All variables are independent. Auteur: Thomas Pynchon Copy Quote More from Thomas Pynchon “He’s wasted gallons of paint thinner striking his faithful Zippo, its charred w…” “That's what Jesus meant," whispers the ghost of Slothrop's first American ances…” “You remember those twin statues of the Buddha that I told you about? Carved out…” “They plot, they plot, sleeping or afoot they never let up.”