DebessCab

It’s election day. I probably won’t vote. I hate cynicism, but it’s hard not to be blackpilled after what I’ve seen. The last few years have been a strange fucking journey, mang. Like a lot of men, I wondered what the fuck had gone wrong in the world. I saw it at work, where we were discouraged from hiring attractive actors and straight white men like me were no longer welcome in behind the scenes roles. I saw insane things in my community, in my personal relationships, everywhere. Everything was falling apart. And the worst part was that you couldn’t talk about it. You couldn’t even mention it in public. You were expected to ignore it. But you could discuss it online. You had to do it surreptitiously, but you could do it. And there was a conversation taking place. People--mostly other men--were seeing the same things. And they had ideas. Some ideas were batshit crazy, some were perfectly sane and quite dangerous, but it was all fascinating. I was a lurker. Didn’t think I had anything to contribute to the greater conversation. But then I started posting my writing and discussing these crazy/dangerous ideas thru anecdotes about my personal and professional life. And to my great surprise it took off. Sadly that online conversation died. It got killed by business, political, and (yes) foreign interests. They wanted to control it and keep it from spreading. For the most part they succeeded. And if you’re wondering why “the discourse” has gotten stale, that’s because it’s no longer organic. Ironically enough, it’s become another thing that we’re supposed to ignore. But I’m still doing my thing--and I’m not planning on stopping anytime soon. So I’ve got a new book out today. It’s called A Capable Man and Other Stories. It’s a collection of 26 interconnected stories about fathers and sons, love and loss, the limits of competence, and what it means to be a man in a world that’s increasingly hostile to masculinity. It’s not exactly a sequel to Hollywood Samizdat, but it shares a lot of the same themes. And just like in my first book, I’m the central character--and while I change details to hide identities, all the stories are true. Someday I’ll explore these themes thru fiction. But for now I’m still exploring them through the lens of my own life--and I’ve still got a lot of material to work with. And yeah, I’m still smuggling crazy/dangerous ideas in my writing. But like good propaganda it’s camouflaged, so you might have to squint to see it. There’s a few funny anecdotes from the movie business, but this book gets dark--so you might want to buckle the fuck up before reading. So why did I write this book? Well, as I like to tell my friends: it’s cheaper than therapy. But mostly it’s because I’m compelled to write and I feel I’m obligated to share it with the world. And no, I’m not proud. I’m proud of the work I put in, but I’m not proud of the contents. Sometimes it was fun. Sometimes it wasn’t. But the things I write about aren’t anything to be proud about. That being said, I’m not ashamed either. Because I have no shame about speaking the truth. And honestly, I’ve stopped giving any fucks. Anyhow, I hope you enjoy the book. And I hope the conversation never ends. -Rambo Van Halen (Link in the NEXT POST for book...)