It is, however, a relief to be done with it, and now to have the freedom to move on to another project.
Beyond that— who knows? I have learned not to prognosticate about my writing too much, because I have so often been way, way off-base. Wanted to share this— the hard-copy line edit— as always, helping to keep red pen manufacturers in the black—. Being a pantser is sometimes a very messy business. As always, I do hope that by the time I finish the edit I will still be able to read my corrections; my hen-scratching does seem to be getting more and more problematic as I get older.
I went to see Jurassic World: This time around, though— well, my poor suspension may have busted its torsion bars.
To put it succinctly, this is a stupid movie. I lay none of the blame for this eyesore at their feet. No, in this instance I can only suppose the director J. Bayona and the writers Derek Connolly and Colin Trevorrow bear the heavy responsibility for hatching this turkey or turkey buzzard. Put simply, what with the exploding volcano which was seen in the trailer and the standard corporate villain planning to market rescued dinos to international scumbags, the movie exhibits the standard sequel weaknesses of amping up the action to ridiculous heights while recycling the core conflict.
It makes me grind my teeth—. In short, and in general, a disappointment. Not that I had particularly high expectations going in, given the reviews beforehand, but the actuality fell short of even those. Artificially pumped-up danger, nonsensical character actions, and same-old, been-there bad guys— all of it mashed together and not particularly well-seasoned, it was a dish for which I lost my appetite about halfway through.
Too bad, because it had two of my favorite things— dinosaurs and exploding volcanoes. How do you mess that up? Just a note, to note, in passing, something that happened last night. Last night I completed a first draft for Princess of Stars. The breakthrough came in the first week of May, when I dumped thousands of words that were just…not…working , rethought the action of the middle third of the book, changing it essentially from a chase to a quest, and gave myself wholly over to writing while striving to ignore the ever-circling harpies of judgment.
This last week I pushed on despite developing a touch of carpal tunnel, and finished at about 9: The whole process for this novel was far more rocky for me than usual. Some days it was just easier to watch YouTube videos. By the grace of God and some hard thinking about what I was trying to do, I managed to get this first, and most essential, task done.
Of course, having said that, there are weeks of work ahead. I tend to see all my first drafts as narrative horrors, but this one is particularly scaly and gruesome. Well, truth to tell, I still have doubts, but with this novel, the completion of the Divine Lotus series, out of the way, I can move on to other projects and test the proposition in fresh fields.
Hopefully ones not filled with stuff that makes me sneeze. Is the story any good? Beats the crap out of me. But just finishing this, after so long a struggle, is a win, and a sure sign that final victory is in sight. His ludicrous imposition of tariffs on our allies Canada? Unfortunately, any humor we might have found in the gyrations of a president unhindered by such mundane virtues as truthfulness and an allegiance to facts is fast becoming impossible. His clownishness has begun to have real world impacts, to the point that some think the Western political and economic order as we know it is in danger.
To put it succinctly, we are now effectively living through a constitutional crisis. To put it more informally, this shit is getting real. The Mueller investigation may be approaching a climax. This past week, it reached a gobsmacking peak when Trump asserted the idea that he can pardon himself in the event of any indictment. Please, roll that one around in your brain for a minute. What Trump is saying, effectively, is that he is above the law. That he can commit crimes and then escape any consequences for those crimes. This is, essentially, the assertion of an absolutist privilege, something never countenanced in the Constitution or among the Founding Fathers.
This would be a major cornerstone for an authoritarian regime. I take some comfort in the fact that most people, aside from Rudy Giuliani and a few of the more servile Trumpist lackeys in Congress, think the idea either laughable or unacceptable or both.
Any attempt by Trump to pardon himself, most agree, would swiftly bring impeachment down on his head. But to me the fact that Trump is even willing to broach the idea publicly means we must have crossed some sort of Rubicon last week. To anyone other than a true believer, there can be now no doubt as to how Trump sees himself, and himself in relation to the Republic. This man has been a threat, is a threat, and will be threat, to that republic until he has been removed from office.
Now, a reality check. This was intended by the Founders to prevent presidents from being removed for mere political disagreements. This requirement is right and proper, and has helped keep the United States from the sort of governmental chaos that other nations have all-too-often known. But it means that removing a president, even one that deserves removal, is not easily done.
Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton were both acquitted in their Senate trials, and Richard Nixon resigned before the articles of impeachment against him could be completed.
Removing a president by impeachment, in other words, has never actually been done. To remove a president from office means that matters of evidence have to be presented to the Senate in a trial. This is essentially what they tried with Bill Clinton and the effort fell flat, as it should have. Evidence is what the Mueller investigation is about. In the end, he may not find anything, especially around the charges of collusion with the Russians. It may be all smoke and no fire.
Despite the overheated nature of press speculation around the investigation, there may yet be nothing there. If that happens, then we have one problem— how to deal with the incompetent, narcissistic clown occupying the White House. Because, quite aside from alleged criminality, Trump is still horrifyingly unqualified to be president, intellectually, morally, and in terms of skills. He is already causing damage to the reputation of the United States, our ties with our closest allies Canada, come back!
He has no policy other than his whims and what he thinks will please his base.
And the Constitution makes no provision for the dismissal of a president for incompetence— otherwise, our history would look very different, perhaps for good, but far more likely, for ill. In the case of Trump remaining in office, then for the sake of the country he will need to be legislatively quarantined. That would mean Congress would have to act to reduce his power and hedge him about with legislation that will limit the damage he can do.
To a certain degree, this needs to happen, anyway— the powers of the presidency have grown outlandishly over the last seventy or eighty years, in large part because the successive crises this country has faced that required a strong executive power. With Trump as chief executive this realignment of the executive branch of the government becomes an emergency priority. This would not be easy. This is where the paralyzed, sclerotic state of our national government would come back to bite us.
An incompetent president, blundering around like a drunken Godzilla and destroying the functionality of government, our alliances, our economic ties with other countries, and on and on, should be a matter of urgency for all Americans, regardless of political stripe. Instead, we see a Republican congressional leadership, in both the House and the Senate, who have been willing to hold their nose and lend their lip-service to Trump, in the cynical hope that he will further their agenda before he topples.
If Congress continues to be controlled by these sort of opportunists then there is little hope of reining in Trump, unless and until he commits some blunder so horrifying— getting us into a shooting war with North Korea, for example— that even the Republican leadership could not ignore it. If, on the other hand, the Mueller investigation does turn up evidence of an impeachable offense— well, then we have the same problem.
Impeachment would require votes in the House pass the articles; the trial in the Senate would require a two-thirds vote to convict. In Watergate Republicans were among the leaders who helped force Nixon out of office. In a Trump impeachment, it seems doubtful that more than a handful of honorable GOP members would even show up. As an aside, there used to be something called the Republican Party in this country— the party that produced Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt and Dwight D. That party is, sadly, long, long gone. Whether it is to contain a chaos-producing president or to impeach a criminal one, it seems unlikely that Congress in its current form will have the will or the ability to do what is needed.
The only remedy then will be to change the composition of Congress in the next midterm election. Note— this is not a partisan call for Democrats to swarm the polls. This is a call for everyone who cares about their country to vote for people who will do what is needed to contain Trump, or bring him to justice, regardless of partisan label.
After that, if Trump is still in office in , he needs to be voted out. End of sentence, and slam the door. After Trump, however his administration ends, it will then be the patriotic duty of all Americans to start picking up the pieces and putting things to right. At that point, we will need to address the systemic problems of our political system that allowed this waste of mortal matter to gain the highest office in the land in the first place. And for some twisted reason, this one slotted right in behind the piece I wrote last week — same universe, same space opera sensibility.
Only…I think this one is all too likely, if we ever do create an interstellar society. Which makes me kinda queasy when I think about it…. The sun sparkled beautifully off the waters of the bay. Juarez took in the vista, with purple headlands shadowing the horizon across the water, and boats, pleasure craft and working vessels, dotting the blue of the water. The sun was warm, but the breeze off the bay was cool and refreshing after days in a ship getting here. Harkess conceded the point with a nod. Savings in initial costs for a less human-friendly world will usually be invested in the subsequent terraforming as a matter-of-course.
