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Copyright 2006 John Zipperer. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do you have a frequently asked questions section when, in fact, you don't get any questions? 
Because I wanted to help people. You know, be a light unto darkness. Geez, you're pretty rude, for a guest and all.

Why "Weimar"? Wasn't that a failed democracy? 
Weimar was the ill-fated attempt to have a German democracy after the fall of the government of Emperor Wilhelm II. The Weimar Republic was undercut every step of the way for its short life by the remnants of the aristocratic order, which teamed up with Communists and the far-right fascists to continually attack and eventually destroy the republic, which of course, was completed by Adolf Hitler and his group of criminals.

The reason I like Weimar then as a symbol is exactly because of its failure; it is a reminder of the necessity to uphold democratic institutions and oppose those who would undercut it. It's also a reminder that many in the middle class and intelligentsia refused support to the system because they were turned off by the bickering and fighting between the parties. (Leaving aside the even more-troubling aspect that much of the intelligentsia, at least in universities, were often ardently pro-aristocracy.) True, such fighting was more severe in the Weimar Republic than in many other republics, but parties will squabble and do stupid things and bring down administrations and make dumb promises, but far better that than the alternative that promises to do away with all of that awful public noise; the corruption is still there (usually worse, because it can't be exposed easily) but people can live in their little imaginary worlds and think that all is right with their country because they don't have to listen to politicians. And they usually end up getting robbed blind.

Where does the writing on your site come from? Isn't it copyrighted by others?
Many of the articles in the SF section came from a weekly column I wrote for my friend Aaron Barnhart's daily TV news site, TVBarn. It's copyrighted by me anyway, and he's more than happy to have me publish it on the Web on my site.

The articles on Internet business are from the print magazine and Web site of Internet World magazine, where I held several editorial positions and wrote a ton for the magazine and its newsletters. Though copyrighted by Internet World, the articles are reprinted here with the kind permission of the magazine's editor-in-chief, for which I am grateful.

I don't have any more questions. May I go now?
Yes, you may.

Should Jeffrey have won the third season of Project Runway?
No, no he shouldn't have. It shoulda been Uli or Laura, but what do I know?

I didn't say these were frequently asked questions of me.