Day: October 9, 2005

So many people keep asking me about trying to get their hands on the third book of the Centauri Trilogy, “Out of the Darkness,” I just thought I’d mention someone has one up for auction on ebay.

It’s a fascinating study in how NOT to list something, because the words “Babylon 5” and “Centauri” appear nowhere in the header. So anyone looking under those would miss it entirely. I’ve seen used book dealers asking sixty bucks for this, but in this instance–with one day and five hours to go–it’s only up to $7.19.

Understand, I don’t get anything out of this, nor do I know the seller. But in the past couple months I must have had close to thirty inquiries about the book, so I just figured I’d put out a broad alert.

This should be interesting.

For those interested, I will be on Fanboyradio.com tonight at 7PM EST.

PAD

People are asking me why I haven’t commented on Bush having selected What’s Her Name for the high court.

Honestly, I hadn’t before because I knew nothing about her, other than that she’s a Bushtush (someone whose lips are permanently curved into the shape of Bush’s buttocks).

But I’ve come to realize that her appointment signals something: That, despite all previous appearances to the contrary, George W. Bush really IS capable of learning from history.

Why? Because previous conservative presidents have endeavored to control the court by appointing judges with a long, proud history of conservative rulings. And then, to their vast annoyance, their appointees wound up being far more liberal on the bench than expected.

So Bush, who’s never seen a separation of power that he didn’t want to obliterate in favor of executive branch control, came up with a simple answer: Appoint a Bushtush. Doesn’t matter that she’s not a judge. Doesn’t matter that she has no record to speak of (indeed, that’s a plus.) All that matters is that, for as long as he’s sucking oxygen, George W. Bush knows he’s going to be able to pick up the phone, call What’s Her Name, and get her to do what he wants. Her agenda will lockstep match his.

And thus does Bush yet again act in a manner contrary to Constitutional intent.

Ðámņ these activist presidents.

PAD

Caught a showing of “Inherit the Wind” on cable. It is both amazing, and amazingly depressing, how timely the subject matter of that film and play is. As Spencer Tracy speaks passionately of a time when narrow-minded religious dogma will actually cause progress to be reversed, one considers that people in power are opposed to everything from stem cell research to a woman’s right to choose to global warming to…yes…Darwin’s theory.

Meantime creationists are trying to sneak Genesis back into the schoolroom through the notion of Intelligent Design, trying to position it as being as equally valid as Darwin, when of course all they’re really trying to do is put the Bible back in the classroom.

To paraphrase Douglas Adams, progress is an illusion…and human progress doubly so.

PAD

(PS–Uh, guys…please don’t start telling me that the Scopes Monkey Trial was a set up by the ACLU and that local businessmen put Scopes up to it and that he probably didn’t even actually teach evolution. I know all that. None of it detracts from the fact that “Inherit the Wind” is a brilliant drama in its own right with a lot to say to modern thinking…or lack thereof.)