Jim Goad's legendary first foray into the dark underbelly of civilisation, ANSWER Me!, may be the best part of two decades old now, but even today to read it is akin to being punched in the face. Since then he's remained unafraid to tackle controversial and downright unpleasant questions, but always with a sense of devilish glee. Called a racist by the left and a race traitor by the right, condemned as a misogynist, jailed for (among other things) attempted kidnapping, and accused of being the catalyst for a double-suicide, he exists in a realm most writers of self-consciously "transgressive" literature wouldn’t dare to even enter. Or that's the impression one gets, anyway.
The Redneck Manifesto proved he wasn't just some angsty nihilist with a grudge- a breakdown of America's class system, it was angry, insightful, controversial and in parts very, very funny. An autobiography, Shit Magnet, followed, along with a comic, Trucker Fags In Denial, which was, well, indescribable if you haven't read it. All seemed to pick at America's (and by extension, the world's) scabs, but from different directions (his latest, the Big Book Of Sex, I have to confess to not having read yet). A hard man to pin down, with some, let's say “robust” opinions.
So imagine how apprehensive I, a middle-class liberal, was at the prospect of interviewing the man. What would he be like? Is he really the monster he's often painted as, or is he more like the affable host of his online NetJerk Lounge? To use internet parlance, is he just trolling, but in real life?
So, somewhere between starstruck (I've been something of a fan since AK Press put out, well, SOME of ANSWER! Me in the UK) I called the guy to find out, and was pleasantly surprised to find a genial, softly-spoken, wryly humorous chap. While we may not have seen eye-to-eye on several things (which is essentially the reason I read his stuff- people who you agree with on everything can get boring!), I certainly enjoyed the conversation (which is essentially a poncey way of saying “the views expressed in the article do not necessarily reflect etc etc”).
BCR: First of all, thanks for talking to us, it's much appreciated... I see on your website that you're soon to be a father.
JIM GOAD: Yeah, sometime over the summer, yeah.
BCR: So yeah, congratulations on that- is this changing your attitude to things, or...?
JIM GOAD: Not really; I'm a little despondent about the world this thing will be introduced into, but I'll do my best. I'm obviously an egomaniac, and I think that I have better genes than most of the people who are reproducing...
BCR: That's a good way of looking at it, I guess.
JIM GOAD: I actually place some amount of faith in genetics, in eugenics, which is not really tolerated... I actually believe that genes have some influence on a child's intelligence and disposition.
BCR: So you're pretty optimistic for the prospects for your kid, then?
JIM GOAD: I think yeah, not the world that's gonna surround it, but the child. It'll have pale skin and blue eyes, and a better than average chance of a higher IQ.
BCR: As I say, congratulations. So, I was looking at some dates, and I didn't realise ANSWER Me! Was seventeen years ago
JIM GOAD: A loooong time ago!
BCR: I remember reading the reprints when they first came out over here- doesn't seem that long ago!
JIM GOAD: I know! The first one came out Halloween 91, and then we had one a year until 94, and that was it...
BCR: So how do you think you've changed as a person since? How does the Jim Goad of today differ from the Jim Goad of ANSWER Me!?
JIM GOAD: (laughs) I think I'm a little smarter and don't let stupid people impinge upon my emotional state so much, but I'm not really any more hopeful about the state of the world, or the redeemability of mankind, or the way things are going at all, but I've learned not to torture myself over it. You know, ANSWER Me! Was done when I was extremely unhappy, and I've learned to be a little happier, just because I think I deserve it. Why should I suffer for the world's stupidity? That doesn't really seem like a good bargain for anyone. Is the world a better place? I don't know what the situation is anywhere else- the US, I think, has dropped further down the toilet, with popular culture...
BCR: That's certainly the impression we get from this side of the pond, I have to say...
JIM GOAD: Yeah! Well, I just think values- values is maybe not the best word... stupidity just seems to be everyone's goal. I'm not sure what the situation is- how are the smart kids treated in school in England? Here he's a nerd and he gets beat up!
BCR: 20 years since I went to school, but I think that's pretty much what it was like.
JIM GOAD: Is it?
