Made From Recycled Politicians 10/01/13

[Dan Goodman]

Made From Recycled Politicians 10/01/13 Dan Goodman, 1720 Como Ave SE,
Minneapolis, MN 55414. dsgood at iphouse.com or at gmail.com.
612-298-2354

Tuesday October 1, 2013 Federal Government largely shut down, first day.

***Shopping day. Wedge Coop, first.

Steeple People Thrift Store.

HealthPartners Riverside pharmacy, to pick up meds. Came with the
standard warning not to use if I'm pregnant or breastfeeding.

***From Ansible 315:
RUMBLINGS. _Beach of the Dead 2013:_ the annual Brighton zombie parade
has been cancelled owing to 'health and safety fears.' That's what this
troubled world needs -- safer and healthier zombies.

GENRE PURITY MASTERCLASS. Outing Lois McMaster Bujold as a writer of
romance rather than True SF: 'Bujold tips her hand in the eloquence of
her language (normally a good thing) and the attention to detail that
only women would find attractive: balls, courts, military dress, palace
intrigues, gossiping, and whispering in the corridors. All of this is
right out of Alexander Dumas.' (Paul Cash, 'When Science Fiction is Not
Science Fiction', _Amazing_, 4 September) [NL/JDN]

From politicalwire.com:
Dean Chambers, the man who helped "unskew" polls during the 2012
presidential campaign to show Mitt Romney was actually leading, now says
President Obama is gay.

"I think Sullivan is right, but not for the right reason. I do believe
that Barack Obama is in fact our first gay president. But I believe this
for entirely different reasons. I believe the man actually is gay."

From Twitter:
Harvard Biz Review ‏@HarvardBiz 8m
Do Depraved Thoughts Make You More Creative? http://s.hbr.org/1hjjIwt

Sara Benincasa ‏@SaraJBenincasa 18m
Pretty psyched to have gotten health insurance in 2013 from one of the
same companies that denied me in 2012. The #ACA is my jam.
Retweeted by Zerlina Maxwell

[Michael F. Stemper]

Post by Dan Goodman
GENRE PURITY MASTERCLASS. Outing Lois McMaster Bujold as a writer of
romance rather than True SF: 'Bujold tips her hand in the eloquence of
her language (normally a good thing) and the attention to detail that
only women would find attractive: balls, courts, military dress, palace
intrigues, gossiping, and whispering in the corridors. All of this is
right out of Alexander Dumas.' (Paul Cash, 'When Science Fiction is Not
Science Fiction', _Amazing_, 4 September) [NL/JDN]

This isn't exactly a profound revelation. The mass-market paperback of
_Cetaganda_ has a cover blurb, not from _Analog_ or _Locus_, but from
_Romance Times_.

Of course, the whole concept of genre purity is a joke, anyway.

[Dan Goodman]

Post by Michael F. Stemper

Post by Dan Goodman
GENRE PURITY MASTERCLASS. Outing Lois McMaster Bujold as a writer of
romance rather than True SF: 'Bujold tips her hand in the eloquence of
her language (normally a good thing) and the attention to detail that
only women would find attractive: balls, courts, military dress, palace
intrigues, gossiping, and whispering in the corridors. All of this is
right out of Alexander Dumas.' (Paul Cash, 'When Science Fiction is Not
Science Fiction', _Amazing_, 4 September) [NL/JDN]

This isn't exactly a profound revelation. The mass-market paperback of
_Cetaganda_ has a cover blurb, not from _Analog_ or _Locus_, but from
_Romance Times_.

Which, to me, doesn't keep it from being sf. Any more than including
stuff which stereotypically appeals more to men than to women keeps
stories from being sf.

Post by Michael F. Stemper
Of course, the whole concept of genre purity is a joke, anyway.

If everyone agreed with you, do you know what would happen to science
fiction? It would include battle scenes, political intrigue, mystery
elements, sex scenes, etc.

