SugarFree
I spent the month reading The Complete Chronicles of Conan, a volume issued to celebrate the centennial of Robert E. Howard’s birth. It not only collects the published stories but also the fragments and notes from Howard’s archived papers. The stories are arranged by publication order, my preferred way to read them, and were taken from the original publications with comparisons and corrections to Howard’s final drafts where still extant.
Re-reading the Cimmerian’s adventures is like going out drinking with an old friend: you know all the stories but the pleasure of hearing them again cannot be dismissed. I also re-watched the 1982’s Conan the Barbarian, one of my favorite movies, the terrible Conan the Destroyer and the aggressively mediocre 2011 reboot (although I thought Momoa made a pretty good Conan.) And, to complete a total Conan emmersion, I re-read all The Savage Sword of Conan issues edited by Roy Thomas. So much barbarian action…
Web Dominatrix
When I’m not whipping websites into shape, I am a business consultant to service providers, so most of what I read is related to business. I just finished Scaling Up by Verne Harnish, founder of the Young Entrepreneurs’ Association. The book is all about how to scale a business and what a lot of companies get wrong.
I really like that this book draws a distinction between starting a business and scaling a business, both two very different processes, but many “business gurus” lump them together.
There are many concepts in this book that aren’t a great fit for service providers, though the author indicates these strategies could be used for any business. For example, the author says there are four areas in which one needs to optimise their strategies and systems, and one of the areas is “routine.” As a systems strategist, I would argue that routine execution needs to be built into each strategy and system, and not treated as a separate system itself. If each system isn’t designed to be implemented, then ultimately the system won’t be as effective.
But I digress.
All in all I would recommend this book for any business owner to read, but keep an open mind and think about where you can improve upon these concepts instead of merely accepting them as commandments written in stone.
SP
I’ve generally been a fan of Michael Connelly, dipping into his work here and there over the years. I realized a couple weeks ago that I’d never read the early Harry Bosch books. So I’m correcting that with The Black Echo: A Novel (A Harry Bosch Novel Book 1). I like to read series in order, so I can only imagine I first picked up a mid-series book laying around someplace way back when and didn’t realize at the time that it was, in fact, part of a series. Now, I will, of course, proceed to binge-read the complete Bosch books (in order). (Update: I’ve just moved on to Harry Bosch Book 2.)
In the car while driving this week, I started listening to Ken Follett’s A Dangerous Fortune. The narrator, Michael Page, has a wonderful voice, and that’s improving the story considerably.
Also, I’ve been trying to follow jesse.in.mb’s marvelous example and pare down my physical book collection. HAHAHAHAHAHA. I crack myself up!
This week I did manage, though, to take a box of about 3 dozen books to my Dad, from whom I received my voracious read-anything-all-the-time habit. He’s read everything in all the libraries of his county, so we try to keep him supplied with interesting works. This time he received all my Rick Riordan Tres Navarre books (all now available on Kindle if I want to revisit them periodically), along with a bunch of others.
Oh, yeah, and I am reading my constant companion: my pharmacology textbook.
jesse.in.mb
Slow month for me. I put away a trio of novellas by romantic fiction author Illona Andrews (it’s actually a husband and wife effort. Their Innkeeper novels are a foray into urban fantasy without erotic content and they were breezy literary candy. The downside is that Amazon now thinks I’m a randy heterosexual hausfrau. I’ll live.
I set aside a copy of The Lies of Locke Lamora at 1/5 of the way through, I was having a hard time maintaining interest.
On the audiobook front I listened to Ken Lozito’s Genesis, which was entertaining enough although some sections seemed like filler. L.T. Ryan‘s Noble Beginnings is a big ol’ no for me. It’s 6 hours of uninspired fight scenes read in a clipped tone. I’m reminded of Homeric poetry in the way the author used a series of stock phrases without alteration over and over again. Various characters “hitched up [their] shoulder[s]” 27 times and shrugged once…at the end. I’d kind of assumed the author was unfamiliar with the word.
Not Adahn
I had thought about going on a rant abut how Catalyst Games has completely cocked up FASA’s Battletech, when I received a Mysterious Package in the post. Opening it, I discovered the following cookbook:
I assume that this was written by UnCiv, and forwarded on to me for a review prior to a second edition, or perhaps for an additional cover blurb. It is somewhat distressing that my post box location was so easily obtained, but that was a risk of becoming known to the Glibhedrin.
In any case, this is a wonderfully useful addition, as it allows me, through judicious variation of my orphan’s food supply to engage in carrot-and-stick motivation techniques, without the expense of obtaining carrots! My only criticism, minor as it is, is that in an effort to pad the book’s length to a full 28 pages, our UCS has engaged in excessive extravagance in his ingredients list on a few recipes. Butter, really?
Comments
550 responses to “What Are We Reading – September 2018”
This looks tempting enough for me to get back into reading for fun.
I got a chance to get reacquainted with a HS English teacher through an Irish music get-together my BF is participating in and I’ve been hanging out at the coffee house and reading to be supportive of. The teacher comes over to catch up while I’m drinking an overly sweet chai tea and reading the second book in the series. “What have you been reading lately?” asks the man who dragged me through French existentialist literature.
“NOTHING, I’M ILLITERATE!” *throws smoke bomb, changes name, leaves country*
You owe me a new screen brah… It’s got Iced tea all over it.
You know. I’ve been trying to offload a monitor on my staff for months. It’s very large. Some might say yuge. It has all the connections. HDMI, DisplayPort, VGA, RCA, that obnoxious YCbCr that nobody ever used. The very best connections.
I’d be supportive by not going.
Rereading Shirer’s The Rise and fall of the third Reich, and no, I don’t see any similarities, just Human generalizations that make people go Trump! Aggh!
/Chapters full of footnotes
Scaling Up sounds interesting, I’ll have to give that a read one of these days. I’ve been going through some Mises articles (currently on The Anti-Capitalist Mentality) so that’s been eating most of my reading time.
I picked up ‘Hemingway’s Chair’ by Michael Palin, having spotted it in a bargain bin.
It a cutesy little read in the same vein of man vs. progress types of literature.
I give it 3.5/5 lemon currys.
I meant to enact labor if anyone is interested.
I also re-watched the 1982’s Conan the Barbarian, one of my favorite movies,
Is it better than Jaws?
Milius belongs in the pantheon of Great Filmmakers in the way Spielberg never will, so yes.
that 2011 Conan remake was so bad. Conan was too strong. the original at least he was mortal and died and had to be brought back at the cost of his girlfriend’s life.
Different pleasures, although the Indianapolis speech (the best part of Jaws) was written by Milius, so they are related.
There was a “best part” of Jaws?
I have the special edition with the documentary on the making of special and found the story of how that movie got made to be really interesting.
What am I reading? Decision at Thunder Rift (Almost done.)
What am I listening to? Finishing off the Hit Man series by Lawrence Block
What am I writing? “Prince of the North Tower” and “Other Side of the Mask” (Working Title)
which side is the other side?
It’s for the reader to figure out.
I had an idea for a scene in “Other Side of the Mask” where the narrator talks about the kind of man his personal antagonist (King Tabris V) is. During his tenure as Court Wizard in Tabris’ retinue, he witnessed the end of the war with their Northern neighbor. The scene proper would be either flashback or dialogue. Tabris has agreed to meet with the young king of the neighboring land. When the other king shows up wearing the pelt of a snow lion over his shoulder, Tabris mocks his age and calls him a mere child. The other king (I still haven’t named him) calmly states that he is not and describes the coming of age ritual for his people (forge a knife, go into woods for as long as it takes to find a beast, kill it with only said knife) while subtly petting the mane of the pelt he’s wearing. He wraps up by stating all the men behind him underwent this ordeal and asks what the “gilded peacocks” Tabris brought went through.
Tabris waves this off dismissively and says that his real army is burning its way through the other land, so by the time the other king and his men get back, they will have no homes to return to. To this the northerner merely snaps his fingers and a box is handed to him. He pours out the contents on the table – hundreds of signet rings. After letting it sink in, he asks “What army?” Tabris flees the area shouting for people to kill the boy king. In the end he cedes land to buy peace in a war it turned out he’d started.
I keep thinking it might be too cliche.
to be honest seems implausible, but i don’t know the setting. cliche? maybe but depends on the details
“Boy” might be a bit deceptive. We’re talking late teens. (Tutankhamun died at 19 and is often called a boy king.)
no i find hard to believe a king casually sending an army and not hearing it was destroyed…
When you have iron age/medieval communications systems, it happens.
The key element of the scene was that it was supposed to be peace talks and Tabris tried to double-cross the other nation before even sitting down, thus showing the sort of person he was.
Admittedly, this scene comes after he ordered the narrator’s eyes torn out over an unsubstantiated allegation.
When you have iron age/medieval communications systems, it happens. – does it? Any historical example? It would be interesting. I mean a crusade I would understand but for neighboring countries?
So Christine Blasey Ford is your narrator?
Ted – no
Pie – I had a few Roman examples, but I can’t remember the darn fool general’s name. My medieval history is weaker, but they had even worse lines of communication than the romans. Given that the location of friendly armies was hard to keep track of even into the 19th century, Tabris’ ignorance is the least difficult element for me to buy.
fair. for me just not knowing of your army and assuming it is successfully burning enemies seems hard to believe
It speaks to his character. Much like his first response to the age of his counterpart was to mock him.
I debated posting the duel between Kord and Tabris V’s uncle Tabris IV, but It’s 2000 words, and I haven’t proofread it yet.
Looking at the duel, it seems Tabris IV shares a trait with his Nephew – he picks on the age of a younger opponant…
Note: The sword Kord calls “Otto’s Blade” is a six-foot long (pommel to point) Zweihander. The ‘Gaudy sword’ is a one-handed blade.
twin blades – dual wielding? meh…
I expected a comment on the ‘struck/truck’ typo, really.
Yo, UnCiv. Your kitbash article yesterday got caught in the Kavanaugh shitstorm. Really interesting stuff. I think your setup for the circus animals was spot-on, and I liked the discussion of why the seemingly crazy practice of sending you an entire kit to replace one part makes sense when you think about it.
Can’t wait to see the finished product.
Thank you.
I can’t wait to see the finished product either
/procrastinator.
Then you CAN wait.
I’ll get around to waiting later.
SugarFree,
I recently reread The Hour of the Dragon, which was one of my favorite books in High school (think I’ve read it 10 times or so) and have all the Robert E. Howard’s Conan books. Is this collection worth buying?
Inquiring minds want to know.
Yes, to have all stories together and the work they did purging all the edits Lin Carter and L. Sprague de Camp did to the stories later on.
It is the same text as The Conan Chronicles, Vol. 1 minus The Hour of the Dragon. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Conan_Chronicles,_1
The trade paperback of it would be far cheaper, I would imagine, considering you already have a copy of HotD.
