Scam Season
There are always scams and scammers, but one of the scams that’s taken off this year is one that, I have to say, really burns me, for several reasons. It’s not a scam that I would have guessed to be...
View Article“Socialist” Scare Tactics
With the election of Joe Biden as the next President, the right-wing scare-mongers have revved up their rants about how the “ultra-liberal” Democrats are going to impose “socialist” measures of all...
View ArticleAnother Big Legal Loophole
As some readers of F&SF may have read, the Disney corporation is stiffing author Alan Dean Foster. According to Foster, Disney has not paid royalties since 2014 on Star Wars books that Foster...
View ArticleThe Evil Empire?
As most of my readers know, as a writer I don’t quite fit into any stereotype. My books get published through the traditional system [otherwise considered as equivalent to the “evil empire” or the dark...
View ArticleCowardly or Stupid?
Or unprincipled, lying, and hypocritical? Or all five? In case you haven’t guessed, I’m referring to all the Republicans lining up behind Trump’s claims of victory and election fraud on the part of...
View ArticleWeather Forecasts
Over my lifetime, weather forecasts have, in general, reached the point where they are accurate enough that they actually can be useful – except all too often in Cedar City, Utah, which is where we...
View ArticleIncompetence
Sociologists classify the population in a society in various ways, including by income level, class, or education level. But I’d like to suggest another system of classification, by competence. Over...
View ArticleThe “Hype” Problem
Last weekend, in the third quarter of a game where his team was losing 28-7, a fifth year senior quarterback [third string, because the second stringer was out with an injury] took over for the touted...
View ArticleLost Words from Yesterday
When Ben Bova died a few weeks ago, I got to thinking about my various interactions with Ben, as I suspect many of us do when we lose someone who made a difference in our lives. Ben was my editor for...
View ArticleMore Audiobooks Coming
For those of you who like my work in audio format, the latest news is that Tantor Media, an imprint of RBMedia, has purchased the rights to produce 17 backlist titles of my work. This arrangement will...
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In early December, I turned in the final edits for Councilor, the second book of “The Grand Illusion,” which will likely be released in mid-to-late 2022. In an update, the publication date for Isolate,...
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For perhaps obvious reasons, my reading, such as it’s been, over the past few months has tended to be a bit more upbeat. I read two books by Katherine Addison, and enjoyed both, although they were very...
View ArticleWake-Up Call
Trump’s latest actions, and the Congressional reaction, show, again, the need for greater responsibility, and reform, in Congress. Trump went off to sulk and play golf, addressing the possible...
View ArticleThe Mongrel Mage — On Sale
For those who haven’t noticed it, the Kindle edition of The Mongrel Mage is currently on sale for $2.99.
View ArticleDéjà Vu All Over Again
For some reason, the way too many people are acting during this pandemic reminds me of some of Yogi Berra’s sayings. Yogi Berra – the Hall of Fame catcher for the N.Y. Yankees and later a major league...
View ArticleThe Un-Proximate Cause
The direct cause of the Q-Anon/Far Right assault on the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday is not in dispute, at least not to anyone who can think and is in command of his or her faculties and who understands...
View ArticleThe Socio-Economic Powder Keg
Or possibly the socio-economic multi-megaton explosive device. The other day the very conservative but very intelligent Peggy Noonan wrote an essay deploring the behavior of Trump, Cruz, and Hawley,...
View ArticleLosing Freedoms?
One of the catch phrases used often recently by conservatives and especially the far right extremists is that they’re upset, or they’re demonstrating and attacking the Capitol, because they’re losing...
View ArticleWho’s Listening?
The other day, I happened to see on the satellite directory The American President, a favorite movie of mine, despite it’s being dated, its political inaccuracies, and its hokey ending. One of the...
View ArticleUnethical, Stupid, or Cowardly?
It’s becoming increasingly clear that the majority of Republicans in the U.S. House and Senate do not want to convict former President Trump in an impeachment trial, despite his months of efforts to...
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