Just to get a few things off my chest

[Stephen Swann]

John A Swartz writes:
>
> 4.  Music is neither good or bad -- you may like it or not like it, but
> that like or dislike doesn't make it good or bad.  I don't particularly
> like alot of what's being played on the radio these days (although I'm
> starting to get into some stuff), but that doesn't mean it's bad, just
> that I don't like it.  Maybe I should start a new slogan:  "Music
> doesn't suck - people do."  O.K., maybe not . . .  ;-)

Relativistic hogwash, John.  :-) There *is* such a thing as shoddy
music, just like there are sour wines, uncomfortable shoes, badly
written books, and knives that won't hold an edge.  Just because
somebody likes those things doesn't make them good, it just means that
people have a taste for bad stuff.

Note that I'm making a distinction here between 'like' and 'respect':
they don't necessarily have to be the same thing.  You can have a
taste for things that are not 'quality' - it's not a crime.  I love a
lot of old 70's hardcore punk, knowing full well that it's trashy,
3-notes-played-really-fast stuff.  I also intensely dislike Mozart,
knowing full well that he's widely respected by people who actually
know music.  So what?  You makes your choices, as they say; otherwise
we'd have nothing to discuss, or worse, we'd spend all our time
patting each other on the back about what good little TrueFans[tm] we
all are.

Now, lest anyone think that I'm arguing with you here, ;-) I want to
say that I completely agree with the following.

> 5.  If we're going to have some more meaningful discussion about BOC
> and their music, let's go a little beyond a statement that says, "I
> don't like _____"  Tell us WHY you don't like it, or why you do - it
> will make the subsequent discussions more interesting, instead of just
> turning the discussion into a "vote".

Steve