अ नोट तो थे थाई रोयल फॅमिली...

A book that had about fifty copies published (I can't find the book on Amazon or ABEBooks or anywhere else) has a single paragraph that gets an Australian author jailed.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/01/19/thai.jail/index.html

So, I'd like to say this:

The Thai Royal Family are a bunch of stooges. The Crown Prince? Stooge. The King? Stooge.

They are both only comparable to the portrayal of Queen Elizabeth in Rowan Atkinson's BBC Series, "Blackadder".

I hope everyone re-posts this information, and continues do so until this author is freed. I don't care what that paragraph said.

My favorite part of the CNN Article?

[quote]CNN has chosen not to repeat the allegations made by Nicolaides because it could result in CNN staff being prosecuted in Thailand.

Nicolaides had been living in Thailand since 2003, lecturing at two universities about tourism.

He was about to leave Thailand when he was arrested on August 31 last year. It is not clear why the authorities waited three years after the publication of his book to bring charges against him.

[\quote]

Can anyone find the paragraph in question so we can blast it across the internet like it's never been blasted before?

EDIT: Update to add that someone found the entire text of the 127-page book. I've started skimming it.

EDIT 2: I can't find "three sentences" that offend the Royal King or the Crown Prince. As this is a self-published text - which does not diminish the injustice of the situation in the slightest, in fact, it ramps it up a notch or two - I must confess to being unable to slog through the material in total. This isn't really the time to go into a detailed review, so I'll skip it. Needless to say, I would love someone to point out the exact three sentences that got this fellow in all this trouble.

Full text is here:http://psydj.tv/text/verisimilitude-harry-nicolaides.pdf

Dance Party!

Everybody needs to dance today! (Because Arroxane and Mike are getting married! WOO!)



Woo!

Crossed Over For Good...

With my recent new computer, the free period on Microsoft Office was expiring, and I thought about buying the license for it. Except, I already had Open Office. I was using Open Office more. Open Office is a better, more intuitive program.

I can't quite understand how Microsoft can maintain such a near-monopoly when much less expensive programs (AbiWord, OpenOffice, etc) are so much, much better without the high price tag.

The company asks for hundreds of dollars for software that isn't as good as the free stuff. And, the expensive software is ubiquitous, while the fee stuff is obscure.

What the heck is that about?

Wailing, gnashing of teeth

Saw this news.

This is awful, awful news.

Who should play Spike Spiegel in the live action version?

First off, the character of Spike Spiegel is not in his late forties. He's in his late twenties. Second, Spike is amoral on a good day, and on the edge of evil most of the time. You know who I think would be all right as Spike? (Not great, just all right...) Spike is also very, very funny. Not intentionally, of course. But this show was a very light-hearted romp through some very dark places, and dark mindsets.

And, frankly, why the hell is Spike casting as a white guy? Whatever happened to color-blind casting?

My ideal Spike Spiegel? Tony Leung Chiu Wai. He's at least still in his thirties, capable of playing young. He does brooding anti-heroes really well. And, unlike Keanu Reeves, he can actually act.

The only director that I think has a chance of getting the energy and oddball, hipster pacing right is a Chungking Express-era Wong Kar Wai, or maybe Stephen Chow(?).

As for the writer, I think you need someone who can do madcap, anything-goes insanity extremely well, while balancing the very gritty, bleak edge of action and violence in the show. I would probably team up Noah Baumbach with Quentin Tarantino.

And, all that said, the movie would still suck. Cowboy Bebop is a series of very kinetic, in the moment, short stories. When you expand it to a movie length (as the original Anime Movie-ization of Cowboy Bebop would reveal to you) that magic, madcap energy dissipates into the very long story arcs.

To do this movie right, you'd need to do four half hour "episodes" - one featuring each main character - followed by something finalizing for Spike.

Imagine something like STRAY DOG STRUT (with Ed and Faye already present) followed by BALLAD OF FALLEN ANGELS followed by BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY followed by BOOGIE WOOGIE FENG SHUI followed by THE REAL FOLK BLUES.

Hollywood wouldn't do it that way, now would they?

Anyway, all around, this is terribly bad news for Anime fandom. And, I hope the whole project gets ripped out of Keanu's hands and given to folks who can do it right.

Observed From Reading Both Bible and Science Fiction

In science fiction, a very common theme - especially in post-singularity writing - is life extension technologies. Thus, someone who is ninety has the body of a spry, twenty-five year old. People live hundreds of years if they recieve proper treatments.

In the Bible, long, long lives happened far back in the past. The present, and the future, was a fallen state where man loses lifespan in relation to much time has passed from that original source moment of creation.

I find it interesting, and telling, that science fiction sees the future as a place full of long, long life, while Christianity yearns for a mythical past before Mankind's terrible Fall.

Are either truly correct? I don't know. But, it is telling that the two fields turn to different places in humanity's timeline for their point of best, happiest, longest life.

Who wants to design a game for the Wii?

I was thinking about this, how most Wii games are for casual gamers. (Also, I was thinking about pretty pink ponies, but... nevermind...) I was thinking how you don't have to have the greatest graphics in the world to appeal to a casual gamer. You just have to have a very interesting and cool concept.

Anyone have the programming and graphic design skills to make a Wii game? We could design one, make it a download that can be burned to DV-R and give it away under a CC. Which would suck for you, because you'd be doing a LOT of work for no money. I'm not much of a programmer, after all. But, I'll micro-mange your every step, yell at you constantly, and then take all the credit in the end, because all you did was make the widgets move like I told you to make them move.

Got it?

Right.

I want to make a Wii game called

"Froggy"

Remember that game at Medieval-esque carnivals where you smash the hammer on the launchpad to make your carefully-aimed frog land on a small pedestal?

