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To distinguish him from the Transformers character, yes.…
04 Jun 2010, 21:54
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Pretty much, yes, and for both sexes (not just semen, but orgasms). They are either controlled, or controlled and released, for individuals of a certain status, or for everyone. G…
04 Jun 2010, 20:03
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Interesting. Can you elaborate on the distinction? (I'm not familiar with the Gnostic Christ's achievements.)…
04 Jun 2010, 00:43
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Bingo. Although who exactly is meant by "we"---since the Heiros are knee-deep in the manufacturing process? Do they express some universal desire for such a figure? And who dete…
03 Jun 2010, 20:17
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And it's a great pun. Wouldn't want to overinterpret, but if Latro is hunting (seeking) something in a world where gods present themselves to him daily, what is he seeking except…
19 May 2010, 18:04
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And now I grasp another layer of meaning in Latro's name. Am I always the last to know? ;)…
19 May 2010, 15:32
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Exactly. This is how Tolkien handled it too; his elemental gods were clearly angelic, and Elves remembered this if Men didn't. Just acknowledging the gods as real doesn't mean they…
19 May 2010, 15:26
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Of course, the great thing about a "spiral" evolutionary scheme is that is it both circular AND linear and can easily be asymptotic as well. "Circular" and "linear" answer the qu…
18 May 2010, 21:56
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This is perhaps the best description/explanation for what Wolfe "seems" to be doing in NS as I have seen. I've had a difficult time grasping the Increate's purpose in all the hug…
17 May 2010, 19:34
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Great! One thing that a correspondence scheme can do here is confirm the primary "meaning" or point of each chapter---to tell us what to look out for, what is important. Since the…
28 Apr 2010, 21:44
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A few guesses at connections to the Arcana, based entirely on Dave Tallman's chapter descriptions: 15: "Women" and 30: "Freedom!" 15 is to Shell. 30 is from Millie. Common feature…
28 Apr 2010, 02:00
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I haven't read the book yet myself, but here are the Arcana minus their various interpretations. Anyone want to take a shot? (no "silver bullet" pun intended, I swear.) Number…
26 Apr 2010, 23:55
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Sean You raise an interesting possibility: that "amnesia" is merely an advanced anthropological method, easily "learned," that relieves the observer of (at least the more consciou…
20 Apr 2010, 20:55
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Can we put this together with John's post and call this "the reification of narrative desire"? Any story is, naturally, true and false at the same time, in exactly that way. Story…
19 Apr 2010, 16:24
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And there's also the eery significance of carts in /*Le Morte d'Arthur*/ and elsewhere: The condemned were carried in carts to the gallows, but goddesses were also carried in carts…
19 Apr 2010, 15:27
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Oh Joshy Is a pedant someone who knows more about something than you do?…
17 Apr 2010, 00:52
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Well, it figures Wolfe would notice Green Goddess salad dressing. I suppose there isn't a salad dressing with "wolf" in its name, so one works with what's at hand. ;) And the tim…
22 Mar 2010, 22:51
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Which explains a lot of literary fiction ... I've always followed this particular piece of advice. Some authors talk about letting their characters find their way (Le Guin for exa…
05 Mar 2010, 22:57
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Furthermore, if those calculations are based on American calorie intake, you could cut the Green Man's food energy needs by up to 50% just by changing that assumption to a level mo…
29 Jan 2010, 23:22
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Well that not only answers the question but obliterates it! Well done. I didn't know Silk/Horn was Malrubius. Pray continue ...…
13 Jan 2010, 00:37
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First, apologies for posting the entire digest last time! I too had some trouble with that episode. But I'd respond with 2 comments: (1) Why would Silk/Horn be part of Severian's…
12 Jan 2010, 19:44
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I think sometimes it's that simple. If anything, I think they are markers of otherworldliness. Gnomes, kobolds, dwarves (my email composer wants me to say "dwarfs"!), orcs, etc., …
11 Jan 2010, 22:19
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Touche. Hmm. The waters just get deeper.…
09 Dec 2009, 22:21
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The fact that no one shows up with a horrible facial scar, when one was so clearly indicated, does suggest that Something is Up. Either it's a red herring or ... We could specula…
