Liberty and Culture Vol. 24, No. 2 Winter 2006
Give me liberty Resurrection of Liberty Fiction by Tamara Wilhite, page 10 By Michael L. Wentz Novalibre, 2005, $27.95 ISBN: 978-097679732-6 Reviewed by Anders Monsen
Three teenagers embark on an unitended interplanetary adventure the clock is ticking: they need to discover more about their ship and of epic proportions in Michael L. Wentz’s debut novel, Resur- quick, as in all likelihood the aliens will return. rection of Liberty. In the process, they learn of their untapped What they discover is a world beyond their wildest dreams, and talents, hidden family history, and face an interstellar menace only when they start to understand where they are—aboard a spaceship temporarily resolved at the end of this enjoyable science fiction called Liberty, from a distant world, and captained here by Dan’s adventure that harkens back the golden age of sf. grandfather on a risky yet vital mission—we know and they know Ever since he was a young boy, Dan Foster looked up to his that there’s no turning back. Michael Wentz’ novel hurtles the read- grandfather. After the death of his grandfather followed a few ing along for the ride, as we follow the teenagers across the galaxy years later by his grandmother’s death, the now sisteen-year-old to the origin of the starship Liberty, and the siege under which they Dan travels with his parents to her funeral in Albany. Growing up, find its creators. When they find out that the insect like race bent on Dan had alsways sensed that other people held geat respect for exterminating those people probably also will target Earth, prospects his gransfather, whose commanding presence was matched only look grim. But the plucky friends refuse to lay down arms, and embark by his secretive nature and distaste for bugs. When Dan was four, once more back to their home planet to take on the invaders. his grandfather had returned home with a sharp-looking Cadillac Back on Earth, the government knows something is amiss when Fleetwood. Covered with grime from years in the garage, Dan still they detect on radar the alien ships that attacked the Liberty, and covets this car as much as he did a dozen years ago. As none of the which casually destroy an escape pod from Earth’s orbiting space adults seem to want the car, Dan ask for it, and to his great joy and platform. Wentz skillfully sketches the typical government bunker- surprise finds no objection. like reaction, yet also the brave actions of those responsible for the After getting the car running again, Dan sets out for a weekend remaining astronauts on the space station. trip to the lake a couple of months later with his two best friends Some older readers might wonder at how three 16-year-old from school, Tom and Janet. All three are bright students, with in- kids can mange to pilot an alien space ship across space, take on a dependent streaks of nature and inquisitive minds. The met while powerful non-human war-like race and survive. There were times on a school field trip to Washington, where each on deviated from —Continued on page 6 the planned agenda just sneak into the Smithsonian to explore their own interests in science. Several hours of detention later and they were inseparable. On the drive up to the lake, as they’re fiddling with the antique tape deck in the car, the radio begins to emit instructions in a foreign language. At the same time, and despite all attempts to Inside Prometheus: prevent what’s going on, the car morphs into a flying vehicle and takes to the air. Moments later they are high above the ground, then Reviews of fiction from P. Bagge, Greg Bauder, in the blackness of space, heading towards the moon. Scott MacKay, John Meaney, In fact, the trio is not headed to the moon, but an area of space Richard Mgrdechian, Charles Stross, behind the dark side of the moon, where a massive ship appears in Michael L. Wentz, front of them. Bearing apparent battle scars and hanging lifeless in space, this ship must have been here a long time, undetected. They and Claire Wolfe & Aaron Zelman; figure out this must be the main space ship, and their converted car Reviews of non-fiction from Ray Kurtzweil some sort of shuttle on automatic pilot. After docking, Dan and his Movie review: The Island friends make their way to what they determine is the bridge, hop- Eric S. Raymond on Rudyard Kipling’s SF ing to find some way to return to Earth. Instead, other alien vessels appear as if from nowhere and begin firing on their ship. Through Letters; Editorial; Prometheus Award update luck and sheer gumption the trio manage to escape, but they know Prometheus Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 De gustibus non disputandum est
The newsletter of the Recently, in a discussion forum on the screen, fans and defenders of the same work Libertarian Futurist Society internet, I provoked threats of violence upon will feel insulted. As individuals, our tastes my body from one of the other members. My in books, music, movies, and even food or Editor fighting words boiled down to the fact that clothing, act as extensions of our self, our own Anders Monsen in a thread I had lauded the movie, Dragon identity. Two brothers growing up in the same Inn, which this other person watched after house may have wildly divergent tastes, while Contributors my recommendation and loathed. He stated two individuals countries apart may discover Chris Hibbert that if he encountered me in person he shared interests and instantly bond. Max Jahr would not be averse to striking a blow at me There’s no accounting for taste. Eric S. Raymond for wasting his time. Such a statement from This is not to say no one will agree on David Wayland an otherwise mild-mannered and urbane anything. There's a market for all sorts of stuff. Tamara Wilhite individual surprised me. In light of some of I've known movies reviews who state that even the movies he had found watchable (Seed watching a bad movie is worthwhile, because of Chuckie), what could inspire someone it gives them a benchmark against which to to such venom? judge other movies. Brad Linaweaver once There’s no accounting for taste. wrote a column analyzing the worst of the Letters and Submissions: I know from past experience that books, worst, calling it Der Krapp. Now available Anders Monsen movies, and music that I enjoy might not online at
Prometheus © 2006 the Libertarian Fu- turist Society. The LFS retains a non- exclusive license to republish accepted Agent Jackson: Moving? articles on its Web site; all other rights You. revert to the contributor. Letters and Smith: Please send any changes in your reviews are welcome. Bylined articles Yes, me. Me, me, me! are strictly the opinion of the writer and Agent Jackson/Smith: mailing address to: do not necessarily reflect the opinion Me too! David Tuchman of the LFS members. —Matrix Reloaded 1364 Mapleton Ave Suffield, CT 06078
Page 2 Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 Prometheus
stories and read them, not simply for their Anders Monsen responds: Letters historical interest, but because they are still Tim and Michael make excellent points. powerful visions of the future, which libertar- In response to Michael’s comments, I have Dear Anders: ians in particular will find sympathetic. added the url for the LFS web page to the banner on page 2. I hope readers will use this It was a pleasure to read Eric S. Raymond’s Very truly yours, resourse, since a list of all previous winners history of science fiction, not least for its William H. Stoddard of the Prometheus Award and Hall of Fame interesting reexamination of the concept appears on the web page, as well as a complete of genre. However, I must question one of index of Prometheus articles and reviews dating Raymond’s historical statements: his com- Eric S. Raymond responds: back to the first issue in 1982. ment that “It was Heinlein who invented the I am very familiar with the Kipling stories In response to Tim’s comments, I’m cur- technique of description by indirection—the you mention; I’ve been arguing for years rently working with Tod Casasent to redesign art of describing his future worlds not through that “With the Night Mail” anticipated the the LFS web pages, overhauling how the lumps of indirection but by presenting it [sic] style and preoccupations of Campbellian pages look, as well as adding Amazon links through the eyes of his characters. . . .” hard SF. Kipling undeniably does anticipate to nominated books and previous winners. In fact, that technique had already been Heinlein’s technique. Laissez Faire Books does include a fair used, several decades before, in Rudyard And you raise an interesting point—it amount of fiction, and is a great place to Kipling’s two science fiction stories, “With should have occurrred to me that Heinlein shop, but not always as current as Amazon. the Night Mail” and “As Easy as A.B.C.” might actually have learned exposition-by- The nomination list was preliminary, and I Set several decades apart in the same future indirection from Kipling. In fact, the more I am sure the web page soon will contain an (another anticipation of Heinlein!), they think about this, the more likely it seems. official press release. portray a quite strange future world, the first [Editor: a longer note from Raymond detail- in the form of a popular magazine article, ing how Bill Stoddard influenced his thinking onn the second in the personal narrative of a Heinlein and Kipling can be found online at: Prometheus back issues sale recordkeeping officer of the Aerial Board http://esr.ibiblio.org/?p=234, and reprinted on of Control, on which most governmental page 9 of this issue of Prometheus.] Selected copies of Prometheus back is- functions have devolved as national govern- sues are available for sale while limited ments cease operating, who accompanies four quantities last. Board members on an investigative mission Hi, • Special Prometheus Award winner to a future Chicago troubled by memories of interviews set: Five preselected issues the past. Kipling used the technique of de- Just got my first Prometheus and it lists for $15, plus $2 shipping. Includes is- scription by indirection with impressive skill, the 2006 nominees as of August 25th. I sues containing the Robert A. Heinlein especially considering that he may well have went to the site to see if I could buy via links audio drama interview with Brad Lin- invented it. The stories are also worth reading to Amazon so LFS would get some credit. aweaver and William Alan Ritch, the for their explicit avowal of libertarian values, Discovered that we recommend LFB, but Free Space anthology interview with notably in the poem “MacDonough’s Song,” they have only one of the nominees on their co-editor Brad Linaweaver, the James which accompanies “As Easy as A.B.C.” online site (and it’s not listed in the fiction P. Hogan interview, the Vernor Vinge I have no explicit evidence that either category, I found it via search). interview, and J. Neil Schulman on the Heinlein or Campbell had read these par- Further, I can’t find the list of nominees 10 greatest pro-freedom novels. ticular stories. But Heinlein, at least, was on the LFS site, either. This seems strange. • Special bulk “grab-bag” offer: Buy a a Kipling fan, as evidenced both by refer- Are they confidential? dozen