McGoo & Dickinson vs Humanity

[Daswer@aol.com]

McGoo wrote (or actually announced):
>I will now present you all with an example of what I think is masterful use
>of language:

Do us the favor, please! 

>"In Winter in my Room
I came upon a Worm-
>Pink, lank and warm-
But as he was a worm
>And worms presume
Not quite with him at home-
>Secured him by a string
To something neighboring
>And went along.

There's three more breathtaking verses which I'll refrain from reprinting here
so that you can discover the wonderful world of Emily Dickinson on your own
time (as opposed to mine).  We'll just cut to McGoo's anotations.

>OK, all you scholars out there, this poem has got it all.  There are six
>different types of rhymes.  Symbolism, metaphores and imagery.

So f%@3ing what!!!  "My poem's got more things than your poem's got!!  Nyah
nyah nyah nyah NYAH NYAHH!!"  

The last time I saw a poem dismantled into the sum of its parts in such an
empirical fashion was in the film "Dead Poet's Society" where the boneheaded
Head Master started making a graph to quantify what constitutes a good poem.  

McGoo, if you claim to like Townshend and The Who then why do you persist in
this impossible comparison between a 19th Century poet and a 20th Century
songwriter and performer?  Isn't there a class of undergrads somewhere whom
you can browbeat with this angels-on-a-pinhead pedantry?  If I wanted to read
constant criticism of Pete Townshend and The Who I would have signed on to
"The Emily Dickinson Is God" Mailing List where, I can only presume, Townshend
bashing is the daily mantra.  Bottom line, if you don't have anything nice to
say, why are you here?  Do you sign on to the mailing lists of every rock and
roll group to preach the Gospel According Emily or do you limit your artistic
pontifications to The British Invasion?  I don't get it?  

As to singing Emily Dickinson poems to "The Yellow Rose of Texas" or Who songs
to "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star", I personally think all of the hundreds of
Dickinson vs Townshend posts (mine included) should be sung to a permanent
tape loop of "In Agadda Davita" until Emily Dickinson rises out of her grave
to give iambic pentameter tips to Keith Richards.

McGoo, you say Dickinson was an Artist and Townshend was not.
I say Townshend was an Artist and I don't care if Socrates himself bestowed
your Ph. D. on you, it doesn't give your opinion an ounce more validity than
mine.  
"I think Pete Townshend was an artist, therefore he is!"

"People try to put us down, 
Just because we get around.
Things they do look awful cold"
Hope this dies before I get old!
--Pete and me.
-Leo