Inland, Dreaming of Waves

Do androids...

I’m a big fan of Battlestar Galactica, the new version—I never saw the original series. I don’t suppose that the “Androids got out of control and tried to destroy humanity” theme is all that original, but maybe it was when the series was conceived. I love what they’ve done with it, though. It’s cool that humanity has gone back to believing in multiple gods and that the Cylons, who at one point were trying to destroy humanity, believe in one god. It’s cool that their superior “air power” doesn’t enable them to prevail completely. One could even make the argument that the definitions of hero and antihero, terrorist and defender are turned on their heads in this series. I think, for example, of the moment when Sharon, a Cylon, is asked about being downloaded to a new body. She says, “Death becomes a learning experience.” And her point is, why wouldn’t anyone want that?

In the latest episodes, the Cylons have showed up on new Caprica and tried to do something, though it’s never clear quite what, with the remnant of humanity living there. It’s obvious to any viewer with half a brain that they’re the Americans and the humans are the Iraqis. The difference, of course, is that the Iraqis don’t have starships waiting to try to evacuate them. I wonder if they wish they did?

One of the blogs I read regularly is Baghdad Burning. In one of her last posts (dating from August) she said that everyone who can leave Iraq already has. Since she hasn’t posted for more than two months, I wonder if she left, if she died, or if she’s in hiding. Maybe her family got one of the bullets in the envelope that she mentions and had to leave their home. Or for all I know, she hasn’t been in Iraq for months or years. It’s difficult to know what’s behind any blog.

posted by Price of Silence @ 9:12 PM