The Revolt of the Imagination, Part One: Notes on Belbury Syndrome

Maybe it’s true that life really does imitate literature. Over the last week or so, certainly, a detail from one of my favorite works of imaginative fiction played out at least twice in the real world, with microphones live and cameras rolling. I’m thinking here first of German Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach, who promoted vaccine mandates with this bit of fascinating logic:  “No one will be vaccinated against their will; the vaccine mandates will simply lead people, ultimately, to accept vol...