Flet victus, victor interiit
The loser weeps and the winner is dead.
A comment on the nature of war: that everybody loses. This is a point that has been made over and over and yet never seems to sink home to some people. It reminds me of a stark movie done back in 1965: None But the Brave. In the movie, an American transport plane in the Pacific in World War II crashes on a tiny island. They find a small group of Japanese soldiers similarly marooned, and they quickly find themselves in a conundrum: the Japanese are set up by the only source of fresh water, and the Americans have the only medicines that can keep the Japanese leader alive. They strike a bargain to co-exist peacefully. The arrangement works, and the Americans and the Japanese end up working together to survive in a harsh environment. Then the Americans finally make radio contact with some rescuers. The two sides split up, and the Americans head for the beach to be picked up by a Navy boat. The Japanese attack, the Americans fight back, and both sides slaughter each other. The movie ends with the caption, "Nobody ever wins". The movie was release just as the Vietnam War was heating up; its message was ignored. Now we are doing exactly the same thing in Iraq, and people just don't get it. Flet victus, victor interiit.
Back in 1972 I built the most magnificent kluge of a lifetime: The Great Geminid Kluge
I've given a lot of lectures in my life, but none so good as the Dragon Speech:
Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V
November 18th: I have started a new blog to discuss political issues. The thrust of this blog is to have civil discussion between liberals and conservatives on the issues of the day. I urgently request conservatives who want to discuss (not argue!) issues to join in the discussion. I will enforce strict rules of civility at this blog to insure that we discuss productively rather than argue futilely.
Storytron, the company that is commercializing my interactive storytelling technology, is nearing commercial launch. You can get details at our website.
