An open thread, where at your weekend leisure, you can discuss anything you like.
27 Responses to “Saturday Salon”
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go easts!!!
also, frist!
Q: How many AGW skeptics does it take to change a light bulb?
A: You haven’t proved that it’s dark! I can see where exactly where I’m…*bump*..owww!
Tyro Rex [1]:
Hearty congratulations on your First in Larvatus Prodeo Saturday Salon.
Everyone:
Am I and some of my fellow pensioners [including the Vote-for-Joh ones!] being cynical in thinking that the pensioner-strippers demonstration yesterday seemed to be a highly disciplined, well-organized Family First Party rally? And was the Channel 9 reporting of it pure
Howard-HatingRudd-hating straight out of “1984″?Who’s familiar with teh disinformation cycle?
What probability that this is some?
Malcolm Fraser: why he is my favourite ex-PM.
“Mr Fraser yesterday returned fire, saying Mr Leibler’s attitudes would result in continued conflict, warfare and terrorism. “It is time Israel and America learnt that if a country has confidence in itself, in the justice of its objectives, talking with people involves no risk. Failure to talk represents lack of confidence, lack of conviction and a weakness that can have tragic consequences.” Mr Fraser also called on others to speak out.”
I just finished reading Iain M. Banks’s latest Culture novel (the first in about 8 years), Matter. It has much of the same picaresque plot structure as the previous stand-alone SF, The Algebraist, but isn’t quite as fun. It’s noticeably more violent, harkening back to Use of Weapons days.
The ending isn’t quite as big an emotional gaping chest wound as UOW’s, but it was certainly a dirty trick putting the epilogue AFTER the appendices.
Overall, not quite sure what to make of it. The human-scale story is acutely observed, but its conclusion is rather swamped by the oddly perfunctory world-shattering discovery at the climax. But that’s perhaps the entire point. I’ll probably need to read it again.
Snowing here in Armidale right now. Not just flurries, actual snow. It’s an inch deep on the front lawn and our house looks like something out of a 1980s American movie. Big flakes of the stuff – what’s the bet we get more natural snow in Armidale than Thredbo this year?
Nick, I am reading “the steep approach to Garbadale” by Iain Banksand liking it. I am waiting for Matter to come out in paperback. Is it worth the money, do you think?
What is the Official Larvatus Prodeo Policy on posting in a Saturday Salon when it is still Saturday where one posts from, but Sunday in Brisbane?
Nick,
UoW is hard to beat, Banks in his prime. Though for my money AaDB trumps it as the best non-culture culture novel and Excession is best of all… though I love that scene in LtW where two of the characters are having a conversation using only Ship names!
Matter is already in paperback here, albeit large format paperback. It’s certainly worth picking up but in my case it’s a birthday gift I’ve finally got round to reading.
Tony, I’m very fond of AaDB; Banks gets the tension between comedy and terror just right there. Excession is fun but at the time seems to have been considered a bit of a lightweight compared to its predecessors. Possibly because there weren’t enough flayings.
Savid Rubie @ 7,
So that’s why its so bloody cold this morning. Didn’t see it last night, too rugged up watching Tv/reading. Bet we’ll get dome more today.
The worlds first high performance long range electric aircraft.
http://cafefoundation.org/v2/pdf_pav_electricaircraft/2008/ivo.bosarol.pipistrel.electro.pdf
This is a 20 meg file.
I should have added “commercially available”.
Against a Dark Background is my favourite too, though I remember reading the first Culture novel with a growing sense of wonder, thinking “my god, someone is finally going to salvage sci-fi!” Without Iain M.Banks and China Mieville I think I might have given up on sci-fi and fantasy years ago. Plus of course he has brought a bit of new life into the fiction world too. Has anyone here seen the movie of Complicity?
Nick, I am living in London now so you’d think if Matter was in paperback in Aus it would be out here too, but I haven’t seen it. This is hardly fair!!! It was 13 C here yesterday, I at least deserve first release of cheap books for my pains!!!!
This looks likely to be the week of banjogate…
http://theland.farmonline.com.au/news/state/agribusiness-and-general/general/hillbilly-economics-and-the-banjo-state-rudd-a-disgraceful-elitist-truss/771302.aspx
… i’m already a hummin’.
Why does Truss think Banjo-playing hillbilles are a bad thing?
Kim [16]:
What’s wrong with hill-billies? [Had the honour of serving alongside many intelligent, hard-working, dependable and fun-loving hill-billies].
What’s wrong with banjo-playing? [Love listening to good violin, banjo, mandolin and harp playing].
Maybe those who are so reliant on quasi-racist stereotypes [such as calling those south of the border, Mexicans] need a good dose of Epsom salts or Sennakot ™ to markedly improve their I.Q.
“Has anyone here seen the movie of Complicity?”
It’s out? Heard it was in the works but don’t know any release info…
Complicity would have to be my fav non-scifi Banks, the protagonist is just way too fun a character
Ok, so I need to get out more; Complicity was released in 2000
Paul Burns,
Yes it was bloody cold on Saturday night but it didn’t really start snowing until fairly late. The firewood delivery guy was just about run off his feet on Friday, I assume they all did pretty good business judging by the pall of smoke hanging over Armidale this morning. Can’t be too good for our lungs but it is supposed to be carbon neutral.
David,
Not so bad today. I’m even going to make a sally to the corner shop later this morning. (To buy chocolate or cigarettes, I’m not sure which. Indulging myself.)
Turkey banned from only remaining playground.
http://catallaxyfiles.com/?p=3587
(3rd paragraph down)
Well, to be fair, even paperbacks are bafflingly expensive in the land of Aus these days. Your standard mass-market format paperback has basically quadrupled in price over the last 18 years, without any reference to improvements in the parity of the Australian dollar with other currencies.
The Brits are, without a doubt, completely owning hard SF and space opera right now. Banks can take a lot of the credit for that. The mixture of hot sex, extreme violence, gigantic spaceships with funny names, and ultra left-wing politics seems to be strangely compelling.
See also Ken McLeod, except the extreme violence is usually directed at artificial intelligences.
“Why does Truss think Banjo-playing hillbilles are a bad thing?”
Kim he is just an old square. Graham Bell suggests Epsom salts or Sennakot ™.
I would be inclined to prescribe Sativex®. Apparently it is good for those unable to get their feet a tappin’ on either side of the Pine and other pain relief. It is already available in New Zealand. http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/doctors-to-trial-cannabis/2008/05/18/1210765250875.html
FDB: “Turkey banned from only remaining playground.”
Good grief. First they’re stonewalled out of the EU, and now this.
J-P-Z [25]:
No not that Turkey – though I can understand the hurt feelings of the Turks after trying so hard and after progressing so far and then not getting into the EU.
No, they’re all talking about the banning of Graeme M. Bird ["GMB"] from the Australian website Catallaxy. He has a – well, what would you call it? – “robust” style of debating. Unfortunately, his intellect is not matched by his social skills and politeness. Also unfortunately, he stood unsuccessfully as a candidate for a minority libertarian party in our recent semi-rigged federal election …. he would have turned our bland, predictable, ritualistic House Of Representatives into a very lively, unpredictable and interesting debating chamber.
Hey, be a bit more careful where you toss that snow next Winter …. the lot you shovelled earlier has just landed on Armidale in NSW!
Ali Moore reckons that ANZ is set to knock back money to Gunns to finance the tassie pulp mill. Hooray!