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Okay, among the many things that I've done since my last update, I went to go see The Golden CompassI've not read the books and only have passing hearsay about the events of the novels. But regardless, if it weren't for the energetic campaign by both sides of the religion issue (Fundies: "By Jove, they KILL GOD in that movie!" Pagans: "Bet'cher Ass
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Ook.
One thing that's occurred to me is that these books were written in the late 90s (perhaps the last one came out in 2001?) when the rest of the world was not really aware of (nor did they care about) the horror of our homegrown Poison Christianity, nor did they think that it was going to start exporting its evil in such strength and speed and gain such a following from like minded bastards all over Christendom.
Back then, our enemies were nothing more quaint backwoods lunatics to the rest of the developed world. Having heard some of Pullman's interviews, he seemed pretty tone deaf to what we had going on out here, only that some people in America got upset, but mostly it was Potter that got us going, which is pretty laughable and reinforces the image of our crazy bastards as just that and nothing more. Hw wouldn't have had any reason to guess (and I, for one, with every reason, guessed kind of low) how much power they've managed to consolidate over the last few years.
So I agree; Pullman is a Brit writing for a British audience who would understand, without needing to be told what the Megesterium is all about, but not understand, or, at the time, care, what Messrs Parsley, Robertson, Fallwell, et. al. are about. They would understand the answers to your questions, but probably not understand why you're asking. That aspect not going to resonate with us because we're living through a very different version of the same situation (without panzerbjorn, sadly), and even to thoughtful Americans who understand a thing or two about history, it's really hard to separate anything that happened between the time of Washington and the time of Abraham - all that history blurs in our experience and we have to actually go and do the work of picking it all out.
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Evening was lackluster, I was distracted. Fallout continues.
...reinforces the image of our crazy bastards...
Yes, well, Ol' Pappy Kookinuts is usually fun at parties with all of his hollerin', doomsayin', and flailin' all about. That is, of course, until he goes and brings out his guns and starts shooting at all of us "godless commie sodomohammudittians liberals." And then takes it to the streets to "minister" to the neighborhood.
I wasn't aware the novels had been written in the pre-9/11 world. I'm fairly certain they would not have done nearly as well as children's novels if they had been written after (having probably included seditious intertext about the War on Other).
...all that history blurs in our experience and we have to actually go and do the work of picking it all out.
Yes, and that whole second paragraph is why I love reading your social/political commentary.
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