Tough Guy Book Club began in the suburbs of Melbourne, Australia in 2012 and has since spread across the globe. Our expansion into the United States started slowly. It was a dear friend now departed – vale Dane – who made our first landing, with an outpost of weirdness in the Pacific Northwest in Portland, Oregon. Now you can find a chapter of TGBC in 11 states. From major cities like Los Angeles and New York to small towns like Greenville, South Carolina and Lisle, Illinois. But at last, our plan has come to fruition. Victory is at hand. Our goons begin their march on the US Capital.
Yeah, this won’t be controversial at all. Welcome to Tough Guy Book Club, Washington DC.
So how do you start a relaxed, friendly, non-partisan book club in the home of the US Federal Government – which the news constantly tells us is the most controversial, most contentious, most deeply polarised on earth?
“Hasn’t been an issue,” says Matt Moore, president of the DC chapter, “Rule #1 is a useful barrier to discussing politics for those in the thick of it.”
What’s Rule #1? We don’t talk about work. If you lived in a company mining town in the Australian outback, we wouldn’t let you talk about iron ore. If you live in Washington DC, we don’t give a shit whether you’re red or blue.
People are more than their jobs, and DC is more than the ‘Swamp’ you hear about from pundits and politicians. There are museums, theatres and concerts for culture. Camping, hiking and kayaking are all within a short drive. Matt, in the most controversial take we’ll allow for an American, likes professional rugby. DC is a global city that brings in diverse goons from many different cultures and backgrounds. Their inaugural meeting was to discuss lawless post-colonial psychopathy in Alex Garland’s violent thriller, The Beach. How did that go?
“Great!” says Matt, “Both of us had read [The Beach] in depth and had a wonderful conversation… TGBC attracts goons who want to meet in person, who want to dive into challenging topics, and can have a good chat while following rules 1 and 2.”
Rule #2 is: Don’t be a fuckhead!
And hey, suppose it happens. Suppose you get that dude who insists on hot takes, prides himself on being a contrarian, who ‘just wants to ask questions’ and ‘doesn’t think you should be so easily offended’. How do you find common ground with someone with whom you are politically, ideologically, or just plain fucking socially opposed? I know a guy we could ask.
“Curiosity is a superpower,” says Matt, “Once you express genuine interest in another person’s perspective, once you show that you understand how they arrived at their opinion, you find that you have more in common than either of you thought. The goal is not to change their mind but to build respect.”
We reckon that is a good take, Matt, glad to have you in charge of our Washington DC chapter. Come on down to Tough Guy Book Club Washington DC on the first Wednesday of the month at 7pm and you can meet him.
We’re not here to fix everything. But we can all meet at a table, share a beer and have a sensible, meaningful conversation about what’s broken – either in a book or the world at large. Sometimes, that’s the first step.
By Sam Barclay
