Uncategorized | Writing Boots

Fear and loathing at the lectern

09.02.2009 by David Murray // 4 Comments

We knew it all along: The answer to stage fright is drugs.

From the website of an outfit hawking a new drug called Bravina:

"Those who suffer from public speaking anxiety often complain of symptoms such as anxiety…"

Well, yes.

"… nervousness, anxiousness …"

Go on!

"… lack of focus or concentration, short term memory loss, increased heart rate, dizziness and shortness of breath."

Yes, yes, yes, yes.

"However, with adequate writing, preparation and specific natural supplements public speaking anxiety can be overcome."

Yes!

"Individual results with Bravina will vary; as a result, try Bravina for the first time in a controlled environment when you are not in the spotlight. When taking Bravina without public speaking anxiety you may feel a little lethargic, don't worry your stage fright on the day of your public speaking engagement will balance out the calming effects of Bravina."

And only $19.95 for this Hunter S. Thompsonian concoction of "passiflora, motherwort, St. John's wort, ashwagandha, Valerian root, Eleuthero root, panax, ginkgo biloba, and octacosanol."

It's a miracle.

Or at least it would be, were it not for that dirty little bit in the fine print about the need for "adequate writing" and "preparation."

Reminds me of my friend Eddie, who asked my pal Paul if a smoking-cessation aid he was using actually worked.

"Well, Eddie, you do have to want to quit smoking."

"Yeah," Eddie said shaking his head, "I knew it didn't work."

(Thanks to Podium Pundit Vinca LaFleur for the steer.)

The best stories lead themselves

09.01.2009 by David Murray // 3 Comments

The first sentence of a story in today's Chicago Sun-Times:

"A man who allegedly has about 14 aliases and an arrest record across the country was being uncooperative with police after he was shot then struck by a CTA bus Monday night on the Southwest side, police said."

On Labor Day, ‘Can’t Take No More’

08.31.2009 by David Murray // 6 Comments

In the U.S. we live in an era that discounts the very notion of "labor." Many of us disdain labor unions, believe all the legitimate labor rights have all been long won, and see labor regulations solely as hurdles that slow organizations down.

But this 30-year-old film, "Can't Take No More," tells the harrowing history of the development of labor laws and safety regulations, and the organizations created to enforce them.

Studs Terkel narrates this film. Who will narrate the one I'm sure we're going to see some decades from now, about how after a long fight against bloodless corporate self-interest, Americans finally won what will seem then as the obvious human right to quality health care?