May 16, 2005:

In mockery and amused contempt: "It doesn't have a balance control!"

Tall, pleased with himself, chuckling maliciously as he looks from face to face. His own weird triumph.

I liked it, personally. It was a massive upgrade from our tinny little Sears portable, with shoebox speakers separable by two or three feet.

I still have it. I use it at work, sometimes. Software products used by millions have been engineered to the sound of that old unit.

What is the origin of that spirit of destruction?