08 Dec 2009, 23:48
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Thanks! Again, a precedent is available, so I'll buy that, even if Maragaret being a later Cassie isn't necessarily pivotal to the plot. In Free Live Free, four people resembling …
30 Nov 2009, 12:58
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Thanks! Who else was MB? Has anyone cross-checked initials with those of Lovecraft characters living in Kingsport? There's a conversation with Chase where it almost seems as thou…
25 Nov 2009, 23:12
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Of course you're right about the storm. That's much better. The only necessary time travel I see so far is that Cassie will use the hopper to Woldercan to return to an earlier tim…
25 Nov 2009, 23:08
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I will have to read that again. I think I didn't know the Storm King was Cthulhu then ...…
25 Nov 2009, 13:25
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Yes, that seems likely. See http://members.shaw.ca/csstrowbridge/Tulzscha/Information.htm…
24 Nov 2009, 19:36
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Good thoughts ... ------------------------------ Message: 2 Date: Sat, 21 Nov 2009 21:56:08 -0800 (PST) From: Jerry Friedman <jerry_friedman at yahoo.com> To: The Urth Mailing Li…
22 Nov 2009, 23:58
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True. It's because Wolfe uses so many literary antecedents. AND bad puns. Both of which fit into the "duh" category---if you've read the author in question, or if you get the pun…
22 Nov 2009, 12:32
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Fascinating! The "apparatus" is clearly a Kafka reference, and one that has been in my memory since I first I read that story as a child. My take on the exchange between Thecla …
21 Nov 2009, 22:54
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True, but I was more struck by Able's rather flat interpretation of his universe---where is he, WHEN is he, the sequence of events that make up the plot---than his interpretation o…
12 Nov 2009, 18:23
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Chris, you're definitely crazy. But only because you have laid eyes on things Man was not meant to see, and uncovered secrets Man was not meant to know. So you should just go wi…
03 Jun 2009, 16:38
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You know more about this than I do, I'm sure. Do U2 pay NO tax, or do they simply move a large portion of it offshore every year, like any corporation? A loophole is a loophole, un…
20 May 2009, 12:28
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Sorry, when did I say the American Civil War was justified? It was not. See, I've read up on it a bit. BTW, in my last post, I meant to add a ";)" after I called you a wingnut. Y…
20 May 2009, 01:24
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Oops, I spoke too soon. Welcome, wingnut!…
20 May 2009, 01:20
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John, you are the peacemaker, so I bow to your authority as such. I will make no more war against Daniel and his people. But, really, if you don't know about something, you Google…
20 May 2009, 01:18
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Yes, I saw that one. Ah, the eternal wisdom of Dilbert.…
20 May 2009, 00:42
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No, thanks. But I suggest you try reading things that don't reinforce your existing beliefs. You may learn something.…
20 May 2009, 00:38
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Below…
19 May 2009, 22:20
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I always try to keep that in mind when I read your posts.…
19 May 2009, 22:11
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Of course you have.…
19 May 2009, 22:08
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Yeah, Mao and Washington would have found much in common.…
19 May 2009, 22:06
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Somalia's economy is not "based on" piracy. It was based on fishing and herding before global shipping killed all the fish. Read newspapers.…
19 May 2009, 21:32
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The key term here is not "voluntary" and it's not "consensual." It's "consent"---as in "the consent of the governed." It's nothing like what you are thinking of. Google that phras…
19 May 2009, 21:21
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Well, let's see. I just voted for a tax increase. I have helped elect people who raised taxes, because they said they would raise taxes. As a result, I will pay more taxes. I want …
19 May 2009, 19:39
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Below…
19 May 2009, 19:12
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Adam, please don't heckle the comedic stylings of our very own Josh Geller. He's on a roll!…
19 May 2009, 19:09
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I hardly think that state legislatures allowed payday loans because they sympathized with poor people suffering at the hands of loan sharks. After all, such people don't have an as…
19 May 2009, 18:09
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