When I was in grade school I used to believe that professional wrestling was real. All the feuds, good and bad people, the guy from Russia, all of that was real. I think my belief in professional wrestling outlasted my belief in Santa Claus by a year or two, probably because I never saw a professional wrestler in real life. But eventually I ( Read more... )

Right on schedule, here comes Maximal Leader of the Sad Puppies Larry Correia claiming election fraud. Much like his complaints about the Hugos, he has no evidence, merely assertions masquerading as facts and a lot of vitriol. Fun times, Maynard. This entry was originally posted at https://chris-gerrib.dreamwidth.org/747485.html. Please comment ( Read more... )

Although I'd have been happier if the Democrats had won a few more seats, maybe even picking up a Senate seat or two, I am pleased to see that they performed as well as the polling predicted. Winning the House is a big deal and a positive development ( Read more... )

I had a minor role in the Affair of the Sad Puppies, and I see many parallels between that affair and the current brouhaha over Brett Kavanaugh ( Read more... )

For those not in the know, a gaming convention recently invited as Author Guest of Honor a science fiction writer. Said writer had, as a result of his actions (see: Sad Puppies) developed a reputation for being a jerk on-line. When some sponsors and exhibitors at said convention heard about this author's invite, they contacted the organizer, who ( Read more... )

Scott Adams, the gift that keeps on giving, dashed off a blog post on his lunch hour in which he solves the North Korea problem. Like much emanating from the Alt-Right at the moment, his idea is at best half-baked. Scott, like many of the alt-right, is completely unable to understand what the various groups want. So, he makes an assumption about ( Read more... )

For budgetary reasons, I did not go to ConQuest in Kansas City this year. (NASFIC will cost twice as much as ConQuest.) Thus, I went downstate for my Memorial Day weekend and visited the parents. It proved a very relaxing weekend, and I'm glad I did.

Last night, I read the Hugo short story nominations for this year. Yea gods and little fishes ( Read more... )

I was flying back from a business trip to Orlando today, so I didn't see much news. I did note that the GOP, in a squeaker of a vote, repealed Obamacare. I'll just note the hypocrisy of "read the bill" (which they didn't) and "jam through without debate" (ditto) and the complete lack of bipartisan support for this bill (which supposedly made ( Read more... )

Natalie Luhrs waxes eloquently on the subject of empathy. It's well worth a read.

What struck me is her somewhat off-handed tie-in to the Sad Puppies affair. One of the things which struck me is the inability of professional writers to exhibit empathy. I was (and remain) struck by the idea that people who make money telling stories (Brad ( Read more... )

I purchased and read Forbidden Thoughts, the much-hyped book from Sad Puppies Central Command. For the most part, I found it neither forbidden nor thoughtful. Rather, it was heavy-handed to the point of immobility, (mostly) poorly-written and consistently poorly edited. A couple of stories saved this book from the shame of a one-star review, but ( Read more... )