I don't know who David Wright is, but many of his statements have a Rochefoucauld flavor to them. Maybe he's French, I decided, and (like Andy) writes under a mysterious pseudonym. So I googled up David Droit -- nothing. So I tried David Tout Droit -- again, nothing. Discouraged, I quit. He could be English for all I know. Mike Geary Memphis ----- Original Message ----- From: David Wright To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Saturday, May 24, 2008 1:34 AM Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: The continuation of Realpolitik -- a rant No CV needed. I understand; an, ahem, pay attention now, academic...that is merely...well, academic. No chiding neccessary. The )(&) and circumstance of the most recent post will suffice. If you must play publicationopoly in asian culture stuff, then look me up at least you got chapter, dude -- happy reading, d. P.S. Cornell...whe's dat? Johnny wrote: Be careful who you chide. I do, indeed, live abroad, almost 28 years now in Japan. I am, in addition, an anthropologist, a China specialist with a Ph.D. from Cornell, who once wrote a dissertation on the symbolism of Taoist magic. If you would like to go a bit deeper than the superficialities of your recent observations, allow me to recommend my chapter on Traditional Chinese Religion in Ray Scupin, ed., Religion and Culture: An Anthropological Focus. Pearson Prentice Hall, 2nd Edition, 2008, pages, pages 303-321. Of course people quarrel and quibble about their gods, ghosts and ancestors. "Mine is better than yours" is basic human nature. Still, only a fool mistakes the local equivalent of a high-school rivalry for a categorical imperative. John -- John McCreery The Word Works, Ltd., Yokohama, JAPAN Tel. +81-45-314-9324 http://www.wordworks.jp/ -- See Exclusive Video: 10th Annual Young Hollywood Awards