Diana Moon Glampers

Submitted by jabney on Thu, 09/28/2017 - 9:54pm

harrison-bergeron.jpg

Diana Moon Glampers knows that you are important. Diana Moon Glampers knows that I'm just as important.

In the short story, Harrison Bergeron, by Kurt Vonnegut (first published in 1961, in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction), the theme reminded me of an even shorter story that I read in Colliers.

The story in Colliers didn't have characters like Diana Moon Glampers. Colliers didn't have that much room. It was a magazine. And in our family, Colliers might have been displayed on the coffee table, but we didn't have a table dedicated to coffee. That was allowed only to the grown-ups. I was allowed to read magazines written for grown-ups though - found on one of the side tables. Where I could put my glass of iced tea. And I was probably the one to carry the tied bundles of old magazines to the Boy Scout's paper collection. Including old copies of Colliers. So that particular copy of Colliers disappeared long ago. As did the name of the story. But story itself has remained in my brain.

If you know the name of that story, please tell me.

Fortunately (or unfortunately, if you must), reading Harrison Bergeron will suffice. I don't think I read Harrison Bergeron in 1961. And as far as 1968, when Harrison Bergeron was included as part of, Vonnegut's Welcome to the Monkey House, well - who remembers much of 1968? I found it on YouTube read by Jordan B Peterson in, "The Disability Bureaucracy Wants Your Soul.[video:https://youtu.be/q0k-BPI2IQA]..." (Note: the Vonnegut story starts at 5:40, listening to the rest of the clip is up to you.)
((Note 2 - How can I get the closing " after the video moved up? Looks untidy.))

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Submitted by eyo on Fri, 09/29/2017 - 5:15am

Hi jabney, I think to "tidy up" the spacing between sentence and vid you can add one or two more breaks. Suggested in the Tips link at the bottom:

Lines and paragraphs are automatically recognized. The <br /> line break, <p> paragraph and </p> close paragraph tags are inserted automatically. If paragraphs are not recognized simply add a couple blank lines.

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Thanks for the Vonnegut story, I don't remember it at all so it is new to me and I really enjoyed it. I really dig that artwork too. The guy in the video is disturbing me so only watched about a half hour so far. I guess it is good to know there are people who feel so threatened but it makes me sad as hell they exist. Once the software guy started talking in the interview I had to stop it, will try and finish later. Sorry to say they make me sicker, not better. "If I had a Rocket Launcher" comes to mind, Bruce Cockburn. Another Canadian for peace. Thanks.

oom
peace

edit: changed before to after in the Subject, to make sense? hopefully

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Submitted by jabney on Fri, 09/29/2017 - 2:33pm

@eyo @eyo

Thanks for the tip about double blank lines.

As for Jordan B Peterson, he doesn't mince words - usually. He and his guest are both employees of the 'University System;' so they are under fire at the the moment. The guest is in trouble because one of his students demanded to be given eight hours for a two hour exam. Some sort of 'memory problem' that the instructor was not to judge. The discussion revolved around degrading degrees.

As far as I'm concerned, we should give everybody an A for showing up. But that's because my respect of the 'University System' is pretty low. Give me an A 'cause I have an opinion!

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Strange that a harp of thousand strings should keep in tune so long

Submitted by k9disc on Fri, 09/29/2017 - 4:44pm
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“Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” ~ Sun Tzu

Submitted by k9disc on Fri, 09/29/2017 - 4:48pm
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under the title "2081".

It used to be on YT. A google search puts you in touch with some less than desirable sources.

It was pretty solid.

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“Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” ~ Sun Tzu

Submitted by jabney on Fri, 09/29/2017 - 5:38pm

@k9disc

There are works that are very important to me. Like that Colliers' story mentioned up-thread, or - now that I know it - "Harrison Bergeron." I do remember the skeletal frame of the Colliers short story: parents worry about the son's exam being held that day and the somewhat unspecified results of getting the wrong score. The story was written in such a way that the reader feared that the son - around Harrison Bergeron's age - had a low IQ. Actually, the son wouldn't be coming back home - ever - because the exam showed his IQ to be too high.

Thing is, the story was so well written and the 180-degree twist so well hidden, that I will probably never forget it. Even though I can't remember the name of the story.

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Strange that a harp of thousand strings should keep in tune so long

Submitted by TheOtherMaven on Fri, 09/29/2017 - 7:58pm
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only, it wasn't in Collier's - it was in, of all things, Playboy.

https://scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/76390/futuristic-dystopian-sto...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Examination_Day

http://khhsce.weebly.com/uploads/2/5/6/8/2568473/examinationday_text.pdf

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There is no justice. There can be no peace.

Submitted by jabney on Fri, 09/29/2017 - 9:52pm

@TheOtherMaven @TheOtherMaven

Thank you. I know we wouldn't have had Playboy at home. But I was pretty good at reading the magazines at the drug store using an occasional, "Just looking, ma'am." 1958 eh? I still liked, "Mickey Mouse" - "Walt Disney's Comics and Stories" featuring Uncle Scrooge by Carl Barks (I think it was named that, even though Mickey Mouse was kind of flat compared to the Ducks). (edit, I found the correct comic name, but I still think Mickey Mouse was 'flat'.)

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Strange that a harp of thousand strings should keep in tune so long