tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post116282841672544948..comments2023-10-31T11:37:50.028-04:00Comments on on life & other inconveniences: The Dividing Line Between Fiction and RealitySandra Ruttanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06109584805469336742noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162871271689830772006-11-06T22:47:00.000-05:002006-11-06T22:47:00.000-05:00you can only write it off as therapy if you got so...you can only write it off as therapy if you got something out of it...then again, I've seen people learn less from therapists...what the hey...go for it! LOL!Bonnie S. Calhounhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11769607640246518804noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162869683707893952006-11-06T22:21:00.000-05:002006-11-06T22:21:00.000-05:00You're a high school dropout? Hmmm it is all makin...You're a high school dropout? <BR/><BR/>Hmmm it is all making sense now.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162864942320210642006-11-06T21:02:00.000-05:002006-11-06T21:02:00.000-05:00Gabriele, an interesting perspective!Maybe Deslily...Gabriele, an interesting perspective!<BR/><BR/>Maybe Deslily. I'm one of those people that's inclined to think if everyone follows a formula, you're all sheep. Nobody gets to be the Rolling Stones following a formula.<BR/><BR/>Norby, an interesting point. With the right charisma, it's always possible to break rules and still charm people. I find that fascinating to watch - it's like when I worked in education, there were always a few kids who could bend the rules on me a bit more. They had a way of charming the staff as a whole. And then you wonder why you're so easily manipulated.Sandra Ruttanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06109584805469336742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162859327567046792006-11-06T19:28:00.000-05:002006-11-06T19:28:00.000-05:00I think I've always enjoyed books about people who...I think I've always enjoyed books about people who ignore the rules and do things their own way because I'm so obsessive about following the rules myself. Don't get me wrong, I usually figure out pretty quickly which rules can be pushed and don't hesitate to do so, but actively and consciously break them? I think I'd get hives. Much more enjoyable to read about them.<BR/><BR/>In real life, I usually despise these people. I've fired these people. But every now and then one comes along that actually influences you.<BR/><BR/>See, the thing is, you can get away with an awful lot if you go about it the right way. It's not a question of being a maverick, it's just getting people to overlook the things you do simply because, well, it's just you. I had a teacher like that in college. He called that ability tact, but I'm not so sure it was that simple. All I know is that any other teacher that screamed and cursed in their classes the way he did probably would have been reprimanded at least, but everybody loved him, including me.<BR/><BR/>I'm not sure I described that right, but that prof severely bent the accepted rules and norms of my small church affiliated college. But he was one of the most popular profs on campus, and really, considering how conservative most of the people there were, he really shouldn't have been. norbyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162857379466657992006-11-06T18:56:00.000-05:002006-11-06T18:56:00.000-05:00maybe what you admire is someone doing it "their w...maybe what you admire is someone doing it "their way" and coming out on top anyway...<BR/>maybe those people just plain believe in theirself to that large of an extent.. something many of us do not do.?? maybe?DesLilyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02582481597658080464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162851314173030902006-11-06T17:15:00.000-05:002006-11-06T17:15:00.000-05:00Hehe, growing up in Germany made me despise people...Hehe, growing up in Germany made me despise people who follow the rules all the time. It's too much of a virtue here and next time a dictator says kill the *insert group of choice*, those people will dutifully go and kill them. <BR/><BR/>Me, I've always been an outsider, and there are <I>very</I> few people I trust.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162849749892937152006-11-06T16:49:00.000-05:002006-11-06T16:49:00.000-05:00Sand Storm, generally speaking I would agree. Unl...Sand Storm, generally speaking I would agree. Unless we knew a cop personally and knew deep down he was good/solid, if he was a heavy drinker we'd be unlikely to turn to him.Sandra Ruttanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06109584805469336742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162839671573313672006-11-06T14:01:00.000-05:002006-11-06T14:01:00.000-05:00SW, that's the right perspective to have. I doubt...SW, that's the right perspective to have. I doubt I'd always be as enlightened as you, but that's something to strive for because you're absolutely right.