Much of this year’s road trip was done to an audiobook of the collected Conan works from Howard. I have to credit them with a lot of the motivation to resume “Prince of the North Tower”.
I was saddened when the collection ended with “And then the author shot himself”.
It’s not easy to chase down, but The Whole Wide World, the Howard biopic is very interesting. Vincent D’Onofrio as Howard, and a not too annoying Renee Zellweger as his girlfriend.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118163/
My favorite part is when they show how Howard wrote, which was in a shack out behind his house, because he shouted the story out loud as he was typing.
Now I have a mental image of D’Onofrio shouting “HIS THEWS!” – I had never heard the word ‘thews’ before that audiobook collection, now it’s indelibly associated with Conan in my mind.
Seconded.
I have ignored the Hugos since they became all SJWey, but since same author won 3 in a row for the same series – which i find hard to believe – I tried the fifth season. Not impressed
But it’s won Hugos.
HUGOS
You must be too dumb to appreciate the excellent prose.
Which book was it?
ehm… the fifth season
Sorry, I must be too dumb to understand english, I thought you meant the fith season of a series.
Oh, for fuck’s sake I can’t even spell fifth.
eh I did not capitalize
The Hugos destroyed their credibility.
Let me guess – N. K. Jemisin?
(looks, realizes that ‘The Fifth Season’ is the work in question and is indeed N. K. Jemisin).
The Hugos have become an anti-recommendation for me – I’m actively avoiding works by Hugo favorites, like Jemisin.
I’m trying to remember – wasn’t Hugo Gernsback kind of an asshole?
the writing is mediocre at best
Even if the writing isn’t terrible, they insist on praising non-unique work.
All Systems Red is actually a fine little novella about a rogue automaton over-riding its own program, but it is nothing plotwise that hasn’t been done dozens of times before for decades.
Six Wakes, one of the novel nominees is about six people waking up on a spaceship with amnesia. How many times has that been done before?
I forget. I feel like I used to know, but the memory is out of reach…
My reading remains erratic, but mostly just working through the Inspector Rebus books (thanks again to the Glibs who suggested them). On The Hanging Garden (#9) now.
I keep eying the Murderbot Diaries sequels, but they’re so massively overpriced for novellas that I can’t bring myself to pull the trigger; $10 for 160 pages? Nope. All Systems Red was the same length for $3.99.
Goodreads tells me there’s a new Laundry Files book, but Stross has hit the ‘library only’ list, so I just made a recommendation they grab that.
Finally, I apparently purchased ‘The Making of a Chef’ on Kindle recently (in a drunken haze, perhaps). So I’ll be re-reading that soon.
Glad you are digging the Rebus books. New one coming out next month!
I think about where you are in the series is where Rankin really started to hit his stride. Most series fall off, but after going back and rereading the first few, I think they just get stringer and stronger.
My wife is digging them too – she’s hot on my heels and may have caught up (I took a break, waiting for the library to get #9 – never happened so I just broke down & bought it).
She’s amazed by how much he drinks. That feels totally authentic to me – I’ve always said if my drinking ever gets out of hand, I can just move anywhere in the UK, where my drinking would pass without comment.
Busy month for me (thanks, insomnia!)
I read the entire Levon Cade series from Chuck Dixon. Perfect implausible entertainment: good guys, bad guys, cliffhangers, violence – the works. All on Kindle and cheap.
I reread Playback from Chandler because someone brought it up and it’s been awhile. Satisfying, despite the abrupt ending.
I also read the first two books of our own UCS’s Gruefield 18 collection. While definitely not my normal fare, I gotta say they were terrific. The characters are solid (particularly the hero/thief in Omnirunner), the stories are really well constructed and compelling. The best part is when our UCS comes through. I found myself laughing out loud at some of the dialogue, as it could have easily come from here.
Highly recommended.
I’ve been watching Longmire lately. Any of y’all read the books? Any good?
I’m glad you’re enjoying them.
Jack cracks me up. I know a guy just like him.
The kernel of his personality was “still a child at heart” and refined from there.
Those Levon Cade books just kind of fly by don’t they?
Lol. Yeah. Downloaded the first one for free (based on a recommendation here) and then flew through the rest.
Have you read any of Dixon’s comics?
I have not. Should I?
If you like comic books, sure. His Batman and GI Joe stories were pretty good. If you aren’t a fan of the medium, no reason to go out and look for them.
I’m right in the middle of the Cade series too. I was surprised how much I enjoy them.
Yes, I’ve read all the Longmire books. I really enjoy them. In fact, I’d read them for years before the series and was certain I would be disappointed in the show. I was not.
Grazie!
I’ve read a lot this month,
Farther Than Any Man: The Rise and Fall of Captain James Cook
Good book, really made me think of how crazy it must have been to go sailing for years with no real idea of what you would find.
The entire Levon Cade series by Chuck Dixon
A badass former Marine with PTSD turns vigilante and goes on the run with his daughter. If you can suspend disbelief a little bit, it’s a very entertaining read.
Currently reading Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio
Not very far along, but so far it has phenomenal world building, political and family intrigue and it promises to end with the killing of a sun.
So far I really enjoy it.
I’m another fan of the Levon Cade series by Chuck. Also his time travel story series is outstanding as well.
I took a break from my Lovecraft collection to read A Handmaid’s Tale. The feminist left has always been hysterical.
I’ve read most of the Dixon time travel books – Bad Times series – and need to finish them off. Junk-food reading, for sure, but fun.
Farther than Any Man is good. Another fun book on him is “Blue Latitudes” by Tony Horowitz who retraces his voyages and his home in Englaand. The Pacific region still has a complicated relationship with J Cook.
Currently reading Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio
I saw that recommended somewhere – maybe here – and have a sample sitting on my Kindle. May queue that up if I want to take a break from Inspector Rebus.
Larry Correia had it as a book bomb and I thought it looked interesting.
I am only on the fifth chapter and it’s very good so far.
Ah yes, that’s exactly where the recommendation came from.
Bloodlands Story of the people stuck between Hitler and Stalin. Hit very close to home for me due to my ancestry in that part of the country. I had assumed it was just my family fleeing from Hitler, but maybe it was from both. Don’t really know. This was another very heavy, difficult book to get through the same way Imbeciles and Illiberal Reformers was, so I didn’t get nearly as many books read as normal this month. Asked for non-fiction recommendation from a friend that was lighter and won’t feel like a slog to read, and nothing timely. Fear, he suggested. Smartass. Recommended
HMS Surprise More Jack Aubry adventures. Lots of fun.
Comic Books
Fate Core. One game in, and things are going well I think. Recommended
I endorse Bloodlands as well. Excellent but deeply troubling in places- humans can be utter shits.
+2 Brutal to read, but I think it’s an important book.
“Brutal to read”
Yep.
The most heartwearming and uplifting parts of the book are when Stalin decides his current crop of murdering psychos knows too much, and has them all arrested and shot by a new batch of murdering psychos.
I think I’m predisposed to having an out sized response to the horrors of the progressive movement (which the Nazi ideology incorporated) and rationalization (which the Soviet ideology incorporated) because of how close to home it hits for me. Its like what I’ve dedicated my life to (advancing the human condition through the implementation of rational decision making, thoughtful implementation of social forms, and tooling) as seen through a cracked fun house mirror.
“Stalin decides his current crop of murdering psychos knows too much, and has them all arrested and shot by a new batch of murdering psychos.”
This is the part of history proggies don’t grasp:
“Stalin decides his current crop of murdering psychos knows too much, and has them all arrested and shot by a new batch of murdering psychos.”
I started Bloodlands, and had to put it down, which is very unusual for me.
Read M&C in order for best results
Agree 100%
I may reread them someday, probably my second favorite historical fiction series*, but that is a huge time commitment.
* First is the Saxon Tales by Bernard Cornwell
The BBC series The Last Kingdom on netflix is kickass
I mean to get those, The last Kingdom was great
The show really skips over his viking upbringing.(I understand why) but it does keep with the main story and the characters pretty well.
My wife thought it was hilarious how Alfred kept outsmarting Uthred son of Uthred.
in order,
Master and Commander (1969)
Post Captain (1972)
HMS Surprise (1973)
The Mauritius Command (1977)
Desolation Island (1978)
The Fortune of War (1979)
The Surgeon’s Mate (1980)
The Ionian Mission (1981)
Treason’s Harbour (1983)
The Far Side of the World (1984)
The Reverse of the Medal (1986)
The Letter of Marque (1988)
The Thirteen Gun Salute (1989)
The Nutmeg of Consolation (1991)
Clarissa Oakes (1992) – (The Truelove in the USA)
The Wine-Dark Sea (1993)
The Commodore (1995)
The Yellow Admiral (1996)
The Hundred Days (1998)
Blue at the Mizzen (1999)
The Final Unfinished Voyage of Jack Aubrey (2004) – (21 in the USA)
Makes much more sense now, See you later tonight!
Sort of on the same theme as Bloodlands is Ferguson’s War of the World.
I’m halfway through listening to Stephenson’s The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.
Just started reading David Drake’s Patriots last night. Didn’t get far past the preface which had some fun information on Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys. Now I have to find a biography of Allen.
I re-read “Shattered” as a grudge read. It is still a good read since the authors were hired over a year before the 2016 election to write a hagiography of the “most prepared President ever” and had to retool on the fly. They reveal that HRC in 2008 ordered her servers be scrubbed to see which of her staff were less than loyal. So her actions as SecState are totally misunderstood- it was with out a doubt a criminal enterprise to sidestep multiple laws.
I barely made it through “Red Mars”.
To get in the spirit of the fall hunting seasons I am reading “Give Your Heart to the Hawks” by Winfred Blevins. It is a history of the mountain man era in the Rocky Mountain west.
I am waiting for my copy of “The Fate of Rome” by Kyle Harper to arrive. He examines the impacts of large scale epidemics and rapid cooling impacted the larger processes impacting Rome. I am mildly optimistic it won’t be “global warming” panic writing.
I trudged through the Red Mars trilogy out of sheer stubbornness – and have never read another Kim Stanley Robinson book.
I made the mistake of reading another after the Mars series (which I liked) and regretted it. The Years of Rice and Salt was actually OK but 2312 was a SJW proggie nightmare.
Robinson I think is a true believer. Somewhere in that series while they were terraforming Mars, there were all kinds of environmental disasters on Earth. He never answered the obvious question – why not just terraform Earth?
^^^THIS^^^
Might be alone here, but I’d love to hear how another joy from my youth – Battletech – has been ruined.
Am reading Neptune’s Inferno by James Hornfischer. Makes me glad I never joined the Navy. Being a Marine grunt sucked, but fighting on or inside a floating metal box sounds awful.
I was Marine artillery and had the same reaction when I toured the North Carolina battleship.
Didn’t they use Marine gunners on the capital battleships? Or am I misremembering?
