At 08:11 PM 1/3/97 -0500, MR CHRISTOPHER J MCPECK wrote:
>Because Malkavian was the first Malkavian vampire does that mean that 
>I can blame him for the curse of Malkav?

   Malkav was the first Malkavian.  MALKAV.  Not Malkavian.  Okey?  Write
that down, young man, because it will be on the test.

   Now, as for the curse of Malkav, there is some debate about that.  You
see, the whole question lies in the word "curse".  Many Malkavians, of whom
Erehwon is one, do not seem to think of insanity as a curse at all.  Rather,
they view it as a valid alternative to normal, "sane" thinking.  Some even
see it as a more advanced or enlightened state of being.  Or, as the Tick
said: "Isn't sanity just a one-trick pony, anyway?  I mean, all you get is
that one trick: rational thought.  But when you're good and crazy, man, the
sky's the limit!"

   Mind you, that isn't the only viewpoint available.  Amaya, for example,
would be quick to point out the detrimental effects of insanity (of which
there are many).  Indeed, I'm inclined to side with her on this one,
sometimes.  I mean, alternative realities notwithstanding, having an
inability to handle napkins is something of a handicap.  Being unable to do
anything because you're too busy tearing your face off is quite a bit of a
handicap.  And having the uncontrollable urge to kill everything that
moves...well, let's just say that I doubt someone with that derangement
would get any sympathy.

   Then, of course, there is the third view, the one I espouse.  I say that
the whole bit about the "Curse of Malkav" derives not from the curse part,
but from the whole concept of insanity.  I don't think insanity is what
Malkav was trying for.  Nor do I feel that it is what we've inherited.  No,
I think the Malkavian legacy is dynamism.  Chaos.  Flux.  The Wyld, in the
terms the Garou use.  Often, this manifests itself in derangements, which
are our minds' attempts to maintain stability and stasis (the "Weaver" of
the Garou mythos) in the face of incredible dynamic forces.  And, of course,
our darker nature (the "Wyrm" forces) attempts to pervert the dynamic force
into entropic energy.  

   I feel that this last view accounts for what we Malkavians truly are.  We
are what the Ravnos dream of being: pure chaos embodied in vampiric form.
While the Ravnos try to be tricksters, we simply prank away and manage to
unravel structures everywhere we go.  Those who acknowledge this tend to
lose their derangements, or else have them simply not matter anymore.  They
become, not insane, but dynamic forces of change.

   They also tend to hate long rants like this.  Too serious.

Random A