79 Comments on “Short Stories”
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Suryo Perkoso Says:
September 9th, 2009 at 7:48 pmTalk about repeating yourself Suryo.
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Achmad Sudarsono Says:
September 9th, 2009 at 7:51 pmTimdog,
Bullshit. Ross’s story was shit. End of story.
Sorry, Ross. You know it. Get your snout out of that Bintang and write a proper short story. It’s hard: there’s so much good fiction no one will ever read, but what you’ve done is just offensive on an aesthetic level.
Timdog: I prefer your satire – the Ayu Utami spoof was really good – but at at least yours was a proper attempt. Ross’s stuff was such shit I couldn’t stay quiet.
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September 9th, 2009 at 7:57 pmTimdog,
We might re-interpret Samuel Johnson’s quote to only a blockhead writes for nothing or no reward. He was a wine-and-ale-soaked hack (nothing wrong with that), after all. There’s no telling what mindset he wrote that in. But he had little tolerance for humbug or pretension and I’d give it, say, two minutes, before he’d engage Ross in fisticuffs if our Thatcherite-Bacteria friend dared peddle his shit in those days.
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September 9th, 2009 at 8:12 pmWell Achmad, the failure to get the little language snippets right was a turn off, that and the veritable tomes go soft when used as axle stands.
Do you remember the “Mas Yarakat” episode? Oh such happy days, and I do miss you so much.
Have you had many “palang merah” moments recently?…..
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David Says:
September 9th, 2009 at 8:55 pmGenuinely no offence to either of you as I ordinarily like having you around, but Suryo (keeps talking about things which only he and somebody else has any clue about) and Achmad (waltzes back in to whine and say “shit” a lot) should probably pipe down. Timdog doesn’t need to pipe down but should probably consider having a serious look at one of those Tamil matrimonial sites, clearly needs to settle down, doesn’t stay put somewhere for more than five minutes.
Here’s the Ayu Utami spoof that A mentions in case anyone hasn’t seen it.
http://www.indonesiamatters.com/1826/literary-parody/#comment-98444
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Ross Says:
September 9th, 2009 at 9:31 pmSounds like Achmad has been on the sauce, or fantasising an action replay of the insult duel.
One always has a degree of concern if a story or a book is up to the mark, but spoutings from such a source as him makes me feel re-assured that it’s not a bad wee yarn. And despite Achmad’s feeble endorsement, I see merit in timdog’s too.Incidentally, Patung, when DOES the voting end. And is the KPU showing interest?
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Ross Says:
September 9th, 2009 at 10:02 pmtimdog, i thank you for the congratulations, but we have had no bell ringing yet so I’m assuming the race is still open. The contest has meanwhile become a popular topic of conversation in certain watering-holes.
I actually missed Achmad’s predictable wimpy outburst, on how we should try to be ‘understanding’ with demented vermin like the FPI. They are blood-thirsty thugs, and if some good guy were to waste them, I’d buy him a beer anyday.
Achmad would probably report the good guy to the cops. He exemplifies the decline of Occidental civilisation, forever trying to find fault with itself instead of defending itself.Afghanistan? A 100% Muslim Government, being supported against an armed
equivalent of the FPI -should we leave them to get on with it? Up to you, Achmad…take a stand..or, in your case, sit wringing your hands about how misunderstood are such policies as throwing acid into girls’ faces or cutting off noses for voting.The trouble with the West, at least as much as Indonesia, is that we don’t waste the terrs. In Scotland, you can kill 270 harmless travellers and get sent home to a hero’s welcome!
(though thankfully the Scottish Parliament subsequently distanced itself from that craven misdeed) -
Rad Says:
September 10th, 2009 at 3:58 amDuke and Lestari story is quite depressing.
On the other hand I hope I live to see those Taliban-wannabes be executed for treason against the Pancasil State. -
September 10th, 2009 at 6:38 amWasn’t thinking of expiring it at all but if you want then I guess tomorrow/Friday is ok, turnout pretty disappointing though, virtually all of the people who’ve commented on this post haven’t voted, well that includes me.
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September 10th, 2009 at 8:36 amHey Patung,
Not fair. I took a brief stab at commentary and there were only two “shits,” albeit in the lead. There were a couple of points, unlike a lot of comments:
* Ross’s story was a Clint Eastwood fantasy.
