mikailborg (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mikailborg) wrote2006-01-08 03:24 pm
mikailborg) wrote2006-01-08 03:24 pm
Welcome 2006
Been away for a while, again. December was a rough month for me; one of the high points was the sinus infection that kept me feverish, nauseated, and flat on my back for all of Christmas weekend. On the other hand, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
raininva trumped her Valentine's Day gift to me with an even more geeky present: a 30GB iPod video. Dang, but that thing is small. It's full of anime and British SF right now, but even with video-on-the-go I never have time to watch anything right now.
Back in April, I barely resisted a rant about SF fans and reviewers. However, this review of the "Starship Troopers" novel pushed the rant to the surface again.
The reviewer calls Heinlein "a right-winger to do the Fox News Channel proud" and smugly asserts that "Other views of Heinlein's have, I think, been handily punctured by time". As the author himself complained in a later book, one has to wonder if the reviewer has actually read the author's work? Carefully? (Interestingly, the reviewer still gives 4 out of 5 stars.)
"Starship Troopers" is a very right-wing novel. There is a scene where the hero explains his justification for using a flamethrower on civilians. But let us not forget that the same typewriter produced "Stranger In a Strange Land", a novel which suggests that polyamory and kinky sex can be a viable basis for a strong, healthy family unit.
Writers, especially science-fiction writers, are not messiahs. Heinlein, Straczynski, Roddenberry, and many others have been placed on that pedestal, but I think they'd all have preferred otherwise. It is a mistake to take any creative work and assume it's a Bible, especially if the author's body of work contains many contradictory (if interesting) ideas.
If Heinlein was trying to give anyone advice, distilling what I've read of his output suggests the following:
1. One should learn to take care of oneself in case disaster strikes. (I just don't see how this is bad advice in any way.)
2. Until every sentient everywhere renounces violence, a well-trained, well-equipped military is less trouble than it's worth. (A natural attitude for someone who served in WW2, and reading a few history books (or watching the History Channel) seems to back him up on this.)
3. People ought to learn to enjoy their sexual attraction to others instead of getting so worked up about it. (That includes learning to treat the object of one's attraction with respect, and perhaps even some charm. Again, I can't see any problem with this basic idea.)
4. Good manners are a small investment with big dividends. Bad manners are a cancer on society. (My personal experience tends to back this up, though I can't speak for everyone.)
And the most important, the one that nearly every one of his leading characters does:
5. Be prepared to think for yourself at any time. Authority figures usually have an agenda, and that agenda may or may not be the best thing for you.
Of the items in this list, I'm least prepared to argue against that one.
raininva trumped her Valentine's Day gift to me with an even more geeky present: a 30GB iPod video. Dang, but that thing is small. It's full of anime and British SF right now, but even with video-on-the-go I never have time to watch anything right now.Back in April, I barely resisted a rant about SF fans and reviewers. However, this review of the "Starship Troopers" novel pushed the rant to the surface again.
The reviewer calls Heinlein "a right-winger to do the Fox News Channel proud" and smugly asserts that "Other views of Heinlein's have, I think, been handily punctured by time". As the author himself complained in a later book, one has to wonder if the reviewer has actually read the author's work? Carefully? (Interestingly, the reviewer still gives 4 out of 5 stars.)
"Starship Troopers" is a very right-wing novel. There is a scene where the hero explains his justification for using a flamethrower on civilians. But let us not forget that the same typewriter produced "Stranger In a Strange Land", a novel which suggests that polyamory and kinky sex can be a viable basis for a strong, healthy family unit.
Writers, especially science-fiction writers, are not messiahs. Heinlein, Straczynski, Roddenberry, and many others have been placed on that pedestal, but I think they'd all have preferred otherwise. It is a mistake to take any creative work and assume it's a Bible, especially if the author's body of work contains many contradictory (if interesting) ideas.
If Heinlein was trying to give anyone advice, distilling what I've read of his output suggests the following:
1. One should learn to take care of oneself in case disaster strikes. (I just don't see how this is bad advice in any way.)
2. Until every sentient everywhere renounces violence, a well-trained, well-equipped military is less trouble than it's worth. (A natural attitude for someone who served in WW2, and reading a few history books (or watching the History Channel) seems to back him up on this.)
3. People ought to learn to enjoy their sexual attraction to others instead of getting so worked up about it. (That includes learning to treat the object of one's attraction with respect, and perhaps even some charm. Again, I can't see any problem with this basic idea.)
4. Good manners are a small investment with big dividends. Bad manners are a cancer on society. (My personal experience tends to back this up, though I can't speak for everyone.)
And the most important, the one that nearly every one of his leading characters does:
5. Be prepared to think for yourself at any time. Authority figures usually have an agenda, and that agenda may or may not be the best thing for you.
Of the items in this list, I'm least prepared to argue against that one.
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There are a couple of real-world examples of this as well, if not carried to quite the extreme (those who are unable to serve, for some reason, do not lose the franchise). Sweden and Israel come immediately to mind.
Was Heinlein a right-winger in real life? You bet, and proud of it, though he would probably have considered himself more of a libertarian with conservative leanings.
Still this argument brings to mind one of my favorite quotes from Mercedes Lackey, in reference to those people who believed (believe?) her to be the real-life model of Diane Tregarde, "Confusing an author with her characters is like confusing a truck driver with a Peterbilt."
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But then, I value people's right to present their opinions if argued well. And Heinlein argues well.