Yeah, we had another ant attack in the kitchen this morning, ruining our coffee break. This time they got the dog food, nicely prepared by Yuta with Buckley waiting, now crawling with ants. It seems they've found a centralized base in the framework of our stove and came calling this morning for breakfast.
And now my day is crawling with words, words meant to eat up the leadership, tear down the membership, of a genuine cultural community of common interest or passion for The Stick, its musical potential and its string tapping method (which I call "Free Hands").
At a time when PC sensitivity has saturated our national culture and designated groups are protected against hurtful speech (speech that can also lead to harmful acts), we have in the process sacrificed some real First Amendment freedoms of expression for the good of those selected groups.
But what about all the other groups? Our group? Many become what I call "free targets" for venting suppressed rage. We laugh with nervous tolerance about PC as our rights of free speech are progressively hemmed in. Then a new on-line phenomenon emerges, that of pent up and reactive anger. It must feel good to target the successful work of a group and its leaders, to step into the forum of a living cultural entity and try to insult, expose and tear them down - cheap thrills, I say!
LSZ - Emmett, you've clearly taken my post as a personal attack on you, SE, and everything you've acheived. I assure you that's not the case.
EC - I'm not assured.
LSZ - I've always been LoopStationZebra on this forum, and have never purposely hidden my identity, as your comment suggests. Totally class-less on your part to suggest otherwise.
EC - More insults, and hidden identity wasn't on my mind.
LSZ - I also didn't attack you personally; though you seem to take any voice of dissent as such.
EC - Now you're casting me as some sort of a petty tyrant because I've taken specific objection to your crude attacks.
LSZ - You're posting that I sold it on Ebay suggests some nefarious or backhanded behaviour on my part, and I utterly resent that. Again, class-less.
EC - False offense! I don't know how you could read that from my words. We see ebay Stick sales all the time and even refer prospective Stick buyers and sellers there.
LSZ - Hoping for acknowledgement and credit from a competitor is a futile waste of time and energy. At the end of the day it does little more than serve one's ego. I've been there with my own product design history. I know.
EC - I'd like to steer away from competition of musical instrument products and to focus on the cultural and musical aspects of my contributions since 1969. Musicians are taught by other musicians, or at least influenced by them - an artistic and cultural line of succession where mentors are acknowledged and sometimes even honored. In my case that line has been intentionally broken by the "touchstyle" advocates who minimize my creative work and have tried for 15 years to disparage me personally and professionally.
LSZ - Of course it's a knockoff. But again, there's little or nothing you or fanboys on this forum can do about it. Well, bitching about it certainly helps one feel better, I suppose.
EC - No comment needed here.
LSZ - You're dead wrong. Manufacturers large and small have realized that a.) Unless the knockoff is EXACT (purely in terms of aesthetics), they are going to spend a ton of money on legal proceedings and most likely LOSE. see: Gibson b.) Endless market studies/tests have clearly shown that knockoff production has benefited manufacturers; oftentimes giving them exposure that they might not have gotten otherwise.
EC - In this market niche, such exposure works in the other direction. Our long time competitors benefit from our image and our public and customer good will by identifying with us every which way (except the most natural way). From the beginning they've tried to take over our Stick groups, forums, activities, and venues world wide, then create ill will toward us and our instruments in order to sell their own.
LSZ - My beef here is with fanboys who have demonstrated they have little or no tolerance for other tap instruments; nevermind Traktor's stuff. I submit, in fact, that even if Traktor didn't practice slimy and bizarre marketing techniques that he would STILL be despised.
EC - Your expression "fanboys", though colorful, sounds a little sick, but I may be wrong.
LSZ - It's given on album and CD sleeves with CHAPMAN Stick listed as the instrument. And it's given by me. I've gigged out quite a few times now with my Stick, and have taken it around to numerous music shops on a regular basis. So many people were asking me about the Stick that, I kid you not, I printed out little pieces of paper with the Stick.com address that I keep in my gig bag.
EC - I have to say that I do appreciate that. Such performer interaction with an audience seems to flow naturally and I remember it well in my earlier days. It's admittedly a pain to keep answering the same questions and each artist has his own creative way to deal with that. Vance Gloster had a T-shirt printed with FAQs (and answers) top to bottom.
LSZ - I knew full well that my post would piss off the cult-like Acolytes, and that I probably won't be welcome at any upcoming Stick gatherings.
Because if there's one thing I've noticed here is that dissent is heavily frowned upon. No matter. I said what I felt needed to be said.
EC - I have a problem with your religious reference (Acolytes). All we need is to be branded as a cult, then comes the compound, then comes the pounding. Dissent, though negative, is often constructive, and often for us too, but not your brand of psychodrama.
LSZ - I just hope that I'll still be able to get a set of strings or a new case from SE when I need them.......
EC - Yes, let's hope that's still possible.
All the Best, Emmett.