We learn history in the schoolroom by rote. We learn dead dates, what happened on exact days three and half centuries ago in worlds and societies which we cannot begin to imagine, let alone understand. Because histories are written by … Continue reading
Science fiction as a genre is not compatible with nostalgia. I’m not advocating ignoring the past as a writer, a reader, or a civic-minded human being. Knowing and understanding our history is not just important, it’s vital. But we need … Continue reading
I fell off my bicycle right in the middle of a city street last Sunday. My pedals locked up, which was caused by a combination of operator error (I started to downshift too late going up a steep hill) and … Continue reading
It is said that part of the life of the writer – a big part, perhaps the biggest – is WAITING. Once you’ve done something and it’s out of your hands, you wait. You wait for an editor to send … Continue reading
I had meant to write more about Ireland and Dublin (as if you haven’t already heard enough, but I’m still processing), but I was going through my trip photos and stopped at this one, taken through the window of my … Continue reading
On Twitter I saw someone asking people in the United States if they had an “exit strategy.” I think this was motivated by the fact that our government is being run by a white supremacist con man who is actively … Continue reading
I don’t care where it comes from – people tasked with administrivia who get in my way, the TSA, insurance hucksters, someone in retail who just screwed up and I pointed it out, anybody at all who has just done … Continue reading
The Department of Justice recently announced its intention to resume executions. I am appalled by this decision, and this is why. In 1986, my 70-year-old mother was asleep in her own bed when a teenaged neighbor broke into her home, … Continue reading
My father didn’t hunt. That statement needs some context. My father was born and raised in West Texas in the first half of the 20th Century, a time and place in which the myths of the West still existed. He … Continue reading
Look, i get it. There is a “we’ve always done it this way” thing going in America which often gets in the way of things. But really – because it’s going to be Just. Too. Difficult. For. People. To. Understand. … Continue reading
