A Writer’s Life

I’m not sure I’ll ever understand the fascination with Anthony Mundine. I don’t have a problem with Mundine, but something about him rubs me the wrong way. A lot of people say that, but then many people like him as well and consider him a good representative for Aboriginal and Islamic society. Now there’s been talk of Mundine going into politics in a few years, and that’s what I’m uncertain about; if that happens, it could prove very divisive.

Mundine is obviously a talented sportsman. You don’t make a successful jump from league to boxing without a lot of skill, and probably a heap of determination and focus to go with it. But it’s his language I’m getting tired of. There’s no trace of humility in anything he says and it’s like public opinion has no weight with him. Just the other week, after beating Soliman, he seemed to disregard the spectators who’d paid to watch him by saying “I’m a two-time world champion - you all can’t say shit.” (The Sun Herald, March 11)

He’s cocky and that’s the persona we expect, but it’s only a minor example. There have also been the occasions when Mundine has said that the United States brought on itself the 9/11 attacks; when he’s called league selectors racist, and called John Howard a coward. He’s said that Aborigines suffered a Holocaust and that Australia should learn from how Germany re-established itself after the Holocaust. And that’s not even mentioning his refusal to wear the Australian flag, or the burning of the Union Jack and photos of PM Howard for his music video for Platinum Ryder. Plus his lyrics, which are just as inflammatory.

His language is obnoxious and attention-seeking, catering to the lowest denominator. Mundine shocks, causing outrage to elicit a reaction: it’s the language of the mob. What’s dangerous is that, like with any mob, he can’t always control the reaction.

Of course, everyone is entitled to their opinion; the problem is that these are important issues Mundine is talking about and he comes across (to me at least) as sounding ignorant. From someone who might enter politics in the future, that’s not a good combination. Even if your views differ from the mainstream, it’s important to be able to express those views intelligently so people can consider your viewpoint. I’m not sure that’s a quality Mundine possesses.

And yet, I do respect Anthony Mundine. Whatever he says, he backs up. Much of his boxing rhetoric is pure showmanship, sure, but he still wins, so it’s hard to disprove. He brings in thousands of people to watch his fights. But more importantly he’s a big donor to various charities, sets a good example for children by neither drinking or smoking. He genuinely cares. He’s one of the few people who lives by what he says, and in these times that’s a rare thing.

So what should we make of Anthony Mundine? He’s become such a polarising figure in the public, should we just ignore his rhetoric? My feeling is no, because he does represent a portion of society which feels the same way - it’s important to be aware of their point of view. That doesn’t mean we should take Mundine too seriously, though, either; rather it’s part of his persona and should be taken that way. If he does run for politics later, that’ll be different; but for now I think it’s all part of the show.

A new Fives list for you. This week: 5 reasons to love Google!

5) Searchmash
Google’s newest search engine, outfitted with ajax. Very smooth and easy to use.

4) Picasa
A simple, easy to use picture editor and organizer; allows you to order prints easily or post to a blog. More powerful than the software that came with your printer and it’s free!

3) Blogger
Still one of the most popular and simple blogging platforms on the web, with a new version out of Beta. Some (like Wordpress) have more features and a smoother interface but if you use Google’s services, Blogger is very convenient.

2) Gmail
The best free email service on the web. Easy to use and integrate with email clients; great spam filters and massive storage - you’ll never delete a message again.

1) Google Docs & Spreadsheets
Google Docs is a free WYSIWYG document editor. For the average user its functionality is similar to Word, although not quite as detailed for advanced users; what makes it great, though, is its collaborative feature. You can work on a document with other people in real-time. Google Spreadsheets is the same; for the average user a solid free substitute for Excel, with real-time collaboration.

Surviving the Stella wars

I’m sure lots of people have a similar experience, but something I remember very clearly from when I was younger was going to K-Mart for the midnight release of the Star Wars Episode 1 merchandise. Hard to believe that was eight years ago now, but it’s something I won’t forgot. I remember how busy it was, but everyone was orderly and by the end of the night most of the merchandise had sold.

So that’s why I can’t understand what happened at Target. What I saw on the news was crazy. If a bunch of Star Wars fans could get their purchases in an orderly manner, why couldn’t people stop themselves going crazy for Stella McCartney’s collection? Sure, her clothes were selling for $200, but is that a reason to lose all control? People were clambering all over each other, lining up for hours before racing through the store… it looked chaotic.