back issues for $15, postage paid. ences in his writing (for example, Kipling I’ve also sent a note to the LFB site. If Our choice from a variety of back issues and Rhysling are the favorite poets of Joe they ask for a list of the nominees in order from late 1980s through 1990s. and Jim Gregory, the conjoined twins in his to stock them, is there any problem with • Recent issues offer: Great for new early story “Universe”) and by borrowings giving it to them? members to catch up! Complete set of such as Thorby Baslim’s mnemonic training If LFB isn’t going to carry these nomi- 14 back issues from Vol. 16, No. 4 (Fall in Citizen of the Galaxy, closely modeled nated books, you should consider becoming 1998) through Vol. 20, No. 1 (March on scenes in Kipling’s novel Kim. It’s hard an Amazon affiliate as well. 2002). Only $18, postage paid. to imagine that he would have passed by any • Individual issues, by request (specific Kipling story, especially a first-rate science Thanks, date/volume no.). $5 each, if available. fiction story, if he encountered it at all, or Tim Kompara Add $1 shipping for first 2 copies, $1 that, if he read it, he would have failed to each additional 2 copies. Mail check, learn from its literary methods. And even if A quick suggestion--- there are references made out to LFS, with specified choice he invented the same devices independently, to the LFS website, such as on page two box, and your name, address, email, and without taking Kipling as a guide, Kipling but no actual listing of what it is. I think it phone number to LFS Issues Offer, went before him to this particularly literary should automatically be listed in the page 2 c/o Michael Grossberg, 3164 Plymouth frontier. info/staff box. www.lfs.org Place, Columbus, OH 43213. In any case, I urge Mr. Raymond, and all readers of Prometheus, to track down these Michael Grossberg
Page 3 Prometheus Volume 24, Number 2, 2006
with Jeremy having a personal happy ending, able to live underground, having achieved eviews his dream of joining the band, and (possibly) R having gotten the girl. But nothing has really changed for the larger society. This is the one weak point of an otherwise strong candidate for this year’s Prometheus award. Oh, and RebelFire 1.0: Out of the Gray Zone I prefer positive visions to dystopias when By Claire Wolfe & Aaron Zelman I’m voting, but dystopias aren’t disqualified RebelFire Press, 2005, $17.95 by any means. ISBN: 0964230488, 227 pages Footnote: a couple of people suggested Reviewed by Chris Hibbert not listening to the CD before reading the book, since the clash with their musical RebelFire: Out of the Gray Zone feels tastes spoiled the effect for them. There are like a juvenile, in the sense of Heinlein’s Juve- two cuts on the CD, representing “heavy niles, but that’s mostly because the viewpoint metal” and “classic rock” versions of the character is a rebellious teenager. Jeremy song “Rebelfire”. I didn’t mind the classic wants to be a rock star, sculpting visual images rock version, and have added it to my iPod. for the audience while his favorite band sings Listening to it first wouldn’t have spoiled about freedom. The major obstacle is that he lives in a repressive surveillance society that giving away his patents to deserving chari- monitors people’s movements, and controls Accelerando ties, or whatever custodian will most piss off what they buy, read, view, and ingest. Every By Charles Stross his various creditors. In later chapters, the facet of his life is monitored and controlled Ace Books, 2005, $24.95 various members of his household and its by one repressive bureaucracy or another. ISBN: 0-441-01284-1, 390 pages progeny scatter to the distant corners of the In the style of all such juveniles, the band Reviewed by Chris Hibbert universe along with the rest of expansive and all records of their existence disappear humanity. Macx’s is not a nuclear family from sight, so Jeremy has to escape from his Charlie Stross has been hanging around in the conventional sense, so the splintered home town and undergo a harrowing jour- the extropians email lists and it shows. His lat- factions head off in many directions and ney in order to track them down. Along the est book, Accelerando, (like his earlier book several combinations, which enables them to way, he adopts a dog, and has the requisite Singularity Sky) is replete with Matrioshka be present as humanity and post-humanity eye-opening adventures in the big city. He brains, characters who live out at least por- inhabit near-earth space, explore farther out, joins up with the revolution, finds the band, tions of their lives in simulations, people who begin turning most of the solar system into and stares down some government goons, fork their identities across multiple bodies or computronium, and become less and less and joins the band. software agents and reintegrate the separated recognizable. Necessarily, the story mostly I describe the book as formulaic, but memory streams, planet terraforming, and follows characters who have opted to remain Claire Wolfe and Aaron Zelman carry it all AIs with indiscernible motivations. He weaves more or less human, though, as in Marc off quite well. Jeremy is quite sympathetic, it all together into a rousing tale. Stiegler’s Gentle Seduction, the gradual and he does visibly mature through the story. The apparent popularity of the novel (the changes accumulate rapidly. The government is a lot scarier than anything short stories that comprise the sequential vi- The book is nominated for the Prometheus that we’ve yet seen in America, but all their gnettes of Accelerando were nominated for award, but any libertarianism it displays is attitudes and prohibitions are straightforward quite a few awards [“Nightfall” in 2004, “Halo” subtle enough that some on the nominating extrapolations of current governments. As in 2003, and “Lobsters” in 2002—editor]) makes committee, while admitting that it’s a good with Sinclair Lewis’s It Can’t Happen Here, me think there’s a chance that all the inside read, have whether it deserves a place as a the point is that what enables the abuse is references and barely expanded concepts finalist. The book has an air of freedom, and unprotesting acceptance by the populace. might be familiar enough to most SF readers. I’d like to argue that, though the libertarian- RebelFire: Out of the Gray Zone ends To me, it read as a novelization of the best ism isn’t front-and-center, the book presents years of the extropians list. All the things that a society that works without any central people worried about and all the possible government, and that shows its characters Reminder: Prometheus is published scenarios that people worked through in great and political factions getting along without quarterly. Issue #1 begins with detail are visible in at least passing views in resorting to governmental force. the final fleshed-out forms they reached on each new Prometheus Award cycle, In the first three chapters, we see a fair the list. If the concepts he relies on aren’t amount of commerce and crime, and most after the winners are announced too SL4 for most readers, it should do quite of the enforcement is privatized, or limited at the annual WorldCon . Sub- well, because it’s a fun read. to (threatened) court enforcement of contrac- sequent issues appear every three The first part (“Lobster”, “Troubadour”, tual terms. The subplot in which Manfred months, with issue #4 closing out and “Tourist”) follows the adventures of the frees the music is about changing the rules the award cycle each summer. peripatetic Manfred Macx as he flits around the world economy, inventing wildly and —Continued on page 15
Page 4 Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 Prometheus How I learned to love the future By Anders Monsen
The Singularity is Near Kurtzweil, an inventor and science writer, By Ray Kurtzweil has embraced wholeheartedly the idea of Viking, 2005, $29.95 the singularity as a positive and inevitable ISBN: 0-670-03384-7, 602 pages event. The concept itself almost mirrors the Christian idea of transcendence (indeed, the book is subtitled, “When Humans Transcend The Singularity. Biology”). Elsewhere, Stross jokingly has re- The word conjures up many and meanings ferred to the singularity as “The Rapture of and images. The origin of the word reaches the Nerds,” almost lampooning the day when back to the 1960s, yet really didn’t take off as tech-savvy individuals who have embraced a popular term until the 1980s. Mathemati- the implications and effects of technological cian and science fiction writer Vernor Vinge transcendence (ie., the true believers) leap wrote about the “technological singularity” across the event horizon and become some- in a science journal and novels (see, for thing other than human. example, Marooned in Realtime and A Introducing his vision of rapidly accelerat- Fire Upon the Deep). Vinge speculated on ing change, Kurtzweil first walks the reader at an inevitable trend toward accelerating through six epochs of evolution, concluding technological growth leading up to a point that the singularity will take place in the fifth where some event (the singularity) rendered epoch, some time later this century. More the future unknowable to present humans. specifically, this transformation will occur in maps of technological progress. This hyper-technological leap would occur the year 2045, and mere forty years from now. Kurtzweil looks at the three areas that when the exponential growth of technol- At this point, the “nonbiological intelligence will shape the future of mankind: genetics, ogy became such that humans merged with created in that year will be one billion times robotics, and nanotechnology, or GNR. machines, or genetic change became so more powerful that all human intelligences At this point the ice perhaps is thinnest, advanced yet readily available, that humans today.” With a vast array of charts and dia- as much of what he writes is speculations could mold themselves into something more grams, Kurtzweil sketches the progress of and extrapolation of current trends, ideas, than human, or beyond the present definition evolution through to today’s computational and discoveries. Each of these fields are of humanity. nexus of activity. relatively young, yet progress is rapid. The In the field of science fiction, the idea of It seems only natural that since most of implications a few years down the road also the singularity has both provided rich fodder the technological advances of the twentieth are staggering. for writers, while at the same been ignored century have taken place in the areas of Kurtzweil’s books in an exciting yet scary completely by many practitioners of the art of computers—from room-sized, isolated tape- vision. Although he does spend some time writing about the future. According to some driven machines to mobile, interconnected answering his critics, and also mentions some scientists the singularity looms just around super fast and ubiquitous daily objects—that of the dangers of GNR, I fear his book is the corner, and when reached will render Kurtzweil takes the idea of computational far too rosy in its vision of the future. While all our speculations about life beyond 2050 power as his corner stone metaphor. Com- no techno-pessimist, I