Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Notes on the death of Ray Bradbury. « Fred Klonsky

Notes on the death of Ray Bradbury. « Fred Klonsky:


Notes on the death of Ray Bradbury.

When word came of the death of writer Ray Bradbury at the age of 91, I started receiving notes from friends I went to high school with. Also included is a Bradbury memory I shared.
This is very sad news for me.
Not only was he a brilliant icon of science fiction,
But a kind and very accessible member of the community.
I wrote to him about a year ago…I knew he must be
Failing because he always answered letters…
A response never came.
+
When my father passed away ten years ago, I was going through a box of his papers and I found a letter from Ray Bradbury. 
During the Vietnam War my dad participated in organizing a group of artists and Hollywood types against the war. Apparently my dad had written Bradbury, asking for his participation and support.


Election emotion and analysis.

I try not to get too depressed at election losses. And I try not to get to excited by election victories.
However, it doesn’t always work.
I was absolutely thrilled when Harold Washington won Chicago’s City Hall.
And I was jubilant in Grant Park the night that Obama won in 2008.
I watched the returns coming from Wisconsin last night. When Rachel Maddow announced that NBC had declared Walker the winner at around 9PM, I turned it off.
I wasn’t happy. But I wasn’t depressed. Too much has happened in Wisconsin for things to go back to the way things were, no matter what last night’s election results decided.
It’s not exactly a news flash that big money can win elections. And there was a lot of right-wing Koch brother