Stephen King has fired back at conservative critics who attacked him over a remark he made a month ago at a writers symposium for high school students.
A blogger jumped on Kings statement at the Library of Congress about the importance of reading in which he suggested poor readers have limited prospects, including service in the Army.
"I dont want to sound like an ad, a public service ad on TV, but the fact is if you can read, you can walk into a job later on. If you dont, then youve got the Army, Iraq, I dont know, something like that. Its not as bright," King said at the April 4 event in which he was accompanied by his wife Tabitha and son Owen.
Blogger Noel Sheppard likened the comment to former Democratic presidential candidate John Kerrys remarks that if you dont get a good education, "you get stuck in Iraq."
"Nice sentiment when the nation is at war, Stephen," Sheppard wrote.
King fired back Monday.
"That a right-wing-blog would impugn my patriotism because I said children should learn to read, and could get better jobs by doing so, is beneath contempt," he said in a statement posted on his Web site.
Last I heard, the Army only takes people who can read ...
King said he supports the troops but believes the war in Iraq is a "waste of national resources ... and that includes the youth and blood of the 4,000 American troops who have lost their lives there and for the tens of thousands who have been wounded."
"I live in a National Guard town, and I support our troops, but I dont support either the war or educational policies that limit the options of young men and women to any one career military or otherwise," King said.
#1
Here in Oregon Lars Larson, radio personality, played his remarks all afternoon yesterday and promoted discontinuing to finance this clown by not purchasing his books in the future...to which the critics responded mostly by saying 'if he apologizes, I'll forgive him' and 'he's a writer, I'll have to give him a pass'.
That doesn't sound like an apology, and certainly isn't the creative response I would expect from a writer such as King.
He sounds like an elitist liberal with disdain for the military.
King books & movies are banned material in our household from now on and an apology later won't matter.
Posted by: Ike ||
05/07/2008 10:04 Comments ||
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#2
King has always been a nut-job. I haven't read his books for years since they all pretty much suck now.
#4
Step back and consider the brainwashing that occurs to those that choose NPR as their news source. We should pity Stephen King and others that once were free thinkers and now balk at the mere suggestion that there might be alternative points of view to consider.
Very sad. I've never read his books but I've heard good things about them. Especially his prison ones (Green Mile, Shawshank).
#5
Yeah, well I didn't understand your stupid-ass book Talisman, so I guess firefighters have zero creativity huh - just spray water and drink beer eh?
And as I said yesterday, then who does he have in charge of making his crummy books into craphole movies? After reading the book, the only thing scary about Monkey Shines, supposed one of his best works, was that on the cover next to an evil toy monkey deal was the price I had paid.
As I understand nobody question his patriotism - lord knows after The Mist and The Stand (the stories, not the craphole movies) we could see where that is at - what he did was say that millions of Americans are not as smart as he is - is he trying to make Jonah Goldberg's case? If someone does not do or think like him they must be stupid or crazy; Harry T. Stone should find him guilty hubristic and elitist behavior. May a giant space turtle barf up on this toothless clown.
Posted by: Mike ||
05/07/2008 12:35 Comments ||
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#8
I just remembered the sympathy I had for the guy when he got hit & run a few years back (emphasis on 'had').
Maybe someone knew then what we know now.
Posted by: Ike ||
05/07/2008 14:30 Comments ||
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#9
Love the word "Dumbassery"; it is so descriptive.
#2
If hunters were stationed around these plants, tragedies like this wouldn't happen.
Posted by: ed ||
05/07/2008 8:44 Comments ||
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#3
"All you emotionally stunted people who love your pets more than other human beings? Cats kill hundreds of millions of songbirds in North America every year. You love nature? You love the little birdies? Fine. Kill a cat."
ROFLMAO! I love this guy - he's got common sense and cojones.
(Not my fat-catpaunch-paws little kitty, of course - he's too lazy to do more than take a desultory swipe in a bird's general direction.)
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
05/07/2008 11:40 Comments ||
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. . . one longtime top Democratic party official predicted last nights mixed results raise the chances of a superdelegate initiative to stop the hemorrhaging.
There will be a temptation to get it over, the official said, predicting such an initiative would work against Clinton. If coming out of tonight there is a concern about increased polarization, there will be an increased momentum to end it. If 20 or 25 superdelegates were to endorse Obama, that would be the tipping point.
That suggests a great deal more cohesion and definitive action than weve seen lately out of the Dems.
Posted by: Mike ||
05/07/2008 12:36 ||
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#1
Eugene Field. 1850â1895
231. The Duel
THE GINGHAM dog and the calico cat
Side by side on the table sat;
'T was half-past twelve, and (what do you think!)
Nor one nor t' other had slept a wink!
The old Dutch clock and the Chinese plate
Appeared to know as sure as fate
There was going to be a terrible spat.
(I was n't there; I simply state
What was told to me by the Chinese plate!)