Overall the big winner in this is Ebay, because now there’s a rush to put the clothes up for auction. I wonder how many people actually bought clothes for themselves? And it’s certainly a success as far as Target is concerned too; Target’s first collection with a real designer and it sold out in a day. But all this talk of Target being a “budget” retailer: since when? So not everyone wants to pay $300 for a shirt - when did that make us cheap?

Oh well… when they do Sportscraft or Ralph Loren or something, let me know.

February 26 saw the final Nebula Ballot announced; the nominations for Best Novel are listed below. Quite a few there I didn’t pick before, and the most noticeable absence is Robert Charles Wilson’s Spin. I’m convinced Spin was the best novel of 2006, so I find it hard to understand why it’s not on the list. I guess I’ll go for The Girl in the Glass, now that Spin’s out. Winners to be announced May 11 - 13.

Best Novel
The Privilege of the Sword, by Ellen Kushner
Seeker, by Jack McDevitt
The Girl in the Glass, by Jeffrey Ford
Farthing, by Jo Walton
From the Files of the Time Rangers, by Richard Bowes
To Crush the Moon, by Wil McCarthy

I’d heard a lot about Alfred Bester’s The Demolished Man, but I’d never had a chance to read it before now. It’s a classic of science fiction, the winner of the first Hugo Award and the novel that inspired a generation of young writers into science fiction. But it’s been 50 years since TDM was first published; does it still hold up today? I found that it both does and doesn’t, for different reasons.

At its heart The Demolished Man is a science fiction mystery - only it isn’t a mystery in any conventional sense. The reader knows the identity of the murderer from the beginning; the twist is that Ben Reich lives in a society which has made murder virtually impossible due to powerful telepaths. So when Reich decides to murder business rival D’Courtney, the mystery is more how he can perform the murder and why he would want to. When Reich finally commits the murder, police prefect Lincoln Powell begins to investigate. If Reich gets away with murder, it will irreversibly change their society, and perhaps the universe itself…

I must admit, I had a strange reaction reading TDM. The novel itself I didn’t like much. Maybe a part of that was because I hadn’t read it previously and now it feels dated, but the concept of the novel seemed flawed to me. Reich has obvious motive, the most to benefit from killing his rival, and he was in the same place as D’Courtney when he was killed; the idea of him having this supposed anonymity for the crime just isn’t believable. And his later distractions for the police (opening charities, launching competitions, sending people offworld), likewise seem juvenile. But one thing which really troubled me was Bester’s depiction of women in TDM. The women are caricatures, depictions of male feminine ideals; socialites, clairvoyants, prostitutes, timid girls. I’d always thought TDM was an advanced novel, but in its attitude towards women, at least, it didn’t feel that way.

Perhaps I’m looking at TDM too much from a 21st century perspective, but I just didn’t find the story convincing. Nor could I grasp its Freudian undertones. Bester suggests that their society is unhealthy because they’ve stamped out the killer instinct, something they should learn from; but if you take this idea at face value, then how can you completely ignore that Powell is in love with Barbara as a perverse father/daughter relationship? He’s a man in love with a child, not a woman; but it’s never mentioned. In many ways TDM is a reverse morality play, but anything meaningful it says is overshadowed by the tone of the novel.

What I did find interesting, though, was seeing how much TDM has been used as a template for other works. I can see how at the time it was written that The Demolished Man would have influenced many writers with its blend of pulp fiction and ideas; its combination of low-life characters and run-down locations undoubtedly played a part in inspiring cyberpunk, and Bester’s use of italics and his structuring of psychic conversation (”basket weave”, etc.) was one of the earliest uses of graphologic layouts in science fiction. Bester’s influence is apparent in writers as diverse as John Brunner, Robert Silverberg and John C. Wright, due to the thematic diversity of his work, and it was that sense of experimentation that I found interesting in TDM; its blend of styles, Bester’s obvious love of language. That’s why I had a strange reaction; while not enjoying the novel, I appreciated the impact it had had and found following that more interesting than the story itself.

Overall, The Demolished Man is a mixed read. I don’t think it holds up as well as other novels from its time (Earth Abides, Childhood’s End, The Man in the High Castle), but the impact it’s had on the genre is unparalleled. If you’ve never read The Demolished Man before, maybe now is a good time to check it out; or if you have read it, maybe it’s time to revisit TDM and see for yourself how it stands up today.