<BR/><BR/>John, I think for the most part people do like rule-following suck-up toadies! Teachers love students who do all the things they're supposed to do, editors/publishers love writers who follow submission guidelines (I'll chuck out stories without a glance for breaking them)... The idea that we love the rebel with a cause is something that seems to end in fiction.<BR/><BR/>At least, that's what I was thinking. Knowing that you didn't graduate from high school either has made me feel less special.<BR/><BR/>Anne, it might be fair to say there are fewer free-thinkers now than 30-40 years ago. The 60s and 70s were times of change to a certain degree, now we seem to be back to same-old, same-old.Sandra Ruttanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06109584805469336742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162837989228309012006-11-06T13:33:00.000-05:002006-11-06T13:33:00.000-05:00i wonder if there are fewer free thinkers today th...i wonder if there are fewer free thinkers today than say 50 years ago. we certainly seem to be a nation of observers with a lot fewer people asking important questions. and the people who do ask tend to be treated like black sheep. but then years ago everybody was doing the whole post WWII ozzie and harriet thing, so maybe it's nothing new.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162836704317430962006-11-06T13:11:00.000-05:002006-11-06T13:11:00.000-05:00Why don't we like rule-following, suck-up toadies?...Why don't we like rule-following, suck-up toadies? Is that the question?<BR/><BR/>I also never graduated from high school. And when I finally did go to university in my late twenties, I very rarely got those high marks. It's not for everyone.<BR/><BR/>You're probably not making your life difficult, you're probably living it the easiest possible way for you.<BR/><BR/>Everyone breaks rules. We just all pick and chose different rules to break.<BR/><BR/>Mystery fiction is usually about solving a puzzle. Police work is usually about gathering evidence that fits the "rules" of court - one of the reasons The Wire is so good. Law and Order has also been sometimes very good in showing what happens after the police work. Remember, on Miami Vice they always ended with the bad guys dead - no faith in "the system."<BR/><BR/>Faith. What do you believe in. It's certainly the central metaphor of most crime fiction.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162834335993457482006-11-06T12:32:00.000-05:002006-11-06T12:32:00.000-05:00I'm Batman.(swooooooosh!!!)I admire people for all...I'm Batman.<BR/><BR/>(swooooooosh!!!)<BR/><BR/>I admire people for all sorts of crazy things. For example, on one of our zoo trips when the boys (my son and my nephews) were small, there was a group of loud, laughing teenagers that followed us around, mostly because they were headed in the same direction around the zoo circuit.<BR/><BR/>My sister complained about them the whole time. I thought they were great -- because they were teenagers, and they chose to spend their spare time at the zoo instead of out on the streets causing trouble, which is a common activity for teens in Syracuse.<BR/><BR/>I admired them. I hope they always choose the zoo over getting drunk, doing drugs, hurting other people, and so forth. Even if the other folks at the zoo get all huffy about their presence.s.w. vaughnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09102544611773720262noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162829702450098832006-11-06T11:15:00.000-05:002006-11-06T11:15:00.000-05:00So I'm a good story but bad in reality?You know wh...So I'm a good story but bad in reality?<BR/><BR/>You know what else it gets me wondering? Why are there all those pesky people who just feel the need to throw their weight around? The bosses always rush to judgment, and make things difficult, even if they have no vested interest in the case at all.Sandra Ruttanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06109584805469336742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18499463.post-1162829422556057352006-11-06T11:10:00.000-05:002006-11-06T11:10:00.000-05:00The thing about maverick cops, bucking the rules, ...The thing about maverick cops, bucking the rules, is that nine times out of ten they get the result they want. In real life, ignoring the collected wisdom of generations of earlier experience usually ends up in things going spectacularly wrong.<BR/><BR/>But conflict is the soul of a good story, and what better conflict than a shameless disregard for the rules?JamesOhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09332376784689207703noreply@blogger.com