I think you are remembering correctly – I have seen pictures of twin 5” gun turrets with EGAs painted on them to denote a Marine gun crew.
I didn’t fit in the turrets on the Battleship North Carolina. I literally had to stand on the stairs and take pictures from there because it was too cramped.
What happened now?
I was wondering the same thing?
I know I lost interest in Battletech shortly after the end of the clan invasion timeline through a combination of inability to find anyone to play with, becoming to frustrating with some of the shortcomings in the game and the developers refusal to engage with any attempt to correct them, and real life taking away all of my free time for playing tabletop games
The problem is the IP got passed from company to company and became a tangled mess of conflicting claims that are only now starting to get sorted out.
Battletech was always weird for me. The combat system made almost no sense (“long-range” missiles that go all of a mile and do 1 point of damage), the world building made little sense to me (Hi, we’re a tiny country next to a great big country but we aren’t going to bother to train and arm billions of militia men to deter invasion. Nope, we’re going to wait for the good guys to form a political alliance and curb stomp us because we have 15 mechs to defend an entire planet). And yet, I found it strangely addictive and fun to play in high school in spite of its many shortcomings.
Neptunes inferno is great. I have read most of hornfischer’s books and haven’t found one that wasnt very good.
IMHO, “the last stand of the tin can sailors” is his best book. I’ve read it multiple times. Very, very good.
Last Stand is excellent, haven’t read anything else by him but I know the USS Houston story from other sources. It took huge balls to run those small ships straight at the Japanese heavies.
Reading is gay.
It makes your shit all retarded and you talk like a fag.
Just finished: The Forge of God
Currently: The Handmaid’s Tale (need to see what it’s going to be like after Kavanaugh is confirmed)
Just grabbed my Kindle to see what’s in my queue…
1. A Deepness in the Sky
2. Old Man’s War
3. The Mote in God’s Eye
4. Snow Crash
5. Fahrenheit 451
I had to read “The Handmaid’s Tale” in high school. It sucked. This was way before all this going on now. It was just terribly written and an utterly unbelievable dystopia. Even as a 16 year old I didn’t buy it.
Snow Crash I loved.
Fahrenheit 451 is highly overrated.
“Fahrenheit 451 is highly overrated.”
To be fair, no one, not even Orwell could have possibly imagined and written anything as dystopian as the imagined utopia of our modern day progs.
Our modern day progs have those books to use as a road map to build on.
“I had to read “The Handmaid’s Tale” in high school”
Yeah, and the big theme that I got from it, even though it seems like a lot of these feminist types didn’t get this from it, is that it’s the women who are enslaving other women, it’s not some kind of pure patriarchy.
When I have pointed this out, I get the usual “No True Scotsmen” bullshit. Everything is patriarchy, everything everywhere.
I once worked for a company that almost exclusively employed women for the shop floor jobs. The way I have witnessed a lot of them treat each other, gives me little doubt that many of them would indeed enslave the others and torture them while they were enslaved. Ah, let’s just face it, a sizeable portion of humans are shit.
Atwood tried explaining this when the book started being used by feminists in earnest.
It didn’t go well. Her book was much more about the revival of the evangelical right in the 1980s, than anything to do w/ feminism.
I also read it when it came out. My mom was english teacher and i was in Junior high, but ripped through it and was generally unimpressed. I’d read plenty of dystopian sci-fi before and it didn’t come across particularly well, or especially smart. I read it again for laughs in college, and my impression was the same.
its a critique of religion, w/ very little to do w/ ‘feminism’.
F-451 is excellent. For some reason, the left wing productions always cut out Montag’s abortion rant.
Snowcrash is AWESOME.
A better book than Handmaid’s Tale is The Gate to Women’s Country by Sheri Tepper, if you care to dip your toe. I’m not “into” radical feminist literature, but I will say that Tepper’s blatant politics and philosophies (none of which I agree with) sort of “gave me permission” to write my politics and philosophies (and religion) without restraint, and since I was self-publishing anyway, I thought, well, why the hell not.
Snowcrash is AWESOME.
Indeed it is.
The Forge of God – happy ending eh? That was a disturbing book.
I enjoyed Old Man’s War – read a couple of sequels and just stopped as they got progressively worse (pun intended).
“The Forge of God – happy ending eh? That was a disturbing book.”
It’s one of the most not happy, depressing books I have ever read. The entire thing is utterly depressing, including the authors seemingly endless meanderings on every detail of family life and day to day goings on of the people followed in the story. I was glad when it was over. If not having read, right before that, another depressing, but much worse written book ‘Nomad’, I may have thought it even more depressing. Handmaid’s Tale has been utterly uplifting and sun shiny in comparison.
I haven’t read it.
I found the Peter Watts books super depressing, in the way he portrays the utter insignificance of humans.
Check out Blindsight, for free.
Just saw a hilarious blurb on Watts’ site:
Up there with The Killing Star for the depressing insignificance of humanity – and why we shouldn’t be blasting radio signals around the universe.
Forge is depressing, but in an awesome way.
Solid list; Scalzi is a ridiculous soy boy, but Old Man’s War is a fun Heinlein knock-off.
Stephenson has trouble writing endings – I find he wraps things up too abruptly – but Snow Crash is great fun. Reminds me that I need to re-read the Diamond Age.
I just read Deepness for the first time a few years ago – what a great piece of work.
I’m fully expecting Deepness to be great after reading Fire Upon the Deep. Vinge is brilliant and I need a break. That’s why I have it next on my list.
Whoops, I’m a dope – I was thinking of Fire (which is amazing). I haven’t read Deepness, I should add it to the list.
Same here. Not sure why I’ve waited this long. I suppose I just had too much other stuff on my list at the time.
Other than Pham Nuwen* being in both, they have absolutely nothing in common. Other than both being Vinge brilliant.
*And even that is questionable, if you think about how he was “reconstructed” at the beginning of Fire.
Deepness is great.
The Mote in God’s Eye – Oh how I wish there were still Niven / Pournelle works out there I hadn’t read yet.
This is still the best first contact novel I ever read.
And sadly, there will be no more.
How did you like Forge of God? I hope my recommendation wasn’t a wast of your time.
I see above. Sorry, I didn’t see it as depressing but as a alien disaster novel. For real soul crushing depressing I recommend “This is the Way the World Ends” by James Morrow. I just realized I read a lot of end of the world books. some of the ones from the 60’s were downright depressing to me. I read the Beyond Armageddon anthology in 6th grade and it spiraled from there.
xi • Forewarning (an Introduction) • (1985) • essay by Walter M. Miller, Jr.
xxv • Postscript to the Introduction (Beyond Armageddon) • essay by Martin H. Greenberg
17 • Salvador • (1984) • short story by Lucius Shepard
37 • The Store of the Worlds • (1959) • short story by Robert Sheckley
46 • The Big Flash • (1969) • novelette by Norman Spinrad
70 • Lot • [David Jimmon] • (1953) • novelette by Ward Moore
97 • Day at the Beach • (1959) • short story by Carol Emshwiller
108 • The Wheel • (1952) • short story by John Wyndham
116 • Jody After the War • (1972) • short story by Edward Bryant
124 • The Terminal Beach • (1964) • novelette by J. G. Ballard
146 • Tomorrow’s Children • [Tomorrow’s Children • 1] • (1947) • novelette by Poul Anderson and F. N. Waldrop [as by Poul Anderson]
174 • Heirs Apparent • (1954) • novelette by Robert Abernathy
197 • A Master of Babylon • (1966) • novelette by Edgar Pangborn (variant of The Music Master of Babylon 1954)
224 • Game Preserve • (1957) • short story by Rog Phillips
239 • By the Waters of Babylon • (1986) • short fiction by Stephen Vincent Benét (variant of The Place of the Gods 1937) [as by Stephen V. Benet]
253 • There Will Come Soft Rains • [The Martian Chronicles] • (1950) • short story by Ray Bradbury
261 • To the Chicago Abyss • (1963) • short story by Ray Bradbury
272 • Lucifer • (1964) • short story by Roger Zelazny
278 • Eastward Ho! • (1958) • short story by William Tenn
295 • The Feast of Saint Janis • (1980) • novelette by Michael Swanwick
327 • “If I Forget Thee, Oh Earth …” • (1951) • short story by Arthur C. Clarke
332 • A Boy and His Dog • [Vic and Blood • 2] • (1969) • novella by Harlan Ellison
374 • My Life in the Jungle • (1985) • short story by Jim Aikin
To be fair to the 60’s they were staring at the very real possibility of an apocalypse no one wanted.
A bunch of readers wrote into The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction saying that “Lot” from Ward Moore just made sense, because, you know, at least the character survived. So Ward Moore wrote the altogether darker “Lot’s Daughter.”
“Lot” was also filmed as PANIC IN YEAR ZERO! (1962) with Ray Milland and Frankie Avalon. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056331/
Thanks, Didn’t know about Panic in year Zero.
“How did you like Forge of God? I hope my recommendation wasn’t a wast of your time.”
Not at all a waste, just depressing.
There is a sequel called Anvil of Stars. Its quite a different tone. Greg Bear has many great novels. Blood Music for example was one of the first nano-tech stories that I can remember reading. The Eon series was tremendous but my favorite is still Queen of Angels. Queen of Angels is a complex and thought provoking SciFi mystery with tons of world building.
I havent read #2 (yet) but the other 4 in your queue are excellent.
What did you think of Forge?
Also, and I think I mentioned it before, DO NOT READ ANVIL OF GODS (the sequel).
I am rereading Deepness right now, on Sunday and Monday nights when my family is in Evansville.
Anvil of Stars. My brain went weird mid-rant.
Just picked-up “Measuring the World” by Daniel Kehlman, a fictionalized story of Alexander von Humboldt and Carl Friedrich Gaus. I’m a fan of both historical fiction and biographies so hoping for a good read.
I’m currently reading, “The Crimean War: A History” by Orlando Figes. Fromw what I’ve gathered so far from the book, the Crimean War set the stage for the First World War.
i did not know the Jews were to blame for The Crimean War. interesting
A book of short stories by Flannery O’Connor “A Good Man is Hard to Find”
Southern Gothic literature at its most depressing
Oh man, I remember that one from high school. VERY depressing, indeed.
I was going to disagree with you about that book being depressing, then I realize the book I read was called “A Hard Man is Good to Find”.
Mae West fan?
That’s one of my top 3 books of short stories ever, w/o question.
i think its easy to overweight the superficially-dark aspects of her stories, and overlook the essential humor and humanist aspects that make them more heartwarming.
iow, imagine it all as humorous, modern-day biblical parable.
i think if you read them 2-3 times they come across as far funnier, and less bleak than they seem. Sort of like Kafka.
As opposed to other Catholic writers of her era, she never wrote an apologia, because she said she didn’t want to be pigeonholed. But, she insisted that her stories demonstrated God’s grace in the world and people turning their backs on redemption.
