THE RHINOCEROS EFFECT (7/21/02)
I don't know how many people have read or seen Eugene Ionesco's Rhinoceros , a parable about conformity and the authoritarian impluse. It tells of a town in which people begin turning, one by one, into rhinoceri - yet few are willing to acknowledge what's happening. The most memorable scene is one in which the hero's friend (famously played by Zero Mostel) begins making excuses for his neighbors - maybe it's not so bad to be a rhinoceros, after all - and, as we watch, turns into a rhinoceros himself.
What reminded me of the play was a visit to my old publication Slate . I've pretty much restricted my blog reading to Brad DeLong and Josh Marshall - but I couldn't help noticing that Zero Mostel had nothing on Mickey Kaus.
Meanwhile, some of us refuse to ignore the rhinoceri running the country.
But Paul! Steve Earle Wrote a Song! And Teens are having sex! Or Not! And Rubin made a phone call! And Chomsky said something!