Jonah Goldberg has (I know, typical for him and me and other racists) a racist column today.
The leftists’ lament: “Oh, epithet, where is thy former sting?”
Category Archives: Popular Culture
Heinlein, Fascist
The LA Times interviews some young idiots in fandom:
As the literary and academic worlds open to science-fiction and genre writing, Heinlein lacks the cachet of J.G. Ballard, Ursula LeGuin, Octavia Butler, Neal Stephenson, cyberpunk pioneer William Gibson and others. Films based on Dick’s books, good and bad, keep coming. But Heinlein’s film adaptations, in the last half century, since 1950’s “Destination Moon,” culminated in 1997’s “Starship Troopers,” widely disliked by his fan base.
Non-SF writer William Burroughs probably has more influence inside the genre’s literary wing than Heinlein, who won four Hugos (the award voted by the fans), sold millions of copies, and was termed the field’s most significant writer since H.G. Wells.
“His rabid fan base is graying,” said Annalee Newitz, who writes about science fiction for Wired and Gawker. “To literary readers, the books look cheesy, sexist in a hairy-chest, gold-chain kind of way. His stuff hasn’t stood the test of time,” because of characters’ windy speechifying and their frontier optimism.
“Here at the store I actively resist promoting him, because he was a fascist,” said Charles Hauther, the science fiction buyer at Skylight Books. “People don’t seem to talk about him anymore. I haven’t had a conversation about Heinlein in a long time.
And you’ve obviously never had an intelligent one.
I Did Not Know That
Shari Lewis co-wrote Star Trek episodes? Does Lileks know this?
I watched it last night before going to bed. I didn’t think it was particularly well written.
[Update a few minutes later]
Speak of the devil — he has a fresh review of the first episode of TNG.
It holds up, with some caveats. Still seems odd that Geordi had to wear that thing; surely they’d fixed blindness by then. Picard dismissing WW2 as those stupid days when humans fought over stupid things was an eye-roller, and reflects poorly on his historical knowledge. The limitations of Troi are on display from the get-go: SHE FEELS PAIN. GREAT PAIN. And later, she senses that the creatures are very, very happy. The graphics look cheap, and the bridge is lit wrong, but they’d figure that out. My main problem: it is ridiculous to attempt a saucer-separation at warp speed. Once the saucer exits the warp field it will have a catastrophic deacceleration, and don’t tell me the inertial dampeners can handle it. They’re designed to minimize fluctuations in normal-space speed and compensate for power rerouting when the shields are absorbing energy weapons. I mean please.
Didn’t Picard also have one of his many surrenders of the Enterprise right from the get go?
Well, he was French.
Fiction For Freedom
Congratulations to Sarah Hoyt, who has won this year’s Prometheus . Here’s the press release.
Here’s a list of previous winners. I’m struck by how few of them I’ve read. Perhaps I should rectify that.
Walking Into Mordor
A status update on the nation, and on Declaration Entertainment, now a year old.
Where’s The Outrage?
The supposed artist formerly known as Prince made a little news over the weekend, when he said that:
…blacks in the deep south forced to drink from separate fountains and ride in the back of the bus were “happy” to do so.
“It would have been fun being in Mississippi, to know there’s only one correct social order,” Prince told the British newspaper. “There was order. You ride in the back of the bus. There’s no choice. People were happy with that.”
The Guardian pointed out that perhaps not every black forced to drink from separate fountains was thrilled with the idea. The singer acknowledged: “There are people who are unhappy with everything. There’s a dark side to everything.”
Oh. Wait. He didn’t say that? You’re right. Here’s what actually happened.
…women forced to wear burqas in Islamic countries are “happy” to wear them.
“It’s fun being in Islamic countries, to know there’s only one religion,” Prince told the British newspaper. “There’s order. You wear a burqa. There’s no choice. People are happy with that.” (Burqa bans grow fashionable in Europe)
The Guardian pointed out that perhaps not every woman forced to wear a burqa is thrilled with the idea. The singer acknowledged: “There are people who are unhappy with everything. There’s a dark side to everything.”
And here I thought he said something outrageous. Never mind.
[Update a few minutes later]
The idiot political hack formerly known as Speaker of the House said something interesting over the weekend, too. Referring to the summer of 2008, she said:
“When the … unemployment rate is high, it’s hard for the incumbent to win,” Pelosi said in an interview with CNN Chief Political Correspondent Candy Crowley. “I remind you though, the Republians weren’t the incumbent. We were the incumbent.”
Well, that makes sense, right? I mean, after all, the Democrats had held the entire Congress for over a year and a half. Why blame George Bush?
What? She didn’t say that? She actually said…?:
“When the … unemployment rate is high, it’s hard for the incumbent to win,” Pelosi said in an interview with CNN Chief Political Correspondent Candy Crowley. “I remind you though, we’re not the incumbent. The Republicans are the incumbent.”
Well, that would be consistent with what she said in 2008, even though, of course, the Republicans only control the House, and they’ve only done it for six months or so.
What? She didn’t really say that in 2008? She campaigned as though the Republicans still controlled the government, and blamed everything on George Bush? That can’t be true. If that were the case, she’d be a rank hypocrite.
Oh.
The World’s Ugliest Animals
This is more of a Friday post, but what the hell.
[Via Debbie Witt, collector of odd links]
You Don’t Say
O. J. Simpson is going to confess to killing his wife?
I guess all that time he spent on the golf course looking for the real killer finally paid off.
The President Is No Churchill
In 1940, Churchill appeared before the House of Commons and described Britain’s goal in World War II: “I can answer in one word: victory; victory at all costs, victory despite all terror; victory, however long and hard the road may be; for without victory there is no survival.”
This hyperbolic rube was too unsophisticated to appreciate that the goal doesn’t apply to overseas contingency operations or kinetic military actions.
As I wrote last night, the president and the Democrats are like the French in The Simpsons, for whom “victory” isn’t in their vocabulary, unless it applies to their domestic enemies.
Michael Walsh wasn’t impressed, either.
[Update a couple minutes later]
Nor was John Tabin:
President Obama isn’t terribly concerned with winning wars.
In his speech last night, Obama talked about “our effort to wind down this war,” “responsibly end[ing] these wars,” and “tak[ing] comfort in knowing that the tide of war is receding.” He did not use the words “win” or “winning”; the word “victory” appeared only in a reference to the killing of Osama bin Laden.
To these people, wars are for “ending,” not “winning.” It was something that I and others noticed in the debates in 2008, but not enough others noticed. The funny thing is, I suspect that they even realize that we notice, but they just can’t bring themselves to use the word.
[Update a few minutes later]
Could the president’s political decision backfire on him?
It bears repeating that the deadline imposed by the president has nothing to do with military or strategic calculation. It has everything to do with an electoral calculation. President Obama wants those troops out two months before Americans go to the voting booth.
This may prove a disastrous political calculation, too, however. If the war is going badly in the summer and fall of 2012, it will be because of the decision the president made this week. Everyone will know he did it against the advice of his commanders. Everyone will know he did it for political reasons. So if the war is going badly a year from now, whom do you think the American people will blame? There will still be 70,000 American troops in Afghanistan, but as part of a losing effort. Will Americans reward Obama at the polls under those circumstances?
It’s not like he’s been politically brilliant so far. The tragic thing is that he’s doing something militarily stupid to serve his political needs.
[Early afternoon update]
You don’t say. Afghan women fear Obama’s peace talks with the Taliban. I’m sure NOW is fine with it, though, because he supports abortion.
Realistic Skeletons
…of cartoon characters. They’re quite macabre. The gummy bear is particularly grotesque.