I read her book “Wise Blood” too and that’s also rather dark. I find her to be less humorous than Kafka, but they both leave me unsettled after reading their work.
” I find her to be less humorous than Kafka”
you mean the book about the crazy boy who dresses up like a gorilla, and the fake-preacher who blinds himself to win followers?
I think kafka is more-subtle, and more German-boring.
His humor is like “I vill use ze philosophy to imply ze humor now”;
hers is “i’m going to set a motherfucking circus on fire and have flaming lions eating the clowns”
OK, yeah, that’s fair.
I do feel like reading O’Connor, though, is like an act of penance. Reading Kafka is more like delving into absurdity.
Sometimes repo’ing a storage container comes with a special prize
https://imgur.com/gallery/aTWXTsm
If only coffee came in those sizes
This raises questions.
Well, there were also about 5 dozen sets of rims and hubcaps for Toyota Scions, 4 clothes dryers, 18 pairs of corduroy pants, and a bunch of soiled mattresses if that answers any of your questions.
That doesn’t answer questions, that just raises more.
Well, there were also about 5 dozen sets of rims and hubcaps for Toyota Scions, 4 clothes dryers, 18 pairs of corduroy pants, and a bunch of soiled mattresses if that answers any of your questions.
TransformersXXX – An Autobot Porn Parody was filmed there?
Autoeroticbot?
What size are the pants?
38 waist – 29 inseam
I’m not that tall. And not quite that fat.
Too wide and too short for me.
Also, they were repo’d from a storage container.
Look at Mr. “I Buy My Pants Retail” over here.
I don’t believe Playa owns pants. He may have formal cargo shorts and flip-flops. *may* I can’t guarantee that.
I didn’t even bring pants on my last vacation.
4 formal dinners, zero pants.
“Look at Mr. “I Buy My Pants Retail” over here.”
I’m actually a hardcore thrift shop/clearance rack guy. Which is why I asked. Love cords too.
I’m all outlet malls.
I can get 2 years worth of shopping done in 15 minutes.
Damn. It’d be a little loose in the waist, but I’m like a 33 inseam, 34 if I want a full break.
I’m running a special on them if you’re interested.
There does seem to be an unusually high amount of interest here. Am I missing some sort of stereotype about libertarians wearing dumpster clothes?
Missing, the subject of/potato, potahtoh.
It’s curiousity of seeing a trainwreck and wondering about the details.
What about the mattresses? Are we talking “lightly” soiled, or…
eh, if I had to describe it, it’s kind of a “murdered your children with an icepick” soiled
Bunny Ranch soiled.
So “medium”.
When was the last time corduroy pants were even made?
Amazon says… 2018
indeed
Good lord.
What’s actually worse – the number of results returned from the search.
How many people wear them? The last time I owned a pair I think I was five, and still small enough to be amused by the sound they made when you walked.
Yeah it does.
Who would make such a thing? And why?
Who would pay to store it?
Does it work?
How much?
I finished the short story collection The Monster Hunter Files a couple weeks ago. Pure fun, was sad when I got to the end.
I read the first book and was not sold, though even the author says his writing is much better now. I read his blog and was impressed by his new housing project though.
Monster Hunter series really shows off his growth as a writer, as each book is better written than prior one. I think he also knows he’s in a bit of a trap with his main character, as my two favorite books of the series (Alpha and Nemesis) don’t feature him except as a cameo.
But, if you want to see him at his best, try Son of the Black Sword, and don’t read the blurb or the short story (it’s way spoilery). I could hardly believe this was the same guy.
Seconded – he truly works at writing and it shows over time. He’s really improved.
It’s like Jim Butcher – I suspect I’d cringe if I read Storm Front now, but his recent writing is top-notch.
Thanks, I haven’t read that one.
I enjoyed his Grimnoir books, as well.
The first book was definitely not his best, you could tell he loved guns, really really and hated the govt really really.
As he went on the books became much better.
I loved the Grimnoir Chronicles and am really looking forward to the sequel to the Black Sword.
Owen Pitt is such an obvious idealized version of Correia himself in the fist book, it’s kind of funny.
Owen Pitt is one of my least favorite characters of all time, yet I love the MHI books.
You know, this makes me think back about the time I’ve spent reading in my life, which is a fair amount. And I started trying to think what was the first most memorable book I ever read. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn comes to mind right off. I suppose I was maybe 10 when I read that. I loved it, it was what really started me getting into reading. I remember laughing so much reading that book.
Then it makes me sad to think that if Mark Twain was alive today, he’d probably be already railroaded by some metoo bullshit and likely shipped off to prison with Cosby. I can’t help being sad about that. The amount of time I spent as a kid laughing my ass off at Fat Albert and other Cosby stories. Is there some compelling reason why I should not hate society in general today? Because I keep getting more cynical all of the time and it’s not me making me that way.
I think Twain would likely be cheering that a rich conservative was railroaded by some metoo bullshit.
Twain said things that would definitely be construed as racist today. So, no, I doubt he’d get that chance before he was off to the dungeon.
I’m always amazed that Huck Finn is still banned in many schools.
Most humans are herd animals intent on controlling the herd in whatever way they can gain power over others. Stay the hell away from them. When they come around tell them to fuck off. That is my strategy and it seems to work pretty well.
That would be cool survey question. What is the first book that really made an impression on you?
Tarzan and the Forbidden City was the first “adult” book I read. I remember my father giving it to me one day and telling me I was ready to graduate to real books. Fucking loved it. I still have a soft spot for Tarzan books (but man there is some problematic racial shit in there that will keep me off the SC).
Huck Finn is a fantastic book. I bet I read that one every 3-4 years.
This is an SP-level survey topic. Deserves its own post.
I honestly don’t remember any one book having that big of an impact. I read a great deal, and filed away bits and pieces from each text.
Just finished “Origin” by Dan Brown (it was given to me). Standard Dan Brown story. Working on Dante’s Inferno now.
So you’re going from unbelievable fiction to slightly more believable.
Correct! Except the part about people getting what they deserve. That’s a bridge too far.
Angels and Demons was enough Dan Brown for me.
Inferno dragged a bit just because I didn’t know most of the people Dante was skewering.
Yeah, funny enough I’m not familiar with the citizens about Florence from 700 years ago.
Yeah, funny enough I’m not familiar with the citizens about Florence from 700 years ago.
I’m not angry at you, FM, but I’m a little disappointed.
That said it was the same problem that I had with Don Quixote and assume I’ll have when I finally suck it up and read Genji Monogattari.
*stares at feet*
*mumbles sorry*
The Da Vinci Code.
I started reading that. Everyone was raving about it. Trash. Writing style of a 5th grader, at best. That was enough Dan Brown for me. I didn’t make it past 30 pages.
And all his books are pretty much the same.
I don’t want to sound like an ass, but I am. So, one time, many years ago, when The DaVinci code was all the rage my girlfriend at the time had a Muslim co-worker who was reading The DaVinci code and said that the book really painted the Catholic Church in a bad light. My girlfriend seemed to take offense and said “I’ve been reading the newspaper and it doesn’t paint Muslims in a good light either”.
The early 2000’s were a different time
*I’ve never read Dan Brown, so I’m not mocking the books or anything. This is just the story that always comes to mind when I hear his name mentioned, because it is so incredibly offensive by today’s standards*
It’s ridiculous stories written as if they were true/plausible. Unfortunately many people read his books as documentary instead of fiction. He’s a fine writer, just a little too mainstream for my taste.
I think he specifically said one of his novels was based on academic research about Templars or something, so I read the alleged research and was choking down laughter the whole time. Unfortunately people never read cited sources and are easily led astray by the existence of citations.
I like to drive my wife nuts by immediately looking up the true story after watching a movie based on real events. One of the dumbest ones was Spare parts with George Lopez.
One of my favorite post-movie activities.
My roommate always jokes about how any horror film that is “based on a true story” is probably an extremely loose interpretation of Ed Gein.
I don’t know about you guys, but I trust the Freemason interpretation of the Knights Templar.
“Is there no help for the Widow’s Son?”
“I don’t want to sound like an ass, but I am.”
Well, you came to the right place, so it’s your choice.
I read the Dan Brown Holy Grail one (don’t remember the name). It was mindless fun, but Eco’s Foucault’s Pendulum was far superior (because Eco, duh).
DaVinci Code?
That’s it.
Another Italian writer? Ugh, I’m going to breakdown and learn Italian I guess.
I’m racking my brains for the “nonfiction” book that really goes through the whole Templar mythos and conspiracy theories to the present day. Like most conspiracy theories, its hugely entertaining, and it is remarkable how many stories are obviously based on some part or other of it. Its been a long time since I read it, so I am drawing a blank.
jesse, do you recall from looking at Brown’s sources? Its bound to have been in there. The basic theory is that the Templars and their secret society descendants have been harboring Jesus’ bloodline for millenia until he can become the ruler of Europe or something. Great stuff.
I know there was a kerfuffle over his heavy “borrowing” from The Holy Blood and the Holy Grail, but I think I read something more recent than that and I can’t for the life of me place it.
Yup, that’s it. I recommend it for the pure entertainment value of it, and as a potential source for writing ideas.
Should I put that before or after anything written by Erich von Däniken?
Depends on if you are more entertained by space aliens and ancient civilizations, or medieval European intrigue.
You guys have it all wrong. The Knights Templar became the Freemasons, just like they say.
I. WANT. TO. BELIEVE.
Do you, by chance, aspire to be a pirate and wear an eye patch?
Faaaaake.
What would Knights know about stonecutting?
About as much as they know about banking.
Yep. And given that we’re descended from the Marigovingian royal line, my mom was eating that shit up. She so wanted it to be true that we carried the blood of Jesus in our veins.
She kept raving about the book and insisting that I read it. I finally caved and started to read the Davinci code to placate her. And three chapters in, I had enough material to kill her love for Dan Brown permanently.
She still likes to tell people that we’re potentially descended from Jesus, though.
Holy Blood, Holy Grail?
Blood of the Shroud?
Dan Brown is a the Adam Sandler of writers.
I’ll back that statement.
I started the Da Vinci Code and figured out real quick I shouldn’t read too far because once I get into a story I have to finish it, even if I hate it and I was starting to hate the writing style.
The Da Vinci Code was given to me by a disillusioned Catholic priest friend, who had served in some mid-level post in the Vatican for a number of years. He said he was disappointed in the book because it didn’t come even close to hitting on the REAL conspiracies and scandals and wrong-doing he’d seen while working there. He said Brown should have looked up former Vatican functionaries to interview.
He left the Church about 5 years later. Although he says the Church left him.
He should write a book.
My wife cracks me up.
She watched the news for a few minutes got angry and then changed the channel. While she was changing it she said
“Where the hell is Hank Voight when you need him?”
