Chapter 32

Page 347

The Macarena
Pynchon brought it back up; let's see it. 15 million views can't be wrong.

There must be 5 million Pynchon fans because it is up to 20 million views

Riot Grrrl
WIKI lets us know this is an "underground feminist punk rock movement...associated with third wave feminism." The BBC aired a radio show on it recently. Rebel Girl by Bikini Kill.

charcoal briquettes pretending to be coffee
Dig on Starbuck's?

Page 348

all the breathing apparatus and stormtrooper gear...

A reference to the Star Wars movies and the Stormtroopers of the Galactic Empire, elite shock troops fanatically loyal to the Empire and impossible to sway from the Imperial cause. They wear imposing white armor, which offers a wide range of survival equipment and temperature controls to allow the soldiers to survive in almost any environment. [1]

..... Because in the computer world Microsoft is known as the Evil Empire

One or two shots you maybe could've used a spirit level...
A spirit level or bubble level is an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal (level) or vertical (plumb). Different types of spirit levels may be used by carpenters, stonemasons, bricklayers, other building trades workers, surveyors, millwrights and other metalworkers, and in some photographic or videographic work. [2]

Someday there'll be a Napster for videos
Oh yes, and perhaps they'll call it YouTube, created in February 2005 and acquired by Google in late 2006. And, yes indeed, it's doing very well in the money-generation department... Wikipedia

Page 349

Streetlight People
Cf. p. 61.

Page 350

gefilte fish
Gefilte fish is an Ashkenazi Jewish dish made from a poached mixture of ground boned fish, such as carp, whitefish or pike, which is typically eaten as an appetizer. Although the dish historically consisted of a minced-fish forcemeat stuffed inside the fish skin, as its name implies, since the 19th century the skin has commonly been omitted and the seasoned fish is formed into patties similar to quenelles or fish balls. They are popular on Shabbat and Holidays such as Passover, although they may be consumed throughout the year. From WIKI.

shtetl
A shtetl was a small town with a large Jewish population in Central and Eastern Europe before the pogroms and the Holocaust, mainly found in the areas which constituted the 19th century Pale of Settlement in the Russian Empire, the Congress Kingdom of Poland, Galicia and Romania. A larger city, like Lemberg or Czernowitz, was called a shtot; a smaller village was called a dorf. From WIKI.

Page 351

as Martha and the Vandellas might say
The song "Dancing in the Street" (1964) by Martha and the Vandellas mentions several cities, including "Baltimore and DC now."

Idiots have expenses ... the pointed hats

These "pointy hats" would be dunce caps, a type of classroom punishment by humiliation where an underperforming or misbehaving student would be forced to wear the cap in front of the other students. This punishment is no longer practiced, or at least rarely. Very unPC.

Page 352

Friedmanite hit man
A reference to Milton Friedman (1912-2006), a conservative economist who was an economic adviser to Republican U.S. President Ronald Reagan. His political philosophy extolled the virtues of a free market economic system with minimal intervention. Wikipedia

More specifically, a reference to Naomi Klein's book, The Shock Doctrine, which posits that followers of Friedman and the Chicago school of economics have been using destabilization to introduce ultra free-market capitalism around the globe. Wikipedia

Chapter 1 pp. 1-7	Chapter 2 pp. 8-19	Chapter 3 pp. 20-29	Chapter 4 pp. 30-40	Chapter 5 pp. 41-52
Chapter 6 pp. 53-67	Chapter 7 pp. 68-79	Chapter 8 pp. 80-86	Chapter 9 pp. 87-95	Chapter 10 pp. 96-111
Chapter 11 pp. 112-120	Chapter 12 pp. 121-133	Chapter 13 pp. 134-144	Chapter 14 pp. 145-159	Chapter 15 pp. 160-171
Chapter 16 pp. 172-184	Chapter 17 pp. 185-197	Chapter 18 pp. 198-210	Chapter 19 pp. 211-218	Chapter 20 pp. 219-229
Chapter 21 pp. 230-238	Chapter 22 pp. 239-246	Chapter 23 pp. 247-255	Chapter 24 pp. 256-264	Chapter 25 pp. 265-273
Chapter 26 pp. 274-287	Chapter 27 pp. 288-300	Chapter 28 pp. 301-313	Chapter 29 pp. 314-326	Chapter 30 pp. 327-337
Chapter 31 pp. 338-346	Chapter 32 pp. 347-353	Chapter 33 pp. 354-364	Chapter 34 pp. 365-382	Chapter 35 pp. 383-394
Chapter 36 pp. 395-407	Chapter 37 pp. 408-422	Chapter 38 pp. 423-438	Chapter 39 pp. 439-447	Chapter 40 pp. 448-462
		Chapter 41 pp. 463-477