Sergey Lukyanenko returns and the drama continues
So, you know how during the summer, Sergey Lukyanenko, author of Night Watch (along with many, many other books) threw a fit and said he is leaving Livejournal forever?
Well, it turns out that he set up another livejournal seven days later and he's been merrily (and quite prolifically) posting there ever since. At first, I assumed he simply wanted a fresh start and put the above-mentioned incident behind him. But then, I saw the second post.
For those of you who can't read Russian, it's an incredibly tl;dr rant about the venal, selfish American bourgeoisie.... basically, a lot like what he wrote during the incident. I don't have the heart to nitpick it - it's very long and, quite franky, it 's comes from a perspective that doesn't understand American culture beyond shallow stereotypes and doesn't care to understand it. But you know what really, really got me. At the very end of the rant, he wrote.
"I, Dr Pilyulkin [his current LJ screename), will try to replace my departed collegue [a reference to Dr. Livsi, his previous screen name]. I sincerely hope that I won't have as many readers. I would like to warn you that are free to read it, but your ability to respond will be strictly limited. You have your own Livejournals - discuss it there if you want to. Just remember that I am not nearly as kind-hearted as Livsi"
Seriously, Sergey Vasilyevich? Seriiously? Because the mass banning of people who disagreed with your position in the "Miloshevich is dead" or that daft "you must respect my country but I don't have to respect yours" rule clearly weren't draconian enough.
I am sorry. It's just that I am having a hard time reconsiling his slide into right-wing nationalism (and the increased douchebaggery that comes with it) with the man who wrote so many books that praised freedom of choice and the need to understand different perspectives.
I will still read his books, and I will still enjoy them. I will still appreciate Luynanenko's considerable writing talent. But my respect for him as a person has been steadily chipping away ever since the Miloshevich post. After this incident, well... I am not sure if I can respect him at all.\
P.S. Thanks to the Russian wikipedia, I discovered a parody of Lukyanenko's original rant, buried deep within the comment threads of the "I'm leaving LJ forever" post. Not only is it funny, but it cuts to the heart of what was wrong with the original post's logic. For those who can't read Russan, test_trading argued (in an pitch-perfect immtation of the original post's tone) that Russan children can't be allowed live in Russia, because thousands of Russian dopted children died while in the care of their Russian adapted parents (which, as he points out, is much, much larger then the number of Russian children who died in the care of American adapted parents). And, unlike Lukyanenko, he actually used statistics and cited his sources to prove his point. Thank you, соотечественник.
Well, it turns out that he set up another livejournal seven days later and he's been merrily (and quite prolifically) posting there ever since. At first, I assumed he simply wanted a fresh start and put the above-mentioned incident behind him. But then, I saw the second post.
For those of you who can't read Russian, it's an incredibly tl;dr rant about the venal, selfish American bourgeoisie.... basically, a lot like what he wrote during the incident. I don't have the heart to nitpick it - it's very long and, quite franky, it 's comes from a perspective that doesn't understand American culture beyond shallow stereotypes and doesn't care to understand it. But you know what really, really got me. At the very end of the rant, he wrote.
"I, Dr Pilyulkin [his current LJ screename), will try to replace my departed collegue [a reference to Dr. Livsi, his previous screen name]. I sincerely hope that I won't have as many readers. I would like to warn you that are free to read it, but your ability to respond will be strictly limited. You have your own Livejournals - discuss it there if you want to. Just remember that I am not nearly as kind-hearted as Livsi"
Seriously, Sergey Vasilyevich? Seriiously? Because the mass banning of people who disagreed with your position in the "Miloshevich is dead" or that daft "you must respect my country but I don't have to respect yours" rule clearly weren't draconian enough.
I am sorry. It's just that I am having a hard time reconsiling his slide into right-wing nationalism (and the increased douchebaggery that comes with it) with the man who wrote so many books that praised freedom of choice and the need to understand different perspectives.
I will still read his books, and I will still enjoy them. I will still appreciate Luynanenko's considerable writing talent. But my respect for him as a person has been steadily chipping away ever since the Miloshevich post. After this incident, well... I am not sure if I can respect him at all.\
P.S. Thanks to the Russian wikipedia, I discovered a parody of Lukyanenko's original rant, buried deep within the comment threads of the "I'm leaving LJ forever" post. Not only is it funny, but it cuts to the heart of what was wrong with the original post's logic. For those who can't read Russan, test_trading argued (in an pitch-perfect immtation of the original post's tone) that Russan children can't be allowed live in Russia, because thousands of Russian dopted children died while in the care of their Russian adapted parents (which, as he points out, is much, much larger then the number of Russian children who died in the care of American adapted parents). And, unlike Lukyanenko, he actually used statistics and cited his sources to prove his point. Thank you, соотечественник.