This game would use the Wii controller to mimic the motion of the hammer. A few small differences, though...

You play as a mighty, muscle-bulging ogre, on vacation from pillaging to get drunk and play a game with your mighty, muscle-bulging ogre friends. This barbarian game is called "Froggy". You go to a marsh, kill some of the giant frogs by farting on them, and then you move the frogs around an obstacle course by smashing the ground with your hammer, causing the frogs to bounce into the air. Where you can either let them land, or whack them again with your hammer to get some driving distance.

The frogs would all be gruesomely dead, with big, lolling tongues throwing off their physics. You wouldn't just send them launching once. You'd have to play a kind of golf with the dead frogs, manuevering them through obstacle courses, collecting points by making them land on things - destroying them. You lose points if the frogs lose limbs. Blood splatter is fine. But all toes and tongues must remain accounted for.

The goal is to get your frog into your cup o' ale, back at the picnic table. Winner gets to take a drink of delicious, "froggy" ale.

I think this could be a big hit among the elderly. Everyone knows how much the elderly hate frogs.

Here's a Book I'm definitely looking forward to!

In Speculative Fiction, the Philippines is something like the Seattle music scene of 1989. Tons of talented people, all getting their fanbases built and prepped for their crossover into the mainstream consciousness, huddled in their studios and garages, practicing and practicing and playing gigs and playing gigs... In SF, the Philippines is on the cusp of greatness.

Heard word of a book that is very high on my wish list:

http://charles-tan.blogspot.com/2009/01/plug-philippine-speculative-fiction-iv.html

Very cool cover!

Nobody has sent me any pictures of War Beetles!

This makes me sad. What if my WAR BEETLE short story turns into WAR BEETLES: The Great American War Beetle Novel? Your brilliant creations in Microsoft Paint, Photoshop, and Lego/K'Nex will not grant you a spot in the acknowledgement pages. You will look, longingly, at the place you could have had in history, influencing all the WAR BEETLE arts.

Alas, there are no WAR BEETLES in Mudville, and also no joy. For how can there be joy without WAR BEETLES?

File under things that suck...

I was over at the SFF site all about the John W Campbell Award, trying to e-mail my information to the address that claimed all authority, and the mailer daemon says e-mail address no existy-y.

http://www.sff.net/campbell-awards/submit.htm

So, anyone know what I'm supposed to do to get in the running for a John W. Campbell Award for New Writer's?

I've been invited to Conestoga 2009, but...

I've been invited to Conestoga, 2009, in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

I would like to go, sure, but I can only go if certain conditions are met (not by the con committee, of course, no! Conditions met by my loyal fans! That means you!).

To go to Tulsa, Oklahoma, I will need...

#1) a carpool of some sort to reduce the cost of travel, preferably me riding in someone else's car for a split of the gas money. Also, I will need...

#2)someone to split a hotel room with me, because my "traveling to cons" budget is running pretty tight, at the moment. Also, most importantly, I will need...

#3) a general public outcry in the comments, or in my e-mail that I will let my Olahoma-based fans down if I do not attend.

If all three of these conditions apply, I will do my darndest to attend Conestoga.

I have heard excellent things about this Con from friends like Rachel Caine, Cat Conrad, Brad and Sue Sinor, and numerous others. I'd actually love to go. But... con travel budget at the moment is tighter than Sir Blackadder's British wit right now.

Want to help with any or all of the conditions above? Drop me a line in the comments, or in my e-mail.

Best New Year Resolution Ever!

I've come up with an even better New Year's Resolution!

I resolve not to die in 2009!

I like to keep my goals simple and to the point, when it comes to resolutions. This is exactly the foundation of the kind of life I would like to lead this year.

Wait... What did he just say?

Yesterday, our exiting President said this in his final press conference:

"Not having weapons of mass destruction was a significant disappointment.”

No... No, wait a minute. Actually, had Iraq *had any* WMD, that would have been the disappointment. When rogue states don't have WMD, that is a significant pleasant thing. In fact, it is a very good thing that Iraq had no WMD. Because they might have used them!

I think what Bush means to say is that he was disappointed that his intelligence was wrong about the WMD, thus he sent us into a very long, expensive, and bloody war over smoke and mirrors from an intelligence department that was, at best, mismanaged at the highest levels, and, at worse, intentionally skewed to enrich the big businesses that have profited from these wars.

But, that's not what he said, now, is it?

I wonder how many "misspoken" things must come out of a man's mouth before people start to wonder what is really going on in his head

Could you imagine the insanity of existing in a state of mind where one wished Saddam Hussein actually had a hand hovering over the big, red button?

An interesting bad review...

Green Man Review didn't care for my little book.

Naturally, that's fine. It's not for everyone, like the reviewers say, and it didn't work for them. No book is for everyone. Writing unconventional stuff means you're going to displease lots and lots of people.

I do appreciate them taking the time to give it a go, and mentioning it at all. So, thanks for reviewing my little book, and for giving it your best shot.

I did want to take a moment to point out how the reviewer takes umbrage with my usage of the word "golem" instead of "zombie".

Now, I've got some mighty smart readers, many of whom liked the book. Why do you guys think I used one term instead of the other, believing golem to be more accurate?

Serious and non-serious answers are welcome, and encouraged.

How come no one told me about this?

Apparently, according to SFAwardsWatch, and, to be even more specific, my google alerts, I was a finalist for a 2009 Crawford Award.

I would have liked to know that before the winner was announced! I mean, how am I supposed to bribe the judges with chocolate, absinthe, and the severed heads of various farm animals if I'm not made aware that I'm even on the ballot until it's all over and done with?

Congratulations are in order to Daryl Gregory, whose book "Pandemonium" is deemed the winner!

(Does he even know, yet? Did anyone tell him? Or, will he also find out from his google alerts?)