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Re: Father/Motherland

From:Jonathan Chang <zhang2323@...>
Date:Thursday, May 25, 2000, 7:30
In a message dated 2000/05/25 04:51:48 AM, Nik wrote:

>We have the Statue of Liberty, a woman, but also Uncle Sam, a man, and >the Bald Eagle, which, at least to me, seems masculine. >
To me, Lady Liberty always struck me as being rather "butch" (big, stocky, rather hamfisted, & oh so Germanic looking [yes the French built HER, I know]). Of course this is purely my impression from: 1) dim, grey-toned memories of seeing Her Liberty-ness from the dingey 3rd Class Deck of a cross-Atlantic passenger ship at age 4 back in 1968. (Immigrating from London England UK, my Parental Units made certain I worshipfully stared at Her Looming Gloryhoodlum-ness as long as SHE was in sight - told me to remember the Sight of HER forever) 2) countless popular American kitsch photos, pictures, cartoons, etc. of Her Imperial Metalness since the age of 4. I had a lil metal reproduction of HER in me bloody school days... IT was a pencil-sharpener. I remember getting a perverse thrill in "reaming" my pencils in HER for "Survival & Business Math" (a fancy name for "advanced remedial math"). "Yes, Mister Kurtz -I mean Mister Brown, I am ready for pencil-pushing, Sir!" BBC (British Born Chinaman) & ex-juvie dee (ex-juvenile delinquent), zHANg