Down by the Old Bloodstream [antikvár]

INTRODUCTIONI think it's about time someone said a few words on behalf of premeditated murder. Unfortunately, it is being lumped in with violence these days. And violence is getting such a bad name that even the politicians feel safe in attacking it.So many brickbats, for instance, are being hurled at violence on television. Rarely does anyone defend it. And those who do, such as window repairmen, always seem to have some special reason for wanting to see it flourish. As a consequence, it is very likely that violence will eventually disappear from the scene altogether. And what will we do then for a means of releasing our hostilities?What to do with hostility, however, is a problem for the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. Let the Secretary worry about it My concern is that in this witch-hunting atmosphere premeditated murder will get classified as a form of violence along with war, free speech on the campus, and professional football. And that if the nation ever panics and bars all violence, premeditated murder will get the axe right along with the others. That, some of us recall, is how goldfish swallowing was lost to societyby a cruel quirk of fate.In what may prove to be a last-ditch stand in defense of premeditated mayhem, I think it should be made clear that it is, in fact, a fine art. A great deal of thought goes into it. Premeditation and violence are,