I hated working inside the Beltway.

I punched out to Afghanistan as soon as I could. 15 years, two warzones, three developing countries in Central Africa, and most days believing what I did mattered.

Only been back as a tourist since then.

It took Trump and MAGA to make it all feel tainted.

I walked in looking for a Post Office.

It was like walking into a forest clearing and seeing a unicorn. A used bookstore, with the slightly musty smell of old paper, a hint of dust, and an undercurrent of dreams and memories.

I told the owner, "Best Post Office ever."

(Yes, they mail stuff, too.)

One more thing, ending:

Protesting on a Saturday is convenient.

Freezing the country in its tracks on a Tuesday? Watching markets collapse due to a general strike? No schools, no hospitals, no flights?

Until it hits the wallet, disrupts daily life, and causes more than inconvenience, well...

I need to cut about 700 more words from this to be able to submit it for publication. Any Sci-Fi loving folks with a fondness for their red pen out there?

#Booksky #Writing #WritingCommunity
#SciFi #Writers #Readers #WritingAndBooks
#SpacePirates #SpaceMarines
#Editors #Editing

The Declaration of Independence:

"He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither."

Immigration and a path to citizenship are fundamental to the U.S.A.

Only 12, 15, and 16 are currently red, and it takes some remarkably creative coloring. Compare to the density map to see how urban areas are excluded to create 2 of the 3 districts.

Without gerrymandering favoring rural areas, there would potentially be only a single red district in southern IL.

Note the population density map - locations with more than 500 per sq. mile lean blue.

I lived in the Chicago area for 15 years and believed IL would be red if not for liberal manipulation.

Doesn't take a cartographer to see that the three red districts exist by carving out population centers.

Is there an award for Best Sci-Fi Hair?

He does have to compete with Princess Leia's buns and this:

500 volunteers came from Haiti to fight the British at the Battle of Savannah during the Revolutionary War.

Do Trump and the Lickspittles or their MAGA cultists know that?

Can't make America great AGAIN without knowing who helped us get here.

#Trump #MAGA #Resist #Truth #AmericanHistory #RealNews

Activation of the government-wide propaganda machine.

Until now, we've heard from MAGA lackeys - Rubio or Hegseth vomiting swill into the universe.

Now, agency public notification systems and manipulated government data will reinforce the lies.

Can your grandma or grandpa tell the difference?

The movie, a dozen times. The scene... maybe a hundred.

Also a candidate for best unscripted monologue ever.

Robin Williams could compete for comedy, and Jack Nicholson for menace. But this takes it for the overwhelming sense of futility and loss.

Before I read Tolkien, before C.S. Lewis, before everything except, perhaps, Star Wars...

Two of the stories I had the most fun writing recently are out for submission to major markets.

One is a a novelette called “Man's Best Friend,” and the other is a flash fiction snapshot for the theme TEETH called “You need a toothbrush” looking at a shorter scene from the opposite point of view.

A tease for an upcoming flash fiction submission on the theme of regret:

"A world without conflict..."

Substack subscribers will get a sneak peak - it's free!

gwrevenger.substack.com

My first official post is coming soon, along with more details about a new story - a sci-fi / noir detective tale with idealistic robots, a bitter detective, and a serial killer stalking innocent androids...

And if you're out and about in the world right now, keep your heads down!