“Writers must oppose systems. It’s important to write against power, corporations, the state, and the whole system of consumption and of debilitating entertainments…I think writers, by nature, must oppose things, oppose whatever power tries to impose on us. You know, in America and in western Europe we live in very wealthy democracies, we can do virtually anything we want, I’m able to write whatever I want to write. But I can’t be part of this culture of simulation, in the sense of the culture’s absorbing of everything…If you’re a writer who, one way or another, comes to be seen as dangerous, you’ll wake up one morning and discover your face on a coffee mug or a t-shirt and you’ll have been neutralized.”
~ Don Delillo
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Published by R.M. ENGELHARDT POET AUTHOR WRITER
R.M. Engelhardt is a poet, writer and author who over the last two decades has published over 16 books of poetry including "Nod" "Logos" "Alchemy" & "The Last Cigarette: The Collected Poems of R.M. Engelhardt. The founder of the Upstate NY organization Albany Poets & the Annual Poetry Celebration The Albany Word Fest he has through his ideas & visions helped to contribute a large amount of advocacy and creativity to the Spoken Word~Poetry Capital District scene and is the former host of the long running readings Vox, Propaganda, Listen & currently is creating a new resurrection of one of the area's most well known open mics for poetry and spoken word THE SCHOOL OF NIGHT in Troy, NY held on the last Wednesday evening of each month at the incredible nightclub/speak easy bar THE BERLIN IN TROY NY. His writing has also been published by many journals such as The Rye Whiskey Review, Red Fez, Rusty Truck, Sure! The Charles Bukowski Newsletter, Thunder Sandwich, The Hobo Camp Review, Full of Crow, on the Outlaw Poetry Network & in many many others.
Look for his books "WHERE THE PEOPLE'S VISION PERISHES 2020" "DARK LANDS (2019 on LuLu, Amazon & At Barnes and Noble) The Resurrection Waltz, 2012 ( Infinity Press) & "COFFEE ASS BLUES & OTHER POEMS" ( 2018 Alien Buddha Press 2018) " DarkLands" 2019 & "Where There Is No Vision" 2020 and his new books, "WE RISE LIKE SMOKE" (2021) & Of Spirit, Ash & Bone (2022) all available on Amazon.com
He is also the Editor of the small independent poetry press DeadMansPressInk.
www.gentlemanoutsider.com
*All Poems, Writings & Information Contained On This Blog Are The Property & Owned By The Author R.M. Engelhardt. © 2021
www.rmengelhardt.com
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R.M. ENGELHARDT 
By saying what writers MUST do, he’s imposing his own ideas on other writers who feel it’s equally or more important to write about the beauty of human compassion and friendship or a cute little story about an orphaned cat. When we limit writers by expecting them all to be against corporations as the fashionable evil of the day we leave no room for different points of view and we fall victim to whatever newest social/ political experiment is in vogue.
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I agree, both the writer, and with you as well.
My job as a writer is to present the different points of view with an open mind. It is, to use this blog to inspire others to write as well and to share their thoughts & opinions. One writer’s idealism is just that. What motivates them to write and to keep on writing. Love, anger and every and all emotions of the spectrum. That’s life … freedom. We live in an age and a time when we can share our ideas and thoughts. In some countries? This writer would have been locked up for his views.
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Fair enough. Though I wonder if it’s still true that in America you can really write about whatever you want. I’m reading The Gulag Archipelago at the moment–very frightening stuff. These days we can share more and more people can watch what we’re sharing.
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