Sadly the usual currency between poets at least in my experience is that they are stingy, fearful and tawdry towards other writers, artists, and poets. There is a terrible and fearful economy between them and it keeps them cheap and fearful of giving anything that does not pay them. It prevents them from being what they naturally are which is Open Kind and Creative.
Poets become addled with the horrible Economy of Exclusion. THey are the most extreme example of the Pretence that everything is all right.
I did a radio show for five years that was free: I interviewed over that time at least 200 people ___Mostly writers and poets . The majority were when all was said and done, stingy ungenerous, and clinging. Many of them were petty backbiting and vengeful. One woman badgered me for years for a tape recording of the segment of the pro gramme she had been on. This was not her fault of course, _ She was and is a good poet performer. But her contignueal attemps to force me to give her a tape put me off. IT was her economy that pushd her in this Direction. The economy of poetry and life turned her into some thing desperate desperate enoguh adn prideless enough she wanted to needed to hear herself. She is now a forgotten persona and poet I have no t forgotten her.
She remains one of the countless unforgotten names in me
All were ambitious and fearful of the success of others. I say fearful because the general sense was that if others got some then they would not.
It was terrrible. This is not their fault___ it is the fault of the position and place of poets in our 'fair ' society. Poets are the most marginalized of workers and producers.
"Successful' middle class poets might laugh at this and deny its truth.
Well good for them. The truth is that everyone knows better. Recently aCanadian poet won a waht do you call it an Emmy? Ofr his records. This is shameful.
He is an embarrassment to all poets whose work and liveihood goes in another direction.
He ought to be hoenst and simply admit he is a cpaitalist opportunist
The Canada Councul ought to be dismantled.
