scifi

[ljplicease]

This is the first Saturday in three weeks that I am not off to a favourite author book signing. Instead I am back in New Jersey to see

Lena (pictured) and we went to Sandy Hook to take some pictures of the

rusty old things (also pictured). On the drive up, I heard that the Nixon loyalists at the Nixon library in California and their exhibit on Watergate in which the scandal is portrayed as a Democratic coup d'état, have been deposed. New management is putting in a more balanced and “reality” based exhibit on Watergate. This is probably a good thing overall, but I am dissappointed that I didn't make it there before they made the changes.

Listening tto Sarah Vowell read Unfamiliar Fishes when I drive around. I am sure she is not the first one to make this observation, but she talks about one of the indirect consequences of the questionable goals of converting everyone to protistentism was an increase in literacy, not just in Hawai'i, but for much of the rest of the world, because in order to be able to read the bible for yourself, you have to be able to read. As she was explaining this it reminded me of the religion of Science Fiction, in which there is much good material which is not Star Trek or Star Wars, but you also have the two major franchise players, Star Trek and Star Wars.

Is this canon?

Star Wars is like Catholicism with the hierarchy and George Lucas as the Pope. Star Trek is like Protestantism which had been healmed by a long series of different producers with different goals and ideas, and a fanbase that questions the ramifications of wether or not Mr. Leslie was really killed by the vampire cloud in the Original Series episode “Obsession”. I am sure there are lots of ways in which this doesn't work, for example Star Trek predates Star Wars so feel free to ignore this pointless observation.