They understand the basic points of planetary investment. One false step and we could all be penniless. The New Way Chosen, for instance, came to us when they wanted to find a world for themselves. So did the Purified. We have a great deal of experience helping investors of modest means become Proprietors on their own planet. A servant came out on to the terrace, bearing a tray with a bottle of wine and two glasses. He placed the tray on the table between the two men, poured wine into the glasses, bowed and left.
Juarez thought the man bore unmistakable signs of being a mod, but said nothing. Juarez lifted the glass, inhaled the bouquet, and then took a respectful sip. Historically, and in the present, they have been a tremendous help. And, of course, we keep all our licensures and permits with the Consortium itself in order. Juarez looked at Harkess over the rim of his glass. To help us bear the cost of development. Considering the resources of your group, I would assume that we are not talking about mining gas giants or any other such larger scale operations. I am sure we will be able to find something that will please your investors.
ASO has extensive experience handling infestations. In the five hundred standard years we have been in business, we have dealt with more than one hundred. Our techs and operations people are quite skilled at crafting solutions peculiar to each situation, one that is guaranteed to do no permanent harm to the planetary biosphere. Do you ever…face opposition? They were taught their technology by a human renegade.
It is not…native to their culture. The Consortium fleet has them well in hand. Nothing to concern us. Harkess lifted his glass, too. My response to a flash-fiction challenge from Chuck Wendig, to write words of space opera in honor of May the Fourth.
She has Zuko imprisoned, whereupon he meets Katara for the first time outside of his attempts to capture Aang, and the two discover they share a lot in common. Deciding on another approach, Iroh shares with Zuko his belief that wisdom comes from many sources, and he describes the relative strengths of each of the four elements, and the nations associated with them, and advises that understanding the other elements and other ways of life makes one whole. While at Xin Fu's earthbending tournament, Team Avatar witnesses a display of powerful earthbending by a young blind girl named Toph , who Aang recognizes as the girl from his vision in the spirit swamp. He leaned against a tree trunk and wiped sweat from his face. Valid only on your first 2 online payments. Archived from the original on August 1,
If I ever get the Divine Lotus series finished and that is a long, sad tale I might just turn to the universe of the Consortium, Shareholders, and the Perimeter. He leaned against a tree trunk and wiped sweat from his face. He was drenched in sweat, as well; this world reminded him strongly of Novo Brasil.
He spoke without turning around or looking up from the ruined wall he was examining with a sensordoc. Teal gave Rong a sidelong glance. Maria appeared over the rise beyond the wall, pushing aside vines and creepers. He snapped the sensordoc shut. Teal resisted the urge to calculate the cost of the fuel they had burned getting here. His regard of Teal sharpened. Mann said nothing for a moment. To help us complete that task, we are paying you a handsome sum. Surely enough to quell any ennui you and your people may feel. He enjoyed her touch; their lovemaking always put him into drowsy contentment.
Things are hard at the moment. But we have to finish this job first. Maria raised herself up on her hands, looked down on Teal. It is not our business. We were hired to haul him about and keep our mouths shut. Maria stared at him, solemn. Mackason IV, from a descent trajectory, looked much like many another Earth-type world—ocean blues overlayed with white clouds, green-brown landmasses here and there. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Would you like to tell us about a lower price? If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support? Kathy Pennington just wants to go home to Chicago and be a scientist, like her father. The only problem is the immovable object in her path-- her grandmother, the Dowager Empress of the Val. The Dowager is determined to make Kathy her heir and successor on the throne; Kathy wants nothing to do with the Empire.
Kathy has already lived through assassination attempts, coups and culture shock. But when an airship carrying her is torn apart by an assassin's bomb, she is put to the supreme test of survival, as she and a small band of soldiers struggle to escape murderous rebels through a primeval forest. As she fights to stay alive, though, Kathy is confronted by strange secrets that cause her to question what she has been told about the world of the Val. Read more Read less. Applicable only on ATM card, debit card or credit card orders. Cashback will be credited as Amazon Pay balance within 10 days.
Valid only on your first 2 online payments. Cashback will be credited as Amazon Pay balance within 10 days from purchase. Here's how terms and conditions apply.
To get the free app, enter mobile phone number. See all free Kindle reading apps. Don't have a Kindle? Createspace Independent Pub 6 November Language: