July 16, 2004

Thomas Edison Films the Electrocution of an Elephant. (a poem)
posted by Jerry Garcia 20 years ago
  • A longish poem, a dismal subject, the poet's outrage palpable.
  • The death of Topsy appears nigh-yearly on MeFi. Time for us to start pulling our weight over here.
  • This must have been part of Edison's cynical campaign against alternating current, which also played a major part in giving the world (or rather, the USA) the grim and inefficient electric chair.
  • The video of it. You may want to look at this after you watch.
  • Wow. That evil elephant, it killed a guy who tried to force-feed it a lit cigarette. This proves my theory that people are wonderful and elephants are bastards.
  • Laurie Anderson does a great piece about the elephant, but I can't remember which album it came out on.
  • i hate you all. of course not, but things like this get me in that mood
  • Let's go back in time and beat the fuck out of Edison.
  • *gathers angry mob of pete_bests, rallies around Nostril*
  • [gives banana to mean uncle Nostril and each of TMFKAp_b*] *=The Mob Formerly Known As pete_best
  • Is good to know that cyanide was tried first unsuccessfully and Edison suggested electrocution as the most humane way to dispose of the elephant. Of course they didn't know for sure how painful an electrocution can be. But it was that or hanguing it(!?). Felling outrage at it is like felling outrage at the fall of Troya.
  • Troy, I mean Troy. Damn spanglish!
  • Let's go back in time and beat the fuck out of Edison. That would likely make our time machine cease to exist.
  • it's a conundrum wrapped in a dilemma!