Bloomfield store shares unique texts

According to Douglas Adams, “The Encyclopedia Galactica” describes the marketing division… According to Douglas Adams, “The Encyclopedia Galactica” describes the marketing division Sirius Cybernetics Corporation as “a bunch of mindless jerks who were the first against the wall when the revolution came.” I found a bookstore that stocks the same kind of material I’m sure those galactic revolutionaries were reading before their tender reform of the pan-galactic marketing industry.

The Big Idea Infoshop in Bloomfield is small. It’s staffed by volunteers. Its Web site, www.thebigideapgh.org, doesn’t offer a Big Idea Visa card. Hard as I looked I couldn’t find a magazine that would tell me what’s going on with Tom and Katie, and the place didn’t even have the decency to post a menu with $4.85-plus-tax milkshakes neighbored by a panhandling “Tips” cup.

The first proof that I wasn’t in a regular bookstore was the labeling. Where the more typical stores divide their product into history, romance, self-help and travel, Big Idea has whole sections on Noam Chomsky and Howard Zinn. The first floor is full of books on gender identity, class history and, of course, anarchy.

The second floor has a round table with a few chairs. There’s a shelf with all kinds of zines for sale. The quality ranges from slightly glorified pamphlets to solid publications. I read some anarchist’s manifesto written from an insurrectionist viewpoint. Another zine detailed the steps required to produce soap at home or make diesel fuel from renewable resources.

Another shelf is dedicated to local publications. These too range from the thrown-together to the masterful in terms of layout quality. The quality and type of material was equally varied. Big Idea provides local poets, local punks, local radicals and cartoonists who have managed to self-publish with some shelf space.

The volunteer working that shift was more than happy to talk with me. He explained his views on anarchy. He took my criticisms in stride, and put some of them into a meaningful perspective. When I went into my “the masses are hopelessly dull and weighed down by consumerism” rant, he countered. He argued that the popularity of intelligent and subversive shows like “Family Guy” and “The Daily Show” is a hopeful sign.

I thought about that for a while even after I left. I realized that there are other intelligent shows on the air. A friend just got me to watch the brilliantly sarcastic “House.” The main character is one of the most delightfully misanthropic inventions ever to come from a human mind. “Arrested Development” manages to jam every episode full of jokes that are made hilarious by knowledge of previous episodes, yet still command laughter outside of the larger context. And, it looks like Aaron Sorkin’s got a new show coming out.

I found it all rather comforting. The massive corporations are making well-written shows aimed at smart people. While that’s not the same as a cultural revolution spreading to the political and eventually completely redistributing the nation’s wealth, it’s something to hold onto. It’s a seed.

My conversation in The Big Idea Infoshop switched my view on the current state of TV programming from picturing soulless executives trying stomp intelligence from the airwaves to recognizing a few great shows pushing through like weeds in the garden of corporate monotony.

If you’re ready to read up on anarchy, need a place to sell your own poetry or are just looking to have a conversation with a bookseller that’s not interrupted by intercom requests for “backup to cash desk,” The Big Idea Infoshop is worth a look.

E-mail Zak Sharif at rzs8@pitt.edu to let him know your favorite anarchist text and your most hated TV show.