recognize the inher- moot. Most sf writers take a slower path, and puters, once purely the domain of large ent failings of ubiquitous technology. In set novels centuries in the future not much universities, corporations, and government the early 1990s we thought the world being different from our present day. A memorable entities, now form the pervasive component interconnected was fantastic. Yet along with early example of the former view is Bruce of everyday life. the Web, email, and instant news we have Sterling, whose Schismatrix and Crystal From the world of computers, The Sin- spam, crippling viruses, ID theft, government Express told the story of mechs vs. shapers, gularity is Near discusses the computa- control of information aided and abetted by two radically different and opposing forces of tional power and design of the human brain, companies (see China). How will we defend human singularitarians. More recently, the drawing parallels between how humans ourselves against GPS driven courier bombs, foremost example of a writer working within think, and how computers think. Inevitably, re-programmable nanocytes in our bodies, or the premises of the singularity is Charles Kurtzweil seems to argue, human brains and amoral AI? Change is inevitable, and while Stross, whose first novel even bore the title, computers eventually will approach each Kurtzweil presents a bold vision of the future Singularity Sky. Still, his starkest example other enough in design and action to one which may or may not happen, parts of it of the implications of the singularity lies in day merge. This is the foundation for brain will come true. Will we be freer as a result? his 2005 novel, Accelerando (reviewed on mapping and uploading, much discussed Who knows. The story of history has been page 4). At times Accelerando reads like a among futurists and extropians, and also the story of liberty, as Benedetto Croce wrote. fictionalized road-map of Ray Kurtzweil’s deeply entrenched as a science fiction trope. Awareness is the key, and the first step might new non-fiction work, The Singularity Indeed, many an sf writer could mine the be to arm yourself with this book, as the ideas is Near. pages of this book for story ideas and road- within will open your eyes and make you
Page 5 Prometheus Volume 24, Number 2, 2006
—Continued from page 1 ease with intelligence. Instead of the line-of- command driven society of the government that also crossed my mind. And yet, kids are and space program on Earth, Dan and his resilient, inquisitive, and in tough situations friends find assistance far easier on an alien tend not to give up that easily. As James P. world than had they arrived unheralded on Hogan writes in one of his essays in his 2005 our home planet. It helped that they arrived collection, Catastrophes, Chaos, and in the long-lost ship Liberty, and that in their Convolution (BAEN): first encounter with the people who made that “[T]he world needs teenagers. ship they destroy the invading bug-like alien Those gangly frames, splayed limbs, ships. But over-all, this society seems more and toothy grins that we used to think free and open than current Earth society. of as assemblages of left-overs from While the novel fails to answer two main the Creation with no practical use questions (why did Dan’s grandfather and his turn out to be indispensable to our crew never reveal themselves if they knew the survival. What is mindless irritation aliens one day would look to invade Earth, for us, becomes for the kids a bound- and how will people from both worlds defend less source of the delights of meeting themselves against the insurmountable power challenge, demonstrating competence of the bug-like aliens), the story satisfies on and virtuosity, and savoring the heady so many other levels. taste of achievement.” The field of sf needs novels like this, which Much like the early stories of Robert opens doors to science fiction among readers breathes passion for its subject. Perhaps as A. Heinlein, such as Red Planet, Rocket young and old. a result of being a first novel, some the of Ship Galileo, Space Cadet, Farmer in As Dan, Tom, and Janet encounter the characters seem at times stereotypical. The the Sky, and L. Neil Smith’s Brightsuit human like-beings from the other planet who young friends do break down too much into MacBear and Taflak Lysandra, as well as built the Liberty, they are treated with respect hysteric yelling, but that’s part of being a several other classic works of science fiction, far beyond their years. Part of this respect teenager, too. The ending itself leaves open- Resurrection of Liberty gives us a thrill- is driven by the fact that his grandfather ings for future novels in the same universe, ing story about kids who never give up in the piloted the ship to Earth, and many of the and it will be interesting to see if Wentz face of danger and uncertainty. The writing people they meets served with or knew Dan’s follows Resurrection of Liberty with a style is straight-forward and smooth-flowing. grandfather. Yet compared to the reactions sequel. I found this book to be one more Here’s a book you can cheer for, with likeable of people in charge on Earth who deal with enjoyable novels I've read in a long time, characters, quickly plotted, and deserving of adults in that subplot, the non-earth humans and kept thinking about pulling out those old wide attention. This is the kind of novel that (for lack of a better) term, display a greater Heinlein books again to relive the emotions
Context installment, may initially struggle through the suffers the loss of his trusted aide, Elva By John Meaney first few pages striving to find a pattern. Strelsthorm, who he secretly loves. Dur- Pyr, 2005, $25 Tom Corcorigan, the novel’s protagonist, ing a session with one of the psychic Seers ISBN: 1-59102-335-1, 531 pages finds himself in the opening pages seeking upon whom the ruling classes depend to Reviewed by Anders Monsen immediate and radical medical attention guide society, Elva commits suicide. Tom is after a rescue mission that went both right shocked and unnerved by her action. When John Meaney’s second installment in his and wrong. Corcorigan saved the target, yet he learns that there may be a duplicate or Nulapeiron trilogy marked a very frustrat- himself suffered life-threatening internal twin version of Elva somewhere on the ing experience for this reader. At times it felt wounds. Unless the treatment is successful, planet, he promises himself to seek out this like the author had taken pages of a large his body will tear itself apart from within. other Elva. The rest of the novel details his and complete manuscript, ripped them into Nulapeiron, the planet that forms the back- journey towards this goal, a long path filled small fragments, and scattered them about drop to the story, is an underground planet. with missteps and sidetracks. for the reader to assemble and interpret. Few people ever see the surface, and travel Context becomes both a voyage of dis- Originally published only in the UK in 1999, takes place through tunnels and waterway, cover and self-discovery. We learn through Prometheus/Pyr has re-released Context in along or between the many levels that form some of Tom’s history that a few years past the US, along with the first volume and soon the geographic environment. To reach his he had led a revolution to change the social the third. Thus, Context finds itself in the treatment center, Corcorigan travels far from structure of Nulaperion to reduce the existing unenviable position of being the middle filler his own territory, where once he lived as a system of slavery and bondage. He failed in of a trilogy, where the protagonist and setting lord, having climbed the social ladder from this revolution, which still leaves him bitter. probably already saw most of its freshness servant origins. He also bears one defining As a “made” lord, not through inheritance, he and existence developed in the first volume and significant physical feature: accused straddles two social spheres, and seems more (Paradox), and expects a summation in of theft as a youth, he lost his left arm as comfortable among the lower classes. Tom the final volume (aptly titled Resolution). punishment. Someone like myself, unfamiliar with the first While undergoing treatment, Corcorigan —Continued on page 8
Page 6 Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 Prometheus
the end, but otherwise The Island focuses body-parts, pregnant citizens are killed after Clones on the run more on its two main stars and the premise their babies are harvested, and the guards that drives them. are ruthless when it comes to keeping this The Island Ewan McGregor shines as Lincoln Six secret. Grabbing Jordan during his escape, Directed by Michael Bay Echo, a bright and inquisitive young man, Lincoln makes it to the outside world, where Starring Ewan McGregor, Scarlett living in what seems to be the last refuge of he discovers they are clones of real people, Johansson; Warner Brothers, 2005 mankind after a global contamination. Sealed used as an insurance policy, and considered Reviewed by David Wayland inside a tower-like building, life appears quite nothing more than products. Determined to regulated. Lincoln is friends with Jordan find their sponsors and expose this program I rented this movie with low expectations. Two Delta (Scarlett Johansson sleepwalking to the world, Lincoln and Jordan become When released on the big screen I pencilled through most of the movie), yet prevented hunted fugitives. Little do they know than it in as a movie worth watching, but hesitated by rules of “proximity” enforced by guards even their sponsors care not for them as upon reading the unkind reviews. Film-goers in black from close contact. Newcomers are human beings. like myself who failed to see the movie the recovered from the contaminated zone on The Island works both as a popcorn first time should give it a second chance. The a regular basis, and the carrot of a lottery movie, with excellent set, great eye-candy, and Island, for all the burdens imposed upon it ticket to “the island,” a paradise on the strong action sequences. At the same time, by the director, satisfied me on most levels. outside world, keeps hope alive among the it’s a thoughtful movie, showing that humans Michael Bay, lampooned so deservedly citizens. can justify and rationalize exploitation of in the puppet-comedy, Team America for When Lincoln discovers a butterfly in a other humans. The guards and workers at his lush action sequences set to rock music, supposedly quarantined part of the building, the clone complex are just as guilty in indi- seems for the most part quite restrained in he follows this out through a ventilation shaft vidual rights violations as the Nazi guards this movie. There’s one jaw-dropping car- and through what appears to be the floor of working in concentration camps. As a movie chase scene that extends to hanging from a a hospital. Here he discovers quickly that that entertains as well as questions authority, building while shots are fired, and of course everything he has been told is a lie, that he The Island certainly is worth more attention the requisite mano-a-mano showdown at and the other “survivors” are being killed for than it received. A fun ride.