The gingham dog went "bow-wow-wow!"
And the calico cat replied "mee-ow!"
The air was littered, an hour or so,
With bits of gingham and calico,
While the old Dutch clock in the chimney-place
Up with its hands before its face,
For it always dreaded a family row!
(Never mind: I 'm only telling you
What the old Dutch clock declares is true!)
The Chinese plate looked very blue,
And wailed, "Oh, dear! what shall we do!"
But the gingham dog and the calico cat
Wallowed this way and tumbled that,
Employing every tooth and claw
In the awfullest way you ever sawâ
And, oh! how the gingham and calico flew!
(Don't fancy I exaggerateâ
I got my news from the Chinese plate!)
Next morning where the two had sat
They found no trace of dog or cat;
And some folks think unto this day
That burglars stole that pair away!
But the truth about the cat and pup
Is this: they ate each other up!
Now what do you really think of that!
(The old Dutch clock it told me so,
And that is how I came to know.)
In 1980, Ted Kennedy came into the Democratic convention at Madison Square Garden in New York City with 1,225 delegates to President Carter's 1,981 and 122 uncommitted.
If Kennedy could take it to the convention when he trailed by 756 delegates, Hillary can go to the convention trailing by her current 150 or so.
Posted by: Mike ||
05/07/2008 10:38 ||
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I wrote recently about the war in Iraq and the larger war against radical Islam, eliciting a number of responses. Let me try and put this conflict in proper perspective.
Understand, the current battle we are engaged in is much bigger that just Iraq. What happens in the next year will affect this country and how our kids and grandkids live throughout their lifetime, and beyond.
Radical Islam has been attacking the West since the seventh century.
Continued on Page 49
#1
Great info from the General. He's definitely an RB'er in spirit. One comment, if oil from ME were cut off, even the lefties would agree to offshore drilling here. There's a lot of oil in offshore basins and in Carribean. Tough and expensive to extract because it's deep. But when you really need it, we could get it. Also, the finds in Sugar Loaf off Brazil are only 20,000 ft. down. We've extracted deeper than this, so it's doable.
#2
This reminds me of a bumper sticker I saw on my way to work today: an odometer with "IRA" and a "Q" rolling over to an "N". Of course, judging from the other stickers on the car, it was an anti-war statement, but my first thought was: faster, please™.
#4
Ergo: seize the Middle East oil fields by any means necessary to that end. No? Muslims cannot and do not recognize any form of secular sovereignty; they believe that it belongs to their nominal deity. So why should we recognize their claims, based on "calipha" (succession) privilege? In fact, the House of Saud has roots in only a tiny section (Negd) of what is now Saudi Arabia. That perverse entity was granted sovereignty to serve as a local power, in service to Anglo-American interests. As with all Muslim entities, it perverted its assigned role. And, with the Soviet order collapsed and the UN order crumbling, there is nothing to stop repatriation of the oil fields. Should they try the Saddam solution and fire the fields, that would be an act of war inviting annihilation, which is exactly what the House of Saud would get. As for the Kuwait fires, they were all put out in 6 months; in most cases that time span was necessitated only by lack of equipment and manpower.
The Persian Gulf emirates would bend quickly. As for Iraq and Iran, abandonment of any hearts-and-minds or democraticization scheme, would enable harsh control means. It would not be difficult to maintain an exclusion zone around captured oil fields. As for manning the pumping station, there are thousands of non-Muslims from East Asia who could take on work assignments on short notice.
Universal security is not an option in a territorial entity, where Wahabist and Khomenist elements compete in terror export. Frankly, Arabs and Persians - and their demographic pig pens - can go to hell. We have the means to reduce them to the bit player role that those savages deserve. And the sooner that Mecca and Medina and Qom and Karbala are turned into nuclear wastelands, the better.
I know the counter arguments...but out values dictate. Our "values" dictated the nuclear annihilation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the charcoaling of Tokyo (200,000 killed in one day). The "values" argument is Jimmy Carter spew. Save it for politically near sighted morons.
#5
Good article - I concur. Thanx for the post Besoeker.
Posted by: Snash Oppressor of the Mohammatans aka Broadhead6 ||
05/07/2008 16:35 Comments ||
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#6
"#4 Ergo: seize the Middle East oil fields by any means necessary to that end."
That could have been easily done in 1991. Our leadership didn't even have the stomach to annihilate the Republican Guard (TV footage was getting icky - remember the "Highway of Death"), take Baghdad, or support the Kurds and Shia after encouraging them to overthrow Saddam (until the TV footage of tens of thousands of Kurds fleeing into snow-filled passes got icky again).
You really think we'd ever have the machiavellian leadership required to do what you suggest? Hah!
#7
ION IRNA > NORTH SEA OIL OUTPUT STILL IN DECLINE AMID INVESTMENT FEARS [New Wells]. NINE YEARS, versus LONDON's 16-25 YEARS, of estimated oil production???
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