There are only two kinds of plots in true science fiction: Science is a Hero, and Science is a Villain. In Science is a Hero, there is some problem or other — an asteroid is going to hit the Earth, the Galactic Empire is falling, there’s a Plague IN SPACE!! — and the heroic characters…
Month: November 2009
On Grief and Connection: A Response to the Fort Hood Deaths
A Guest Post by Ali, of Meadowsweet & Myrrh Jeff’s last post illustrated very well the kind of divisive rhetoric utilized in most political speeches these days, language that takes for granted an implicit superiority of American citizens and soldiery, and that rejects understanding, compassion and forgiveness for fear that such things will lead to…
Obama’s Best Speech Never: What the President Should Have Said
OBAMA’S BEST SPEECH NEVER Obama’s speech at Ft. Hood, honoring the dead in the recent shooting, is being hailed as a masterpiece of rhetoric. Marc Ambinder at the Atlantic (http://politics.theatlantic.com/2009/11/the_best_speech_obamas_given_since_the_inaguruation.php) says: (blockquote) “I guarantee: they’ll be teaching this one in rhetoric classes. It was that good. My gloss won’t do it justice. Yes, I’m having…
