Conventional Editor

____
Everybody knows the world is fake;
Everyone intelligent, I guess I should say;
And the businessmen? They talk to one another
As if they are human. Which they are but, you know
It's fraudulent - the whole thing

If you believe in it though, probably you are a newspaper editor, because no one else does.

Well I don't know where the poem ends and the prose begins exactly but ... the other day the CPL (Chicago Public Library) held a dialogue in the main building downtown with this man who was something like the best human being at not only the Chicago Sun-Times but at "Pioneer Press" as well. This latter is a family of suburban papers. That's a really a very impressive position, you know, dude, so Congrats on your brilliant career (1). He seems very proper. He seems of the carefully-moving sort. That is to say he moves deliberately monitoring himself as he moves. This is not a flamboyant type. This man offered a well-worded question or observation or two, to his more flamboyant and unconventional guest, Martin Amis, the well-known writer. The former in very ordinary business dress, the later, as said, more flamboyant-----a bit less predictable than this newspaperman, who seems at the very highest levels at the two businesses, the Sun-Times and Pioneer Press. And the editor is a literary critic. An editor and a literary critic to boot! Well, as I said, good for him. I don't understand this kind of critter, not exactly. Does he know that the world is fake? Probably not. He doesn't know that jacks great or fake blog exists either. Just as well...the guest is named Martin Amis, and they were discussing "The Adventures of Augie Meyers", a book. Bellow.
Such a distinguished editor. Would he believe in the world?

Can't say much about Amis; though. I just do like him ever so much!


the notes:       (1)http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/My_Brilliant_Career