A rather long but very relevent passage from the man who never fails to make me smile

Couples Everywhere
We sometimes behave as though people can't express themselves. In fact, though, theyr're always expressing themselves. The sorriest couples are the ones in which the woman can't be preoccupied or tired without the man saying, "What's wrong? Say something," or the man, without the woman saying... and so on. Radio and television have spread this spirit everywhere, and we're riddled with pointless talk, insane amounts off words and images. Stupidity is never blind or mute. So the problem is no longer getting people to express themselves, but providing little gaps of solitude and silence in which they might eventually find something to say. Repressive forces don't stop people from expressing themselves, but rather, force them to express themselves. What a relief to have nothing to say, the right to say nothing, because only then is there a chance of framing the rare, or even the rarer, the thing that might be worth saying.

Deleuze - Mediators

Ah yes, the pleasure of not speaking. I only discovered the pleasure of silence around this time last year when I was sat in the garden of a friend of mine. My friend, who is an absolute Heideggerian told me that I talk a lot and that I should try silence for a change. So I did. This practise was particularly useful while I was in Prague as I had no one to talk to for about 4 weeks so I would go to restraunts and listen to other people's conversations, recording them in my notebook.

Anyway, point being that I don't talk so much anymore, but I don't particularly like listening very much either because people talk a load of shit. Not everyone, but some people, so when I they talk I switch off and focus on something interesting on their shoulder.

My silence though, might not be so attributed to deciding to be silent than to philosophy. I find myself wanting to say something but then realising that I don't have the correct audience. Recent example: At a friend's house watching Big Brother (I'm sure everyone has seen it, its more entertaining this year than others). After watching a certain female 'political activist' I found myself wanting to say "She is definately not a non-conformist, she is -totally- conforming to a molar identity." I bit my tongue though, realising that no one would want to hear my pseudo-intellectual thoughts.

Anyway, I'm procrastinating again.

Hurray for Silence! Hurray for Deleuze! And Hurray for perpetuating pointless statements by putting them on the internet for all to read! HURRAY! HURRAY!

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