Will Shetterly's Blog, page 62
June 21, 2017
Three thoughts about cults
If you know a cult's buzzwords, you know when people who say they want discussion are only after your conversion. Secular cults are harder to spot than religious ones. But not much harder. Cultists always give themselves away when they get angry: they love the insults for outsiders that their group uses.
Ideology makes you confuse the literal and the metaphorical--a bit about the 4th Street Kerfuffle
This year's 4th Street Fantasy Convention was generally fine, but Steve Brust's initial comments were badly misunderstood. His text is here: My opening remarks at Fourth Street Fantasy Convention Ideally, you will read that before continuing so my comments won't color your interpretation of what's there. I'm writing this post because I said something in the discussion on Facebook that I
June 20, 2017
Frederick Douglass and Henry Louis Gates on free speech and hate speech
Frederick Douglass "To suppress free speech is a double wrong. It violates the rights of the hearer as well as those of the speaker." —Frederick Douglass, "A Plea for Free Speech in Boston" Henry Louis Gates From "Critical Race Theory and Freedom of Speech" in The Future of Academic Freedom, edited by Louis Menard, University of Chicago Press, 1996: What you don't hear from the hate
June 14, 2017
Socialist quotes for free speech
"Let the guarantee of free speech be in every man's determination to use it, and we shall have no need of paper declarations." —Voltairine de Cleyre "Without general elections, without freedom of the press, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, without the free battle of opinions, life in every public institution withers away, becomes a caricature of itself, and bureaucracy rises as the only
June 10, 2017
The Wonder Woman Culture War That Isn't, and the Men Made Uncomfortable By Amazons
Third-wave feminist fans are celebrating the Wonder Woman movie as a triumph of feminism. In itself, that's a little odd—the character's been loved by men and women since 1941. But she has sometimes been written by men in condescending ways, and there have been few female superhero movies, so I completely understand why any fan of any political orientation is delighted that she's finally gotten
June 6, 2017
"Who is this person who demanded a candidate they agreed with 100%?" a guest post by Avedon Carol
Avedon left this as a comment here. I thought it deserved more attention, and she has given me permission to share it. Who is this person who demanded a candidate they agreed with 100%? by Avedon Carol I see people arguing with a straw man and working themselves up into a self-righteous frenzy over something that doesn't exist. Who is this person who demanded a candidate they agreed with
A linkfest of my posts for Clinton fans who are still in denial
If you only read two A reminder for Clinton fans that the polls were right all along A short FAQ: Sanders would've easily beaten Trump Possibly of interest Dear Clinton Democrats, respectfully, this is why I'll no longer engage with you A few links for Clintonites who still say Sanders was never attacked An interesting fact about Sanders and states that have some form of Election Day
Boss Tweed explains the two-party system
"I don't care who does the electing, so long as I get to do the nominating." -William M. Tweed
June 2, 2017
The railroad robber baron Jay Gould explains the two-party system
"It was the custom when men received nominations to come to me for contributions, and I made them and considered them good paying investments for the company. In a Republican district I was a strong Republican; in a Democratic district I was Democratic, and in doubtful districts I was doubtful. In politics I was an Erie Railroad man all the time." —Jay Gould
May 30, 2017
If Dogland influenced American Gods, other works influenced it more
Dogland was published four years before American Gods, so it's possible my take on old gods living in the present had some minor influence on Neil's, but I'm inclined to think we were both inspired by the same sources. I'll only mention two, one that's obvious to anyone who knows the history of our genre, one that calls for a love of both fantasy and comics: Thorne Smith wrote about old gods in
