Simple Grifts

His motto: "Today's headlines are ripped from the pages of my novels!" Growing up, Max Cossack nursed a burning desire to live his life out as an old-time mountain man, but all the best mountains were already overbuilt with condos. Instead, Max has worked in factories, steel yards, music and gunsmithing. When he gets tired of one job--which happens a lot--he just moves on to the next. Recently he met a guy who writes novels for a living. It didn't take Max long to notice the guy works only four hours a day, makes decent money, and spends the rest of his time doing whatever he wants. That seemed nice, so Max decided he should write novels himself, figuring he could just make up stuff during the four hours he writes. Then to make good use of his leisure, he could draw on his vast experience as a layabout and ne'er-do-well. Max now spends part of his new free time thinking up stories about things he loves and plotting against big institutions he despises. For example, he loves America, good music regardless of style, and good food in large quantities. Also small smart-aleck women and big loud-mouthed men. He despises big institutions that push people around, whether the institutions are governments or private corporations or some especially obnoxious combination of both. (You know who they are.) Max also loathes the politicians and media hacks who lie on behalf of these bullies and adores those among us who push back. Since lying by omission is often the bullies' go-to form of dishonesty, Max especially likes to write into his novels the realities the liars purposely ignore. Max doesn't delude himself into believing his novels will make a huge difference, but any nudge in the right direction is worth the effort. That's why he writes about people who get fed up and fight back. Even if some of these wonderful people are only figments of Max's imagination, all of us--even Max himself--can learn from their example.