Isn't the Starship Troopers argument "Don't charge onto the bug planet with nothing but light infantry elements and no armour or air support?"
That is one argument, but in this context there is the more general argument that only those who served in the military (although apparently Heinlein did have other forms of service in the book that allowed for voting rights) should be allowed to vote.
The book specified that public service could include anything from Menial work in a state run mine to use as a guinea pig for medical research. The only thing that all had in common is that they were unpleasant and dangerous.
edit: The book was aimed at young teenagers and lets face it, the only reason anyone was reading that book at that age was for the powered armor.
The book specified that public service could include anything from Menial work in a state run mine to use as a guinea pig for medical research. The only thing that all had in common is that they were unpleasant and dangerous.
On the flip side, the movie all but said military service was the only way to earn citizenship. Then again, Verhoven admits to never having read more than the first couple chapters of the book.
Also tactical nukes. That is the only way a small squadron could go up against entire armies of aliens in the home territories. The idea being you could target infrastructure and not civilians, which would be impossible to do via orbital bombardment.
Also tactical nukes. That is the only way a small squadron could go up against entire armies of aliens in the home territories. The idea being you could target infrastructure and not civilians, which would be impossible to do via orbital bombardment.
Actually, the movie did have tactical nukes -- ones small enough to be fired by shoulder-held rocket launchers.
Only at the very end of the movie when they needed a way to make the humans win. In the book they were used right from the very beginning. It's an integral part of the troopers tactics, not just a last minute stopgap.
Did anybody watch the followup movies? I saw the second one at a friends place... I remember one of the girls was an alien and there were boobs (blood covered iirc), but nowhere near the same amount of explosions and violence.
Did anybody watch the followup movies? I saw the second one at a friends place... I remember one of the girls was an alien and there were boobs (blood covered iirc), but nowhere near the same amount of explosions and violence.
I haven't seen the 2nd one in a few years but from what I remember it tried to play it strait as a horror flick and blew goats.
The third one ratchets the satire/absurdity up to 11. It has some good bit's and manages to be watchable but not exactly good.
For my money the Roughnecks TV series was better than either of them.
Did anybody watch the followup movies? I saw the second one at a friends place... I remember one of the girls was an alien and there were boobs (blood covered iirc), but nowhere near the same amount of explosions and violence.
No where near the same budget, either. The followup movies were basically glorified SyFy Original Pictures with more nudity.
Conservative denial of reality has yet another champion, as there is now a "Conservative Fact Check" which accusses snopes, factcheck and politifact of liberal bias and attempts to counterweigh it. Here's Ed Brayton on it.
Politifact is run by a newspaper, so I can sort of understand (though not agree) with them considering it being biased due to their whole ridiculous leftist media conspiracy BS argument.
FactCheck was founded by personal friends of Ronald Reagan. If any legitimate fact checking site is unlikely to have a liberal bias, it's certainly FactCheck.
Comments
edit: The book was aimed at young teenagers and lets face it, the only reason anyone was reading that book at that age was for the powered armor.
Yeah, he didn't read beyond the first few pages.
The third one ratchets the satire/absurdity up to 11. It has some good bit's and manages to be watchable but not exactly good.
For my money the Roughnecks TV series was better than either of them.
It does have the nicest cg boobs I've ever seen. Fans of cgi boobs may also enjoy it.
FactCheck was founded by personal friends of Ronald Reagan. If any legitimate fact checking site is unlikely to have a liberal bias, it's certainly FactCheck.
Pat Robertson challenges creationism
Not to say he still isn't a scary fundie... but this makes him probably a smidge less scary than most fundies.