And this manifesto, one of several I've read written by a freedarko denizen, is why I am, at this very moment, wearing with pride my freedarko T-shirt, emblazoned with swinging 70s cartoon logos of the Chicago Bulls, Detroit Pistons, Milwaukee Bucks, and the Kansas City Kings né Sacramento Kings. Crappy photo yes, but therefore more authentic.
The latest manifesto begins:
Very early on in the Great Mainstream Stat Wars, Silverbird5000 called me on the phone with misery in his voice. He was concerned that everything he typed for this site ended up flush with Marxist longings, the kind that make pavement crinkle and birds take flight. Silverbird's promising academic career was not built on this sort of celebratory posturing, and the tunnels of his mind are proofed against fire. Yet somehow, FreeDarko brought out the booming rector in him.There's a good reason for that: since its inception, FreeDarko has been rife with overtones of prophecy, revolution, imminent change, and apocalyptic fervor. Hence the preoccupation with Futurism, the Old Testament, Islamic extremists, the Black Panthers, Heidegger, the First Continental Congress, and Herzog. I can't exactly say what draws me to these things, other than ennui and impatience. And though when I start writing about sports, these are the reference points I glom onto. Part of it is a reaction to the NBA's massive style quotient; the only appropriate response seems to be some mix of nihilism and idealism. But I also should probably confess that, like most people, I like to feel I'm in the presence of important stuff. And nothing dribbles weight quite like imminent upheaval.
[click freedarko.com: On Warfare and Mr. Dill to continue]
