all posthumous beat writing. This was and he mentions three out of the four panelists here. He says No I'd better go around. I'm not a tax free not a hippie dippie I must be a bit be in the middle. I'd know I better go around tell everybody or let others convince me that I'm the Great White Father an intellectual forebear who spawned the delusion of alienated radicals were protesters dropouts hippies

and even beats and thereby I can make some money maybe in a new now image for myself. And God forbid I dare call myself the intellectual forebear of modern spontaneous prose. But I've got to figure out first how I could possibly postpone Jerry Rubin Mitchell Goodman Abbie Hoffman Allen Ginsberg and other warm human beings from the ghettos who say they suffered no less than the Puerto Ricans in the barrios and the blacks in the big and little Harlem's and then later on he says really so what's new if they would like to see to it that I'm to Timothy Leary's guiding proselytisation. No one in America could address the simple envelope or keep the household budget or checkbook balance or for that matter legible. So I thought we owed it to Jack to say how we thought about a few of the panels and and it's to our sorrow that he died before he had a chance to put down Bill Burroughs.