* He seems to be advocating one-on-one offing of militants, the same way JI were thinking of doing to foreigners a few years ago. -
September 10th, 2009 at 8:39 amPatung,
Actually, looking back, there were three shits. So, yes, feel free to take them out, if you think they dirty up the website. But yes, agree that casual use of shit or as a term of abuse isn’t cricket. More important to demonstrate how the story is shit. Apologies to Ross for the shit but the other comments stand.
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September 10th, 2009 at 9:18 amAlright, you made some interesting points. As did Timdog, as did Ross. I’m sitting on the fence where I belong.
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Ross Says:
September 10th, 2009 at 11:14 amWaking up is hard to do! This ‘solidarity’ rising at strange hours is wearisome, esp.. when I’m not fasting.
But a nice surprise to see Achmad retracting his expletives. We all feel strongly about our bete noires, but criticism is much more effective if delivered clean and fresh, and it is true I am a big Clint Eastwood fan.One must not fall into the ABC (Australia) trap of referring to terrorists as militants – I refer to the Oz pinko clique’s ban on pejorative references to the Taliban – because I have met many militants who are not into murder as a tactic, and many would say my own views are quite militant.
I was talking about the Laskar Jihad, who went to Maluku speciufically to kill, and did so, and to that piece of c##p Lubis, who called on his thugs to ‘kill, kill, kill’ Ahmadiyah. Also to those who tell their audiences that people who opt out of Islam deserve the death penalty..and who are not evidently urging legislation to that effect but rather direct action.
Such swine ought to take the consequences of their evil, and yes, they are evil, Achmad,but they are, I think, a small minority of Muslims.What are the large majority doing to put them down? What, for example, has SBY or any of his Cabinet had to say about the latest idiocy in Aceh, where they are proposing to execute people for adultery.
The essence of my story was not Duke’s perfectly understandable decision to go after killers whom nobody else was prepared to apprehend, but his much more purposeful tactic of getting the matter before the courts, of justice and opinion. -
fanglong Says:
September 16th, 2009 at 5:31 amI enjoyed both texts for different reasons and I have spontaneously voted for Timdog.
I feel sorry my English isn’t that good : Ross’s way of writing is a little too spicy for my illiterate palate. Achmad is true with his Clint Eastwood comparison, but who has never wanted to do in the insincere blood-baying swines ? Not only in order to unwind but also because one is fed up with the same old horror story…
Timdog’s short story is a languorously dreamy thing I like very much — maybe for a question of style, after all.
As a (French) writer myself, I’m very sensitive to all attempts (and successes) in writing for the sake of writing. And, btw, I thank Patung for the production. -
Ross Says:
September 16th, 2009 at 12:56 pmThanks, Fanglong, it’s nice to get a view that’s genuinely objective. I liked Timdog’s tale also.
Our styles are very different, so if I weren’t me (2nd conditional) I’d have found it hard to vote. -
timdog Says:
September 19th, 2009 at 8:20 pmfanglong – as Ross says, it’s very nice indeed to have your view, an objective one, and, I think, one based on literary merits.
And any praise of my style goes straight to my heart, so thank you very much for the vote!It’s all about style. I guess, Achmad, that’s why I’m quite good at parodies (even if I do say so myself). A hyper-awareness of style makes it very easy to pick up the key elements in other people’s, and then mockingly to exaggerate them for comic effect.
Mas Patung – on settling down: “The man wants to wander, and he must do so or he shall die”; “All things told there are two kinds of men, those who stay at home, and those who don’t”. The first is Burton; the second is Kipling, just to reiterate what an odd kind of liberal I am. I’m now, just to spin you out some more, in Surabaya, but not for long…
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September 19th, 2009 at 9:48 pmHi Timdog, yeah I know I just wanted to get in the line about the matrimonial sites, I thought it was pretty good…you’ve picked a good time to be in Surabaya I guess, quietish, I will shout out if I see a likely looking fellow on a motorbike, “Naipaul rocks my world”, or “Liberals suck!”, something like along those lines, unmistakeable so you know it’s me.
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September 21st, 2009 at 8:38 amA fabulous time to be in Surabaya indeed, Mas Patung. Been blazing around those deliciously empty roads this very morning on the bike. I’ll keep an ear out for that tell-tale shout
Oh, and it was a good line about matrimonial sites…
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October 31st, 2010 at 8:58 pmDragging this one out of the depths of time; an English literature teacher at University of Melbourne has taken a fancy to Timdog’s story and has produced this slideshow to accompany her teaching of it to her international students:
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