Democrats in the Senate held hearings on contracting abuses in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is a woefully under-reported topic in our media. Some of the companies operating in Iraq have a deplorable record of over-charging the government, providing sub-standard and possibly even dangerous services to our soldiers, and abusing Iraqi civilians. Some of these companies make the war profiteers form the Second World War and the Civil War look like pikers by comparison.
The video for the hearings can be found here.
April 29th, 2008
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General, Politics, Economics, Iraq, How Capitalism Will Ruin You |
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Because I like to talk about writing and stuff.
- The Art of Alchemy by Ted Kosmatka. Not a bad piece to start off the issue. In plot and idea, it is a fairly standard action-adventure piece centered n a fairly standard notion of how economics and new technology interact. The plot moves along at a fun clip and manages to be not quite predictable and not opaque. The writing was very nicely done and there were several very nice, very compelling moments between the main characters. Plus, the setting was in a part of the country I know fairly well and the author didn’t make too many obvious mistakes. B-
- The Salting and Canning of Benevolence D by Al Michaud. I gathered that this was supposed to be an amusing story, a kind of made-up folk story that Mark Twain was so accomplished at, with perhaps a bit of satire thrown in for good measure. If that was the author’s intent, he failed miserably. The plot centers around a group of friends and acquaintances who set off to end a haunting in an alternate America where Native American and European folk lore have bended together. In the hands of someone like Twain or Terry Pratchett, this could have been very good. In Michaud’s hands it was interminable and depressingly predictable. The characters almost all spoke like refugees from Gasoline Alley and the plot points could be seen lumbering toward the readers from miles and miles away. easily the worst piece in the issue. Still, the apparent recognition by one of the characters of just how asinine the rest of the characters apeared did lend some levity to the pice and the writing was solid if not spectacular. D-
- Litany by Rand B. Lee. This piece is a much better example of how to do made up myths. It blends hints of New age mysticism with Old Testament horror and a compelling main character. The story is about a man trying to find a way to escape a curse, or a sentence, and what prices aren’t worth paying. It is suspenseful, has many well drawn characters and is well written. It feels like a myth, like a story told to teach children lessons and remind adults of wisdom they had forgotten. It was my second favorite piece in the issue. B+
- Fegus by Mary Patterson Thornburg. This was my favorite piece in the issue. It’s not much of story, really, short on plot and action. It is more of an emotion. But its powerful emotion and it was presented well. Parents, I think, will understand. B +
- Character Flu by Robert Reed. In the same way Fergus was less of a story and more of an emotion, Character Flu is less of a story and more of an idea. It’s a semi-interesting idea told professionally enough to make me wish the author had written an actual story. But he didn’t, so the experience is pretty underwhelming. C
- Monkey See by P. E. Cunningham. This is a fun little action story set in a magical, samurai-era Japan centered around the danger of giving monkeys too much power. The piece is fun and light, written in a fast-paced, breezy style that doesn’t take itself too seriously. It was a fun read. B-
Beyond the stories, the two book review columns both convinced me not to buy any of the books reviewed. Which, I suppose, means they did their job. Lucius Shepard was in full-on Lord of the Curmudgeons mode for is movie review column, making himfunnier than anything ese in the magazine. All in all, a solid effort. Two very good stories and only one stinker in the lot.
April 29th, 2008
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General, Reviews |
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