I had intended to write more on the below, but ran out of time.. a disadvantage to blogging over a lunchbreak. I could continue today, but other things agitate my mind, namely: Kent Johnson’s interview over at VeRT magazine. I’m pretty sure I kept my comments on Kent Johnson in here somewhere. I’m an irregular blogger so you shouldn’t have trouble finding them should the desire take you. Anyhow, while I generally agree with him, I do wonder whether he has a low self-esteem. Why on earth does he keep going on about the Language poets and Yasusada? I can see both are tied to his idea that Lang Po didn’t go far enough and question actual Authorial authority.. Surely an important point to make, but in the same terms over and over again?? Kenny Goldsmith quoted the Brion Gyson about poetry being 50 years behind art in his short essay about being a post-language poet (can’t find the link, sorry). And perhaps on this issue poetry is even further behind? But we’re talking POETRY, not just language poets! -- Some people reason that LP is a fair target because it has become hegemonic. Oedipal episodes are understandable I guess... it would be nice to prove Freud wrong though-- As for Kent Johnson, I really hope he moves on. He has some interesting points that won't be made because he seems to be repeating himself. Even worse, he continuously names those close to the Yasusada affair. If I’m not mistaken, Eliot Weinberger, David Rosenberg, and Mikhail Epstein all supported Johnson during the height of controversy. I know for sure that Johnson quotes from Epstein in his correspondence with the Japanese scholar (I forget his name) interested in the Yasusada affair. Yasusada is not the only case of authorial challenge. Yes, there’s the Ern Malley case etc. but how about those smaller things like Duchamp blacking out the lines of a poem he had written – what was authorial becomes anonymous – Sol Le Witt sending instructions for art through the mail?? Nevertheless, it’s good to upset people and get called nasty things. On that account I am very jealous of Johnson because I doubt I could ever piss someone off quite so much and so publicly. I’d like to see him do it again. I do like a spectacle!