Wilbur

I think that William Gibson did a good job looking at the psychological fallout of 9/11 in Pattern Recognition, Spook Country, and Zero History. The event caused a kind of psychic dislocation in the American worldview that matches the Kennedy assassination in terms of modern critical historical faultlines.

It looks like Arizona AG Kris Mayes (D, formerly an R) has indicted the AZ Fake Electors and some of Trump's crew as well. The fake electors are the usual suspects of not-quite-right Republicans who jumped on the Trump bandwagon after failing at other business and political pursuits. The Trump Circle crew includes the usual suspects - Meadows, Giuliani, Eastman, Ellis, Epshteyn, etc.

Another recommendation from an online source included T.R. Napper's Neon Leviathan. This sort of cyberpunk collection of short stories is in the vein of William Gibson's Burning Chrome, but instead of The Sprawl and Tokyo from the perspective of the 1980s, most of the collection of Leviathan take place in Southeast Asia and Australia with much more modern sensibilities. Greg Patmore reads the audiobook, and he does a fine job. T.R. Napper is an Australian social worker of some variety in Vietnam, so he writes whereof he knows in terms of the scenery and worldbuilding, and his critique of the misuse of power by governments and corporations is very cyberpunk - I doubt very much that China is going to enjoy their portrayal here, for example. None of the stories is very long, but Napper handles the short story / novella form with expertise. Anyone who enjoys an action-packed short story that skewers the government or corporations of the near future will enjoy cyberpunk in general, and these stories in particular. Good stuff.

I recently received Bruce Holsinger's A Burnable Book, and again, I think I placed the request based on a recommendation from one of the forum members in a previous iteration of this thread. Whichever one of you reviewed this one, thank you! The audiobook read by Simon Vance is excellent, as is every performance Vance does. The plot is thick with unreliable narrators and twists and turns in a royal court sure to appeal to any fan of ASOIAF, the mysteries unravel slowly and with some good turns from predictability, the cryptography is dealt with in a light and non-Neal Stephenson manner. The historical characters are well-limned, most especially the protagonist and poet philosopher John Gower and his friend and contemporary Geoffrey Chaucer. The book's strengths lie in its portrayal of the politics of the late medieval period in London, and its weaknesses also lie there as well. By this I mean that the story and writing transport the reader to the scene and the concerns of the characters so very effectively, but also, as an American and a republican, I can't bring myself to care all that much about threats to the king. Still, the risks and dangers to the many non-noble characters are real, and the writer makes us care about them and their concerns. Strongly recommended!

You have a good point. Those plots actually do work, although once you have read The Men of Greywater Station, it is difficult to suspend disbelief long enough to not guess the ultimate outcome.

I laughed aloud at the thought of the challenge a writer would have to make neutropenic precautions a gripping read. "Quick, apply the antimycotic medical cream!"

Also, he apparently couldn't count, which resulted in bills being brought to the floor with insufficient votes to pass. Surely that ability is the minimum job requirement of the Speaker.

The path to nuclear power and nuclear weapons is not fraught with insurmountable obstacles. It is a matter of determination to spend the required money and a willingness to commit to the end result. If you review the Indian road to nuclear capability, this much becomes clear. I imagine that most US administrations would work to reduce the risk of more nations gaining that capacity, but again, thwarting another nation's nuclear ambitions requires stubborn, persistent efforts.

It is interesting how that report indicates that children were able to come through the pandemic as a group without the big losses that adults experienced. These two articles about how the nasal cells of children respond more effectively to Covid make for interesting reading to complement that idea. Young nose cells may help children fight off Covid (bbc.com) Here's Why Infants Are Strangely Resistant to COVID | Scientific American There may be good avenues for exploration and research regarding the differences in response to Covid compared to the flu, which is typically more deadly to children.

Chet and Wemby Redux - the best since Larry and Magic?

The Boeing board needs to reload the entire senior leadership team, with a strong focus on governance and motivation to (re-)develop a culture of compliance and control. Also, the FAA and NTSB need to intentionally step out of the regulatory capture loop. They need to avoid the fate of the banking regulators and maintain their independence.

John Carter was a very imperfect film, particularly the latter half. What killed it, however, was the TERRIBLE marketing for the film. I took my daughter to see it on opening Friday, where Harkins was showing it in the Cine Capri: basketball-court sized, curved screen; massive sound system; over two hundred recliners in a raked stadium seating configuration; tickets that cost 150% of normal price. The screening we attended had a total of 13 people watching it, all of the rest of them older than me. On Sunday I went with my wife, where we watched it with seven other viewers. This was a pretty big spectacle, perfect for the modern movie theater, and almost no one was drawn in to see it.

"What happened to the Suns?" They fired Monty Williams and hollowed out their roster, that is what.

Did you enjoy John Carter? It seems like a film that is right down the middle of what you describe. Some other good ones from the last decade or so that might scratch that itch could be The Endless, High Life, Ready Player One, Edge of Tomorrow, Sunshine, Serenity, Attack the Block, or Source Code.

This strike is very impressive, since that is: behind enemy lines in occupied Ukraine, then behind enemy-controlled naval area in the Sea of Azov, then Inside the borders of Russia itself. Reaching out and touching a location like that takes some serious skills. Drive or fly through occupied territory, then possibly across or over occupied sea lanes, then over or across enemy sovereign territory. Then return home.