The noon news was on in the lunch room when I went in there. There was BREAKING NEWS, which was that we’re waiting on the committee to vote. There was a shot of a few guys in suits standing with their backs to the camera.
Recently finished: The Guns of August, a book on WW1 detailing the first month of battles, politics, and the decisions that changed the course of the war. And so many “what ifs”.
I’ve been – bedtime only – reading the Sydney Chambers mysteries , which are “cozy” low-key stories with a vicar with a love of jazz solving mysteries. Set in the 1950s-1960s, the main character is also a veteran who was called to the service of the Anglican church. Some spiritual matters crop up too. Interesting but very low key with some meandering plots.
I just saw that the Jesuit “America Magazine” has withdrawn its endorsement for Judge Kavanaugh and now urges that his nomination be withdrawn.
Therefore, I know strongly support Kavanaugh’s nomination. If he upsets Jesuits then he must be doing something right.
What a bunch of cowardly motherfuckers.
Yeah, when I want to know how to address allegations of sexual assault, I’ll ask the Jesuits.
*insert eyeroll here*
The result of caving in that manner would be that all Democrats have to do to derail a nomination is to arbitrarily make it about some larger social justice issue, of which there is an endless supply and variety.
The Jesuits are renowned for being garbage.
WTF? Loyola went to the final four!
Get out of my sight
Should be noted that an Augustinian school ended up winning the entire championship, while the Jesuits failed.
Undoubtedly, this made God smile
I completely agree with them on that point, but I bet we don’t lean the same way on the answer.
An official order of the Catholic Church lecturing anyone on how to handle sex allegations is rich (sorry Catholics).
“Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.”
-Jesus Christ
Nothing to apologize for when it is unfortunately true
My sister gave me “City Of Scoundrels”. I haven’t put it in the bathroom yet to start reading.
Reading? Nerd.
Anyway, Barbara Boxer is a disingenuous bitch.
And dumb as a brick
Yes she is – and she’s very familiar with smear techniques. I was there is ’92 when she dropped a dirty smear on Herschensohn a couple of days before the election.
I liked Locke Lamora and the Gentlemen Bastards series. Not super gripping and sort of silly, but a nice bit of brain popcorn.
Currently working on Pratchett’s Men at Arms. Love the Discworld stuff and the Watch ones especially. I somehow missed this one though.
After that, I was thinking of jumping into some Faulkner after seeing all the hate on here for him. I actually love his stuff. To be fair, I loved it a lot more after living in Memphis.
I liked Locke Lamora and the Gentlemen Bastards series. Not super gripping and sort of silly, but a nice bit of brain popcorn.
That’s basically what I wanted from it and wasn’t quite getting it, but I’ve also been in a grumpy headspace lately, so I may revisit it later.
That’s definitely among my faves of Pratchett’s. Probably just behind Night Watch.
To be fair, I loved it a lot more after living in Memphis.
Why? Some kind of brain parasite from the water?
Not sure. Maybe living through the weather (Intruder in the dust has a bit where the kid falls in the creek during winter but it only . a little code. WTF? How can a kid from the prairie in Minnesoda grasp the idea of not dying in that situation?)
Also maybe picking up on some of the speech patterns?
Anyhow, I think the shit he writes is utterly fascinating. The trick to the Sound and Fury is to read the appendix that Faulkner added in 1945 first. Then you can sort of follow who is who. (I should maybe also be worried that I was able to follow the rantings of Benjy without missing a beat).
If you need an addendum to follow the story, It was written badly.
Or I’m not that SMRT.
Even I’d pick Faulkner if asked which was more likely: Faulkner is a genius writer and Jimbo is dumb, or Jimbo is super smart but Faulkner wrote a bad book.
over-complication and incomprehensibility is not a sign of “genius writing”. In fact, having a complex story that is comprehensible to the median population is more of an indicator of genius than befuddling people.
I’ve never read any of Faulkner, but the more you talk about it, the lower my opinion of him sinks.
How’s Faulkner going to eat if you don’t buy his books?
I won’t belabor the point, but the appendix isn’t much about the book as much as sort of a prequel where he explains the origins of the Compton family. Helps readers get an idea of who these people are.
That makes my point for me. Characterization and getting to know the relationships between them is first-act material.
I’m reading a bunch of ISO standards on disposable drug delivery syringes and needles. And let me tell you, they’re some real page-turners!
I’m sure you are turning the pages as fast as you can.
I’m reading something that’s almost that boring. Almost.
If you want real excitement, try 40 CFR, Part 60, Appendix A
That sucked! You lied to me Tres.
I know. The appendices just list test methods.
The real juicy stuff is 60.1-end.
Pffft. EDI transaction sets for the real “can’t put it down” reading excitement that you know you crave.
I’ve been doing a lot of school reading. Some useful (financial accounting textbook) and some not (if I didn’t have a quiz on it, I would have never bothered reading my “Leading and Working in Teams” book).
I’ll be spending the weekend on more studying, and alternating between laughing at the rage-tears of TEAM BLUE and stockpiling 5.56 because good lord this country has gone mad.
Looks like Kav vote goes to full Senate.
And Flake’s decided he wants to be an asshole without taking responsibility.
“And Flake’s decided he wants to be an asshole without taking responsibility.”
According to CNN. And they just said 10 minutes ago they didn’t have the votes. I’ll believe it when I hear it from a source other than CNN.
I saw it on Fox News.
Flake waffled and seemed to indicate that he will not vote “Yes” in the Senate if there isn’t a one week delay to have an FBI investigation. So, MSNBC must have countered Fox New’s correspondent offer to Flake
Source = CNN.
I don’t believe it. I bet they push through the vote now.
What a spineless, nutless little cuck he is. The Dems will not be satisfied with a FBI investigation. There is nothing to investigate. They’ll could essentially just mail a file of the hearing from yesterday. They have 2 and only 2 purposes for calling for this; trying to use the FBI to intimidate a witness into flipping and continuing to delay to get more fake accusations out there. It’s complete horse-shit. And it is pushing me more and more toward saying fuck it; if the choice is being an Alt-Right Nazi and bending the knee to these fuckers, red pill me, brah. I’d rather burn it all down then let them have it.
Now I understand why cosmos like Flake so much and hate Rand. Flake’s one abiding principle is the “virtue signal”.
Some votes that Flake didn’t struggle with and voted in favor of:
– Gina Haspel for CIA Director (Rand voted “no” on the floor of the Senate)
– The big budget increase (Rand voted “no”)
– Reauthorization of data collection program (Rand voted “no”)
That should tell you all you need to know about people who write glowing profiles about Flake. They care about “perception” more than “principle” and they really could care less about less government.
I’ll bet his constituents are thrilled.
Like he cares
True. And people never learn.
MUH TEAM!!
Isn’t he retiring? It’s all about poking at Trump. No principles at all.
So, here’s the deal, Turtlehead. Hold the vote now and call Flake’s bluff.
If you have the votes anyway, go forward. If you don’t just do the short investigation.
And what happens when more women claim they saw Goody Kavanaugh dancing in the dark with the devil?
The talking point has already been put out that a one week investigation is too short and not thorough enough. The goal posts will just continue to shift.
That’s why the investigation may be good “optics”, but it certainly is not smart “politics”.
As it is, because of the delay, Kavanaugh will not be able to sit for some of the cases for the next term. This circus needs to end some way or another.
It’s not though. Each concession is making Democrats only look dumber. It sucks but I don’t think it works for them.
I think you should watch the news more often.
I don’t think they’ve gotten any push back for their antics. I think this nomination is over. I don’t think he’s going to sit on the court. And I would put the odds of having a replacement at somewhere near zero. The Democrats will push for delays on that nomination too.
It’s over at this point. Democrats have one whole week now to harass Collins, Murkowski, and Flake to not vote for the Republican nominee. Republicans voters are dejected and don’t turnout in the primaries. Democrats take the Senate and the seat is vacant until a Democratic president comes in or Republicans retake the Senate.
I hear that Amy Coney Barrett hasn’t raped anyone.
I think you should watch the news more often.
If by “news” you mean DemOp Media, then that doesn’t give you any insight into whether there is pushback on this from anybody but the DemOp Media.
I think he’s confirmed in a week.
Up or down with the nomination, it doesn’t matter. What the Dems don’t want is a real vote on the floor.
Think of the Dem Senators running in red states (Heitkamp, Manchin, even Tina Smith here in Minnesoda). If there is a vote, they have to choose between pissing off a lot of voters in a close race or tow the party lion.
That is why they are so desperate to delay, delay, delay. Or to get Kav to withdraw so it can start after the elections.
If the GOP can muster the votes, I think you will see a reverse Flake effect. Some of those Dems are going to vote for Kavanaugh.
What the hell is Flake’s deal? Does he think this makes him look like a statesman by appealing to the rabid left? I understand Collins and Murkowski threading the needle with their squishy, low-information constituents ahead of reelection, but what the fuck is Flake’s problem?
I heard he is good friends with Senator Chris Coons (D), who apparently “cried” when he heard Flake was going to vote for the committee to send Kavanaugh’s nomination to the Senate floor, so my guess is this is all personal bullshit for Flake, and nothing principled. God, he is loathsome.
Just Say’n, that’s the worst case scenario, but I don’t think it’s the most likely. The Ramirez and Swennick allegations fell flat on their faces; I don’t think drudging up additional allegations will phase anyone one way or the other, even the squishes. Plus, Collins has publicly stated how troubled she’s been about the way Democrats have handled this. She has to be smart enough to know voting “no” means she approves of everything Democrats have done and a moderate conservative will never see the bench again.
I think he gets the votes.
I think you guys are hopeful. We’re looking at one week of Democratic shock troops harassing representatives with a cooperative media praising them.
Senators are not in touch with their constituents, they are as much in a bubble as anyone else. But, the bubble they’re in is Washington DC and they think that’s reality.
Kavanaugh’s dead. Amy Coney Barrett will be delayed by other methods.
I smell a bet. I’m sure we could arrange payment via the founders.
I’ll put up a bottle of Laphroiag Quarter-Cask that Kav is a Justice. If you prefer something different, let me know.
I don’t give Trump credit for playing 49D checkers, but I do believe this is exactly why he’s sitting on the Rod Rosenstein meeting. If they get their one week delay, it would be a totally Trump move to pull the pin on that grenade and consume that entire news cycle. He has done it repeatedly and successfully.
I’m not going to bet you RC. I’m not confident in my prediction. You may be right. I’ve just gotten very cynical observing this whole process.
To be fair, betting on what narcissistic aholes will do is pretty much betting on a coin toss.
Just Say’n, I’m not following your logic. If he’s dead, it means the floor vote won’t go in his favor. The delay tactics are being done because they are horse-trading in order to get a couple more “no” votes. Power corrupts.
I am reading Deadhouse Landing by Ian Esselmont. I really like the Malazan series and he is writing prologue books giving backstory to all the main characters from the series. Pretty enjoyable.
