[QUIZ] Questions from escondidoid

The interview meme has hit me again. As usual, post in the comments if you want me to pose a set of five questions to you.

1/ What importance do your spiritual (as opposed to your religious) beliefs have in your life? Why?

I don't think that I have any spiritual beliefs. Certainly, I've philosophical beliefs which guide my behaviour, both supported and inspired by my own personal questions. The word "spiritual," though, would seem to imply a belief in something transcending the natural world, something literally supernatural, and I lack any comparable beliefs.

2/ Where do you see yourself five years from now? Ten?

I can't give specific answers to either question since I've no idea what I'm doing. All that I can say is that I hope to be safe, happy, and prosperous.

3/ Do you find that being fluent in a second language gives you a different perspective on life and the world around you? Does the ability to express yourself in two languages affect the way you think?

My reasonable fluency in French does give me a different perspective on the wider world, inasmuch as this fluency creates the potential that I might be able to access alternative sources of information, altyernative perspectives, and the like. The onus is ultimately on me, though, to access this potential, and I haven't done nearly enough of that. I should, though; I'd like to be able to at least pretend to be bicultural.

4/ If you could change the outcome of any event in your life, what would it be? Where do you think you'd be personally if that had happened, all things considered?

Honestly, I can't think of a single event that I'd like to change. I'm fairly happy with the way things have developed, all said and done, and I think that I've developed as well as can be expected given what I started out with. I'm reluctant to change any potentially pivotal moments in my life very radically--to imagine getting the knowledge and the confidence needed to do things that I would have been incapable of doing--simply because I've no idea how things would have turned out. This might sound ironic coming from a fan of alternate histories, but I wouldn't be surprised to learn that I live in the best of all possible worlds for me.

5/ In the event you were conscripted to assist in a national emergency yet had the choice of assignment based on your education, skills, and interests, what would you be doing?

Based on my education, skills, and interests, I suspect that I'd end up doing some administrative or bureaucratic job, working behind the scenes. I could be more precise, I suppose, but I'd have to know what sort of national emergency I'd be reacting to.

[BRIEF NOTE] Just Another September 1939 ISOT

I just thought that I'd mention, since I've finished rereading it against in Google Groups' soc.history.what-if archives, that if you're a fan of alternate history stories you should read Dragan Antulov's "Just Another September 1939 ISOT" (parts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 here).

"ISOT" is the SHWI acronym for "In the Sea of Time," drawn from S.M. Stirling's novel Island in the Sea of Time and sequels, which describe what happens the modern island of Nantucket is transported back in time to a point four thousand years before the present. Many posters on soc.history.what-if have proposed various ISOT timelines, studying, for instance, what might have happened if the EU circa 2002 and the candidate member-states went back in time to 1942. The problem with ISOT timelines, at least from the perspectives of fans of alternate histories, is not only that they rely on deus ex machinas which can't be studied or analyzed very well (unlike "for want of a nail" timelines), but that they can be used by posters to express political views in The key example is someone's obnoxiously libertarian and Ameriphile Mars ("libertarian" meaning that all governments are evil, and "Ameriphile" meaning, well, Adam) transplanted from the early 26th century.

Dragan Antulov's story takes Yugoslavia as it existed on 1 September 1985--a stablish federation of six republics and two provinces, moderately prosperous but in economic decline, moderately politically plural but hamstrung by the constraints of post-Tito collective decisionmaking and the tensions between democratization and authoritarianism, militarily one of the most powerful neutrals in Cold War Europe--and transplants it 56 years in the past, to the very day that Nazi Germany invaded Poland and triggered the Second World War. Quite apart from the undeniable merits of his writing (a nice ironic style, an awareness of the personalities of Yugoslav and non-Yugoslav leaders, an enjoyable integration of Yugoslav pop culture into the narrative, a consideration of the strategic balance of power), the "Just Another September 1939 ISOT" timeline avoids the faults of most ISOT narratives. The country transplanted into the past is certainly powerful enough to change the course of 1939's events--Yugoslav GDP per capita in 1985 was on par with West Germany's a decade previously, for instance--but it isn't so powerful as to completely overturn the European balance of power, while its integration into said balance of power is convincingly and realistically portrayed. Besides, it isn't an ideological screed on the supremacy of Yugoslav-style communism.

Unfortunately, Dragan took "Just Another September 1939 ISOT" only to early October 1939, just in time for the reader to learn how a Macedonian music-video director might have been in just the right position to save Trotsky's life. It would be wonderful if Dragan picked the storyline up again, but even if he doesn't we've got his story preserved for eternity in the Google Groups archives.

Go, read.

[QUIZ] Via getawaywithit

( Which extremity of the world am I? )

[NON BLOG] What have I been doing?

• Since the general consensus seems to be that I shouldn't buy a battery for my laptop, at least not yet, I won't. Thanks for supplementing my decision-making processes!


• Wednesday evening saw the English graduate students' annual spring party, held at the Sleepless Goat. 'Twas very fine. Thence to the Toucan just down the street, where I saw the Calgary Flames' valiant defense of Canadian honour against San Jose to its final end, including the wonderful goal scored in the second-last second before the game's end.


• Thursday morning, though, I was spoiled by the Toronto Star for Angel's series finale. I am unhappy.


• This morning, I had a very nice breakfast at Windmills Cafe, eating with a fellow student in my Milton and empire class and talking (among other things) about our impending projects for this course (due Thursday). I'm interested in examining the origins of Cromwell's desire to allow a renewed Jewish presence in England, examining Menasseh ben Israel's arguments in favour of readmission and taking a comparative look at earlier events in the Dutch Republic, passing by Milton somehow. Suggestions and sources on this project would be much welcomed.


• In an hour's time I'll be at Chez Piggy as part of the ongoing GLBT dinners. Will blog (about the social function and about the food) upon my return.


• Finally, I'm planning to visit Toronto next weekend, to check out apartments and whatnot. I might possibly make a sidetrip to Montréal to meet up with a friend there, but that's uncertain as of yet. Gentlepeople, shall we begin scheduling shortly?