'Westwind'
The Urth list — 3 messages, 3 voices, 16 Oct 1998
https://urth.darkrealm.vip/thread/urth/1199

Exported from an unofficial mirror of a public mailing list. Copyright
in each message remains with the person who wrote it.

Email addresses are obscured as `user at host`, the form the original
archive published. This file was rebuilt from parsed fields rather than
retained headers, so it is faithful in content but not byte-exact.

==============================================================================

Alex David Groce — 16 Oct 1998, 15:23

Wolfe says in the intro. to Storeys from the Old Hotel that the your
interpretation is what he was aiming at.  Doesn't mean other interpretations
can't hold water, of course, but Wolfe was aiming at the God version.
Actually, I think that's the more natural interpretation, as well--for me at
least, the dictator version only began to exist for me after I heard someone
else explain the story that way.  It doesn't fit the feel of the story, in my
opinion.

> On Oct 16,  3:06pm, Michael Straight wrote:
> Subject: Re: (urth) 'Westwind'
> On Fri, 16 Oct 1998, Dan Parmenter wrote:

> > Okay, I rather like 'Westwind'.  I'm assuming that it's basically
> > about people talking to God by radio instead of prayer, or as a form
> > of prayer perhaps.
> > 
> > Did I "get" it?

> That's one interpretation.  Do you think it's possible that the leader is
> actually a dictator who uses the "Westwind" business as a means of social
> control?  Why does he lead each of his followers to believe that they are
> the only "Westwind"?  Why does he live in luxurys (as seen on TV) when
> his followers live in squallor? 
> 
> If you believe you are the emperor's secret favorite, his spy, wouldn't
> that make you less likely to be part of any rebellion? 
> 
> -Rostrum

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dan Parmenter — 16 Oct 1998, 11:51
  follows, by subject match Alex David Groce

Okay, I rather like 'Westwind'.  I'm assuming that it's basically
about people talking to God by radio instead of prayer, or as a form
of prayer perhaps.

Did I "get" it?

D

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Michael Straight — 16 Oct 1998, 15:06
  follows, by subject match Dan Parmenter

> On Fri, 16 Oct 1998, Dan Parmenter wrote:
> Okay, I rather like 'Westwind'.  I'm assuming that it's basically
> about people talking to God by radio instead of prayer, or as a form
> of prayer perhaps.
> 
> Did I "get" it?

That's one interpretation.  Do you think it's possible that the leader is
actually a dictator who uses the "Westwind" business as a means of social
control?  Why does he lead each of his followers to believe that they are
the only "Westwind"?  Why does he live in luxurys (as seen on TV) when
his followers live in squallor? 

If you believe you are the emperor's secret favorite, his spy, wouldn't
that make you less likely to be part of any rebellion? 

-Rostrum

------------------------------------------------------------------------------