"The future of America does not lie with the well-adjusted."

And with these words Bill Holm cops this year's McKnight Foundation Distinguished Artist grant, a $50,000 cash award given to individuals "who had opportunities to pursue their work elsewhere but chose to stay in Minnesota and contribute to the state's cultural life." Holm is, "a protean American radical in the tradition of Thoreau and Whitman," according to Emilie Buchwald, a fellow McKnight Distinguished Artist winner, and not coincidentally, Holm's publisher.

In Holm's most recent book, The Windows of Brimnes, we catch a glimpse of the world through the prism of his genius:

"We are a crazy country. The scariest idea we have is of success, prosperity, and victory. Nobody wins wars. We have to finally get over that idea. Who gives a s--- who wins a high school football game? I am not a competitive person, maybe because I was an only child, so I never had to fight for the second pork chop. I think it's bad manners to compete. Hillary Clinton's greatest vulgarity is her competitive spirit.

"We are so anxious to be prosperous, we can't see the effect on nature and on us..."

There's more, and we'll continue the discussion this evening, but right now some of us have to go work for a living. You'll find the entire article at this link: From 'Failure' to '08 Distinguished Artist"

Later,
~brb