Hall of Fame nominees: Prometheus Awards, an update “As Easy as A.B.C.”—short story by The Prometheus Awards honor works of Here are the works nominated this Rudyard Kipling (1912) science fiction and fantasy, broadly defined, year—as of mid-December—in the three Blake’s 7—British TV series, by main that uphold libertarian values or dramatize Prometheus categories: writer Terry Nation (1978-1981) pro-freedom or anti-authoritarian themes. A Clockwork Orange—novel by An- Eligibility for Best Novel is limited to novels Best Novel nominees thony Burgess (1963) published between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31,—or, if Chainfire, by Terry Goodkind (TOR Circus World—novel by Barry Long- previously overlooked, published in Novem- Books) year (1980) ber or December of the previous year. Reflex, by Stephen Gould (TOR The Girl Who Owned a City—novel Eligibility for Hall of Fame is limited to Books) by O.T. Nelson (1977) works first published or broadcast in Eng- Noble Vision, by Gen LaGreca (Winged “The End of the Line”—short story by lish at least five years ago. Such works may Victory Press) James H. Schmitz (1951) include anthologies, novels, novellas, short The Black Arrow, by Vin Suprynowicz “Even the Queen”—short story by Con- stories, plays, poems, comic books, graphic (Mountain Media) nie Willis (1992) novels, movies, TV episodes, TV series, etc. Accelerando, by Charles Stross (Ace/ Infinity Hold—novel by Barry Long- (Previous Prometheus Award winners for Putnam Books) year (1989) Best Novel are not eligible.) Infernal, by F. Paul Wilson (Forge It Can’t Happen Here—novel by Sin- Special Awards, which are not automati- Books) clair Lewis (1936) cally presented annually but only when de- RebelFire: Out of the Gray Zone, by The Lord of the Rings—a trilogy of novels served, have gone to libertarian anthologies Claire Wolfe and Aaron Zelman (RebelFire by J.R.R. Tolkien (1954) (including Free Space, the first explicitly Press at www.rebelfirerock.com) A Mirror for Observers—novel by libertarian sf anthology), graphic novels (the The Weapon (Freehold War) by Michael Edgar Pangborn (1954) recent adaptation of L. Neil Smith’s The Z. Williamson (Baen Books) Subspace Explorers—novel by Ed- Probability Broach) and individuals (Poul Mists of Everness, by John C. Wright ward E. Smith (1965) Anderson) for lifetime achievement. (TOR Books) A Time of Changes—novel by Robert Who to Contact for Nominations: Silverberg Time Will Run Back—novel by Henry Best Novel—Chair Michael Grossberg Special award nominees: ([email protected], 614-236-5040) Hazlitt (revised 1966) Serenity—film based on the TV series 2112—music album/set of songs, by Hall of Fame—Chair Lynn Maners Tom Paine Maru—revision and web- ([email protected]) Rush (1976) site-based republication of L. Neil Smith’s V for Vendetta—graphic novel by Alan Special Awards—Chair Rick Triplett 1984 novel ([email protected]) Moore and David Lloyd (1981-1990)
Page 7 Prometheus Volume 24, Number 2, 2006
—Continued from page 6 his growth to manhood and struggles against turned back or killed by mountainous waves. the social order. It’s a shame that so much While is an accomplished sailor and whaler, goes undercover countless times, and re-in- time has passed before this novel reached the inside he feels empty. When he encounters a vents himself as an artist, warrior-monk, and US, but such publishing vagaries are far from scientist, Esten, and the scientist’s sister, Jara, finally, war-tactician and deep-cover spy. uncommon in the science fiction field. on a rocky shore working experiments that During his five year journey, Tom also Meaney certainly is a novelist worth prove the existence of a faraway land, Hab encounters hints of a dark force invading watching, and he’s just one of many of the finds himself compelled to go there. his planet. Its opponents call this force many current British invasion of sf writers only The need to satisfy some inner longing things, but one terms that sticks is “the now being noticed in the US. This Pyr Books drives Hab to sacrifice all he loves, breaking Blight.” This blight moves through areas of edition bears a superb cover painting by the very rigid rules of conduct that govern the planet, slowly subsuming the populace renowned sf artist Jim Burns. his society. He steals from his family, defies and converting them into concentration his king, and risks the lives of all those who camps that slowly devour every living being. sail with him. After one failed attempt, Hab The focus of the novel now shifts from Tom’s set sail again using a new design, submers- inner journey to uncovering the source of ible boats. He hopes that these vessels can the Blight and how combat this seemingly ride under the gigantic swells where all unstoppable force. others foundered on the surface. Setting As I mentioned in my opening words on sail with three of these boats, Hab and his this novel, it seems at times confusing and crew head north into the arctic regions for hard to navigate the pages of John Meaney’s the new land. Context. Aside from Tom’s inner journey With only three boats, and a crew of and the events around the Blight, the novel under twenty per boat, Hab’s venture seems features a subplot of a character from 1300 doomed from the start. Whether MacKay years in the past. “Ro’s Story,” as this sub- here alludes to Christopher Columbus and plot is called, is a narrative well-known by his three boats that sailed to the New World is Tom Corcorigan, and one he refers to and unknown. Hab’s three boats meets a harsher uses in his efforts against the Blight. While fate, however, when one boat is lost in the we enter Tom’s story midway, making his ice during a mutiny, and a second vanishes identity somewhat confusing to grasp, we in a storm. The latter is discovered adrift, witness the origins of Ro’s story, and it’s far Tides empty and battered, by Hab’s sole remaining easy to follow. By Scott MacKay ship, with no evidence of what happened. Towards the end of the novel I did grow Pyr, 2005, $25 Soon after this, however, Esten’s work is accustomed to Meaney’s style enough to ISBN: 1-59102-334-3, 356 pages vindicated when they come across a rocky enjoy the book. However, based on the events Reviewed by Anders Monsen and unknown shore. alluded to earlier in Corcorigan’s life, I am Here they discover another species, a more tempted now to pix up Paradox, the Scott MacKay’s novel, Tides, appears at lizard-like animal that hops and swims. Starv- first volume of this trilogy, which deals with first driven by impulses of the fantasy genre. ing, Hab’s crew slaughters several of these, The society in which mariner Hab Miquay when suddenly the tides turn, and a larger, dwells contains minimal technology, one more intelligent lizard-being arrives and kills Future Washington supreme king, a stratified society of mainly some of the crew, and blows up their last ship easy and plenty, and few people concerned using some sort of grenade. Trapped upon WSFA Press, the publishing branch with science of the prospects of discovery. a hostile and alien shore, they find them- of the Washington Science Fiction As- Much like brief history texts showing only selves fighting for survival. The three main sociation, Inc., has published Future a singular person here or there affecting the characters are captured and hauled off to Washington, a collection of 16 original world or making discoveries, MacKay’s book the main lizard city, where they are treated stories by writers such as Cory Doc- contains two or three individuals in an entire almost like pets. One of the aliens, however, torow, Joe Haldeman, Thomas Harlan, society (which to them means the world) will- has darker designs upon Hab’s homeland, Jane Lindskold, Sean McMullen, Kim ing to look beyond quotidian events. Such a something he fails to discover until too late. Stanley Robinson, Allen M. Steel, and microcosm view hampers what otherwise is He now must race to stop the inevitable many others. Of interest to readers of an entertaining and engrossing novel, where invasion and destruction of his homeland. Prometheus is “The Lone and Level some individuals risk everything to see what’s When the invasion takes place, both Hab and Sands, ” by L. Neil Smith. beyond the horizon. the lizard-people will realize long-forgotten Future Washington is published In the early years of adulthood we find truths about their origins. as a hardcover ($24.95) and trade pa- Hab in command of a whaling vessel, hunt- At this point the novel takes on some perback ($16.95) in October, 2005, and ing animals somewhat different from those known SF aspects, but never lingers there. edited by Ernest Lilley, the publisher of on Earth. The locale is a vast, watery world Instead, the ending is somewhat ambiguous, SFRevu (www.sfrevu.com), an online with two moons, generating massive tides but the resulting effect of Hab’s adventure science fiction review magazine. that lock the inhabitants of Paras within an http://www.futurewashington.com/ island, able to sail only short distances before —Continued on page 12
Page 8 Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 Prometheus Rudyard Kipling Invented SF By Eric S. Raymond
[Editor: These comments originally appeared been written by Heinlein if he had been more in a direction first set by Rudyard Kipling. on Eric Raymond’s blog on December 2, 2005, in than a child of five in that year; I knew this. Having considered the matter, I think detailed response to Bill Stoddard’s letter printed on But….grrr….I missed the implications. the sharpest insight in Lerner’s essay is his page 15 of this issue. With Raymond’s gracious You see, I had a perspective problem; proposition that Kipling invented the tech- permission I hereby reprint his entire remarks.] my eyes were too modern. I am so used to nique of exposition by indirection while Ever had a moment when somebody else reading the idiom of hard SF in our time writing his India stories; and that it is in drops an insight on you, and you feel totally that until William Stoddard pointed it out, Kim (1901)—that great, warm, wonderful, stupid because you had all the facts and all I was unable to see quite how unique and sprawling, picaresque novel of the Raj and the motivation to generate it yourself, it was pathbreaking “With the Night Mail” had the Great Game— that the technique found about something you’re expert at, but you been in its time. Once Stoddard woke me up expression in a form barely distinguishable just…didn’t…see…it? And you should have, from the SFnal use Heinlein and those who and you’re damn annoyed with yourself for followed him would put it to forty years later. missing it? As Lerner himself puts it: This happened to me recently. I gave per- Kipling had learned this trick in In- mission for the newletter of the Libertarian dia. His original Anglo-Indian reader- Futurist Society to print my essay “A Political ship knew the customs and institutions History of SF.” In it, I wrote: and landscapes of British India at first Heinlein was the first of Campbell’s hand. But when he began writing for a discoveries and, in the end, the greatest. wider British and American audience, It was Heinlein who invented the tech- he had to provide his new readers with nique of description by indirection— enough information for them to under- the art of describing his future worlds stand what was going on. In his earliest not through lumps of exposition but stories and verse he made liberal use by presenting it through the eyes of his of footnotes, but he evolved more characters, subtly leading the reader subtle methods as his talent matured. to fill in by deduction large swathes of A combination of outright exposition, background that a lesser author would sparingly used, and contextual clues, have drawn in detail. generously sprinkled through the nar- This is pretty much the standard account rative, offered the needed background. by historians of the field. One William H. In Kim and other stories of India he Stoddard wrote the newsletter editor as fol- uses King James English to indicate lows. He agrees that Heinlein introduced that characters are speaking in Hindu- indirect exposition into SF, but observes: stani; this is never explained, but it gets In fact, that technique had already the message across subliminally. been used, several decades before, in to this point, I immediately realized that the The point to keep bearing in mind Rudyard Kipling’s two science fiction story was not, as I had previously thought, (one that I think Lerner doesn’t emphasize stories, “With the Night Mail” and “As merely a sort of historical curio thrown off enough) is that this had never been done Easy as A.B.C.” on the way to modern genre SF, but almost before. There is no such subtlety in the con- Mr. Stoddard goes on to note that Heinlein certainly one of the key steps without which temporary proto-SF of H.G. Wells (mostly wrote a number of Kipling tributes into his modern genre SF as we know it would never between 1894 and 1907) and Jules Verne own work, most notably in the early scenes have existed! (between 1863 and 1905). These authors rely of Citizen of the Galaxy (1957), and to In researching the matter, I discovered an on expository lumps almost as heavily as did speculate plausibly on Kipling’s influence excellent essay by long-time fan Fred Lerner, pre-Campbellian genre SF in the 1910s and on Heinlein. “A Master of our Art: Rudyard Kipling,” 1920s—and for precisely that reason, they This is the point at which I slapped my considered as a science fiction writer which seem far more dated than Kim or “With the forehead and swore. For, indeed, I know develops this case in detail. Again, little in Night Mail” do to an SF fan reading today. “With the Night Mail” well, have reread it it was factually new to me; the biggest sur- My title exaggerates a little; Kipling did many times, and have described it to friends prise is the report that John W. Campbell not single-handedly invent modern SF. But I as an important work of early proto-SF. I regarded Kipling as “the first modern science think we may safely credit him with inventing had noticed before that the story prefigures fiction writer.” But Lerner draws together the style of exposition that was to become modern Campbellian and hard SF very well-known facts into a new shape, arguing modern SF’s most important device for exactly in its concerns, its narrative tone, effectively that both Campbell (the theorist managing and conveying information about and its management of information about of modern SF) and Heinlein (its first great the imagined future. And that it could have practitioner) both saw themselves as explorers —Continued on page 14
Page 9 Prometheus Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 The Pain of Interminable Living Fiction By Tamara Wilhite
“From boredom even the gods must struggle to escape.” “Leila Simmons now.” – Nietzsche “How long has it been?” “You’re memory is as good as mine.” “Eleven years, three months, sixteen days.” A pause. “Are you “Leila, are you ready to go?” with someone now?” “One moment.” I turned off my computer and watched the “Not right now.” holographic display flicker before disappearing. “Ready.” “Did you tell that last fellow - Jared?” We were only stopped twice for routine identification checks. Each “The riots 10 years ago killed him ...” time, I inwardly held my breath and prayed; each time, I outwardly “I know about them. I barely survived one.” He put an arm maintained a blase air of the annoyed professional. After the last around my waist and pulled me close. “Relax. We’re still married. checkpoint guard had given us the cards back and a final glance, And there’s no one else in your life.” Sandra pulled me aside. “Leila, I can tell something’s bothering “We aren’t married anymore.” you. Want to talk about it?” “We never divorced.” “No.” The coworker who was the closest thing I had to a best “Marriage ends at death.” friend looked crestfallen. She was silent the rest of the way home. “That old argument. Cara ...” “Do you want to talk about it inside, where it’s more private?” “Don’t call me that! She died because of you! I’m not her! Not “No.” anymore. Don’t you dare -” He silenced the tirade with a kiss. His Sandra stood there for a long minute. She knew there were things body language said he’d been alone since our last encounter. When I didn’t talk about: my past, my family, and my personal interests. It he chose that path, that hunger and need made the reunions over the occurred to her that I rarely shared my emotions either. For all I did decades more intense than anything anyone else could give. He knew to help and all the activities we shared, she had never scratched the that the body could remember what the mind sought to forget. surface of who I was. And realized that she never would. I kissed him hard, trying to forget the lifetimes of memories he She did not even wave as I entered my code and walked into my brought with him. apartment building. I did not bother to turn on my lights, allowing Exhaustion from the reunion brought deep sleep. With it came a perfect memory to guide my steps. My toe hit something. It was dreams of the Canadian Rockies. A cabin in the middle of nowhere, the photo album I’d kept all this time ... And I’d kept it on the shelf beautiful scenery breath-taking to an American girl. He was mysteri- ... someone had put it on the floor directly in the path I would have ous, quiet, distant, and handsome. A pure blooded Native American taken. I knew who. of a nondescript tribe, yet totally accustomed to civilized life as he was A floor board squeaked. A footstep. “Surely you’ve figured it to the wilderness. As an ecologist, the land was a common passion out by now.” for us. He slowly won me over to loving him. Despite the political That voice was so familiar .... Did I still hate him? Did I still love correctness crowd telling him he should find someone of his own him? “Jenadar.” people, we were married for four wonderful years - “Why not `Jen’? That’s what you used to call me. It’s on my ID Someone broke in. They found me first. Jen found us fighting and card now. And who are you now? Lynn Martinez? Lisa Clark?” tried to get the gun away from the burglar. I fell, left with a gaping hole where part of my abdomen should have been. I thought Jen wasn’t injured; he was at my side too quickly after the murderer got away. The rest was a blur of the snowmobile ride to a hospital before blacking out. There was nothing they could do, not here; it would be a several hour flight to a hospital with the necessary facilities. Jen was a whiz at first aid, his care had kept me alive to that point when others would have died. Despite that, I still might not make it to the major hospital. Jen hated hospitals as much as he hated governments and bureau- cracies and records. He would have lived alone in the wilderness oblivious to the outside world if not for the loneliness. Jen asked to be alone with me. I watched him check the vital signs and the IV. He pulled a small ceramic vial out of his coat pocket and poured it into the IV. He pressed a finger to my lips, “Don’t try to talk, it’ll help.” He kissed my forehead. “Trust me.” He put the monitoring equipment on himself as the drugs flowed into my bloodstream. The monitors hardly noticed the transition.
—Continued next page
Page 10 Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 Prometheus
—Continued from previous page ingredients, a few had long been extinct, and several of the plants used nearly were. By the time he had discovered what would work It felt as though I was lighter than air, half-dreams flowing through and dried caches in ancestral storage locations of the extinct ingre- my mind. He asked, “Do you feel the effects yet? As though you’re dients, he had decided to never get close to anyone again. He could floating? Just nod.” I nodded yes. He smiled, then said, as he save someone or perhaps two, but he had already died inside. He’d poured a different solution down the IV, “Don’t worry. You’ll wake never get close enough to bother trying. up soon.” He knew herbs. Was this a final gift? A peaceful end on I had broken through his barriers. I’d been an experiment. Could his terms? A loving act to let me die while he was here? he still attach to others? Could he live with someone of the modern To my surprise, I did wake up. Jen disconnected the monitors age? When I had been injured, he decided to save me. We’d man- from himself and let them dangle. Within thirty minutes, Jen was aged four years; why not forever? having me discharged over the staff ’s protests. Nor would he permit He sat in silence for a moment, then asked me to forgive him. an exam. He tried to keep them from seeing my condition. We went “For what?” home, ostensibly so I could die. He never told me if they’d filed a “You’ll have to learn to live with this. You won’t age anymore. death certificate in my name or if he’d done it himself. You’ll have to move every few years, learn how to change identities at the first sign of danger. You are no longer able to have children - I know that from personal experience. You won’t be able to see your family again. Cara, I’ll teach you what I can…I did it to save Several days passed before I noticed the full effects. Underneath you, but what I’ve taken away…I lost my family when I gained im- the bandage, my skin was perfectly smooth. No scar, not even a mortality. I didn’t even realize what I’d taken from you until after wound. I showed Jen, surprised and confused. He was neither. He I’d done it.” murmured something in his native tribal language, black eyes seem- We stayed together for another year before going our separate ing darker somehow. I asked to go into town to check messages. He ways. He’d had to change identities because of suspicious govern- refused me that right. “Stay here. Recover.” ment official. I did not want to travel to Asia; the thought of going “I feel fine.” so far from my family—though I’d never see them after a year or two “You’re not ready yet.” more - was unbearable. Two years later, I forged the identity of Lisa Days passed. I found the second set of blood stains on the wooden Martinez and moved to South America for a decade. The turmoil floor. His blood. He’d been shot too. Doubts arose, ones which could on that continent made it the only place where I could safely build not be silenced this time. The medicine cabinet that had always a new identity. It was the first such change and far from the last— been empty before I came. His never having been sick. His in- I could hear him breathing lightly in my ear, sleeping. Had it re- ability to remember his birthday. His lack of family, close friends, ally been a century and a half ? Yes. We always ran into one another a nameable tribe, or a past. or sought each other out every decade or two. If it hadn’t been for One day, he said he was going to explain everything. Then he electromagnetic pulse weapons and the occasional nuclear war, there pulled out a gun. Oh, God, he’s going to kill me! He fired it into his would have been no hiding places for us now. Even with experience, chest. I screamed and ran to him, heedless of the blood or gore. it was still a hard shell game to maintain. But the wilderness did He looked at me, eyes showing no fear and a lot of pain before not provide the shelter and anonymity it once did. Only the cities closing. His heart and breathing stopped. Then started again. He and constant migration did. But he’d taught me the game; he could sat up slowly, then pulled his shirt open, revealing a healing wound. find me if he chose. He began talking. Sometimes we would talk an hour before parting. Sometimes we His tribe had died out so long ago, though he had no idea of would stay together for a time. I still paired off sometimes. Married how long. He had been in trance using the drug he had used on me twice; widowed once by war and once by terrorism. He’d given up on when the enemy attacked. He took a second potion to build up his anything long term except with me. If there were one night stands strength before seeking to defend his people. The enemy was suc- on his part, he never said. Perhaps this un-routine routine would cessful in killing him. He awoke later, no idea of what had actually keep us going for another few centuries. happened. As years passed, the remnants of his tribe saw that he I looked out the window, watching the sunrise over the cityscape, no longer aged and drove him out. wondering. Who was I going to be next year? How long we would He began to wander. He had seen the Anasazi at their height. stay together this time? After losing two men I’d loved, did I really He’d seen the Inca cities and the Maya before their fall. Had seen the want to try again? Was I going cold inside? What I had yet not Cahokia mounds as they were built. Had lived with Alaskan Inuit, done or seen in the world? Fads and fashions were all repeats upon seen the first Russians land there. Had seen the small pox epidemics themselves, and the novelty of seeking out novelty was wearing thin. as they ravaged Eastern tribes. Had once gone to Tierra del Fuego The man beside me had long since died inside, living on habit and and had seen the Arctic Circle, eager to see a land he had not seen automatic. before. Had hunted buffalo with Plains tribes and had been enslaved The fear that I was becoming the same was still sharp, but it was by Spanish missionaries when they came to California. After travel bitterly familiar. And the hatred welling back up was worn beyond with Europe began, he went there for a few decades before coming interest. The salty tears refused to come as the grief for what I’d lost back. That was when he’d learned the European languages and consumed me. There had been too many tears already. cultures. When technology arose that could track and trace him, he came home to the wilderness to hide from the prying eyes. Tamara Wilhite is a professional technical writer and free lance fiction writer. Over the centuries, he’d had friends and loves he’d tried to save. Her first book, Humanity’s Edge, collection of 13 new short stories, is And learned from terrible trials and errors that of the two dozen available on Amazon.com December, 2005.
Page 11 Prometheus Volume 24, Number 2, 2006
—Reviews, continued from page 8 tissue in a stasis field, preserving youth over great lengths of time. He stands at the cusp of is massive societal change for both cultures. being able to change the world, granting him Early in the novel there are some pro-liberty instant acclaim and recognition. He’s blessed stands by Jara, and Hab certainly defies his with a wonderful girlfriend, Dawn Whitmore, king, but the book reads more on an adventure a cultural anthropologist, admiring students, level. The depictions of the tides and voyage and a wide open future at PacTech. around the world were gripping, though the Tom Walsh, the arrogant bureaucratic ecosystems at times seemed hardly varied president of PacTech, despises Bennett for enough to support some of the inhabitants. his success. In the aftermath of a bar brawl Despite a few stumbles with the language, and when Bennett protects one of his star stu- frustrations with Hab’s character, I enjoyed dents, Paul Branning, Walsh gets his chance Tides and found it difficult to put down. to publicly humiliate Bennett. Yet instead of going down meekly Bennett resigns; he has other plans. He decides to make personal use 3000 Years of his discovery, placing himself into stasis. By Richard Mgredechian While the outside world continues along its iUniverse, 2005, $16.95 unabated pace, Bennett will sleep for decades 0-595-36072-6 at a time, appearing briefly to witness the The second act of the novel thus deals Reviewed by Anders Monsen progress of history, skipping like a pebble with how the trio handles the fifty year leap across the river of time. When he finds out into the future. Friends and family left behind 3000 Years is a sharp thriller, one that at that Dawn suffers from incurable ovarian now are dead, or aged naturally into post- times sent my heart racing with excitement cancer with scant years left, he hatches a plan retirement years. Almost alone they face a and anticipation. Richard Mgrdechian’s to place them both in stasis and leap forward two-pronged threat: how can they integrate first novel blends scientific speculation with until they find a future with a cure. Along themselves—even temporarily—into a cul- elements of the near-future thriller genre. for the ride is Sam Tobin, one of Bennett’s ture of fear and social repression, and also Ostensibly the novel deals with a sort of old college friends. They fake their deaths deal with an escalating threat of nanotech time-travel, but the underlying focus really and enter stasis in an abandoned missile hackers bent on tearing apart integral com- deals with human society and how individuals silo that they bought on the cheap from the munications technologies? acting in certain, often narrow ways leading government, setting the timer for fifty years In the former threat the trio seek others to far-reaching implications and unintended in the future. of like minds, from Sam’s attorney friend, to consequences. They arrive into a fragmented America, a student and another professor that Bennett Professor John Bennett is driven to find with California split in several parts, none of meet at his new university. Against the latter ways to cheat death. Motivated by the death which seem enticing or welcoming. They still they team up with a former hacker, Harold of his dog during Bennett’s childhood years, manage to somewhat adapt themselves into Fu, who immigrated to America from China and later his much-admired grandfather, he society, with a few mishaps along the way. on the advice of his brother (Here I felt slight pours all his energy into physics. He also is Bennett secures a visiting professorship at quibble, as the story about the brother who a man with many heroes, studding his walls a local college, while Tobin hooks up with had become a national karate champion back around his punching bag with images of box- Linda Moreno, an attractive attorney after he home rang slightly off. Karate is a Japanese ing greats like Ali, Dempsey, and Marciano, spends some time in jail for the unpardonable martial art, and I don’t know for sure, but it and his office walls with Einstein, Newton, sin of the times, Abhorrent Vocalizations. seems that China probably would not host and other scientists. Bennett’s mood upon Speak ill of anything, or have someone find national karate contests. Rather, it would discovering a startling new application makes offense in your words, and you end up jail. seem that any martial arts competition in him almost ebullient. By slowing down the Farewell free speech. Political correctness China would instead feature wu shu or kung speed of light, Bennett is able to place living run amuck. fu, which are native types of martial arts.) With Harold along for the ride, the novel takes on a thriller aspect, as they race to Libertarian writer Russel Madden has published Death is Easy, a detective story locate the nano-hackers, only to discover a set in a world where liberty is taken for granted. Yet, “Even in a fully free society ghost from Bennett’s past. Can they defeat danger abounds.” From the website: Dyrk Rinehart lost his wife and two young children in a senseless car accident. So when Rachel this threat, and is there a chance of saving Banister asks him to locate a dying brother who has disappeared, Dyrk understands her urgency. Dawn from her cancer? Indeed, the effects In the course of his investigation, however, Dyrk—along with his partner Carla Stevers—learns of the statis appear only to have accelerated that even in a fully free society danger abounds. Before Dyrk and Carla discover what happened to her illness, and instead of a possible cure, Paul Banister, they find themselves threatened by drug smugglers, racists, and a secret from Dyrk’s time grows ever shorter, with another status past that will rattle the foundations of his world. trip seemingly impossible, even fatal. The The novel is published through Lulu, which touts itself as “the web’s premier twist thrown in here certainly highlights how independent publishing marketplace for digital do-it-yourselfers.” Death is Easy deep-reaching a simple event can become, is available as print paperback and download, with a 51 page PDF preview, from http://www.lulu.com/content/173588. —Continued next page
Page 12 Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 Prometheus
—continued from previous page Selene’s Guiding Light of Milton’s Paradise Lost which was shot By Greg Bauder on location in Pandemonium and Eden on even decades after the cause. PublishAmerica, 2005, $14.95 another plane in a parallel universe.” Bauder Some of the secondary characters en- ISBN: 1413741509, 93 pages tosses out names at apparent random, with countered in the novel receive short treat- Reviewed by Anders Monsen characters in a play a blend of real and ments. I expected more about the young boy, mythical people like Eve, Sting, Woody Al- Tommy Vesely, who Bennett befriends as a len mixing with an audience that contains fellow science fan. The swift transformation Selene’s Guiding Light is Canadian Ralph Nader, Shakespeare, and Carl Jung. of Tinny Morrison, from flirtatious student to writer Greg Bauder’s sequel to The Tempt- When the narrator wakes up from his dream predatory troublemaker, took me by surprise, ress Ariel (both available from Amazon. he’s back in the hospital room, his life now but played out well in showing the interplay com). The novel is slim, clocking in at less mundanely reduced to a regimen of medica- between John and Dawn. It also makes for than 100 pages. tion until the next dream. one of the more interesting scenes in the The story begins in a hospital room, as Greek gods and characters from Greek book, in the virtual global “mood-bar.” a patient travels in his dream to a distant history and mythology predominate in meta- Linda Moreno, the attorney who latches onto planet, guided by the moon-goddess, Selene. phors (“like the Sirens to Odysseus,” “like Sam, also is dropped later in the book, but Adapt at shape shifting, she turns into vari- Poseidon at sea,” “you rise like Pegasus,” etc.), not before she walks us through some of the ous beings, beasts, and implements during but Biblical names also make appearances, stranger new legal aspects of this society. the narrator’s first-person voyage. We only as do other mythological beings. Despite these few misgvings Richard learn the narrator’s name mid-way through The events switch between the dream Mgrdechian succeeds in writing a convincing the novel, Don Waters. world and the narrator’s existence as a patient thriller rooted in present day technological, The theme of gold runs through his expe- in a mental hospital. The narrator reveals social, and legal trends. Blending moments of riences in the new land. Bauder’s language is how he moved away from the constrictive fast-paced narrative with occasional and brief lush and descriptive, but rather tells too much one-god belief of his world, finding instead info-dumps, Mgredechian crafts an enjoyable rather than let the reader experience the set- joy in the Earth and nature, which he saw work that I believe many libertarians and ting and actions. The narrator flies through as the embodiment of Selene. In itself this futurists will enjoy. In fact, I felt many of the populated areas, where people proclaim him mirrors other divine inspirations and revela- chapters were too brief, and the novel leaves a god, and also into an empty city. Here he tions. Other Biblical echoes come forth, such open the possibilities for sequels. However, discovers the remnants of a nuclear war, the as women being subordinate to men, and the writing about how present day people deal Hairy People, whom he adopts. meek inheriting the earth. While feted by the with events fifty years in the future probably The chapters are like brief snippets or people of a village who deem him a god, the is quite different from one hundred or one narration overwhelmed by imagery. At the narrator though attempts to subvert this by thousand, but not altogether impossible. times the imagery is vivid yet erratic: “Selene http://www.3000years.org/ and I caught the midnight Plato-directed flick —Continued on page 14 Announcing Roswell, Texas
Imagine a world in which Texas never A. Lindbergh was faced with a most amaz- to follow as market conditions permit,” said joined the United States, NAZI Germany ing, and potentially world-changing, situation publisher Frank W. Bieser. conquered England but was held in check by — reports of a flying saucer crash in far west “Current plans call for the first chapter to a nuclear-armed Irish Republican Army, the Texas, near the town of Roswell. be uploaded to a new, completely revamped Catholic Church has moved its headquarters Big Head Press announces plans to publish BigHeadPress.com site around February 1, to Brownsville, Texas, and Mexico is ruled the first all-new novel-length story in nearly 2006,” said Scott Bieser, who in addition to by a neo-Aztec emperor in partnership with five years by award-winning sci-fi author L. being the story’s illustrator is also Director French colonial bureaucrats-in-exile. Neil Smith, to be titled Roswell, Texas. for Big Head Press. Access to the site will be In this Texas-that-might-have-been, Co-written by Wall Street Journal and National free, at least for a limited time, and will be residents are required to have permits not Review cartoonist “Baloo” (in his other iden- supported financially by banner advertising to carry firearms. The Federated States of tity as Rex F. May), and illustrated by Scott and merchandising, he explained. Texas includes most of what we know as Bieser, the story concerns what happens Roswell, Texas will be illustrated in full New Mexico and Colorado, as well as Loui- when a special team of Texas Rangers races color, and when completed “in late 2007 or siana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas, parts an array of spies, troops, and operatives of so” will consist of 576 computer-monitor- of Wyoming, Nebraska, and Missouri. Not neighboring nations to the UFO crash site, formatted “pages,” he added. to mention Alaska, Cuba, Venezuela, most and discover a truth even stranger than any Big Head Press, founded in 2002, is a of Central America, and the Philippines. of them could have imagined. publisher of graphic novels, including A Its currency is based on petroleum, and its “As a graphic novel, Roswell, Texas will Drug War Carol and Prometheus Award- limited government is financed entirely by a mark another first for Big Head Press: it will be winner, The Probability Broach: The monopoly on garbage collection. the first BHP project serialized on the World Graphic Novel. And in 1947, Texican President Charles Wide Web, with a printed version possibly
Page 13 Prometheus Volume 24, Number 2, 2006
Submission Guidelines —Kipling and SF, continued from page 9 tends to have as important subtext an exami- nation of the soldier’s proper relationship to In order to remain a viable and imaginary futures and otherwheres. In do- his society—much as do Kipling’s barrack- interesting newsletter promoting ing so, he exerted an influence on the style, room ballads. libertarian science fiction and the tone, and even content of SF that remains Lurking behind both these features is SF’s Prometheus Award, Prometheus seeks pervasive. abiding concern with morality, right living, reviews, esssys, articles, and columns Once we understand this, there are some and humans’ place in the cosmos. Now of of interest to libertarian sf fans. apparently accidental features of the genre course all literature touches these concerns; Prometheus, as the newsletter of the that make a great deal more sense. One is but part of the SF tradition is a tendency to Libertarian Futurist Society, focuses on the degree to which SF and SF-influenced do so in ways that emphasize politics and books nominated for the Prometheus fantasy, essentially alone among modern psychology rather less, and the inexorable- Award, but as a publication on liberty genres, carry forward a tradition of high- ness of natural law rather more. and culture, Prometheus will publish quality moral-didactic children’s fiction that The archetypal example of this emphasis reviews and articles beyond the can be read with pleasure by adults. Robert is Tom Godwin’s classic The Cold Equa- Prometheus Award, including main- Heinlein’s juveniles and even J.K. Rowling’s tions (1954), in which an innocent and stream libertarian fiction, historical Harry Potter sequence are not just coinci- likeable girl stows away on a spaceship and fiction, graphic novels and comic, dentally like the Kipling of Kim, Stalky must die — must, in fact, be killed — because movies and TV shows, and gaming & Co. and The Jungle Book—they are she overstrains the capacity of the vessel, products such as video games or role- organically derived from his work through which is delivering supplies vitally needed playing games. the technique of indirect exposition. to prevent mass death. Reviews of books, movies, and Another is the persistence of military What is this, really, but Rudyard Kipling’s TV series are welcome. For books, SF. The similarity between Kipling’s prose Gods of the Copybook Headings (1916) include author’s name, complete title, and verse about the North-West Frontier in the idiom of the Space Age? Perhaps publisher, date of publication, and and genre SF’s frequent celebrations of Kipling’s most lasting legacy in the content current price. For movies include the the military ethos in exotic surroundings is of SF is his insistence (one expressed hardly director, studio, release date, and main hardly accidental either. These stories too, ever, if at all, in literary genres other than SF) cast. If released on DVD also include are all about indirect exposition—immers- that human feeling and social construction the price. ing the reader in a strange and challenging cannot override natural law; that a tough- Submissions can be of any length, environment, not by telling but by showing. minded grasp of the way the universe actually from critical reviews or essays on par- As I have discussed elsewhere, military SF works is both possible and necessary. ticular writers or books, to brief two or three paragraph notes on books or —Reviews, continued from page 13 metaphor for the homeless, the downtrodden. movies of interest. Their enemy, the North Mountain People, Contact the editor via email at saying they control their own fate, and not to who have everything, are the fortunate ones [email protected] about your material. depend on gods to grant them anything. in society. Don sympathizes with the Hairy If you include your submission in the Interspersed among the pure related People, possibly from his days living off the text of your email, also include an narrative sections are poem and passages streets in Vancouver with Ariel. attachment formatted in Rich Text construed like streams of consciousness. Don meets Ariel’s cousin, Dawn, who Format. All submissions may be edited The narrator’s journey is one of discovery, looks just like Ariel, and falls in love. The for grammar, spelling, and style. much like The Pilgrim’s Progress, where novel as it began ends in the dreamworld, If you would like additional he is tempted, led astray, yet always with his Don seemingly happy. Has he ventured over contributor’s copies of the issue of spiritual guide by his side. Throughout his into the lands of madness for good? Prometheus, please mention this when travails he’s tormented by the real world, as Selene’s Guiding Light is a lyrical sending your material. doctors and nurses continually pull him back novella, rife with effusive adjectives, but not from his lucid dreams into medicated reality. really appropriate as a candidate for the Diagnosed with schizophrenia, none of the Prometheus Award. It’s a personal novel, a Classified medication seems to have any effect, as he work of discovery and faith, but I fail to see always falls back into Selene’s world. any libertarian elements in the story. It did The (Libertarian) Con- At one point aliens appear of the type remind me somewhat of John C. Wright’s nection, open-forum since known as “greys,” who seek to help the nar- Everness books in terms of the religio-mytho- 1968. Subscribers may in- rator. They teach him how to operate a space logical content and ideas, but Wright’s books sert four pages/issue free, ship and shape shift, becoming indistinguish- contained strong themes of repression and unedited. Factsheet Five able from the gods of the past. rebellion amid the gods and monsters. I see said, “Lively interchange We learn Don has been in this hospital none of this in Selene’s Guiding Light. In of point, counterpoint and since the death of his girlfriend, Ariel, mur- the end I felt I spent too much time looking comments”. Eight/year, dered by drug dealers. Don now believes Ariel for the real Don, as well as the key to the $20. Strauss, 10 Hill #22- is a goddess, who communicates with him story itself. Perhaps I would have reacted LP, Newark NJ 07102. in his dreams as Selene. The Hairy Persons differently had the ideas been fleshed out that Don is supposed to save might be a and clearer in scope.
Page 14 Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 Prometheus
—Accelerando, Continued from page 4 Apocawhatnow? for ownership of property, which some may see as akin to theft, but it seems to me that it’s P. Bagge’s weird take on a sensible exploration of alternative choices. If technology makes the old schemes unen- the end of the world as we know it forceable, ceding increasing amounts of force to the state (or to property owners) in order By Max Jahr to maintain rights that have always been inventions of the state in any case (patent, Apocalypse Nerd #1 and #2 copyright, trademark) is probably the wrong By P. Bagge approach from a libertarian point of view. Dark Horse Comics, 2005, Chapter 4 (“Halo”) starts out with $2.99 each, 32 pages Manfred’s daughter, Amber, escaping the clutches of her mother by emigrating to the asteroid belt. She ends up the head of P. Bagge is perhaps best known a voluntary justice association that people for his Reason magazine cartoon subscribe to because it’s better situated to work. His quirky humor, libertar- their problems. The characters refer back to ian politics, frenetic art-work, and this period throughout the rest of the story, profusely stressed-out characters ap- and it’s clear that it serves as a reminder that pear in vignette like sketches almost voluntary arrangements work better. like animated narrative fiction. The story ends with a transhuman Along comes Apocalypse Nerd, a six- diet. Too much deer meat appears to have superintelligence (the cat, Aineko) needing part comic book series from Dark Horse a disastrous affect on the intestines, sending something from Manfred, and having to ne- comics, which gave is the three-part Seren- the nerds into thunderous gassy outbursts and gotiate with him to get it. It’s clear from the ity comic book. Issue #1 debuted in Febru- spasmodic fits of the runs. In graphic detail, power arrangements that Aineko is used to ary 2005, and #2 arrived in stores around one of the men is interrupted by the arrival of manipulating events so people want to help October 2005. The color covers mark the the cabin’s owner, who is quickly dispatched her, but in this case, she needs a willing as- black and white interiors, yet the books are by the gun-toting partner. The owner’s wife sistant, so she offers Manfred something he’s populated with the same Starbucks-in-veins and two kids, who witnessed the whole thing, wanted all along: to be left alone to live his type characters as in Reason. run screaming into the forest. own life. It seems plenty libertarian to me. Imagine the end of the world, for example Wracked by a brief moment of con- via a nuclear holocaust. Bagge’s heroes, two science, the wimpy computer jock decides to disparate buddies heading back to work in leave the cabin and head back to town. He the big city after a week in at a cabin in the makes it almost back to a gas station when his —De gustibus, Continued from page 2 woods, encounter a world gone mad heading buddy appears, and they decide two people in the opposite direction. Chaos erupts at a are better than going it alone. At the gas might like. This often leads to elitist critics gas station, shots are fired, and anarchy rules station they manage to bungle events again, quick to disparage the works of popular au- the day. They’re informed that the Koreans with the result another dead body. thors and praise obscure and quirky works. nuked the US, and people are fleeing the cities Apocalypse Nerd is not for the squea- Where this goes wrong is when critics act this en masse. What’s a middle-aged computer mish, and not always funny, but has it’s way purely for the sake of being contrarian, geek with zero survival skills and a crazed moments. So grab your bug-out-bag, your rather than examining the merits of the work Republican shoot-first-ask-questions-later Claire Wolfe books, and head for the hills in question. Then it leads to bitter comments supposed to do? Head back to the cabin and with Bagge on one weird ride. Each issue by slighted authors, and befuddled mistrust hunker down, that’s what. functions as brief window into a world gone from the general public. The first issue of Apocalypse Nerd mad, with people unprepared to deal with the As a fan of fiction in general, there are details the initial shock and first attempts at situation, screwing up everything along the many writers whose work I admire that have survival in the woods. Faced with starvation, way. One of character sums it up as follows: nothing to do with liberty. For example, Clark the two city folks must figure out how to get “I know it’s not funny. What is anymore. It’s Ashton Smith and Michael Shea are two food, and worry about what might happen either laugh or cry, ya know.” of my favorite writers, but I see no purpose if someone else (the owner, for example) As a bonus, each issue features a savagely in reviewing their work in Prometheus. By should stumble across their hideaway. One irreverent look at the Founding Fathers. mentioning their names, I do recommend of the men has a rifle, and some experience Comic books attack your sensibilities far their books to fans of literary and imagina- with it, so he heads out to bag a deer. The differently than novels or movies. There’s tive fantasy fiction, but that taste is not for kill is not clean, and the uber-nerd is forced little or no libertarian content to speak of everyone. But, if you took my advice and to use drastic and gory measures to finish at the moment, and it will be interesting to hated my recommendation, just don’t bring the poor animal. see how Bagge handles the remaining four a baseball bat should we meet in person. Picking up six weeks later, issue #2 finds installments. What’s left of civilization for our two heroes suffering from an unmixed these two crazy nerds to find? — Anders Monsen
Page 15 Prometheus Volume 24, Number 2, 2006 New developments in private space flight
New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson destination experience in New Mexico to spaceport and the resulting job growth. and Sir Richard Branson, Chairman of the accommodate customers, their families, and A design for SpaceShipTwo is now in Virgin Companies, announced December space enthusiasts. its final planning stages and construction 14, 2005 that Virgin Galactic, the world’s Branson and Richardson confirmed that of the commercial prototype is expected to first commercial space tourism business, will Virgin Galactic plans to inaugurate space commence in 2006 and be flying by 2008. locate its world headquarters and Mission flights out of New Mexico in 2009 or 2010, It is expected that five SpaceShipTwo’s and Control in New Mexico. The agreement once construction of the spaceport is com- two White Knight Two carrier aircrafts will between the State of New Mexico and Virgin plete, and plans to send 50,000 customers to be built, in order to allow 50,000 customers Galactic calls for New Mexico to build a $225 space in the first ten years of operation. to experience personal space flight over a ten million spaceport in the southern part of the Customers will spend training time in year period up to 2019. state, on 27-square miles of state land. simulators and light aircraft vehicles in order Currently, there are 40,000 registrations “This is a historic day for our great state, to prepare for the g-forces they will encounter from individuals from 120 countries. and particularly Southern New Mexico,” in space. They will also learn how to operate New Mexico’s spaceport has been said Governor Bill Richardson. “With Virgin a “personal communications console” that in the planning stages for 15 years. The at the controls, enthusiasts from around the will allow them to record their experience in spaceport, located in Sierra County, about world will fly to space, routinely and safely, space. The flight itself will consist of Space- 45 miles northeast of Las Cruces, and 25 just a few years from now. And they will be ShipTwo being propelled into suborbital miles southeast of Truth or Consequence flying from the world’s first purpose-built space by a rocket motor after it is dropped is approximately 27 square miles of open, spaceport here in New Mexico. I am excited by a launch aircraft. generally level, range land with an average that New Mexico will be on the ground floor Funding for construction of the spaceport elevation of 4700 feet. of this new industry, and I know this will is expected to come from a combination of mean new companies, more high-wage jobs state capital outlay, federal appropriations, From New Mexico Economic Development Depart- and opportunities that will move our state’s and a local-option gross receipts tax that ment press release. economy forward.” will be proposed to voters of southern New Virgin Galactic plans to create a five-star Mexico counties that stand to benefit from the
The Newsletter of the Libertarian Futurist Society 501 Abiso Ave San Antonio, TX 78209
Page 16 Page 12