I have decided to punch a stranger in the face today
It is so exciting just thinking about whom that may be!
The anticipation alone
Could lead to my jumping the gun
And possibly punching the wrong person
Yesterday I saw a stranger punch another stranger in the face
It was exhilarating
While some passers-by tried to break up the potential altercation
I neither applauded the action
Nor denied it
I just wanted to watch
It was somewhat anti-climactic
Sine the man who got punched in the face was barely affected
And the brutish gentleman who struck him looked as if he would have packed a bigger punch
When the men were separated by some bystanders
They starting discussing an incident involving a car
I think the man who got punched was jogging
The brutish gentleman was driving a Jeep
The runner must have been incited by danger
Which is a common occurrence between pedestrians and motorists
The brutish gentleman was on a cell phone and seemed to be talking with the police
He said the jogger keyed his car and tried to break his thumb
The jogger attempted to speak into the phone
And the brutish gentleman said he would pop him in the head again
I would have waited for that
But it seemed as though all animosity had already come to a head
That was unfortunate
Today I would like to punch a stranger in the face
Not to draw blood, which I abhor
But to see that shocked expression
Real
Uninhibited
And kind of funny
I am not a ruffian, per se
However, I have learned an important lesson from these gentlemen
If you are going to strike someone in the face
Make it good
At least for the spectators
No one wants to see business as usual
A casual exchange
I want to see someone stagger
Hold on to the ground
In an attempt to realign with gravity
And possibly even shake it off and come back for more
But please dear sirs and ladies
Don't just act like you didn't just get punched in the face
That's no fun for anyone
Since I have on occasion come close to physicality with a stranger
Similar to the course of action I witnessed yesterday
A pop in the lip is one of my favorite expressions
I think I may in fact be ready
To move on
To the next board of this game
With the subways and streets
Sidewalks and intersections
Crowded shops and narrow walkways
It's surprising that this doesn't happen more often
I suppose I could blame it on the 70's
Or the 80's
Or even the 90's
Since I hear this place was too violent back then
Strangers punching strangers all the time
Which is arguably too much
But justice was served
By the common person
With no real recourse other than possible retaliation
Which keeps people in check
More polite
With boundaries intuitively defined by the people involved
That sounds fair to me
Nowadays there are distinct boundaries
Lawsuits and police enforcement
Cameras and recorders
Witnesses and public conduct
Which leads me to believe we lost something somewhere
There is something inherently wrong with people not being scared of each other
There is something faulty about misplaced confidence
A defective sense of protection
Assumed security
We have lost our innate ability to judge the potential danger of a situation
Protected by a system with a default mechanism
That screams in white noise undertones:
Subdue the savages!
Civilize and citizenize!
Dress them up in frilly shirts and powder them with festive scents!
But underneath it all there is a sweat that stinks
A purpose clawing its way out
A gorilla with a bone to pick
The supposed savages aren't too happy about it either
--
8.24.07
It is so exciting just thinking about whom that may be!
The anticipation alone
Could lead to my jumping the gun
And possibly punching the wrong person
Yesterday I saw a stranger punch another stranger in the face
It was exhilarating
While some passers-by tried to break up the potential altercation
I neither applauded the action
Nor denied it
I just wanted to watch
It was somewhat anti-climactic
Sine the man who got punched in the face was barely affected
And the brutish gentleman who struck him looked as if he would have packed a bigger punch
When the men were separated by some bystanders
They starting discussing an incident involving a car
I think the man who got punched was jogging
The brutish gentleman was driving a Jeep
The runner must have been incited by danger
Which is a common occurrence between pedestrians and motorists
The brutish gentleman was on a cell phone and seemed to be talking with the police
He said the jogger keyed his car and tried to break his thumb
The jogger attempted to speak into the phone
And the brutish gentleman said he would pop him in the head again
I would have waited for that
But it seemed as though all animosity had already come to a head
That was unfortunate
Today I would like to punch a stranger in the face
Not to draw blood, which I abhor
But to see that shocked expression
Real
Uninhibited
And kind of funny
I am not a ruffian, per se
However, I have learned an important lesson from these gentlemen
If you are going to strike someone in the face
Make it good
At least for the spectators
No one wants to see business as usual
A casual exchange
I want to see someone stagger
Hold on to the ground
In an attempt to realign with gravity
And possibly even shake it off and come back for more
But please dear sirs and ladies
Don't just act like you didn't just get punched in the face
That's no fun for anyone
Since I have on occasion come close to physicality with a stranger
Similar to the course of action I witnessed yesterday
A pop in the lip is one of my favorite expressions
I think I may in fact be ready
To move on
To the next board of this game
With the subways and streets
Sidewalks and intersections
Crowded shops and narrow walkways
It's surprising that this doesn't happen more often
I suppose I could blame it on the 70's
Or the 80's
Or even the 90's
Since I hear this place was too violent back then
Strangers punching strangers all the time
Which is arguably too much
But justice was served
By the common person
With no real recourse other than possible retaliation
Which keeps people in check
More polite
With boundaries intuitively defined by the people involved
That sounds fair to me
Nowadays there are distinct boundaries
Lawsuits and police enforcement
Cameras and recorders
Witnesses and public conduct
Which leads me to believe we lost something somewhere
There is something inherently wrong with people not being scared of each other
There is something faulty about misplaced confidence
A defective sense of protection
Assumed security
We have lost our innate ability to judge the potential danger of a situation
Protected by a system with a default mechanism
That screams in white noise undertones:
Subdue the savages!
Civilize and citizenize!
Dress them up in frilly shirts and powder them with festive scents!
But underneath it all there is a sweat that stinks
A purpose clawing its way out
A gorilla with a bone to pick
The supposed savages aren't too happy about it either
--
8.24.07
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