#hugoawards #sadpuppies
The guy who is just too damn obstinate, brave, hell maybe even stupid to accept he’s beaten. Who takes on odds fifty or fifty thousand to one and…
Probably gets knocked flat. And gets up again and tries again. It’s a frontier thing, I think. Kowtowing to authority (no matter who that authority is) is good for civilized long settled places, crowded environments. Out where I am at home, and among people still close to that, authority is product of respect, which needs be earned, and that you keep up earning it. Expecting people to pull their weight, handle their own trouble, and, yep, be there when other people take a hammering to lend a hand.
Still, I’m glad to be learning my place from David Gerrold. I’d never have guessed that I was one of the little people otherwise. I just thought I was a short stroppy little bastard. But yeah, the puppies, nominees, organizers, supporters… we’re little people. Little people have to have decency, honor, play fair and above all play by the rules. Any possible deviation from the above is cause for them to be pushed into outer darkness, deprived of work, tarred with every libel and possibly to be sentenced to reading the Guardian or NYT until their eyes bleed (it doesn’t take long). Important people – like David Gerrold, and Patrick Nielsen Hayden aren’t little people. They’re important. Different. Special. So David can – while he’s going to be MC-ing the awards — attempt to manipulate and bias voting against certain nominees, and that’s just fine. If our positions were reversed I’d be the scum of the earth for abusing my position, but it’s just fine if you’re not a little person. So long as you little people understand your place it’ll all be wonderful. For David anyway. And Patrick, while the nominees are under embargo, will virulently deride the fact that the puppies did something legal… but just ungenteel and vilely unacceptable and deserving any abuse anyone feels like – in the same post as being completely unconcerned about giving away that he knew the names of the non-puppies Novel noms, and that the puppies had got three novel noms. That’s breaking the rules, the people who informed him broke the rules, and in case you hadn’t worked it out either the Hugo administrators had to have leaked (against the rules, and unfair, but the fact he stated 3 Puppies not 4 says they probably weren’t guilty) or he had to know who he expected to get nominated, have them tell him they hadn’t (unethical), and know that no one else had a chance. Curiously, because he’s not a little person none of his sycophants have asked him he could know, or criticized his unethical behavior. But don’t blame them, guys. They’re not stupid like me. They know their place and that rules and decent behavior are for little people. That’s why on ‘Making Light’ someone encouraged people to post fake derogatory reviews on Amazon for Puppy nominees. Because you can do that if you’re not a little person. And sure enough, regulars from there and Jim Hines Blog set off to do as they were instructed. But it’s Okay, they were just targeting little people.
Grin. If I keep shrinking at this rate I’ll be a Nome. “I reckon… I reckon we should eat his rat.” (Thanks Sir Pterry).