I was LeGuin the first time thru, which is fine because she's one of my favorite authors ever, but then I thought some of my answers needed adjusting and I ended up as Arthur C. Clarke ... which is weird because I flunked physics. Sigh.
And Peter Dickinson IS a great writer. Try "The Kin" or "The Blue Hawk" or "The Glass-Sided Ants' Nest" for stuff that will not leave your mind, ever. Hell, read everything he ever wrote!
Calling these guys (Dubya, Allen, et al.) "morons" is both counterproductive and inaccurate -- as well as insulting to real morons. A real moron can't help being one. These guys are ignoramuses -- people who COULD know things but who won't learn. As far as I'm concerned, that's far worse than just being not very bright.
I second the Heinlein juvenile recommendation, and the E. Nesbits, .... and the Patricia Wrightson.....
also Helen Cresswell, Eleanor Cameron, Alan Garner, Diana Wynne Jones, Peter Dickinson (The Kin is genius)
and Philip Pullman's four (I think) connected books about a girl in the 1880s-90s, The Ruby in the Smoke, The Tin Princess, er, uh, sorry I can't recall the other titles ...
... and I must admit that I absolutely hated A Wind in the Door by L'Engle, found it didactic and heavy-handed, although A Swiftly Tilting Planet was terrific (but maybe too advanced for age 9)
... and Rosemary Sutcliff when the reader gets a little older!
Patrick posts: Personally, I hate the whole "Bush is a chimp" routine, because it's demeaning to chimps. I'm not actually joking.
I'm with you, Patrick. I've stopped calling Bush a "moron" as that is insulting to morons, who are not responsible for their level of I.Q. Instead, I now call him what he really is: a lazy ignoramus. An ignoramus IS responsible for his own ignorance.
epacris: If Democrats don't reach out their hands to the party in power then nothing they want will get done. Of course this has to work both ways.
I used to think -- hell, I still think -- that bipartisanship is a Good Thing. Unfortunately the other side doesn't agree. Grover Norquist considers it "date rape" and I see no reason to believe that the rest of the Rethugs disagree. Besides, reaching out to the party in power isn't going to do what I want done, namely, the total discrediting and deposition of the party in power!
Found it:
Recessional
God of our fathers, known of old--
Lord of our far-flung battle line
Beneath whose awful hand we hold
Dominion over palm and pine--
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget - lest we forget!
The tumult and the shouting dies;
The captains and the kings depart:
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice,
An humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget - lest we forget!
Far-called, our navies melt away;
On dune and headland sinks the fire:
Lo, all our pomp of yesterday
Is one with Nineveh and Tyre!
Judge of the Nations, spare us yet,
Lest we forget - lest we forget!
If, drunk with sight of power, we loose
Wild tongues that have not Thee in awe--
Such boasting as the Gentiles use
Or lesser breeds without the law--
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget - lest we forget!
For heathen heart that puts her trust
In reeking tube and iron shard--
All valiant dust that builds on dust,
And guarding, calls not Thee to guard--
For frantic boast and foolish word,
Thy mercy on Thy people, Lord!
It's that last verse that seems particularly appropriate today. Those are the people who won yesterday -- unfortunately we're ALL going to pay the price for their boastfulness and folly.
Katie Murphy posts: On one hand, I cannot recognize this as my country. On the other, dammit, it *is* my country, and while I've been threatening to leave if Bush is reinstalled, this morning I find that I don't want to leave. I want the sons of bitches who have taken over my country out of power.
You go, girl! I feel as depressed as everybody else -- but you're dern tootin!!
And on poetry, I haven't read all the comments yet, what about Kipling's Recessional? Which unfortunately I don't have at hand to paste in...
John Scalzi, Stefanie Murray, Tracina: thanks.
Bellatrys: You're giving Dubya too much credit , although I appreciate your classical reference to the Praetorians. Personally I think he qualifies as this century's response to Incitatus -- Caligula's horse, whom Caligula made a Senator.
James D. McDonald: Thanks!
This is such an interesting discussion. Teresa, thanks for starting it. I don't agree with everything you said but I respect it.
I believe that God is an artist and a lover. A true artist doesn't just paint things that are pretty. A true lover goes through the pain of life and death with you.
I never knew about the study Nina mentions, but I'd like to give myself credit for figuring it out myself. I'm a tech writer too, and used to be an editor and manager, and I quickly learned that some of my people could spell and some couldn't -- which had nothing to do with how good they were as writers. Before Spellcheck, I had one guy who had to look up every single word in the dictionary, every time he turned something in, yet I never had to correct anything of his because he was so conscientious. (Did I spell that right?!!) -- Anyway, I agree with Theresa too: shame on those teachers who punished kids for what they couldn't help!
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| 2005 | 2 |
| 2004 | 8 |
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