Jed Rothwell
Fri, 28 Mar 2008 13:37:04 -0700
Edmund Storms wrote:
I realize the story is fiction and it does not represent Clarke's views. In fact, the plot might even be considered sarcasm . . .
Yes, gentle sarcasm, although he would not be a bit surprised if someone took it seriously.
To me, the story is a simple allegory that pokes fun without stirring up trouble.
That is just what Clarke often did! He did not like trouble or hard feelings. For example, editors at the Sci. Am. recently described their visit with him in 1999, in New York:
"Clarke gently berated us for not taking cold fusion seriously enough. Most researchers had dismissed it a decade earlier, but he still believed that a revolutionary discovery could come from the experiments of the smattering of remaining devotees."
I am sure he was gentle, even though he told me and other people that he was pretty upset with them. He was well aware of the editors' letters to me, in which they said they are certain cold fusion is bogus, and they never read any papers on cold fusion because reading papers isn't their job. He shared my opinion of such views. But he was not a confrontational or angry person.
If I had those people I would express cold contempt, and I would end the conversation quickly and leave, because I would be tempted to start yelling, or to slug them, which would not help. If Gene Mallove had met them all hell would have broken loose.
Whether this was Clarke's view is unknown.
I am pretty sure it was. - Jed