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Editorial
The Senior Editor's usual drivel about whatever...
Hello and welcome!
Well... A couple of points before we begin; Last month's
editorial got a lot of feedback, for which I thank you all. Its
gratifying to know that I can induce readers to think and debate about
important issues. Also, one thing I forgot to note last month, it
usually was not the administration that imposed registration or
confiscation of the means of self-defence that the victims needed
weapons to defend themselves against, but a later election that placed
into power totalitarians whose path had been eased by the helplessness
of their prey.
OK, that's the last mention of the previous installment. Now
I go for the answer to your most burning question; "What's that idiot
going to rant about this month?" (and if that's the most burning
question in your life right now, I envy you)
And the winner is...
Why is it taking so long to make nuclear powerplants safe,
effective, and profitable?
Fission reactors are children of the 1940s, this is the year
2000. We should be well into the fusion age by now. (After all, the oil
companies are finally going to allow us to have electric, or partially
electric, cars now that they've figured out a way to add rapid charger
systems to the fuel pumps at the local gas stations.) We've got High
Definition TV sets, DVD players, home theater systems, digital
satellite TV systems... Why did we not demand research into safer
nuclear power plants? Have we turned our backs on nuclear power?
It should be damned hard to find an undeveloped country on
Earth in this day and age. Really. What's holding us back? What's
taking so long? By now we should have cheap
electricity available nearly world-wide. We should
have tamed and farmed the deserts, colonized the seven seas and other
planets. Hunger should be a fading memory. Disease should be fading
too. But what have we got?
Same old, same old.
From the history I've been reading, I get the feeling that
things aren't so much different now than they have ever been. Most of
us are working ourselves to death just to stay alive. Children still
die too young-, fewer than ever, yes -but still too many. Too many
people don't have enough food, don't have medical treatment available,
don't have a lot of things.
This is the dawning of the 21st century, the only outhouse in
America should be an exhibit in the Smithsonian, not a fixture in
hundreds of people's back yards.
What I'm getting at is that our priorities need some thought.
Instead of getting people 500 channels of TV we might ought to be
getting them the oppertunity to get some dinner. People pay money for
food too, you know. Somebody needs to be opening up
some new markets. But we seemed to have slowed down our desire for the
next "golden age" in favor of being entertained.
Distracted.
Perhaps its time to wake up?
Get involved, demand changes, make the world different. Each
of us counts for something. When we band together, we can make changes,
we can make the world a better place. We've proved that already. So
let's do it.
Its about time.
Thanks for your time.
Dan
I'd like to thank those of you who have sent e-mails or signed into the
Lettercol for your feedback. Keep those messages coming, folks! Without
those messages we will never know what we need to improve upon. Hope
you like the improvements so far!
First
War --Part 3--
By David Allen In the distant future, mankind has come in direct
contact with a deadly
enemy. Life on earth suddenly takes a turn for the worse...
Hawking's
Dawn --Part 3--
By Ben Stevenson The life of Alec Kyte has always been an interesting
one. At the forefront
of inter-corporation espionage involving the new super-powerful
entropy-based weapons systems, he is used to living dangerously and
taking
risks. But with the latest job, he has taken on more than he expects
and,
as his colleagues around him begin to have 'accidents', a sinister
conspiracy
becomes apparent. With enemies closing in, there is only one place to
flee - the darkest, most remote region of space known to man. A hidden
sanctuary. A Dark Haven.
Novelettes and Novellas
Eye
4
By Barry Glick "When he woke to the sight of pure darkness, he knew
something was terribly
wrong. He didn't feel anything. There was no sensation at all. "
Cell
Shift
By Derek Robinson A room with a view is not something you want in this
prison.
Custom
Made
By Ralph Benedetto, Jr. Every culture has its own codes of behavior. This
makes it very easy for a stranger to get into trouble quickly.
The
Portrait
By Sommer Rae Meade The only witness to his crime was a portrait. And
the portrait would never talk.
Pudgley
By Linda Kelly If you would teach a dragon, you must start when he
is small.
True
Power
By Jonjack Legends are wonderful things, stories passed from
generation to generation.
But what if someone was deliberately controlling those legends......?
Warped
By David Allen Writer's Challenge II:
"Frequently, the biggest trouble with time travel is keeping your mouth
shut."
Darkness
in Summertime
By Django Wexler Dad never came with us up to the summer house; he
couldn't leave the city. And Mom spent most of her days in town,
visiting friends. It was nice, in a way; she trusted us. After all,
what was the harm? The woods were safe, the house was safe, there was
never any traffic. We didn't mind, because it meant we spent most days
with the fairies.
"Stay"
By Jeff Williams "If I could stay then the night would give you up
Stay, and the day would keep its trust
Stay, with the demons you drowned
Stay, with the spirit I found
Stay, and the night would be enough."
Aphelion's
Daily Comics
By Mark Stanley, and Steve Troop Did he say daily? Yep, Aphelion is proud to feature two
of the funniest comic strips on the Internet, Mark Stanley's "Freefall"
and Steve Troop's "The Melonpool Chronicles". Bookmark this page, you
don't want to miss a single installme
nt!
Double
Wide
by Jim Parnell I'm in the mood for LOVE.....Ok, now what? WARNING:
Contains Language.
In case anyone is curious as to exactly what's been keeping
me so busy, I've planed a few webpages that show the progress of my
landscaping, interior decoration, and housework. Look for it in my
personal pages at Casa
Vila. Its the begining of a sort of photographic
timeline of my yardwork and such. I don't know why anyone would want to
see it, but Rob thought that someone might so I worked it up. Expect it
to be updated as I get new film developed and scanned. I have two new
rolls of film shot for this page and expect to update it within the
nexw few weeks.
Dan
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Back Issues:
Instead of the back issues the banner below now takes you
to the Archives-where all our past stories are available for you to
read.
I've decided to ditch the back issues in favor of the
Archives. The Archives are easier to use and can be indexed by author
or story title. Hopefully this will ease the task of finding a favorite
story. We may start a page of our past cover art, if there is a call
for it. Thanks for your readership for without you, nothing we do has
any meaning.
-
1\21\2000 - A Challenge to
Writers...
