-Poul Anderson, "Territory" IN Anderson, David Falkayn: Star Trader (Riverdale, NY, 2010), pp. 1-76 AT p. 49.
"Y algunos hombres buenos," Manuel muttered, so low he could scarcely be heard. One hand dropped to the butt of his gun."
-Poul Anderson, "The Master Key" IN David Falkayn: Star Trader, p. 281.
Manuel carries a well-used blaster at his hip in Chicago Integrate and into the penthouse apartment of a merchant prince. This is not society as we know it.
Now, we can google for translations of phrases in other languages. I recognized some although not all of the words and the meaning of Manuel's muttered phrase was a surprise.
11 comments:
Well, depends on which society.
Here in Santa Fe, I passed two ordinary civilians with automatic pistols on their belts last night, and my wife met another when we took our car in for repairs a week or two ago.
For that matter, I carry a fighting knife at all times except in places behind metal detectors. Two, in fact: this one in my pocket
https://www.amazon.com/Cold-Steel-Voyager-Tanto-29TXCT/dp/B00U1I9GU6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1525891963&sr=8-1&keywords=cold+steel+tanto+folder
And this one in the rear belt-sling of my knapsack, the one I also used to carry books and the personal computer I'm writing on now:
https://www.amazon.com/Ka-Bar-Becker-Combat-Bowie-Fixed/dp/B001IPKL7I/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1525892059&sr=8-1&keywords=ka-bar+becker+bk9
I didn't when I was in England a couple of years ago, and I felt "undressed" all the time. I've had something like these with me nearly all the time out of the house since I was 14 years old.
The right to bear weapons is the right to be free or something. Except that I am not happy about the extent of gun crime in some societies.
I remember in the US feeling uncomfortable walking past a policeman with a gun in an open holster. Anyone could have tried to grab it. There is no sane or rational reason to try to grab it but in society right now not everyone is sane or rational - which is one reason why some police are armed.
A wit observed some time ago that the reason American police carry guns is not to intimidate the citizens, but to protect the police -- why should they be the only ones unarmed?
Point being that the guy wearing the blaster in van Rijn's apartment doesn't seem nearly as odd from the viewpoint of New Mexico as it does from that of Lancashire.
For that matter, IIRC the guy in the story was from a planet called "Nuevo Mexico"... 8-).
Mr Stirling,
He is. It is a small universe.
Paul.
Paul:
"The right to bear weapons is the right to be free or something."
The Weapons Shops in the Isher Empire (A.E. van Vogt) used that as a slogan. BUT — they had some kind of "handwave" technology (meaning van Vogt wanted to have it in his story, so he just said, "Well, the future has figured out how to do it.") so that those guns could only be used in self-defense or for suicide. If I tried using a Weapon Shops gun to stick up a bank, a store, or a guy on the street, they could laugh in my face because the gun would simply never fire. If, on the other hand, the government wanted to arrest me for thoughtcrime....
Kipling's poem "The Old Issue" lists as one of the signs of a tyrant,
"He shall take a tribute; toll of all our ware;
He shall change our gold for arms—arms we may not bear."
I'm of two minds about the matter. Unfortunately, some of the loudest voices in favor of an armed U.S. citizenry are those of people whose political views raise my hackles — and I'm inclined to believe they actually only want citizens who think as they do to have guns.
Incidentally, Wikipedia claims someone with the unlikely name of S.M. Stirling has written an "Emberverse Series" in which the Weapon Shop of Isherman and Sons manufactures swords.
David,
Wikipedia is correct.
Paul.
Paul:
I was fairly sure of that. I just chose to be facetious in my mention of the fact. Or at least I meant it as facetious.
David,
We need facetiousness in this grim world.
Paul.
Gentlemen,
My basic view, despite not feeling the need to carry a gun (the benefit of the good luck to live in a relatively peaceful society), is that if we have the right to defend ourselves against criminal or unjust attack, that includes the right to bear the means needed for such self defense, such as guns or knives. So, I don't agree with those who would absolutely and utterly disarm everyone.
I'm behind on blogging and commenting here. I've been binging out on S.M. Stirling's third Shadowspawn book: SHADOWS OF FALLING NIGHT. Gripping and a real page turner!
Sean
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