We, the people

The latest Locus reports that Salman Rushdie has joined a group of writers in putting his name to a statement against fundamentalist Islam. It says, inter alia: "We, writers, journalists, intellectuals, call for resistance to religious totalitarianism ..."

Well yes, fair enough, a worthy cause. But I wish it had been phrased differently.

"We, writers ..." Well, yes, he is undoubtedly a writer - even the Ayatollah would have granted him that. "... journalists ..." And he's done that too. "... intellectuals ..."

Now, hold on a minute. I'll gladly admit that Mr Rushdie has an intellect that puts me down amongst the termites by comparison, but writer and journalist are jobs. They are something you work hard at, you produce something, you create something where previously there was nothing, and in exchange you get paid your daily crust. But intellectual ... that's an opinion, and a pretty self-inflated one at that.

"So what do you do?" / "I'm a writer" / "Oh, how interesting." It's a perfectly fair exchange that reflects nothing on either party. But, imagine the answer was "I'm an intellectual." It's just one syllable longer than saying, "me clever, you thick."

Of course, you might still answer "Oh, how interesting," but your thought processes will be more "must control urge to make loose circle of thumb and fingers and move wrist back and forth."