Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Keith interviews Keith about Rod Dreher, his Benedict Option and much more

I found the standard just set by journalist Rod Dreher in interviewing himself about his Benedict Option to be a handy and highly efficient way to get directly to the heart of things while keeping the distractions of inappropriate questions to an absolute minimum.

Keith: A few disaffected voices claim you're critical of Rod Dreher and his Benedict Option, although most people would argue you're more than fair when it comes to those subjects. What say you?

Keith: Oh, I quite agree.

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Keith: What about his self-interviewing technique, the one we're currently employing ourselves?

Keith: It's pretty obvious, isn't it? It's absolutely critical for successfully resolving the Benedict Option, particularly in the post-cognitive culture we find ourselves in today.

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Keith: So, can you tell us what Rod Dreher's Benedict Option is?

Keith: No, I'm afraid not, but that's because it's Rod Dreher's Benedict Option, not Keith's Benedict Option, and, like Rod himself says, "there is no formula!". So we're simply going to have to pass Rod Dreher's Benedict Option to find out what's in it. For better or worse, though, you will be assuming the consequences of testing out Rod's blogging ideas on yourself and your children and letting others know whether they're better or worse than what you're doing now, not I.

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Keith: Wait a minute: I am you, so neither of us will be testing anything.

Keith: I'm embarrassed to admit it, but I believe you've checkmated me on that one. Let's just agree to disagree and move on to the next question, shall we?

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Keith: Very well, now that we've exhausted all possible questions concerning your treatment of Rod Dreher and his Benedict Option, if you were a tree, what kind would you be?

Keith: Man, you're ruthless! Okay. Let me think. Offhand, I'd say an oak, because that was the original answer to the original what-kind-of-tree-are-you interview question, plus oaks are majestic and strong, so it's just plain cool to say "oak", but you know? There's nothing quite like a lonesome pine soaring into the evening sky, silhouetted against the setting sun.

3 comments:

  1. Wow. Interlocked interlocutors make my head hurt almost as much as time travel.

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    1. Off-topic, but one of my favorite responses to "we'll have to agree to disagree" was directed at me once when I used it by a friend of mine who I'd have to describe as an old, Jewish curmudgeon: "How about we DISAGREE to disagree?

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    2. The naughty term for it is "autorhetorical"...I can say that here, right?

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