Linkee-poo finishes the Summer's last week of clinicals

During a critique, it's natural for most writers to respond with "Yeah, but…". What comes after the "but" hardly ever matters.

Some of my friends and people I read are responding to the latest Uncle Orson quotes. Eric does a pretty good summing up. Then Chuck Wendig also has some thoughts. Tobias Buckell also weighs in.

So, while redshirts are tossed off by the dozen, compared to their population on the Enterprise it's actually worse to be a goldshirt. Hmm? (Grokked from Jessica Freely)

GRR Martin's iron throne concept from his Song of Ice and Fire. I agree it's quite impressive, but those stairs would be a draw back.

In case you ever wondered what child indoctrination looks like (as compared to what all the conservative talking heads like to complain about), here's an example.

Random Michelle K gives us her list of fantasy series she's abandoned (or stopped reading). There's been a few I've dropped, most notably I stopped the Wheel of Time series exactly where Rob Briken of io9 stopped (and for the same reason). In other words, a warning to all authors, don't be boring.

In case you happen to be writing about Akron, Ohio, the term for that grassy place between the sidewalk and the road is devil strip. (Grokked from Dan)

I guess goin' down to the crossroads at midnight to learn how to play this here guitar is no longer in style. Sigh. I guess I did that just on a lark, then (yes, I used to play guitar in several bands when I was younger, and I wasn't all that bad). The thing is, though, that new mythologies supplant old ones. It's no longer fashionable to sell your soul to the devil for fame and glory, that doesn't mean there aren't new stories (such as the "instant fame/discovered" story). In both cases people discount years of practice, trial and error in favor of the "easy fame" myth. Money for nothin', chicks for free. BTW, when "Tommy" Johnson appeared in Oh Brother, Where Art Thou it made my little heart jump, not to mention Chris Thomas King is a damn good player. (Grokked from Matt Staggs)

If you've had emergency management training, you'll know this isn't a new concept, but President Obama signs Executive Order which gives the DHS the authority to "take control of the country’s wired and wireless communications — including the Internet — in instances of emergency." Wonder if we'll see conservative media machine in outrage over that one? Yea, probably not as long as they think they'll win the White House in 2016. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

"But the fact that Perry is more desperate than usual to pass an unpopular bill at the risk of being even more unpopular in his own state, and the fact that (TX Gov. Rick) Perry has a history of nepotism as governor, plus the fact that his sister just so happens to be in a position to profit should the bill become law, should make everyone take a harder look at the situation developing in Texas." It's a little loose in the connections, there's a big chain of "if"s that are involved. But some more grist for the mill when it comes to the travesty that conservative America has become. (Grokked from Matt Staggs)

"A major insurer of schools has declined to continue offering coverage to Kansas schools after passage of a new state law allowing teachers and staff to carry concealed firearms on campus." I'm sure this has nothing to do with math or the free market but is all because of the Socialist Policies of the president. (Pointed to by Dan)

A boy named Kim. Or "how I discovered gender discrimination." (Grokked from Morgan J Locke)

"My 16-year-old son volunteers with an organization that feeds the homeless and fills kits with personal-hygiene supplies for them. It’s a worthwhile project, and I tell him so—but he doesn’t like it when our conversation on the way to his minimum-wage job turns to why these homeless folks aren’t also working. Perhaps, I suggest, because someone is feeding, clothing and, in effect, bathing them?" What a colossal asshat. That link it to an article that quickly dispatches with the idiocy of the WSJ op-ed that quote comes from. Seems a son of a venture capitalist is trying to work on the "sins of the father" kind of thing, only to get grief from the Dad. Dude, really? Well, just another example of how people can totally invalidate their "I'm A Human" card. This "person" may wish to reread the Bible, specifically Matthew 25 (and so should many of the evangelicals in this country, BTW). A visual response to this article would be this Bloomberg Week cover. That's what "trickle-down economics" functions like in reality. (Grokked from the Slactivist)

Tweet of my heart: @tiffanyreisz: "Don't tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint on the broken glass." - Anton Chekhov”/ I love this so much.