We will pause for a moment to contemplate the dark opinion American musicians circa 1969 entertained about humankind in general and their fans in particular.
The aim of his book, developed from articles written for Rolling Stone, is to force his readers to stop and consider the consequences of McDonald's and its ilk having become inescapable features of the American (and, increasingly, global) landscape -- to contemplate "the dark side of the all-American meal".
Many of his songs contemplated the darkest, most violent human impulses with realism and remorse, and in them the struggle against sin was never an easy one.
To spend 10½ hours a day picking items off the shelves is to contemplate the darkest recesses of our consumerist desires, the wilder reaches of stuff, the things that money can buy: a One Direction charm bracelet, a dog onesie, a cat scratching post designed to look like a DJ's record deck, a banana slicer, a fake twig.
Adapted from three short stories by Dany Laferrière and set in the late 1970's, when Haiti was ruled by Jean-Claude Duvalier (nicknamed Baby Doc) and a cadre of thugs, this politically pointed film contemplates the darker social undercurrents beneath a seemingly benign example of sexual tourism.
Perhaps we should make a list: If you live in places like New York or California or Texas, feel free to spend some time in a dark corner, contemplating the way you're taken for granted.
At night, contemplating the vast constellations, I catch my breath to behold a blood-red and gold crescent moon rising on its back from the dark ocean.
The Dark Light by Julia Bell (Macmillan £6.99) sees another unlikely pair contemplating the end of the world, but there is no comic relief in this intense, punchy thriller with a bleak heart.
Simply rest in a comfortable chair: keep your area dark or rely on street lights, and sit, contemplating the thoughts that are keeping you awake.
