THE INNOCENCE OF POO

I was reminded this morning of Norman Mailer’s final interview. I believe it was New York Magazine. He spoke eloquently on the decline of civilization and put the blame squarely on the lowly toilet. Lowly, yes, but an instrument that has lifted us out of the muck. That was Mailer’s point. By separating ourselves from the detritus of our humanity, we have inadvertently become, well, less human.

We don’t have to deal with our own waste any longer. It is carried away from us. And depending on the size of your belly, you may never have seen it in the first place. Thus began the distancing ourselves from all accountability…culminating in warfare by the push of a button. No longer swords and the unavoidable protracted contact with your opponent’s anguish. Now, it’s following orders that lead to some abstract outcome thousands of miles away. Mind you, it’s still a visceral experience for boots on the ground. No wonder so few of them rise to high political office. (And they should! I won’t vote for someone now if they haven’t experienced what it means to be sent into Hell. Buttigieg all the way, baby!) They share the far too truthful experience of warfare the general populace would like repackaged as parades.

If Mr. Mailer had lived a little longer, he would have witnessed the progression of the great decline with the invention of the most nefarious force yet for dehumanizing people: Social Media. Many sociologists say we should just turn it off. But, if you’re already damned, why bother. Needless to say, it has done more harm than good. But I digress from…

POO. My daughter reminded me today of how a more intimate connection to one’s bodily functions is indicative of the innocent…and a less guilty former humankind. “Why won’t it come out, Dada? It broke apart in my bum.” Wise words from someone so young.