Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Sci-Fi Wisdom of the Week


"The war started when people accepted the idiotic principle that peace could be maintained by arranging to defend themselves with weapons they couldn't possibly use without committing suicide."

- On the Beach (1959)

4 comments:

  1. Anonymous11:00 PM

    I've never seen this - though I attribute that largely I think to the fact that I -have- read it.

    That's not a negative, per se. It was an intense, bleak reading. One of those things that's at once powerful, and sufficient on one visit. Perhaps there's a point to things in that.

    Which I suppose is the long way of saying : awesome quote there.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi woodchuckgod:

    Thank you for the excellent comment on this quote from "On the Beach."

    I'll be reviewing the film version here soon (in the next week or so, I hope...) as part of my continuing look at post-apocalyptic film. I'm kind of dreading watching the (great) movie again because the book and movie are indeed so darn bleak. Very upsetting stuff...but brilliant stuff top. So I absolutely understand what you mean about one visit to the material as being "sufficient."

    Great comment,
    JKM

    ReplyDelete
  3. I've only read the novel once,but have seen the film many times. Looking forward to your review. Great quote, also.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi jdigriz:

    Thank you for the comment regarding "On The Beach" and this great line of dialogue.

    I've always thought the film was terrific...but man, incredibly sad. I'm hoping to have the review up in the next week.

    All my best,
    JKM

    ReplyDelete

My Father's Journal, Epilogue: "My Cancer"

My friends, we have reached the final entry in my father’s journal of his battle with cancer.     I want to thank all the readers who have c...