[Bookwyrm]

Post by Dan Goodman

Post by Michael F. Stemper

Post by Dan Goodman
GENRE PURITY MASTERCLASS. Outing Lois McMaster Bujold as a writer of
romance rather than True SF: 'Bujold tips her hand in the eloquence of
her language (normally a good thing) and the attention to detail that
only women would find attractive: balls, courts, military dress, palace
intrigues, gossiping, and whispering in the corridors. All of this is
right out of Alexander Dumas.' (Paul Cash, 'When Science Fiction is Not
Science Fiction', _Amazing_, 4 September) [NL/JDN]

This isn't exactly a profound revelation. The mass-market paperback of
_Cetaganda_ has a cover blurb, not from _Analog_ or _Locus_, but from
_Romance Times_.

Which, to me, doesn't keep it from being sf. Any more than including
stuff which stereotypically appeals more to men than to women keeps
stories from being sf.

Post by Michael F. Stemper
Of course, the whole concept of genre purity is a joke, anyway.

If everyone agreed with you, do you know what would happen to science
fiction? It would include battle scenes, political intrigue, mystery
elements, sex scenes, etc.

And it doesn't already? My goodness!

[Michael F. Stemper]

Post by Dan Goodman

Post by Michael F. Stemper

Post by Dan Goodman
GENRE PURITY MASTERCLASS. Outing Lois McMaster Bujold as a writer of
romance rather than True SF: 'Bujold tips her hand in the eloquence of
her language (normally a good thing) and the attention to detail that
only women would find attractive: balls, courts, military dress, palace
intrigues, gossiping, and whispering in the corridors. All of this is
right out of Alexander Dumas.' (Paul Cash, 'When Science Fiction is Not
Science Fiction', _Amazing_, 4 September) [NL/JDN]

This isn't exactly a profound revelation. The mass-market paperback of
_Cetaganda_ has a cover blurb, not from _Analog_ or _Locus_, but from
_Romance Times_.

Which, to me, doesn't keep it from being sf.

I apologize if I gave you the impression that it did for me. I still
remember my father claiming that, because _The Hitchhiker's Guide to the
Galaxy_ was satire, it couldn't be science fiction. Hah!

Post by Dan Goodman

Post by Michael F. Stemper
Of course, the whole concept of genre purity is a joke, anyway.

If everyone agreed with you, do you know what would happen to science
fiction? It would include battle scenes, political intrigue, mystery
elements, sex scenes, etc.

Wow, Gernsback would be rolling over in his grave. Everybody know that
science fiction should be nothing except people explaining to "Bob" how
the frammistats and the integrating goniometers work. All in totally
implausible terms, of course.

Is this on-topic in mn.general because Bujold lives in Edina, or what?
Why more on-topic here than in, say, mn.sf?

[Dan Goodman]

Post by Michael F. Stemper
Is this on-topic in mn.general because Bujold lives in Edina, or what?
Why more on-topic here than in, say, mn.sf?

If mn.general was as busy as it used to be, I wouldn't be posting most of
this stuff. But I figure anything which might start a discussion here is
worth posting.

mn.sf is dead, unfortunately -- unless there's been a rebirth since I
last checked.

[Michael F. Stemper]

Post by Dan Goodman

Post by Michael F. Stemper
Is this on-topic in mn.general because Bujold lives in Edina, or what?
Why more on-topic here than in, say, mn.sf?

If mn.general was as busy as it used to be, I wouldn't be posting most of
this stuff. But I figure anything which might start a discussion here is
worth posting.
mn.sf is dead, unfortunately -- unless there's been a rebirth since I
last checked.

"It's dead, Jim."

[Lutsen Lumberjack]

Post by Dan Goodman
GENRE PURITY MASTERCLASS. Outing Lois McMaster Bujold as a writer of

Do you consider schlock such as HBO's Spartacus to be sf?

[Michael F. Stemper]

Post by Lutsen Lumberjack

Post by Dan Goodman
GENRE PURITY MASTERCLASS. Outing Lois McMaster Bujold as a writer of

Do you consider schlock such as HBO's Spartacus to be sf?

I've never seen it. Does their production introduce science-fictional
or fantastic elements into the story? If not, I don't see how a telling
of a Roman slave revolt, set in historical Rome, could be SF, whether
well-done or poorly-done.

[Lutsen Lumberjack]

Post by Michael F. Stemper
This sentence no verb.

Bob Marley: "No Woman No Cry"