AEG clones

Roy C. Lackey · 14 Dec 2008, 09:52 · from 2008-December.txt.gz

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From: rclackey at stic.net (Roy C. Lackey)
Date: Sun, 14 Dec 2008 03:52:06 -0600
Subject: (urth) AEG clones
References: <000901c95d65$1a9ac340$3dcf4a0c@rclackey>
	<28BF0500BD5348C8B8159A932165B8FB@GATEWAY>
Message-ID: <005701c95dd1$a39a0d60$8fd24a0c@rclackey>

James Wynn wrote:
> I have absolutely no aversion to clone theories per se, yet I think I can
> give you heartening news that I don't think any of this means Rian is a
> clone. Klauser IMO thinks Ries's fiance was a clone-daughter of the woman
he
> is talking to in his living room.

I mentioned that he might have thought that.

> When she says she wants to bring her back,
> he presumes she means to create a new clone. She would not want to say
more > about it because it is an illegal activity.

Yeah, but it was Klauser who brought up the subject, and he brought it up
*before* she said she wanted to bring back the Casey girl. In between, he
asked if Bill was dead. After Cassie said she wanted to bring back the girl
is when he said that he thought he understood that "as well." As well as
what?

> Given that as an explanation (which I think is accurate), is there
anything
> said that would be clarified by Rian being a clone of Bill Reis? I can't
> think of anything. I know you don't doubt me when I say I actually wish I
> could.

I know. <g> As for clearing anything up, it might lend Reis' dying words
something more than mere poetic sentiment. (283)

 >Another thing, weight is to some extent biologically driven, but so
> are heart defects.

And today's animal clones have sometimes turned out to have subtle defects
that have led to premature death.

[snip]
> On the other hand, to have Cassie *never* meet Rian *is* suspicious in a
> Wolfe novel.

Very.

> There were innumerable opportunities before she came to the
> island and during her stay for Wolfe to have them meet (yes, I know we
never
> meet Herbie either, but this is different.). But the picture of a younger
> Bill Reis is not telling, since Rian is sixteen and the youngest picture
> she's seen of Bill is when he's at probably twice that age, I'm not sure
the
> picture would have raised any eyebrows. But, while Wolfe has left room to
> allow Rian to be revealed as a clone or any number of other things a
sequel,
> I'm don't see anything *yet* that actually tips us toward that.

You know I don't have a smoking gun, or I would have shown it. But there are
a few other things I chose not to bring up because I can explain them away,
one more easily than the others. That one is where Reis told Cassie, "I'm so
good [as a businessman] that I often need to pretend to be somebody else.
There are antitrust laws, for one thing. There are other reasons as well."
(120) That might mean nothing. Might. But the other things Wolfe went out of
his way to include.

The waitress at Rusterman's who looked like Alexis Cabana asked Cassie if
she was really there to meet Mr. Rosenquist, and said that he was a friend
of Mr. Rusterman. When Cassie asked if there was a real Mr. Rusterman, she
said: "He's the company president. There was another Mr. Rusterman years and
years ago, and he opened the first one. But now this Mr. Rusterman is
president of our whole chain. He's a cousin or something." (118)  Cousin
indeed. We know that Rusterman is really Reis.

Also at Rusterman's, Reis said:
"You were wearing green the first time I saw you."
"In the play? I wasn't. That was brown."
"So it was. I was thinking of the party. I took you home, remember?"
Cassie nodded. "Thank you. You saw _The Red Spot_, though. The final
performance."
"I didn't. I know I said I did, but that was . . ."
"Diplomacy?"
"Yes, exactly. India had given me tickets, and I didn't want to admit I
hadn't used them."(119)

Diplomacy? Cassie had seen him in the audience (53), and at the cast party
he said he had been there. (66) So was he lying then or now? Sure, his first
sight of her could have been on vid; he demonstrated the capability to her
three months later in his car. But Gid had put the glamour on her less than
twenty-four hours before that final performance. So who did she see in the
audience?

-Roy

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