A Christmas treat- DM's Voyager novel
Citizen G'Kar
me to post the outline for his VOyager novel. This was pitched to John
Ordover, who liked it, but the deal got nixed because part of Pocket's
contract with Paramount says that he's not allowed to work with anyone who
wrote an unlicenced book. Even if it is basically video reviews of the
series.
Anyway, here's the untitled synopsis, and readers of Dr Who books might
notice something familiar that would probably have got DM lynched at a
convention...
A woman flees a complex, with guards in pursuit, and gets away by the skin
of her teeth. Once free, it becomes clear she has a child with her- has she
abducted it?
Voyager is pursuing a small ship. It's doesn't matter whether it's local
or a trader visiting the region. It's clear, however, that Voyager is in no
trouble here- there's not a scratch on her, nor is she firing weapons. On
the bridge, Janeway is in a firm mood, determined to bring the other ship
to a halt. The other ship is rogue, out of control, and she wants to bring
it out of warp before it destroys itself, so she can see if the crew need
help.
A tractor beam and a tachyon blast do the job, and an Away Team beams
over. B'Elanna and Harry deal with the ship's overloading engines, while
the Doctor treats the injured crew. They're humanoid, with the usual bumpy
foreheads. The ship has an FTL drive, but not warp propulsion. The crew
agree to let Voyager escort them home to the nearby planet of Cotoss,
pointing out that they will be welcome to trade for provisions there.
Cotoss is a fairly ordinary Trek style planet - lots of Mediterranean
open-plan buildings and pastel colours. The sensors show that the planet
has matter/antimatter technology and replicators, but no transporters.
Janeway and Neelix lead teams to meet the people and seek supplies.
Neelix is interrupted in his search by the woman from the beginning, who
asks for asylum for her child - the one she removed from the Centre. Neelix
is unsure about this, protocol fighting his instinct to help, until the
security forces show up on her tail, demanding her child. They don't even
bother to suggest it isn't hers. Neelix decides he has no option- he beams
back to Voyager with the child as the woman is killed.
The local governments brings Janeway in for an audience. They don't demand
the child back (as far as they're concerned, so long as it's out of the way
that's all that matters) but they do warn her against interfering. Bynns,
the representative of the Corporation that owns the Children's Centre, is
furious, and knows that his boss will be too. He wanted the governors to
insist on the child's return, but the vote went against him. He contacts
Koschei, a man who projects an image of bluster, but is actually subtle and
calculating behind it. Koschei is intrigued and angers, but waves away the
single child. More important, he says, is the fact that the vote proves the
Corporation's influence on the government is decreasing. An adjustment or
two will have to be made...
A couple of the governors who voted against the Corporation's yes-men take
Janeway aside. She's pretty keen to get back and demand to know what the
hell Neelix thinks he's doing, but they get their explanation in first. On
Cotoss, only one child is allowed per family. Male children are more highly
valued, and so if a couple have a daughter first, they will often give her
up to the to Children's Centres like the one at the beginning, which we'll
see more of later, rather than risk losing a son. Even if they have
children from before this practice became common a few years ago, they are
still expected to give one up if they want to have another. This isn't
exactly a state law, but it is a cultural expectation which is pretty much
an unofficial law, after spreading across the world from one region. Of
course, some parents will have hidden their extra kids, so they might be
several years old before being found.
The Centres are privately-owned and run, and from there the abandoned
children disappear - with the tacit approval of a government that turns a
blind eye. Nobody knows what happens to them, and some think they may be
secretly killed.
Janeway is sympathetic, as is the rest of the crew when they hear about
it. She doesn't chew Neelix out after all - under the circumstances, he
could hardly have left the child to be killed too.
Witnesses who saw what happened with Neelix, and one of the governors,
view Voyager as a possible ark - a way to dump their daughters or second
sons into hands which will look after them, rather than entrust them to the
Centres which may kill them.
Before long, half a dozen children have been pushed into the hands of
surface parties. Janeway is forced to stop sending people down to trade
because of this. Each child has a note or recording begging asylum for the
child.
When Bynns hears of this he manages to get the local security chief in his
pocket to clamp down. Koschei is also enraged. Those children are valuable
and he wants them back. He tells Bynns that he will be arriving shortly.
Aboard Voyager, something is making the abandoned children ill, but the
Doctor can find no signs of a viral infection or bacteria. B'Elanna is
horrified when a couple of them collapse during a tour of the ship- they
just keel over when they reach Engineering.
The foremost of the anti-Corporation governors is due to meet with Janeway
again, but Bynns is waiting. Though ordered only to redress the balance of
governors, he thinks offing Janeway as well will please his superiors. He
gets the assassination half-right: the governor is killed but Janeway
escapes, in a death-defying chase.
The Doctor has taken readings of the unconscious orphans who collapsed in
Engineering, and discovered that the electrical balance of their brains and
nervous systems are being disrupted by an outside force - which a
consultation with B'Elanna confirms is the ship's warp field. The mere fact
of the warp core being active is enough to make them unwell, and an actual
warp travel would disrupt their neurons severely enough to kill them.
Janeway isn't best pleased at this news- she can't just send them back to
certain death (or a fate worse than), but nor can she accept them - doing
so would psychologically harm them, and there's the problem with the warp
field affecting them. It also means the ship must stay in orbit until a
solution is found to the problem of these children.
Chakotay and Tuvok visit the surface, and infiltrate the capital's
Children's Centre. It many ways it resembles a High School, with playing
fields and libraries... But the forcefields, electrified razorwire, guard
towers and heavily armed patrols make it equally reminiscent of a
concentration camp.
Inside, Tuvok and Chakotay find that that the orphans are not ill-treated,
but nor are they particularly well-treated. For the most part, they're
basically treated as a living commodity, like farm animals. They are
treated coldly, as nothing more than cargo, albeit cargo that's relatively
fragile and mustn't be damaged. To Chakotay, it reminds him of not just
concentration camps, but the sort of processing centres the Cardassians
used in the occupations of planets such as Bajor- one of the reasons the
man of peace felt able to use violence in the Maquis to start with. The
Centre physically adjoins a heavily guarded part of the spaceport, and
there is a private gateway between them.
A ship, clearly warp-capable and therefore alien, is parked in this area.
It's an odd-looking ship, being partly organic as well as mechanical. It's
like what you'd get if Tin Man was assimilated by the Borg. As Chakotay and
Tuvok dodge the Centre's guards, they observe groups of Cotossota children
being ushered aboard.
Tuvok is forced to admit that the setup is logical and efficient as a
staging post for loading the orphans onto ships at the adjoining spaceport,
but as a father he confesses that his logic would perhaps falter if his own
children were ever to end up in such a place (and by falter, he means the
Vulcan equivalent of "get very pissed off".) Under Chakotay's instructions,
Tuvok manages to slip a tracing device aboard the alien ship.
When one of the orphans catch a glimpse of the two Voyager officers,
she's frightened, thinking they have something to do with what's going to
happen to her. Her screams and protests alert the guards. With their cover
blown, Chakotay and Tuvok need to get out of the Centre before they can be
beamed back to the ship. Chakotay doesn't make it. Tuvok tries to go back
for him, unwilling to leave a shipmate behind, but is forced to acknowledge
the logic when Chakotay orders him to save himself - one of them has to get
back to the ship with their discovery, or the mission has been for nothing.
Tuvok returns to Voyager to make his report, and track the alien ship. It
takes off from Cotoss, and is soon out of regular sensor range. However,
with the aid of the tracking device and the Astrometrics lab, Seven is able
to trace the ship to the Itii'pah'Re system, less than a dozen light years
away. Seven recognises the inhabitants as Species 3112.
Chakotay has been given a good kicking by the enthusiastic guards (who,
like all Fascist Bully-Boys [TM], enjoy that sort of thing), who ask him
only the most basic questions, none of which are any use anyway. He then
receives a visitor- Koschei.
Koschei is not happy at this alien interference in his highly profitable
and (to him) amusing business interest in this sector. He's also annoyed at
Bynns trying to think for himself too much - the attempt on Janeway's life
could, in Koschei's opinion merely attract more interference from these
unknown aliens. He kills Bynns as an example to the rest of the staff, and
decides that at least Janeway will make a good scapegoat for the governor's
murder.
Janeway decides to make a two-pronged reconnaissance mission. First Harry
will reprogram the Doctor's physical appearance to resemble an older
Cotossota child (sparking much ribbing of the Doc from the rest of the crew
- even Tuvok compares him unfavourably to well-behaved Vulcan children). He
is then slipped into the Centre to join the next batch of orphans to find
out what happens to them. As a hologram, he can't really be harmed, and
it's unlikely that the children are being transported all the way across a
dozen light years just to be killed.
Meanwhile, keeping a lock on the Doctor's combadge, Tuvok will take the
Delta Flyer (with Tom as pilot, plus Seven and a Cotossota governor) to
pace the Corporate ship for the journey.
Janeway is contacted by the remaining governors, to discuss the
distressing murder. Their invitation is a trap by the security forces, who
arrest her for a public inquiry. The governors bail her out, but conditions
of the bail preclude her from leaving the capital. Leaving, however, was
not her plan...
Koschei interrogates Chakotay to learn about Janeway's tactics, how she
thinks... All his performance bluster is gone - this is serious business.
Chakotay resists, but eventually is broken, the information plucked
directly from samples of his RNA - all they had to had to do was make him
think about it, and it would all be coded in his genetic memory - which can
then be extracted and implanted into Koschei, giving him all Chakotay's
insights, at least for a while. Koschei realises that Janeway will use the
inquiry and bail to seek evidence about what is really going on. He also
works out that she might send a shuttle to Itii'pah'Re, and notifies the
arrivals centre there just in case.
The abandoned children are settling in to varying degrees, and have been
welcomed aboard by Naomi Wildman. B'Elanna is in two minds about them,
while Seven reluctantly tolerates them.
Janeway is told of Bynns' death, and remembers him from the governing
chamber. She asks who he was, and tracks his identity through several cover
ID's to the same Corporation that owns the Centres. She and the friendly
governors are quite pleased - the deaths of two people from that first
government meeting, with Bynns having known that the murdered man spoke to
her, can't be a coincidence. Someone is trying to cover their tracks, and
she's going to make sure they fail.
The Doctor is not having an easy time of it on the Corporation transport.
The other kids resent his smarminess, and of course they don't recognise
him as an adult, so there is lots of conflict. Some respond by bullying
him, and others by ignoring him, and still others try to befriend him.
All of this is a new experience for the Doctor, and he doesn't really know
how to handle it. He was activated as a replica of a full adult- he never
was a child and has no idea how to be one. Frankly, he wonders how humanoid
children can ever go through a childhood without going nuts, if what
happens to him among the kids is representative...
Chakotay overcomes the Corporate guards, and manages to find a
communicator. He still can't be beamed out of the complex because of its
shields, but Harry is able to talk him through the process of using the
Centre's central recycler/replicator to effect a transporter transmission
which can beam through shield. Harry must then time his transporter
operation precisely, to pull Chakotay the rest of the way through.
(Actually it might give Harry more to do if he and Chakotay are both on
the Away Team and captured - then he can do the McGyver-type work himself.)
When a group of the refugee orphans disappear, B'Elanna leads a shipwide
search for them. They've gone into the Jeffries tubes, and, worse still, an
intrigued Naomi Wildman has gone with them.
Janeway finally meets the visiting Corporate head, Koschei, who tries to
buy her off. And even tries to seduce her, perhaps - he can be charming
when he wants to. She refuses, and tells him in no uncertain terms that
she'll bring him down for all this. He leaves the planet- there's so much
profit to count...
When B'Elanna finds the kids, rather than drag them back their quarters,
she reports in that she has found them, and enlists Naomi's help (as a
sort-of member of the crew) to help her stay and keep an eye on them. As
B'Elanna's father walked out on her when she was six, she understands how
they must feel. At least, she realises, these kids weren't abandoned for
lack of care or interest - or even because the parents couldn't handle the
family - but to save them from a threat. She makes sure to try to reassure
them of that, to ease things when - if - they're re-united with their
parents.
Janeway wonders if those who are pro-Corporation even know what happens
to the children. She asks around, with the aid of Neelix and the locals she
has befriended, and discovers that they don't seem to. Some of them are
clearly in Koschei's pocket, but even they don't know why the children
would be shipped offworld. They insist that the alien vessels bring
supplies and go home empty, and that the children are adopted by the
government and fostered out to the infertile.
Janeway theorises (correctly) that Bynns was killed for his error, and
that Koschei probably did it. They've covered their tracks too well,
though; it looks like the only way to bring out the truth is to prove to
the Cotossota what really happens to the children.
The Doctor manages to hold his own, and recognise the good parts of even
this unfortunate part of life (being taken away as an abandoned child) to
realise why it is that humans often look nostalgically on this stage. He
realises that although things seem more restricted, there are also some
freedoms that are lost later. The ship eventually lands on the second
planet of a system, Itii'pah'Re.
Itii'pah'Re is very odd, to say the least. It used to have two small
moons, but a tremendous feat of engineering has brought them inwards to be
physically fused with the main planet, and hollowed out. As well as
providing more open space, the hollowed moons are filled with usable
machinery. One provides unlimited geothermal power, and the facilities to
convert it to whatever form of energy is required. The other contains all
the manufacturing industries. In this way, the natives keep pollution
tucked away from the surface atmosphere.
The Corporation staff there have also been warned about a possible
intruder, and sure enough they detect the Delta Flyer shadowing the
transport. Despite Tom's best defensive flying, the Flyer is forced to make
an emergency landing.
Janeway and Neelix track down the alleged foster parents, and discover
that they're all the names of dead people in distant cemeteries. The pair
are also able to link Bynns' name to this - proving that the Corporation
are falsifying at least some of their documents. A few of the governors
begin to waver in their opinions... And the Corporation sends some of the
boys round to persuade their bribed governors to stay bribed (by putting
guns to their heads, holding them over the railings of high bridges, and so
on.)
As the Doctor is processed through the arrival area on Itii'pah'Re, he
discovers what is happening to the children: To rebuild their population,
the Itii'Raan are programming the Cotossota children with their own RNA,
giving them memories of being the offspring of a (non-existent) second race
native to Itii'pah'Re.
As we discover at some point after this, originally this was a charitable
idea, but it grew into such a profitable trade that it was kept going by
Koschei, the alien third party who ran the transport ships and the
processing centres. He's a slaver who will sell anyone to anyone, though
the Itii'Raan didn't realise this at first. Their government doesn't
actually know the truth either- the Corporation has a jealously-guarded
monopoly on space travel to and from Itii'pah'Re, and has told the natives
that Cotoss is vastly overpopulated, and that the children will die if they
aren't rehoused. So now, the Itii'Raan think that they're being the
charitable ones!
The Corporation try to capture the crew of the Delta Flyer, but are held
off by Tuvok's tactics. The native Itii'Raan security forces get them
instead, as Tuvok hadn't anticipated there being two separate forces.
When the Doctor is scanned for processing, his true nature is discovered,
and all hell breaks loose in the Arrival centre, as the Slavers (and any
Itii'Raan who know the truth) realise that the jig is up.
The Doctor breaks free, resetting his appearance back to it's default.
Although he can do that with one one command, he can't quite do the full
disguise programming himself, so he has to settle for the old stand-by of
stealing a local uniform and wearing it over his own. With the guards
looking for a ten year-old boy, he is able to pass undetected.
Tuvok and his party are treated well by the puzzled Itii'Raan authorities.
They inform the Itii'Raan of what is really happening, and the Itii'Raan
are horrified - with a Cotossota governor there, and Voyager's logs, there
can be no doubt that these visitors are telling the truth.
The Itii'Raan confront the local Corporate representatives, who at first
try to lie. They can't be convincing, though, and soon resort to denying
the locals entry to the arrival centre. A fight breaks out, as the Away
Team and Itii'Raan force their way in. At the same time, the Doctor is
forcing his way out, and between them they defeat the Corporation guards
and expose the truth.
The Itii'Raan repair the Flyer, and agree to send a delegation to Cotoss,
to work out how to handle this situation.
Janeway's hearing is due. She and Neelix explain to the governors what
they've found about the Corporation's practices, and it's involvement in
the murder of the other governor. However, the voting majority have been
bribed or coerced by the Corporation, and the outcome is fixed to be
against her. Neelix, and the crew of Voyager (watching on the monitors) are
concerned, seeing how this is rigged.
Hearing the news from Itii'pah'Re, Koschei decides that Voyager must be
got rid of, immediately. He has his personal cruiser brought around to
confront Voyager. He wants his cargo of children back - even if things
aren't recoverable on Itii'pah'Re, there are plenty of other markets, and
contracts for the ownership of these kids had been signed...
The Delta Flyer returns, pausing to beam the Doctor, Seven and the
Itii'Raan delegation to the surface before Tom and Tuvok take their
stations on Voyager.
Koschei doesn't make it back in time to prevent the Itii'Raan from blowing
the lid off his child-slavery operation, but is determined to exact revenge
on Voyager, and recover his cargo to start afresh elsewhere. He has too
much invested in those children to just write them off.
Although the ship is a sitting duck with rooms full of children, and no
warp field, Chakotay is determined not to let these children be
reprogrammed like automatons. He orders the shields and weapons powered up,
and fights Bynns' ship. He manages to hold his own, but it's pretty clear
that Koschei's cruiser will wear down Voyager first.
While being ferried back by the Delta Flyer, the Doctor and Seven figure
that they can use Seven's nanoprobes to reverse the Itii'Raan RNA grafts
carried out in the past few months, and at least restore some of the stolen
Cotossota children.
With the warp core repowered to provide phaser power, the orphans are
getting unwell again. Worse still, there are weapon impacts nearby - toxic
gas leaks, fire, even a hull breach. As the battle continues, B'Elanna
tries to lead them to safety, but they're completely cut off by damage. The
only way to safety is a conduit that passes through Engineering and emerges
at the top of the warp core (where the 8472 jumped B'Elanna from in Prey).
B'Elanna hesitates, but the kids are brave enough to insist on going that
way- if they don't they're screwed anyway, and they've learned to trust
this crew to make sure they're OK. They go, and all the Cotossota collapse,
but are carried out by the Engineering crew. The Doctor gets to work right
away - and with an improved child-friendly bedside manner, after his
experience.
Meanwhile, Janeway gets back in the Delta Flyer. She needs B'Elanna to
generate a separate dampening field to prevent transports...
Janeway reasons that Koschei's cold opinion of the kids as merely a
profitable cargo can be used against him. Outgunned, she lowers the
shields, gambling that he will baulk at destroying the valuable merchandise
he wants back. She knows that the dampening field B'Elanna is generating
will prevent the enemy from beaming anyone to or from Voyager.
Koschei is taken aback by the dropping of the shields, and tries to beam
the orphans off Voyager rather than risk destroying his stock by blasting
the helpless ship. In the few moments during which he's not shooting, Tuvok
can accurately take out the enemy ship's weapons.
Though the transporter dampening field prevents the Itii'Raan ship from
using its transporter, the fact that they had to drop their shields too
allows Harry to beam Tuvok's security teams aboard.
The battle to take the cruiser is fierce and bloody, but short. Koschei is
taken for trial, while his Corporation disintegrates, his underlings
fighting each other for control of a company they can restart somewhere
else.
The governors are still undecided on the one-child policy, but the
Cotossota and Itii'Raan at least agree to help each other openly, so that
they both know what's going on. At least this way children will still be
themselves. The orphans on Voyager are returned to the planet, to be
properly cared for.
Voyager gets the supplies that were needed, and leaves, continuing on its
journey home.
--
--
"Oh, go away. Repress someone else."
JWelch7208
This was good BTW..and to paramounts lawyers<sarcasm begins>...great
going..<SARCASM Ended>
Arlie
But *way* too much Chuckles and not enough Harry. :-)
And hardly any Tom at all....
-- Arlie
Shammie
>Pretty interesting story!
Yes!
>But *way* too much Chuckles and not enough Harry. :-)
>
>And hardly any Tom at all....
>
But not a bad vehicle for Tuvok.
Granular
story then 95% of Voyager episodes.
The only things I didn't like were the Bad Science(TM) use of RNA for
memory, and the Voyager cliché of Nanoprobes to the Rescue(TM).
But, with a good story, those type of things can be overlooked.
Which begs the question, "Why the hell isn't DM a staff writer for
Voyager?"
--
Granular
------------------------------
"Do not taunt Happy Fun Ball."
Citizen G'Kar
Arlie <arl...@aol.comNoSpam> wrote in article
<19991220172020...@ng-ba1.aol.com>...
> Pretty interesting story!
>
> But *way* too much Chuckles and not enough Harry. :-)
But it's Chuckles getting tortured - it's worth it for that...
> And hardly any Tom at all....
Ah, but the trick is to think of something new... And interesting
Citizen G'Kar
Granular <mcga...@NOSPAMexecpc.com> wrote in article
<385f18b1$0$84...@news.execpc.com>...
> It would have been a better movie then "Insurrection", and it's a better
> story then 95% of Voyager episodes.
>
> The only things I didn't like were the Bad Science(TM) use of RNA for
Ah, but there's bad science when you don't know what you're doing; and bad
science when you do what you're doing, but want to have some fun with
something that sounds like it was in the show...
> memory, and the Voyager cliché of Nanoprobes to the Rescue(TM).
Only a throwaway bit at the end.
> But, with a good story, those type of things can be overlooked.
>
> Which begs the question, "Why the hell isn't DM a staff writer for
> Voyager?"
Because he doesn't live in LA for a start...
Citizen G'Kar
Shammie <sham...@aol.compizzagrl> wrote
> >Pretty interesting story!
>
> Yes!
> >But *way* too much Chuckles and not enough Harry. :-)
> >
> >And hardly any Tom at all....
> >
>
> But not a bad vehicle for Tuvok.
Funny that, isn't it?
Robrey
>
> As a Christmas treat to those interested, DM has given his permission for
> me to post the outline for his VOyager novel. This was pitched to John
> Ordover, who liked it, but the deal got nixed because part of Pocket's
> contract with Paramount says that he's not allowed to work with anyone who
> wrote an unlicenced book. Even if it is basically video reviews of the
> series.
>
ep, any hope on that front? I see Chakotay gets the crud kicked out of
him, is this the fate you had planned for him in your spec script, DM?
<G> By the way, any word on that?
> Anyway, here's the untitled synopsis, and readers of Dr Who books might
> notice something familiar that would probably have got DM lynched at a
> convention...
[snip synopsis]
An fine story, poignant and timely. There are a couple of levels I saw
to this: China's One Child Policy that is causing major trauma to that
culture. The Eastern European refugee situation, And of course the
slavery aspect. One thing that bugged me, was if it wasn't a state law,
why do security forces kill people for disobeying it? And with no law,
why would parents bother with it?
Cordially,
Robrey
--
"It is not the critic who counts, not the one who points out
how the strong man stumbled or how the doer of deeds might have done
them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the
arena, whose face is marred with sweat and dust and blood; who strives
valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the
great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy
cause; and who, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so
that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know
neither victory nor defeat"
--Theodore Roosevelt, 1899
Citizen G'Kar
Robrey <rob...@mailbag.com> wrote
> >
> So it's Pocket Books that objected?
Not exactly - it's part of their licence with Paramount. Both sets of
lawyers probably collaborated to make it up.
> This would have made an excellent
> ep, any hope on that front? I see Chakotay gets the crud kicked out of
> him, is this the fate you had planned for him in your spec script, DM?
Who?
> <G> By the way, any word on that?
Been too busy to write one. Er, DM has been to busy, I mean.
> An fine story, poignant and timely. There are a couple of levels I saw
> to this: China's One Child Policy that is causing major trauma to that
> culture. The Eastern European refugee situation, And of course the
> slavery aspect. One thing that bugged me, was if it wasn't a state law,
> why do security forces kill people for disobeying it? And with no law,
> why would parents bother with it?
It has to be obeyed because although not officially a State law it's
unofficially one. For example, very few people know that in the UK and US,
Juries have a right to acquit a guilty defendant if they so choose - but
the legal system hides this and has made it de facto law that you can't.
Likewise in the US, there's no actual law that says you have to pay income
taxes (this is true, believe it or not, though there are many later laws
relating to how it ought to be paid), but the system ensures that it's a de
facto law heavily enforced.
As for why parents would both- cultural indoctrination.
These are things that inevitably are glossed over in a synopsis, but would
be clear in a finished text.
Shammie
>> But not a bad vehicle for Tuvok.
>
>Funny that, isn't it?
I don't get it. The way you wrote Tuv....er....the way DM wrote Tuvok seemed to
flow easily, so so much for the theory that his character is hard to write for!
[whispering: nice to see you, btw!]
BTS
Citizen G'Kar <Na...@bluelily28.freeserve.co.uk> wrote in article
> As a Christmas treat to those interested, DM has given his permission for
> me to post the outline for his VOyager novel. This was pitched to John
> Ordover, who liked it, but the deal got nixed because part of Pocket's
> contract with Paramount says that he's not allowed to work with anyone
who
> wrote an unlicenced book. Even if it is basically video reviews of the
> series.
<snip story>
Cool story. I thank you Citizen, for presenting us with a taste of DM's
work.<g>
Tuvok rocks and Chuckles gets tortured. What more could a guy ask for (and
still avoid an NC-17 rating)?
--
later...
b.t.s.
occassionally, I'm callous and strange - btvs
Julianna Feigl
>
> Pretty interesting story!
>
> But *way* too much Chuckles
that's apparently a prerequisite if you want a story to get published...
> and not enough Harry. :-)
:-(
> And hardly any Tom at all....
that's the part I like! :-)
Julianna
--------
Tuvok:
The main reason to watch Voyager!
Julianna Feigl
>
> Arlie <arl...@aol.comNoSpam> wrote in article
> <19991220172020...@ng-ba1.aol.com>...
> >
> > But *way* too much Chuckles and not enough Harry. :-)
>
> But it's Chuckles getting tortured - it's worth it for that...
as painfully as possible! :-)
> > And hardly any Tom at all....
>
> Ah, but the trick is to think of something new... And interesting
ROTFLOL!!!!!
Julianna Feigl
>
> >(Arlie) wrote:
>
> >Pretty interesting story!
>
> Yes!
> >
> >
>
which shows that it *can* be done.... if somebody *tries*...
Citizen G'Kar
Steve Christianson <stevechr...@yahoo.com> wrote
>
> My question with these unlicensed books is how the authors get the
> necessary artwork to snazz it up. Pics of Voyager, the crew, etc., make
> for nice eye candy and would IMO help increase sales. Thing is, I doubt
> Paramount would give permissions for such artwork, so any such books
> must be just dry text, yes?
Yes, but in the case of a normal sized paperback that doesn't matter.
> > It has to be obeyed because although not officially a State law it's
> > unofficially one.
>
>
> Sounds a bit like Southern cops enforcing "Jim Crow" during the days of
> segregration. Yes, there may have been no law on the books saying blacks
> couldn't march on Selma, but you better believe the local sheriffs took
> a dim view of the idea.
Exactly
> > For example, very few people know that in the UK and US,
> > Juries have a right to acquit a guilty defendant if they so choose -
but
> > the legal system hides this and has made it de facto law that you
can't.
>
>
> Um, not true, at least in the US. You're referring to "jury
> nullification", which has been greatly curtailed in modern times.
Ahem:
4th Circuit Court of Appe\ls, US vs Moylan (1969)
Law And Contemporary Problems, vol 43, No. 4 (1980)
Though I bow to others' knowledge if this has changed in the past year or
two.
>
> > Likewise in the US, there's no actual law that says you have to pay
income
> > taxes (this is true, believe it or not, though there are many later
laws
> > relating to how it ought to be paid), but the system ensures that it's
a de
> > facto law heavily enforced.
>
>
> Sorry, again, not true. :-) There are very specific provisions of the
> Internal Revenue Code which criminalize the nonpayment of taxes. It's
> also a criminal offense to not file a return, even if you don't owe any
> taxes at all.
Ah, but this is de facto law and not a de jure one - the IRS is actually a
private corporation, and there isn't a law that specifically states that
they must be coo-operated with (though there are as you say plenty that
insist you file a file Federal tax return... How you're supposed to file a
return without co-operating with the IRS is another matter entirely) and
certainly Philip Marsh spent 8 years searching for such a de jure law and
didn't find one. (unless of course, he was talking bollocks in his expose,
which is certainly possible.)
Citizen G'Kar
Shammie <sham...@aol.compizzagrl> wrote in article
<19991221130811...@ng-fp1.aol.com>...
> > "Citizen G'Kar" wrote:
>
> >> But not a bad vehicle for Tuvok.
> >
> >Funny that, isn't it?
>
> I don't get it. The way you wrote Tuv....er....the way DM wrote Tuvok
seemed to
> flow easily, so so much for the theory that his character is hard to
write for!
Indeed...
> [whispering: nice to see you, btw!]
We persecuted writers must show solidarity- the death of ideas and dreams
is something that must always be fought against to the bitter end.
EvilBill[AGQx]
>
> We persecuted writers must show solidarity- the death of ideas and dreams
> is something that must always be fought against to the bitter end.
>
As your namesake once said: "Greater than the death of flesh is the death of
hope, the death of dreams. Against this peril we can never surrender."
:-)
--
Sisko: "Do you really want to give up your life for the order of things?"
Remata'Klan: "It is not my life to give up, Captain, and it never was."
EvilBill's home page: http://members.xoom.com/_XOOM/EvilBill/index.html; ICQ
number: 37464244
Remove .DIE-SPAM-DIE from my email address to respond.
Get paid to surf the web: http://www.alladvantage.com/join.asp?refid=dtd-950
Robrey
>
> X-No-Archive: yes
>
> Citizen G'Kar wrote:
> >
> > Robrey <rob...@mailbag.com> wrote
[snip]
> > For example, very few people know that in the UK and US,
> > