Strangers used to walk up to me all the time and either act as if they knew me or asked if I had a brother who lived somewhere nearby. The phenomenon was so common that I stopped thinking of it as weird in my early 20s. It died down to almost nothing quite a while ago, so when it came roaring back to life today I felt I was temporarily thrust back into my adolescent college days. A fine-seeming gent slapped me on the back at Piecora’s and said he had been to one of my solstice parties. Since I haven’t hosted one of thise since the days of the Big Pink House (11 years gone), I assumed that he must have been an old Science Center pal, but in fact he was confusing me with a Buddhist who lives in the South End and holds such parties regularly. Apparently the likeness is remarkable, so please watch out for him, thanks.
(Oh, this reminds me of that long-ago post in which I bemoaned the celebrity likeness picked by the Internet. #1 was Lee Iacocca.)
I assume that most people reading this know the basics about Bush’s power-grabbing signing statements, but the basic premise is this: he is effectively amending legislation that has already passed through Congress, typically by spelling out which provisions he plans to ignore. While the executive branch has always taken great latitude in choosing how to enforce the law, this seems to be pre-emptive legal cover against those who might sue to force them to more closely conform to the legislative branch’s words. Why they haven’t yet been challenged in federal court is a question that I would love to see answered.
In any case, check this out. Congress tells Bush that future FEMA directors must have emergency management and executive leadership experience; Bush tells Congress “not if I say otherwise.” Hooray for America and freedom! If you plan on living in Seattle or the Bay Area for much longer, as I believe most of you do, please start planning for the Big One – you’re on your own.
Because most of what I have to say about this book is negative, I should start by saying that I enjoyed reading it quite a bit. Super-cynical cyberpunk that stretches out to alien contact – waht’s not to like about that? The bad guys are US feds, and the Chinese are the saviors of democracy? Hell yeah!
But. But but but. Wait a minute. The aliens tell you how to make an enzyme that gets rid of all “extraneous” DNA? Er, I’m no biochemist, but that’s ridiculous for all sorts of reasons. And the effects of said enzyme “enhance” the subject, making him or her more of whatever he or she is? That’s magic, dude. Straight outta Star Trek, and that is not a good comparison. Nylund knows his math and physics (I guess, looks good to this idiot), but he should have stayed the hell away from overexplaining his ideas about genetics.
And then he turns it into a prequel in the last chapter, introducing not one but two new characters and ending on a “Hmm, I wonder what will happen now…” moment. If you know me at all, you know how I hate that.
Still, I’ll read the next one. I suck that much.
Frustrated progressives ought the check out this short essay by George Lakoff on pitfalls we can and should avoid in our thinking and speaking about politics. If nothing else, it’s a good antidote to despair.
You said it, sister