I like the Malazan series also, although it can be a slog with some chunks I just skimmed. I’ve been following the rest of their books in that universe as well. Good stuff, IMO.
I’ve been listening to the Revolutions podcast by Mike Duncan (of the History of Rome fame), so I only have one book on the go right now. Sheikh of Mars, a “Barsoom meets A Thousand Nights” tale that’s pretty cool, merging the two styles reasonably well.
Starship Troopers
The Great Divorce
Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court
Ideological Origins of the American Revolution
What did you think of Bailyn? I had my eye on that book once or twice (in large part because there is an audiobook version.)
I’m still pretty early on in the book, but I will say that it is dense. I have a hard time following dense books in audiobook form, and I think this one would be hard to follow while driving or working.
If you really want punish yourself, read Creation of the American Republic
Currently in the middle of:
Dark Intelligence by Neal Asher
The Battle of Midway by Craig L Symonds
The Coddling of the American Mind by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt
Still reading the Bible. I’m about done with Joshua.
I pre-ordered The Coddling of the American Mind by Haidt & Lukianoff, and I’m about done with the second chapter. I’m not reading much these days — I’ve slowed way down from when I was a kid. Not an issue of time, simply other things to distract me.
This should be arriving today. It defines Mormon terms with tongue planted firmly in cheek. My dad had it when I was a kid, and I hope it aged well.
I’m about done with Joshua.
Don’t worry, it picks up in Judges.
Heh. Didn’t mean it in that sense. Although… the list of 31 kings Joshua and the Israelites eliminated was tedious.
The Pentateuch is a bore once you get out of Genesis. I mean, it’s nice knowing that I’m just as in violation of the Deutoronimists interpolation of Mosaic Law for eating shrimp cocktail while wearing cotton-poly blend as I am for my sodomitical inclinations, but it just drags. Things start picking up again in Joshua but it’s a sweeping narrative that doesn’t get as personal and intense as Judges.
Judges would make for a great anthology-style one-off television season. Except for the fat-shaming of King Eglon. That’s just not nice.
Exodus is a pretty good story, no?
Depends on what you want out of it. Hollywood makes it an epic romp, but it’s more the story of God doing great works through a mediocre man with a temper and surprisingly little scapular strength.
Well, wouldn’t you have a temper if God made YOU sit on a damned mountain for 40 days and nights?
Eh, he was a drama bomb from the get-go. Murders the Egyptian slaver and smashes the rock instead of waving his
wandstaff over it.Well,when you can cast Paul Newman, yeah its gonna be a Hollywood epic.
I have Saintspeak. Bought it at the BYU bookstore decades ago.
I love the part where God and Mosses go to great lengths to get the Jews out of Egypt then realize they are all fat, lazy, worthless urbanites. So they have spend 2 generations in the wilderness to get all that weakness out of the tribes – then they descend on Canaan like a horde of Mongols.
I thought he just didn’t want to stop for directions, so they couldn’t gind the place until Moses croaked and someone finally broke down and asked.
and it’s done, Kav goes on to the floor..
oh yeah,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1-ZhGTSbQI
Flake looks like a scared kid.
Yes, but the price of Flake’s vote was to delay the full vote for a week.
What a useless bag of dogshit he is.
Flake trying to screw it up. But, I don’t think people are understanding what happened. They moved out of committee, apparently getting Flake’s vote by allowing him to ‘request’ a delay. That doesn’t mean he gets a delay. Apparently when it was brought up after the ‘request’, this is what Grassley said:
“We didn’t have a motion,” Grassley said. “This is all a gentlemen and women’s agreement.”
That doesn’t sound, to me, like he got the delay, but instead got a ‘fuck off’.
Once it’s out of Committee, I don’t think Grassley has any authority to make Mitch delay. So unless McConnell was in on the deal, there’s no agreement.
If I was McConnell, I’d schedule a vote on the confirmation for every day next week, just to fuck with people.
It will be interesting to see if they request that the FBI do anything, and if so what the FBI actually does. Because they have already done everything they usually do for a nominee’s background investigation, and there is no basis for a criminal investigation by the FBI, I think the FBI might just say (as I think they already have) “there’s nothing for us to do here”.
Apparently you don’t get it: the FBI is majick, has jurisdiction over all matters, and is populated with only highly efficient boy scouts and girl guides.
Doesn’t the FBI investigate crimes? Even if Ford is telling the truth, aren’t we about 25 years past the statute of limitations? There’s nothing to investigate. Democrats really have to rely on their voters being dumber than rocks.
I found out yesterday that there is no statute of limitations for sex crimes in Maryland.
Ponder that bullshit.
We’ve been repeatedly told there is no SOL in MD for this type of crime…
We also do not have a location putting it in MD.
We don’t have a location at all, do we?
Could have happened anywhere really.
And everywhere.
There is no statute of limitations on this in Maryland.
Believe it or not, sexual assault is not a federal crime, and the FBI would have zero jurisdiction to investigate it regardless of the statute of limitations.
Maryland, of course, is always free to open a case, and there might be a political prosecutor who would take it. I think it would be very hard to get past a grand jury, though.
No need to believe or not believe a fact. It just is.
What’s somewhat hard to fathom is a bunch of Congresspersons – almost all with law degrees – pretend to not know this. Which seems like run-of-the-mill malpractice.
Getting it past a grand jury is beside the point.
The mere existence of an investigation is evidence of a crime to these people.
Hogan has already said that he has no intention of requesting that the MSP open an investigation.
My suspicion is there are some more McCabe/Sztrok types in the FBI who are bring counted on by the Dems to deliver some kind of bullshit that causes problems for Kavanaugh
Exactly.
That’s why dems wouldnt shut up about it. Id bet they’re confident they have some reliable ‘fellow travelers’ in DOJ.
However, since he’s already been subjected to something like 6 background checks, how would the agency look now if they suddenly find something?
Or, they DGAF.
It wouldn’t even surprise me if some Dems – seeing that the Ford tactic didn’t actually work as they hoped – now want HER investigated and shown to be the fraud she is just so they can pretend to save face. “We were deceived by this horrible woman!”
No way. If he gets in, she instantly becomes a martyr, and after every decision they don’t like, they’ll remind everyone that he is a rapist. Remember how GWB “stealing” the election never went away.
Kev, I hear what your saying but I don’t think they actually give a shit about martyrs. When she ceases being a useful idiot, she will be thrown to the wolves. If she wants to be a martyr she will have to maintain that on her own dime. She might be able to milk it for a few months but her “15 minutes” are almost up.
Ok, I could see her fading into the background like Cindy Sheehan. But there’s no way any of them will give up that “rapist” card. It will be played every time he makes an “anti-woman” decision.
Possibly, but they’re going to hate any decision of his they don’t like anyway, a la Thomas. Ford though will be easily forgotten except in pop culture nostalgia, a la Anita Hill.
Yeah, but they still need his vote on the floor (I think, unless enough Dems cross over).
Grassley pretty much told Flake to fuck off and called his bluff. He voted yes. Can anyone imagine that Mitch doesn’t do the same? Any further delay is beyond preposterous. It would only lead to Democrats dragging up more fake accusers out of the muck and calling for more delays. Get it fucking done, Turtlehead, you see how Grassley handled the little pussy, do the same.
I’m sure my message to Chuckles last night sealed the deal.
Mitch will get it done. The last thing he wants is Trump backing his primary challenger in 2020. Kentucky loves Trump more than Trump loves himself.
Murkowski and Manchin are now saying they support Flake’s call for a one-week delay.
I despise that man.
It makes no sense to respond to this unless they agree to vote for Kav after a week. Which would mean Manchin and Murkowski will both vote for him and we are done.
Reminder that Trump has a rally in Wheeling, WV tomorrow night. I’m sure Joe Manchin knows this.
Mitch needs to call their bluff and bring it to a vote.
Most importantly: the loudest voices against Kavanaugh give fuck all about his position on the 4th Amendment.
Apropos of nothing, I really love this song.
Goddammit.
Good song! With the early ’80s production, it reminded me of this classic.
I still have no idea why they didn’t get caught up in the early ’80’s heavy metal rush. They were good enough, they had a record contract; they played decent metal…ehh, whatever.
If you haven’t done so, watch “Anvil: the story of Anvil”. Every band that played in the same sandbox as them in the early 80’s became mega stars except for, you guessed it, Anvil.
The only thing I every remember about Anvil was this shitty album cover that was in a book of shitty album covers with the caption “Nothing like understating your case.”
https://www.allcdcovers.com/show/73854/anvil_hard_n_heavy_2003_retail_cd/front
I thought that was a vary well done movie.
Some of their gigs and the hours sucked so bad but they kept trying.
Sound of SugarFree silence?
Too Saccharine.
Belli(glu)cose ?
It’s been slow going because I decided to keep on reading Children of Time even though early on I was not liking it.
Fucking spiders
Fucking humans
Fucking weird spider tech
I finished a Season of Storms. I liked it. It was a prequel of sorts. It seemed like Sapkowski was just having fun with his characters since he was done with the Ciri Saga.
I also just finished the 6th and final season of the Americans. Thoroughly enjoyed the whole series except season 3 or 4. Margo Martindale is a national treasure. Now I have this weird feeling that I get when I finish a long book, TV, or video game series.
Margo Martindale is a national treasure.
Did you catch her on season 2 of Justified? Awesome (she won an Emmy for it).
Yes that was the first time I saw her in something. Super rock solid.
Her stuff in the Americans is pretty minor, but in the final episode her cold, merciless, “you don’t cross me” acting came out that was so great in Justified.
I might have recommended Children of Time. I gave it some time and convinced my MIL to read it, she came around. If your arachnophobic it’s going to be rough for you.
I wasn’t totally happy about the finale but I’ll refrain from details lest I give away spoilers.
Really hate people who want to transact a fuckton of business on a Friday. Come back on Wednesday, I just want to make my deposit.
I did that in the last ten minutes of Thursday.
*insert tasteless sperm bank joke here*
A bank for tasteless sperm? MAGNESIUM
Is that the opposite of pineapple juice?
*shrug*
Your guess is as good as mine.
I have no intention of finding out. Not even accidentally.
* insert sub-joke that you don’t really want a tasteful sperm bank *
Hey ladies…my pineapple game be strong af
Margo Martindale is a national treasure.
Did you catch her on season 2 of Justified? Awesome (she won an Emmy for it).
Also excellent in The Americans.
and Sneaky Pete
already in the glass . . . . .
I remember at TOS years ago when ENB was lauding Jill Filipovic for being such a sharp, insightful writer.
It must be sad being so hollow that politics is the only factor by which one chooses a life partner.
All of Filipovic’s readers own cats. I doubt they have husbands, though. She should know her readers better
“OK, OK, new plan.
a) Marry Republicans
b) Divorce them.
WAHMEN POWAAAAAAAH!”
