POLITICAL ANIMALS and STARRY MESSENGER: When I re-read Just How Stupid Are We? recently, I was surprised to discover that it was written in 2008 (I had thought it was more recent). So I ordered Political Animals (subtitled "How Our Stone-Age Brain Gets in the Way of Smart Politics") by the same author, Rick Shenkman (but even that was written in 2016). In the meantime while waiting for it to arrive, I began re-reading Starry Messenger by Neil deGrasse Tyson. I have read four of Tyson's books, and Starry Messenger just might be my favorite. I hesitate to even pick a favorite because the ones I read are all quite different from each other and I liked them all, but Starry Messenger is the only one I've read twice (so far, anyway).
I'm still in the middle of it, but Political Animals came in the mail today and I couldn't resist flipping through it. The last chapter of Just How Stupid Are We? is titled "Coda: Hope," but I didn't find it very hopeful... or rather, very helpful. That's because it outlines what we as a society must do to change things going forward, and so far we haven't done any of them. It may be a while before I delve into Political Animals, but I may pick and choose certain chapters rather than reading in order. The conclusion of that book is titled "A Way Forward: Solutions are at our fingertiips if only we grasp them," but again, this book was written in 2016.
One thing both of these authors say in almost the exact same words is that human beings are terrible at predicting the future.
Heather Ann Thompson's Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage is worth reading, especially for those who never followed just how that story story turned out. Whether history would have occured any differently without this event, or with a different outcome, remains an open question.
I'm almost finished rereading William Gibson's Neuromancer, the foundational text of cyberpunk. Like all older SF, some elements are dated, but it remains an effective look at a fairly plausible future, with the rise of AI a central topic. I'll probably reread the rest of the sprawl trilogy.
Speaking of William Gibson, have I ever posted a link to this before? Back in 1967, the CBC did a feature on Yorkville, Toronto, when it was Canada's answer to the Haight. Some of that report appears here. Their guide through the streets? "Bill, a real hippie." Future father of cyberpunk, William Gibson.
TO INFINITY AND BEYOND: After I finished re-reading Starry Messenger, I began re-reading To Infinity and Beyond. I haven't yet gotten to Political Animals, but I have been reading some Conan. I've also got some Star Wars waiting on deck.
EDIT: I've also been reading some Shel Silverstein.
Working my through Water Sleeps by Glen Cook. The second to last book in the Black Company series. This takes place 15 years after the last book, with a new narrator as the most of the company including the previous narrator are stuck in suspended animation. In this series the narrator in the company Annalist, and it is them writing down the history of the Black Company
After finishing the brief but fascinating Looking for Little Egypt by Donna Carlton (examining one of the enduring legends of the 1893 Chicago Fair), I started reading a second-hand copy of Heinlein's Time Enough for Love. If I didn't find it enough of a slog, 90% of the pieces for an anthology that I'm editing came in, and I've been reading those instead.
Seriously, Heinlein shaped SF, and I have appreciated many of his books to varying degrees, but I'm finding this one only sporadically worthwhile.
This year the San Diego Comic Con will host its 50th annual blood drive, Five decades ago Mr Heinlein said he would only attend if they had a blood drive. I gave at that drive and had given before and since. I'm up to 19 gallons!
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POLITICAL ANIMALS and STARRY MESSENGER: When I re-read Just How Stupid Are We? recently, I was surprised to discover that it was written in 2008 (I had thought it was more recent). So I ordered Political Animals (subtitled "How Our Stone-Age Brain Gets in the Way of Smart Politics") by the same author, Rick Shenkman (but even that was written in 2016). In the meantime while waiting for it to arrive, I began re-reading Starry Messenger by Neil deGrasse Tyson. I have read four of Tyson's books, and Starry Messenger just might be my favorite. I hesitate to even pick a favorite because the ones I read are all quite different from each other and I liked them all, but Starry Messenger is the only one I've read twice (so far, anyway).
I'm still in the middle of it, but Political Animals came in the mail today and I couldn't resist flipping through it. The last chapter of Just How Stupid Are We? is titled "Coda: Hope," but I didn't find it very hopeful... or rather, very helpful. That's because it outlines what we as a society must do to change things going forward, and so far we haven't done any of them. It may be a while before I delve into Political Animals, but I may pick and choose certain chapters rather than reading in order. The conclusion of that book is titled "A Way Forward: Solutions are at our fingertiips if only we grasp them," but again, this book was written in 2016.
One thing both of these authors say in almost the exact same words is that human beings are terrible at predicting the future.
Heather Ann Thompson's Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage is worth reading, especially for those who never followed just how that story story turned out. Whether history would have occured any differently without this event, or with a different outcome, remains an open question.
I'm almost finished rereading William Gibson's Neuromancer, the foundational text of cyberpunk. Like all older SF, some elements are dated, but it remains an effective look at a fairly plausible future, with the rise of AI a central topic. I'll probably reread the rest of the sprawl trilogy.
Speaking of William Gibson, have I ever posted a link to this before? Back in 1967, the CBC did a feature on Yorkville, Toronto, when it was Canada's answer to the Haight. Some of that report appears here. Their guide through the streets? "Bill, a real hippie." Future father of cyberpunk, William Gibson.
TO INFINITY AND BEYOND: After I finished re-reading Starry Messenger, I began re-reading To Infinity and Beyond. I haven't yet gotten to Political Animals, but I have been reading some Conan. I've also got some Star Wars waiting on deck.
EDIT: I've also been reading some Shel Silverstein.
Working my through Water Sleeps by Glen Cook. The second to last book in the Black Company series. This takes place 15 years after the last book, with a new narrator as the most of the company including the previous narrator are stuck in suspended animation. In this series the narrator in the company Annalist, and it is them writing down the history of the Black Company
After finishing the brief but fascinating Looking for Little Egypt by Donna Carlton (examining one of the enduring legends of the 1893 Chicago Fair), I started reading a second-hand copy of Heinlein's Time Enough for Love. If I didn't find it enough of a slog, 90% of the pieces for an anthology that I'm editing came in, and I've been reading those instead.
Seriously, Heinlein shaped SF, and I have appreciated many of his books to varying degrees, but I'm finding this one only sporadically worthwhile.
This year the San Diego Comic Con will host its 50th annual blood drive, Five decades ago Mr Heinlein said he would only attend if they had a blood drive. I gave at that drive and had given before and since. I'm up to 19 gallons!
.....and I gave another pint today.
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