New Cities/New Soviets

June 23, 2005

control: addendum

think about how different this notion of control is from Dr. Phil's. Phil fails to draw any distinction between the different forms of control. For him, it is all about program and resolution. Self-programming is his art.

Therefore, his only critique of pathology is that it is a "love of chaos." Echoes of the homosexual panic of Dr. Drew (of the late MTV show Loveline). On the contrary, for people who have no mode of investing long-term control of their lives, fucking these mechanisms up is the form in which they exert control over their own lives.

Phil's line on children is typical: they have "a desire for predictable consequences." Their desire for self-control is meshed seamlessly with a dictum that they be controlled. Deluze and Guatarri take this delusion one step further: the masses, they claim, "desire to be oppressed."

Negotiating between the levels of control, minimizing coercion and maximizing freedom, these are tricky issues. For different people, different understandings; different exchanges will be made. For this reason, the basics must be laid out carefully.

Posted by Sam at June 23, 2005 08:32 PM

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