That's the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) for you. The UK is totally weak. The economy is 4 per cent below something or other, and unemployment is heading for 9 per cent. So, what's the problem? Is the country weak because we have weak leaders? We're ruled by men who know how to smash up restaurants. But that's it. They're no good at anything else.
Yes, the country is weak, but I'm feeling strong. At the age of forty-three I'm entering the most creative period of my life, and on two fronts. 'Is it a war?!' Nothing's going to stop me now: I have a positive attitude. That's the way to recovery. Every individual has to feel strong inside. I'm sure that's how the Germans do it. If individuals are weak, society as a whole is weak. We shouldn't bother with governments. Politicians are either corrupt or stupid. 'Oh, Mikey, you're wrong! They're corrupt and stupid.' I stand corrected! Thank you, er, Voice.
It was nice to see Damien Hirst at the snooker yesterday. Picasso had his bullfighting, and Hirst has snooker. I suppose that's the trouble with being an artist in England. Not exactly Death in the Afternoon, is it? More Boredom Just Before Teatime.
And it is a war. / Picasso: 'What do you think artists are? Imbeciles that have only eyes if painters, ears if musicians, or lyres for all levels of the heart if poets, or, if boxers, only muscles? Quite the contrary, they are also political beings, always vigilant before the heartrending, burning, or sweet events of the world, fashioning every part to their own image. How could it be possible to be uninterested in others, and, by virtue of what ivory-tower indifference, to be detached from the life they bring you in such abundance? No, painting is not done to decorate apartments. It is an offensive and defensive instrument of war against the enemy.'
The "political beings" was bullshit. Despite claiming to be a communist, Picasso was one of the most apolitical artists who ever lived. Only art mattered. / Bland, everyday reality is the enemy. It has always been the enemy for any serious artist. Bland, everyday reality is the real killer. Forget cancer or heart disease.
Yes, the country is weak, but I'm feeling strong. At the age of forty-three I'm entering the most creative period of my life, and on two fronts. 'Is it a war?!' Nothing's going to stop me now: I have a positive attitude. That's the way to recovery. Every individual has to feel strong inside. I'm sure that's how the Germans do it. If individuals are weak, society as a whole is weak. We shouldn't bother with governments. Politicians are either corrupt or stupid. 'Oh, Mikey, you're wrong! They're corrupt and stupid.' I stand corrected! Thank you, er, Voice.
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It was nice to see Damien Hirst at the snooker yesterday. Picasso had his bullfighting, and Hirst has snooker. I suppose that's the trouble with being an artist in England. Not exactly Death in the Afternoon, is it? More Boredom Just Before Teatime.
_________________________
And it is a war. / Picasso: 'What do you think artists are? Imbeciles that have only eyes if painters, ears if musicians, or lyres for all levels of the heart if poets, or, if boxers, only muscles? Quite the contrary, they are also political beings, always vigilant before the heartrending, burning, or sweet events of the world, fashioning every part to their own image. How could it be possible to be uninterested in others, and, by virtue of what ivory-tower indifference, to be detached from the life they bring you in such abundance? No, painting is not done to decorate apartments. It is an offensive and defensive instrument of war against the enemy.'
The "political beings" was bullshit. Despite claiming to be a communist, Picasso was one of the most apolitical artists who ever lived. Only art mattered. / Bland, everyday reality is the enemy. It has always been the enemy for any serious artist. Bland, everyday reality is the real killer. Forget cancer or heart disease.
