topics

[dog]

can topics be a topic? when does a topic become a sub-topic? what happens if a sub-topic becomes an underground topic? what happens to a topic when it goes over your head? and what of topics that are beneath comtempt? if a tree falls in the forest, and crushes a deaf guy, can it still be a topic? if the topic is "going off topic," is it then still possible to go off-topic while discussing it? where do topics go when they disappear? what if someone yells "topic!" in a crowded firehouse? can "no topic" be a valid topic? how can a topic reappear if it hasn't really gone anywhere? are we not all swimming in a sea of topics? what if i were to use the word "topic" in a hypothetical question? can a topic become so subliminal that it ceases to be a topic? isn't that a topic in and of itself?



Edited by - dog on 08/25/2002 16:25:33

[Ram1]

....with a twist of lemon.

A horse is a horse of course of course...

[dog]

hey! you're "off-topic" r1!

[Ram1]

Sorry, you're right Dog.

But what is a topic without a moderator? Doesn't the moderator always have to stay on topic? Or does the moderator hold the discretion to change the topic whenever he/she wants to? If there is a word "topic", then why isn't there a word "bottomic"? Have you hugged a tree today? Sorry, I'm off topic.

A horse is a horse of course of course...

[dog]

why would someone who aspires to "moderate" topics choose to be involved with topics in the first place? wouldn't a provocateur be more at home in this kooky world of topicality?

[Ram1]

Possibly. But a moderator holds the incessant desire to moderate. And what is a discussion without topics? Discussion=topics=mandatory moderator.

A horse is a horse of course of course...

[dog]

Granted,R1, a moderator thrives on moderation. And who can forget the class wars of the 60's between the moderators and the rockinators? But why ignore the role of the commentators in all this? without them, who would commentate? Am I being topical?

[Ram1]

Yeah, you're being topical. You bring up a good point about the commentators. I believe commentators HAVE to stay topical. Or else, what would they commentate on? But if someone is topical, can they also be tropical? Can someone stay on topic in the tropics? Or if they're in the tropics, do they have to remain off topic? Do you have to remain on topic at a topless beach? Or is being topless in the tropics a topic in and of itself?

A horse is a horse of course of course...

[dog]

typically, tropical topics can be topped-off before being tapped-out. Plus, I never really liked tap-dancing, truth be told. But cow-tipping still retains a certain topicality in my book (the one under the couch). And Tippy Hedrin---what more beautiful a woman has ever been attacked by sparrows?

[Ram1]

Speaking of Tippy Hedrin, Alfred "You can call me Al" Hitchcock pretty much always stayed on topic. I mean, he had to, right? He was a storyteller, a teller of stories. Stories that were told by a teller of stories, who told stories of a specific topic, and therefore was a topic teller. Yes, a storyteller is a teller of topics.

A horse is a horse of course of course...