Thursday, November 20th, 2008

Time	Event
12:49p	Philcon this weekend This weekend, for the first time in several years, I'll be at Philcon. And this weekend, for the first time in a long time, Philcon won't be in Philadelphia (they've moved the convention across the river to Cherry Hill, New Jersey). The entire schedule, in various formats, is available on this page. Here is my own schedule, so if you'll be at Philcon and want to meet up with me, these are the best times/places to try (well, other than hanging out in the dealers' room, or parties at night, or…): Friday at 8PM: "The Economics of Empire" in Crystal Ballroom Two, with Walter Hunt, Charles E. Gannon, and Tom Purdom. Friday at 10PM: "The SF Quiz Show" (their take on Jeopardy!) in Crystal Ballroom Three, with Oz Fontecchio, Hildy Silverman, Roman Ranieri, Stephen C. Fisher, and Chris Logan Edwards. Saturday at 11AM: "Science Fiction Had a Lot More Freedom in 'The Good Old Days'" in Plaza II, with Diane Weinstein, Alexis Gilliland, Andrew Wheeler, and Gardner Dozois. Saturday at 12N: "Does Science Fiction Inspire Invention?" in Plaza II, with John Ashmead, Mitchell Gordon, Jack McDevitt, and Jay Wile. Saturday at 5PM: "Topicality in Science Fiction" in Plaza V, with Judith Moffett, James L. Cambias, Ellen Asher, and Larry Hodges. Sunday at 11AM: "When Did Heinlein Go Bad?" in Plaza VII, with Michael F. Flynn, Tom Purdom, Judith Moffett, and Kimberly Ann Kindya. Should be a busy weekend for me. Hope to see some of you there. Incidentally, this also looks to be the first weekend of four in a row when I won't be home: busy busy busy. Keep watching this space for upcoming announcements. (2 Comments | Comment on this)
4:20p	Following up yesterday's links with more "UAW to Congress: Get a deal done" by David Goldman: because, of course (as I said yesterday), it's the job of the government spending our tax dollars to prop up a company or industry that is failing. UAW President Ron Gettelfinger said "If there's no action, we could see the collapse of one or more domestic auto companies by the end of the year." Interestingly, Gettelfinger said nothing about any action he and his members are taking—other than asking for our tax dollars—to save those companies and their jobs. On the other side of the issue, there's "No need for bailout, say diners near thriving car plant" by Jim Kavanagh, in which people near a thriving Honda plant talk about their views on how to save the auto manufacturers. It's the whole "it's not my fault" thing writ large. Sure, it's not entirely the UAW's fault that Detroit is in dire straits, but they are definitely a part of the problem. And if you had the choice between insisting the world let you keep doing what you've been doing all along, and then probably losing your job, or being flexible enough to say "Okay, I'll change these things and take a pay cut to help save my job", which would you do? Wake up, Mr. Gettelfinger: the world doesn't owe you anything; the government is not required to spend my tax dollars to save your job; and it'd probably be a hell of a lot more rational for the big three automakers to file for Chapter 11, cancel their contracts with your union, and then hire workers at a more reasonable, more competitive salary. And as much as I like the concept of buying "American made" cars, lots of those Hondas and Toyotas and other foreign cars are made in America these days. If GM, Ford, and Chrysler went away, I'd be sorry to see them go, but there will still be cars to buy. (1 Comment | Comment on this)

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