NPR SciFi List

Startling Stories

August, 1952

NPR has came out with their list to the 100 best science fiction and fantasy books. I confess that I don’t even recognize some of the titles.
You can view them here.

NPR 100

I’m not knocking Heinlein, Bradbury or Asimov. They are giants.

But the problem with this list, outside of the fact it comes from NPR, is that it mixes fantasy and science fiction, which is like mixing a good scotch and a good Cabernet. The result will get you smashed but it really isn’t drinkable.

Besides,I haven’t heard of a whole bunch of these. And I’ve been reading and collecting since the third grade and have over 4000 magazines and quite a few books.

Does that make me an expert? Nope. But I do have a passable knowledge of the field.

“Dr Doolittle” anyone? “Tom Swift and his electric airplane?”

Any list of fantasy that doesn’t have Bram Stoker, Mary Shelley, H. Rider Haggard, A.E. Merritt, H.P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, Edgar Rice Burroughs and Clark Ashton Smith is fake.

And any list of science fiction that doesn’t have Jack Williamson, Edmond Hamilton, E. E. Smith, Phd., John W. Campbell, Sam Merwin, Jr., A. E. Van Vogt, Murray Leinster (Williams Jenkins), Leigh Brackett, Hal Clement, Poul Anderson, Phillip Jose Farmer, Alfred Bester, and Robert Silverberg is a sham.

How about T.L. Sherred? He didn’t write many but his, “E for Effort” has to rank as one of the best novella length scifi stories ever.

You want science fiction that will make your head ache? Read the “Collected Editorials of John W. Campbell.” The man had more ideas before breakfast than most writers have in a lifetime.

Scifi and fantasy is supposed to entertain and maybe, just maybe, educate the reader without him ever noticing. To be great it must leave the reader with a sense of wonder and awe at the universe. It must never accept realty as being 100% defined and always leave a feeling that something and someone is just beyond our view.

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

Getting what you asked for!

I woke up this morning, got dressed and went in the kitchen where my wife was already fixing breakfast.

When I looked to see what she was cooking I saw one of my socks in the frying pan.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I'm doing what you asked me to do last night when you came to bed very drunk," she replied.

Completely puzzled, I walked away thinking to myself, I don't remember asking her to cook my sock.

Hat tip to Jimmy M!

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

This one is for the fat woman who set next to me in the crowded

doctor's office yesterday and talked on her cellphone for at least an hour.

1. I hope you are not on an unlimited plan and your overage minutes charge is $1.00 a minute.

2. I didn't sit behind and to the right of the TV so I could watch TV. I did it so I could read my book! (I know reading is not an activity you are acquainted with, but some of us are.)

3. I don't give a shit that your daughter is pregnant. You should have got her on the pill or taught her how to keep her legs together.

4. If she is letting her boy friend in after you have gone to sleep then you should call the law and evict her. Maybe that will teach her to believe you when you say no. Obviously she doesn't know how to say no.

5. If you are really paying $146 dollars a month for cable I hope that includes MTV. You and it are about the same IQ age level.

6. Finally, but not least! YOU DUMB SHIT YOU HAVE A CELLPHONE. YOU DON'T HAVE TO SHOUT INTO IT!

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

Wisdom and Patience

Are two of life's most important qualities.

Hat tip to Mike L!



OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

Sharia law and moderate Muslims

As any regular reader knows, I distinguish between moderate and radical Muslim terrorists by just that. I carefully write "radical Muslim terrorists."

I do that because I recognize that the radicals are a tiny minority and that moderates are a majority.

Of course the question is this. Why does the majority tolerate the actions of the radicals?

Obviously many moderate Muslims don't want to condemn the radicals because they fear the radicals. And that is understandable. But it doesn't answer the questions raised by a poll among Muslims in Detroit.

Mosque participants were asked, whether they agree or disagree with the statement, "Sharia should be the law of the land in Muslim countries?" Sharia refers to Islamic law.

Apply Islamic Law in Muslim Lands
Strongly Agree — 59%
Somewhat Agree — 22%
Somewhat Disagree — 8%
Strongly Disagree — 3%
Don't Know — 8%

snip

I don't see 81% supporting Sharia as moderate. Sharia law contains numerous provisions that deny tenets of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Conversion from Islam is punishable by death; non-Muslims are second-class citizens; a woman's testimony is not admissible in her own rape case, and on and on. I document these and more in Islam Unveiled and Onward Muslim Soldiers.

If these Detroit Muslims were truly moderate, they would renounce Sharia.

Link

The problem is this. IF the Muslims surveyed see no problem with Sharia law in MUSLIM countries I think it obvious they would have no problem with it here.

Why do I say this? If Sharia law is not allowed then the radicals lose a huge part of their justification.

Yet when I watched CNN's totally biased report Sunday night on opposition to building a mosque in Rutherford county I watched a native born TN female claim that there are no problems.

Of all the people who you would think would have a problem with any religion that had any current practitioners following Sharia law, you would think females and gays would be front and foremost.

I think it plain that we haven't been educating people.

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1 "Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper “Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt "Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

The Bronze Rat

A tourist walked into a Chinese curio shop in San
Francisco. While looking around at the exotic
merchandise, he noticed a very lifelike, life-sized,
bronze statue of a rat. It had no price tag, but was
so incredibly striking the tourist decided he must
have it. He took it to the old shop owner and
asked, "How much for the bronze rat?"

"Ahhh, you have chosen wisely! It is $12 for the
rat, $100 for the story," said the old Chinaman.

The tourist quickly pulled out twelve dollars.
"I'll just take the rat, you can keep the
story".

As he walked down the street carrying his bronze rat, the
tourist noticed that a few real rats had crawled out of the
alleys and sewers and had begun following him down the
street. This was a bit disconcerting so he began walking faster.
A couple blocks later he looked behind him and saw to his horror the
herd of rats behind him had grown to hundreds, and they
began squealing.

Sweating now, the tourist began to trot toward the Bay.
Again, after a couple blocks, he looked around only to
discover that the rats now numbered in the MILLIONS,
and were squealing and coming toward him faster and faster.
Terrified, he ran to the edge of the Bay and threw the
bronze rat as far as he could into the Bay. Amazingly, the
millions of rats all jumped into the Bay after the bronze
rat, and were all drowned.

The man walked back to the curio shop in Chinatown.
"Ahhh," said the owner, "You have come back for story?"
"No, sir." said the man, "I came back to see if you have
a bronze Democrat."

Hat tip to Dave T!



OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson

A crying shame - We are building and repairing Mosques

And we're borrowing money to give to Muslims to do it?

Why? We're founded on separation of church and state. Why should we violate our own Constitution?

The DOS claims it is all about "out reach." Pure BS. The Muslim world sees this as weakness.

It is time to elect a President who will reach in and straighten this mess out. I don't see Romney or Huntsman doing anything but giving us more of the same.

OnTwitter I am Lesabre1

"Unlimited tolerance must lead to the disappearance of tolerance. If we extend unlimited tolerance even to those who are intolerant, if we are not prepared to defend a tolerant society against the onslaught of the intolerant, then the tolerant will be destroyed, and tolerance with them." - Karl Popper

“Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants. It is the creed of slaves.” - William Pitt

"Logic. There is little logic among the cultural elite, maybe because there is little omnipresent fear of job losses or the absence of money, and so arises a rather comfortable margin to indulge in nonsense." - Victor Davis Hanson