This line from ‘Double Star’ by Robert Heinlein has stuck with me for decades.
Someone asks the hero for his solemn vow that he won’t divulge a secret. The hero says that if his simple promise isn’t good enough, what makes a solemn vow any better?
‘Fables’ was a comic book that was the first to use the idea of characters from fairy tales living in the modern era. When people realized that everything was already public domaine we got two shows, neither as good as the comic.
One of those rare cases where the movie adaptation far surpasses the book. Also, if you liked McKellan as a fascist in this movie, check out his Richard III. They decided to set it in the 1930s,
First time I heard this theory was in a James Bond story. Bond meets a woman who drives a bashed up car. Same reasoning; if it looks like she’s dangerous people will steer clear of her.
Back in the day, the GOP was completely controlled by Big Business. A guy named Jerry Falwell saw how Richard Nixon’s Southern Strategy had gotten him elected and jumped in. He organized his people at the grassroots level. If there was a local Republican club that got 20 people at the average meeting, Jerry’s church group would show up with fifty. At the start, they were getting dog catchers and county clerks in, but eventually their power grew.
“Ike At The Mike” by Howard Waldrop. Award winning short story. An elderly Dwight Eisenhower is invited to the White House. Ike famously gave up his West Point cadetship to become a jazz musician. Among the attendees honoring him is the young Elvis A. Presley, Senator from Mississippi.
I worked retail for exactly one Christmas. The day I worked the toy department they had one album on repeat for eight hours. I hated Christmas music for years, and now it just annoys me.
If you want an interesting novel, try ‘Night Soldiers’ by Alan Furst. Young Bulgarian boy is killed by local fascists. His brother is then recruited by the Russians to be a spy. He’s sent to Spain to help fight Franco. Enjoy.