The [a]esthetics of authoritarianism
Photographers be forewarned: that which is a pulchritude to you may be an eyesore to an officer, and it may be wise to keep this in mind when pointing your camera at that next rare spectacle. California law enforcement officers are now enforcers of aesthetics too, and have been delegated the authority to detain photographers based on the officer’s subjective evaluations of the photographer’s taste. See: Activist Post
If you really want to blow a cop’s mind, throw the word ascetic at them, and watch them hit overload while their puny minds try to breach the subject of control, doughy confections and incarcerations, and the concept of selflessness eats away real-time at their penal-gland. Hell, you could even do it to an educated officer…
Officer: “Sir, put down the camera, and put your
metacarpals upon your cranium immediately!”
Tourist: “WTF? Are you nuts? You mean this one?”
Officer: “Sir, you may exercise your rights of Digitus Impudicus as you wish, but what you may not do is photograph anything of ascetic value.”
Tourist: “But,….it’s just the Virgin Mary,..and this is a public place! Or, did you mean ascetic, aesthetic maybe?”
Officer: “The latter Sir, my error; You may not photograph anything of aesthetic value.” Begins to think: *Wait a minute… Was it with, or without [a]esthetic value???* “Damn!”
Tourist, observing introspection and the difficulties implied: “Officer, have you ever considered the subjective value of aesthetics? I mean, who really can say what has aesthetic value or not? I mean, a pulchritude to you may be an eye-sore to someone with proper taste…It’s like how can anyone imagine steak tartare if they’ve only ever had McDonalds?”
Officer: Begins to shake. “ouurrghh..oooohhh,,,rfghhh,..BrrrRAHHAAAA!!” The officer is later transported to hospital, where his final days are spent on Thorazine as his authoritarian-atrophied mind futilely loops the endless torment of contemplation.
* We have pineal-glands – Cops have penal-glands.
