I read a novel written by a Vietnam era draftee.

There was a scene where two draftees were talking about ending the draft. One was against it because it would mean that all the people in the Army would be ‘lifers’ and lifers were the ones who were quickest to massacre civilians.

Hunter Thompson wrote about it once. His opinion was that when he served, a lot of upper class families sent their sons to the Army. That meant that they were meeting and working with all types of people.

My personal take is that it’s a good thing, if there’s a non-military equivalent, something like FDR’s CCC

The entire world ran without the internet until a few years ago.

London had something like ten mail deliveries a day before the telephone was invented.

“The Man In The Iron Mask” talks about the French semaphore towers.

I thought it might be off topic because it didn’t specifically deal with a will or written legacy.

Thanks.

[off topic?]

Ray Bradbury was a staunch anti-fascist. However, he had a beef with Pres. Obama because there were no major US space missions while Obama was in office.

After Bradbury died, Right Wing folks tried to paint him as a life-long GOP based on a few out of context quotes.

“The Dirty Dozen” The original ‘convicts on a suicide mission’ movie. Starts with a hanging and ends with a bunch of Nazi officers getting burned alive.

You’ll appreciate this story about a story.

Asimov once wrote a science fiction mystery about a murder committed during a game of pool.

He gave it to the editor with the title ‘Billiard Ball.’

The editor liked it, but he told Isaac that a punnier title would have be “Dirty Pool.”

Except automation is a thing.

As soon as they become economically viable, robots will be mass produced.

Play around with the title for a few minutes. Start with the last three letters.

Reminds me of an old Isaac Asimov story.

There’s a floating city called Atlantis. It’s the headquarters of the tyranny. One insider figures out a way to sabotage the place and crash it, using the leader’s own vanity against him.

“Shah Guido G.”

https://archive.org/details/buyjupiterothers0000isaa_f2u3

I remember a trailer where they show you the elevator doors and a narrator talks about Stephen King and the genius of Kubrick and then the doors open. Nothing else.

[off topic?]

Ever seen ‘Time Bandits?’ The original, not the one with Kudrow

There’s nothing particularly nsfw in it, but I think a couple of young girls would find it very cool.

There’s a funny thing going on in the USA. The rich are buying up vacation homes in Red states like Wyoming. The rich come in and f**k up the local economy/landscape and suddenly the capitalism loving natives have to deal with being outspent.

The new tech has given the 0.001% access to a banking system that will shield them form all consequences.

Unless you’re willing to burn everything down and go back to simple barter, the rich will float above any uproar.

The USA going down the tubes wouldn’t affect the billionaire class one bit.

Not all performances are ‘plays.’

This is true, although you have a constitutional right to a lawyer even if you have no money.

Legal aid is overworked and underpaid. At best you’ll get a tiny portion of the lawyer’s time, and at worst they’ll throw you under the bus so they can make a deal for another client who is in a worse situation.

You aren’t the first person to post that video.

Not everyone has the privilege of being able to afford a lawyer and/or time off from work. There are plenty of jobs that won’t let you interview if you’ve been arrested, even without a conviction.

If the police want to make your life miserable, it’s very easy for them to do so with no consequences. Also, when you piss off a cop, they are probably going to take it out on the next person they interact with.

On the other hand, if you follow the advice posted, you’re not going to give up any of your rights.

Put yourself back in the day. No TV or internet. Public spectacles were pretty much the only entertainment. Any kind of parade was a big deal. Ever heard the phrase ‘get on the band wagon?’ On election days the political parties used to have wagons with a band and beer that would drive around town to get people to the polls.

Now look at some old Nazi documentaries. Those masses of people throwing their arms out like that? That looks great.

https://youtu.be/3_VeIf1M0M4

10 minute documentary on Hitler’s best propagandist

The situation today is nowhere near as bad as the Cold War.

Think of it this way. All of the 0.01%ers in china, USA and Russia share the same tastes and values. Think any of them are really hot to blow up their nice places on the Rivera?