A War With Words...Larry Correia Vs. The World

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For those of you following this year's Hugo Awards for excellence in Science Fiction writing, you've notice something--there is a disturbance in The Force.

The Force being the establishment. The disturbance being Larry Correia.

Blog posts have been written, magazines articles submitted, facts--and their counterparts--thrown around, so much so, there's little I can add to the argument. But I have read several posts trying to explain to the masses just what's going on and the side being slammed must then prove the opposite.

The battle of words is a microcosm of wars being waged on a national, and international level. Accusations of racism, sexism, gay bashing, and pretty much every other ugly social ill is being hurled at an entire segment of the science fiction universe. 

And as a magnet has two opposing force fields, the other side has chosen not to ignore the claims, but have decided to express their side of the story, as they see it.

The world of Hugo Awards and the politics behind all that it represents is new to me. I'm like a kid watching prize fighters go at each other in a ring, but instead of boxing gloves, the warriors use words, and creativity to make their points. It has been very fun reading the point/counter-point/counter-point, back and forth between the sides, even though one side appears to be coming out swinging right now. I don't know if the other side will respond, or be silent, thinking their lack of rebuttal proves their point.

A few months ago, I met Mr. Correia. I've read many articles and responses from those who support him and his case. Many of them know Larry personally. I was able to spend some time with Larry at Salt Lake Comic Con FanX--a nicer man he could not have been. He treated me, a relatively unknown author, like a colleague, like an equal--something he did not have to do, and I thank him for that. A sign of character is how a person treats another when there's nothing to be gained by the relationship. If you know Larry you know what I'm talking about--he's a pro.

Like I said, I'm new to the situation and lack much of the background that would help me understand the intricacies and nuances of what is actually going on. But I do know one thing--this is not something that's just beginning now. This is not a new problem; it's been percolating for some time and like a kettle of water being heated from below, if the pressure's not released, it's going to blow. If you listen, you can hear the kettle beginning to whistle.

* Picture courtesy of Jeffrey V. Brimley and used with permission from: http://larrycorreia.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/int-lord-of-hate.jpg. Information on Mr. Brimley can be found: HERE.