Ishtar Rising

After all, one should begin with a healthy appreciation of where the pleasure comes from--by design, it should be the breast. As a baby, one seeks it out as food source, as an adolescent, it signifies the change--in woman, the budding of breasts indicates ripening, in the male, noticing of breasts indicates a degree of sexual interest--breasts are, to play with Foucault's terminology, a signifier of signifiers. As a feminist, I should shudder at any thought leaning towards "Biology is destiny"--and yet, the breast argument wins me over, as I have two, and they have influenced my existence greatly. Insofar as they are responded to, and insofar as they, in fact, respond to the world around them, I must admit to their importance. Breasts are not, as some may have it, passive. Mine, in fact, are devilishly clever. At times, I let them enter a room before me, to act as a distraction. Wilson is on target in suggesting that breasts are important, and even more so in suggesting that the women who may be attached to them are important as well. In so far as we are mammals, we should offer thanks for the mammaries. Anything that provides food *and* entertainment for so many is certainly worth a book. And a look. Breasts should be a source of comfort--and yet, so many are uncomfortable with them--read this, and try to dig why. And maybe get a better picture of the maidens in Maidenforms while doing so.

Robert Anton Wilson, as usual, tests the reader's view of reality. I can't count the number of times I said, "Oi..." or "Please..." or "Give me a break!" while reading this book. But then, as is usual when I read RAW's books, I find myself thinking, "Jeeze, what if he has a point?" As a feminist, I was offended. As a Discordian philosopher, I was stimulated. It would appear that Mr. Wilson has somehow managed to trace every advance & atrocity committed in human history to the attitude toward the human breast current at that time. Lunacy? Perhaps not! His case is certainly clear and concise, if inane... I recommend this book highly, however, I must warn the reader to look twice, if not more times, at what he has written. There is a message here we might be well advised to look at...