With volume 2 of Fantastic Schools (featuring a story by your humble servant) coming out soon [UPDATE: It's alive!], I thought it appropriate to revisit one of my own favorite entries in the fantastic schools subgenre: the video game cult-classic Psychonauts. We open with a man in an army uniform giving a speech before the … Continue reading Thoughts on ‘Psychonauts’
Thoughts
Thoughts on ‘Mulan’
With the unnecessary and unwanted remake becoming the ‘who the heck thought this was a good idea?’ film of the season (previously occupied by such luminary pictures as Birds of Prey and The Rise of Skywalker), I decided to revisit the original Mulan, which I had not seen in many, many years. Mulan came near … Continue reading Thoughts on ‘Mulan’
Patriotism
You know what makes me the most angry, looking back? The fact of being told so many times that I shouldn’t be. I should be sad. I should be aware of the complexities of the situation. I should have sympathy for those in other countries. But I shouldn’t be angry. I shouldn’t feel it personally. … Continue reading Patriotism
Sunday Thoughts: The Treasure in the Field
Deconstructing fairy tales is like deconstructing a ming vase; it's easy to do, but it says more about you than about the subject itself. When some wag sniffs at the 'love at first sight' trope, or writes smarmy novels about Cinderella realizing how shallow her love for Prince Charming really is, it only shows the … Continue reading Sunday Thoughts: The Treasure in the Field
On Narrative
As noted, I’m reading Nassim Nicholas Taleb’s The Black Swan at the moment. One of the things he talks about early on is the narrative fallacy, which involves our need to create narratives and see patterns to explain the world around us. This seems a good chance to talk about the meaning and purpose of … Continue reading On Narrative
On the Purpose of Fiction
Actions are largely driven by emotional responses, which in turn are created by thoughts. Now, a man may, of course, act a given way through cool reflection: because he sees it is the thing to do. But he will not do so reliably. The head rules the hands through the heart. A man becomes moral … Continue reading On the Purpose of Fiction
Sunday Thoughts: Failed Systems
There is an episode of the original Star Trek called "Ultimate Computer". The premise is that the genius Dr. Daystrom has built a revolutionary supercomputer that, he claims, can run a starship more efficiently than any human captain and obviates the need for a human crew at all. They install in the Enterprise for a … Continue reading Sunday Thoughts: Failed Systems
Friday Flotsam: Good and Bad or Social Types
One of the key dividing lines in the world, as I see it, is between those who think in terms of good and bad and those who think in terms of this or that kind of person. Of course, there's a lot of overlap there, and the latter would say that they are thinking in … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Good and Bad or Social Types
Altering Thoughts
As I’ve shared before, I suffer from moderate depression. Lately, in my effort to combat it, I’ve been reading a book called Feeling Good by David Burns, MD. Though I’m very skeptical of most modern psychology, this one is actually based on pretty solid insights, ones that harmonize with what I read from older authors … Continue reading Altering Thoughts
Friday Flotsam: The Best Animals
I love dogs. I miss having one, and I hope (once I have a life again) to be able to get one of my own. That's one of the many things I'm looking forward to. Most people like dogs, and I think it's fair to say that people in general like dogs (with a few … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: The Best Animals
Serpent's Den 