I wonder what they would say if somebody started calling for men to divorce their Democrat wives.
Statistics say… Married women trend concervative. Or is it Conservative women tend to be married more?
it’s both. Conservative women get married because, duh, conservative. Women who settle down, get a decent house, have a couple of kids start to look at the world those rugrats are growing up in and tend to reassess some of their previously held positions.
Filipovic of the following retardation?
That reeks of someone trying to justify their status in the face of regret.
Oh, I don’t think she has to worry about that herself. As the saying goes, most men wouldn’t fuck her with your dick.
Oh, she’s married now.
If she gets knocked up, I’m going to laugh heartily.
You know the saying, no matter how disgusting the woman, there is a man who is willing to fuck her.
Skimming through that, if that chick were any more of a caricature, a bored college student would be drawing her for $10 a pop at Busch Gardens.
That dude is going to get it, good and hard.
What, the David Beckham knockoff?
Sounds like she is also going to be married to that student loan debt the rest of her life.
Here and other places I’m hearing that wives were more upset at the Democrats than the men. They may have miscalculated badly with the dirty tricks and smears.
I haven’t come across any women who thought Ford was believable, unless you count Facebook. Most of them have been pretty vehement in their doubt of or total disdain for her.
I mentioned this in the morning thread – my wife told me that most of the women in her senior fitness class, almost all of whom are black Democrats, don’t believe Ford at all. Or, even if they do believe her, think she’s weak shit for bawling her eyes out over something they don’t think is a big deal at all.
That said, there are plenty of women out there who want to believe Ford simply because they identify with her. They’re in their fifties or sixties and maybe they had incidents in their careers that make them suspect men in general. I’ll give them some slack, but it doesn’t mean they’re not projecting.
The simple fact of the matter is that there is no corroborating evidence for any of this shit and the timing and method of it has raised significant suspicion.
They believe Ford, so correspondingly they want to end Kavanaugh’s career. Because this is not just about whether or not he gets the seat, this is about being accused of serious crimes. This is about destroying him. A guy, that up until now, nobody had a bad word to say about his personal life.
Rationale women don’t like psycho chicks and obviously see that these tactics could be used against our non-emasculated spouses and male offspring.
Rational.
“against our non-emasculated spouses and male offspring.”
Yeah I wish my mom realized that, but she’s totally fucking brainwashed.
I went at it with her last night, and maybe I said some things I shouldn’t have, but I don’t think I was wrong about anything I said.
The fucking thing that gets me is she genuinely doesn’t understand why I got so furious. Because to her, Kavanaugh is in fact evil and it doesn’t matter if he is innocent or not. He must be stopped.
But she doesn’t get that a man of my age has seen this shit play out at least a dozen times in his own life. Not for a Supreme Court seat, but for all manner of other bullshit.
But then she’s always asking me why I’m so mad. Well I’m mad because I’ve seen people fired, and seen people get expelled, and seen one guy I know go to fucking prison all because some woman thought it was good for her to throw a false accusation.
It’s real. It happens. It’s not some altright/misogynist myth. We know about it, us young men. We know you need to constantly be on the look out. Don’t embarrass them, don’t have rough sex without some proof it was consensual. Be careful about if/when they catch feelings. Don’t be mean in the workplace. Don’t make jokes. Don’t be alone with them. Make sure that the girl you’re seeing isn’t in a relationship.
don’t have rough sex without some proof it was consensual
Um, I think that is now known as “revenge porn” and is against the law.
I think that’s been good advice since 10,000 BC.
Oh sure but it used to be ” because he will kick your ass” and now it’s “She will call you a rapist”
Shit’s fucking real man. That’s how the guy I know in prison got there. Fucking a married woman, husband found out, she cried rape.
Now she’s a #MeToo consultant.
Sounds like Joseph and Zuleikha.
Mrs. Dean and I chatted. She was quite unimpressed with Dr. Ford (she watched the first part of the hearing). Didn’t have an opinion on whether she was faking the crying. But basically said “That’s it? He’s supposed to have gotten handsy, and nothing else really happened? When I was in high school [redacted]” The eyeroll probably set off some alarms on seismic sensors keeping an eye on the San Andreas fault.
The idea that women will automatically back another woman is a fallacy. Women tend to be brutally critical of themselves and others, definitely including other women.
Mrs. Dean doesn’t care about attempted RAPE and potential accidental murder? What a Nazi rowing bitch!
/sarc (obviously)
What the hell is a “rowing bitch”?
Mrs. Dean is a certified rowing instructor.
Has she ever been to London?
https://www.meetup.com/London-Gay-Womens-Rowing-Team/?_cookie-check=Xo9ePAsG4_CX7105
London? Why not Amsterdam.
The gay ladies could row their hearts out on the canals while ogling all those dykes.
Alteration of a movie line from Fever Pitch “Nazi spin bitch” referring to a fitness instructor.
Ah, I see.
You admit to watching Fever Pitch?
Maybe a rowing bitch is a woman you aren’t sure about. She could be a bitch, oar not.
You have no idea how angry this makes me.
Someone is gonna get a paddling.
Man overboard!
Canoe stop with the puns?
Man, I hate to see people I like and respect in such a row.
HM. You have no one to blame but yourself.
a) you set it up
b) you have been remiss in posting twerking videos recently. If you don’t post twerking videos, I have to amuse myself with puns.
As the great poet laureates Run DMC said:
He’s gunnel soft on us, he has.
My wife is apolitical. Or, she was until yesterday.
This morning, while dropping off the kids at school, I pointed out all of the #resist moms to her so she can avoid them.
She noticed a pattern.
Does the pattern include frizzy hair, wide rears and cankles?
In upscale places like MB, it is probably skinny chicks with lank hair, no makeup, glasses and a harried air about them.
About 2/3rds of the #resist crowd here is stay-at-home wives. I use that term because they don’t do any parenting either.
It really baffles the mind.
I’m friendly with one of the dads, and I feel so sorry for him. He works an 80 hour week, and does all the pickups, drop-offs, piano lessons, soccer, Boy Scouts, etc. He cleans the house, he walks HER dog… and so on.
I guess she has much more important stuff to do, like flying up to the Greek for Dave Matthews concerts and participating in pussy hat marches.
Does he not know this is Trump’s America now? All he’s got to do is call 912 and they’ll cart her off to handmaidville in less than 48 hours.
I’m friendly with one of the dads, and I feel so sorry for him. He works an 80 hour week, and does all the pickups, drop-offs, piano lessons, soccer, Boy Scouts, etc. He cleans the house, he walks HER dog… and so on.
At some point pity should turn into contempt, but he’s a good guy for making sure dog doesn’t suffer.
Ugh. Yes, I know the types you’re talking about, and similarly feel for their husbands, who always just do as you described and give the “whaddaya gonna do?” shrug if you ever ask them about it.
What I really didn’t care for in that group in our town, was how they acted so ‘above’ the women who worked, while they spent their days action-packed with long wine-filled lunches with the girls, spa days, and trips to the nail salon. News flash, bitches: my wife never has needed to work, she works because she enjoys it and it make her life fulfilling. But keep up the smug, Miss too-much-makeup Corner Cafe half-sandwich and cup-of-soup lunch special with the half-bottle of Chablis Ideal Mother, your contributions to society are innumerable.
Same with Mrs. Chip. She literally couldn’t even at the notion that a brief encounter of aggressive groping caused decades of torment for this woman.
My wife is not particularly political. She grew up in a family that was old-style, blue collar, Rust Belt union Democrats and was a perfunctory Democrat when we got married 15 years ago.. Virtually all of these people, including my wife, are now enthusiastic Trumpettes.
If she didn’t exist, I’d have to invent her.
Women have no agency, so do what I say. Got it.
LOL
Yeah, but they still need his vote on the floor (I think, unless enough Dems cross over).
If Matt Rosendale wasn’t a complete idiot, he’d be whipping the PR people bloody to get an ad out basically daring that fat fuck Tester to vote against Kavanaugh, and see what happens in November. I bet there are a ton of people (and not just Republicans) here who are appalled at the way Kavanaugh has been treated.
This is why the Left wins though. They are willing to vote and lose for it, because they are true believers. It’s how they got Obamacare. They spent years infiltrating Blue Dogs all over the county in as these supposed “moderate Democratic voices” and then when they got their POTUS they rammed through a radical leftwing healthcare bill that the country never fucking wanted. It cost them all those seats, but they didn’t care because they had advanced their cause by a huge degree.
It’s what they always do. We will see it probably in the 2022 mid terms. There will be a rebranding. They will be “Sky Blue Democrats” or some bullshit like that. There will be “farmers” and “veterans” and “small business owners”. They’ll pretend to be gun friendly, pretend to be school choice friendly, pretend to be for balanced budgets. Then once they have the majorities and the Presidency again, all those moderate new look “Sky Blue Democrats” will vote party line for whatever the hardcore progs have cooked up.
I don’t know how any person with the intelligence of at least a chunk of limestone falls for the “I’m a Democrat, but that doesn’t mean I’m not a gun-totin’, Bible-thumpin’, military-lovin’ man of the ordinary people!” shtick.
…who will vote however Steny Hoyer, Nancy Pelosi, and Chuck Schumer instruct me to.
First, they will have to rid themselves of their nutter left wing. I’m not sure that’s possible, or if they do, how much it will damage turnout, etc.
Sanders sure scared the hell out of them.
I’ve been following the facebook posts of a lifelong union democrat friend of mine, and he’s been reposting memes making fun of Blasey Ford and questioning her credibility.
I’m not sure if he voted Trump in 2016. Wouldn’t be surprised if he had voted Hillary (his FB account isnt that old) but at least in the last year and a half he has been full-on MAGA. He reminds me that places like Mahoning County still went blue, and that there are still plenty of old union voters/moderate dems out there that could switch sides and make 2020 a landslide.
Hey Fuggin — wasn’t sure if you saw my post the other day, expressing sadness over your guy Jeremy Larkin having to give up football.
He was a great talent and fun to watch.
Good news is, he’ll have a full life and a Northwestern degree to help him get ahead in the world (unlike many colleges, especially football factories, Northwestern honors their athletes’ scholarships for the full time they’re in school, even though they stopped playing sports years ago).
Yup, life is unfair sometimes. I have no doubt though that Jeremy will make the most of his education and do extraordinary things. He’s a competitive kid; a real grinder.
A thorough housecleaning led me to some old comix boxes I haven’t opened in decades. Currently going down the rabbit hole of Marvel’s second iteration of Savage Tales (1985). It is jaw-droppingly violent and very problematic when held against the current fare from the industry. After that, Captain Carrot And The Amazing Zoo Crew: The Oz – Wonderland Wars, Camelot 3000, and The Collected Adventures Of Fat Freddy’s Cat.
I cleaned out my work bench and tool chest this week. Something very satisfying about opening a drawer and see all your tools neatly organized.
Too bad Hollywood is such a hive of Lefties.
If they had any decent conservatives, we would be seeing production starting on a reboot of To Kill a Mockingbird with Kavanaugh as Tom. It is utterly appropriate. Being railroaded by some absolutely bogus bullshit accusations.
Scout: Lindsy Graham
I’m open to other casting suggestions.
Do a roman a clef. Cast Denzel Washington as Kav to really, what’s the phrase, “heighten the contradictions”.
Is it just me or does it bother anyone else that Hamilton was cast as a black man when his actual race is known? I don’t really care about fictional characters or historical figures like Hannibal that their race is not known.
Its their truth that Hamilton was black. Who are you to deny their truth, shitlord?
I read the reason they cast him as black is so minority kids would pay attention. That’s the lesson. Minority children are so racist they can never see a white male as good. ….this is why I often consider becoming a hermit.
You get that the Founders didn’t constantly speak in rhyme, right?
How do you know? Where you there? Is there any documentation from that time period specifically stating they didn’t talk in rhyme?
Look at my avatar, you think you can pick up this suit at your local Men’s Wearhouse?
19th century Superfly
Touché
I call bullshit. Between Hamilton and 1776, I think the record shows pretty clearly that the Founders sang and danced all the time during the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention.
My US history teacher in HS showed 1776 to his classes every year. He said he regularly got questions about whether the Founders really sang that much.
Trolling predates the Internet.
Well the whole point is that all the cast is black. It would be stupid if they were trying to do an actual historical work, but they made everybody black on purpose.
I may be way off base on this. I probably shouldn’t let it bother me, but I doubt I could get a play called “King” produced with a white MLK, you know, so white kids could appreciate his life.
Might not take shit casting an Asian though.
We’ll call it MRK.
*stiffled chuckle*
My husband went to see Hamilton last week and we discussed this. My theory is that Lin-Manuel Miranda actually thought Hamilton was black since he came from the West Indies.
http://www.latimes.com/opinion/topoftheticket/la-na-tt-hamilton-jefferson-20170916-story.html
That way he could also pretend that Hamilton wasn’t a giant piece of shit.
yeah hamilton was kind of an asshole.
What do you have against harpsichords?
Yeah! Lurch was great.
They’re try-hard pianos.
America’s founding statist.
I’d say Tom Selleck as Atticus Finch if he could pull off a Southern accent. Maybe Gary Sinise?
I say Liev Schreiber, but I suggest him for everything.
Mark Judge could be Boo Radley.
*snort*
Hillary is the rabid dog
Clarence Thomas as Atticus Finch.
Mike Lee looks like Jem
Chuck Grassley as Dill Harris (bonk, bonk on the head!)
I was just home visiting my Dad for his 84th birthday. He is a laissez-faire conservative. He is, predictably, appalled at this circus. “Show me any politician involved who hasn’t broken their oath of office during this fiasco. They should all be tossed out on their ears, with no benefits and no pension. If we made it impossible for them to profit in any way when breaking their oaths, they’d stop doing it.” *long pause* “Maybe.”
My stepmom, who is not a deep thinker about anything, much less politics, finds it all beyond tiresome and disgusting. “What the hell do they think they are doing to this country? They should all be thrown out of office. Every one of them on both sides. You don’t get to destroy people’s lives and families over bullshit. That wouldn’t fly out here in the middle of nowhere. You accuse a man of something, you better have some proof, or your neighbors are going to hate you, not him.” Every once in a while, she’s right.
Your parents are for Kavanaugh? So the Democrats have lost the Millenials too?
*claps*
🙂
I think it would be more accurate to say they are not so much *for* Kavanaugh as they are *against* the politicians and SJWs.
What I don’t get are the people who are geeking out on all the political wonkery. All the talk in the comments that presents analysis any deeper than “they’re all giant pieces of shit” is, for me, like stumbling upon a convention of pedophiles hosting an open panel about what they find sexually attractive about prepubescent children. It simultaneously confuses and disgusts.
I was going to make a joke, but I may want to run for office one day.
Way to give in to the mob, Brave Sir Robin.
The joke was me running for office. I’m not that stupid.
You’re not that stupid…..or soulless, or venal, or greedy, or power-hungry, or….
“It simultaneously confuses and disgusts.”
So, just like your youtube links.
Fair enough.
Um sure. You “stumbled into” that convention. Totally believe you dude!
Damn straight.
Nothing to do with any topics here, but what became of the Derpetologist?
Army, I believe.
I think you’re right – he said that he was going to be incommunicado for a long time
Thanks, Tundra and Chip.
I heard he had to go to rehab after a derp overdose.
I’ll bet he’s on a super-secret military spy mission involving multiple languages and codebreaking. Not allowed access to online discussion boards.
And I hope there’s a super-hot chick counterespionage agent that he’s having to pair with, and the two constantly swap witty banter.
How’s that?
Plus there’s a lot of explosions and they have to constantly fight groups of swarthy bad guys with their secret army king fu. This gives them no time to consummate their obvious lust so they make due with occasional meaningful and smoldering glances.
I hope the last two theories are true.
1-week FBI investigation.
Question: what will the investigators do for the other 6 days?
“Time-machine non-functional, can not proceed with investigation. Investigation closed, no evidence.”
Order up 19 year old call girls and put it on their expense accounts
Oooh-rah! Devil dog thinking for the win.
Amazing how that’s what we both thought of, no?
^^^
Come up with reasons why they need an additional 6 months. Remember that Russia investigation?
I would be amused indeed if Trump requested that Mueller’s enormous team of crack investigators take a week to dig through l’affaire Ford. You know, as a personal favor. And, since they seem to have plenty of time on their hands.
“We had a lead that brought us to Cartagena, but it turned out to not be credible. We still had to exhaust every possibility here before moving on.”
pad their expense accounts?
Fuck, that would be the best assignment ever. She has no idea where this “crime” happened, so you’d be free to say fly to Honolulu and stay in a nice hotel while you try to “investigate” whether that might have been the crime scene.
Like a day old lottery ticket, the chance that you turn up something in Honolulu would be nearly identical to checking out places in Maryland.
“Sir, this is Special Agent Schmuckatelli. We have a tip that the party was in a room at the Four Seasons Lanai. We’ll be boarding a flight to Hawaii in two hours.”
C’mon. You go there first and report back after you have already spent the money and time.
If you HAVE to tell your boss about it it would be : “Sir, this is Special Agent Schmuckatelli. We have a tip that the party was in a room at the Four Seasons Lanai. We will need you accompany us there. We will be boarding a flight to Hawaii in two hours.”
That way you know the expense report will sail through.
“On new information, we are relocating to the Four Seasons Hualalai”
Well, they do need to follow up on some leads regarding her fear of flying.
That means trips to Hawaii and French Polynesia.
Well, she can go THAT direction for vacation – sheesh.
Maybe that’s why they were in marriage counseling. She can only fly west, and her husband was upset about the 31 hour flight home.
Fun fact – when we were on Hawaii in July we were thinking of traveling on to Tahiti – all the trips we could find were “step 1: fly back to LAX”. It was ridiculous.
Huh. I was just there last week, and Hawaiian had a direct from Honolulu to Faa’a. I don’t think it’s daily, though.
Ah, it may have just been nothing matched our travel dates. I just randomly threw some dates into Travelocity and it’s still showing everything going through LAX. Poking at the Hawaiian site, it looks like just Tuesdays and Saturdays. Odd.
And if Ford is shown to have committed perjury she will be charged?
HAHAHAHAHAHA!
To be charged with perjury, you have to
(a) make a statement of fact
(b) under oath
(c) that you knew was false
Her testimony was devoid of statements of fact that could be falsified, so she’s good. Hell, she even perjury-proofed her own conversations with her husband by saying “He will recall that I said X”.
Confirmed: Jeff Flake is a massive pussy. Two leftists corner him in an elevator for maybe a minute and he immediately rolls over.
I blame Grassley for not having Flake forcibly sequestered.
The lesson is don’t give the left an inch or they will attack you.
Shortly after Flake announced his decision, a couple of protesters followed him into an elevator and held him there for almost five minutes, pleading with him to change his mind.
If they did not allow him to leave, they committed a crime (false imprisonment, maybe kidnapping) and should be arrested and prosecuted.
Pussy pass-won’t happen
And the protestors were probably women too.
Silly Dean. Don’t you know that the law doesn’t apply here because they’re #RESISTing?
Flake loved the attention. He probably invited them into the elevator, and probably raped them.
Good point. He is a white male, after all.
Great, another week for the coached liars to come out of the woodwork and Democrats to grandstand. Whoever the Republican’s Pope is needs to excommunicate Jeff Flake.
He’s not running for reelection so he’s already been excommunicated.
But I’ll say watching your politicos has been in some ways… disheartening. As in, it makes me a bit envious.
No, no, listen
Up here, here’s how it works
An issue of any level of importance is presented, from “trivial” to “Overthrow PM Zoolander’s hair”
Party boss says : “Vote this”
Every MP of that party does so.
If they really, really, really don’t want to, they better fucking hope it’s a forgone conclusion – so they can go “visit the constituents” or “take a pre-planned holiday” and not be there.
At best, if it’s close, they can hope someone on the other side doesn’t want to vote either and pair up and present yourselves to respective whips with “we’d cancel each other votes so can we please be excused?”
Whoever the Republican’s Pope
Don’t look at me. Even I have some standards for my church.
Dems are taking this all super seriously
There it is. If Kavanaugh is exonerated, IT WON’T CHANGE ANYTHING.
Christ, what an asshole.
They are pivoting to “temperament” and “demeanor”. With Brettly Kavanaugh. If you thought the “he’s a rapist” line was weak, well, this is weaker.
Here’s hoping McConnell says “We all know that another week or another investigation won’t change a single vote, but are part of the Democrat’s desperate attempts to delay, delay, delay. We’re voting Monday, up or down. I suggest everyone here consult with the people they represent before they cast their vote. And may God have mercy upon you, because the voters surely will not.”
And since when do Democrats oppose judges who get angry when confronted with injustice, anyway?
I walk away for a few minutes and come back to 488 comments? Don’t you people work?
Sheesh.
Night 618. Many stories in the section of “who are the worse connivers; women or Wazirs?”
Mom gave me “The Boys in The Boat” to read. Not normally my type but well written. The outcome of the races is always known (says right on the cover, “the undefeated team”) so the author has to work hard to keep interest up and pretty much succeeds.
Someone upthread mentioned The Mote in God’s Eye. Maybe the best hard sci-fi book written.
Anyone ever read any of the BOLO series? A buddy loaned me some short stories, looking for more.
… Hobbit
read any of the BOLO series?
Long ago. Always a fan of Laumer’s work, never read any of the non-Laumer Bolo works.
On a non-Bolo note, I loved the hell out of Laumer’s Retief books – I should re-read them.
Yes – read many Bolo stories.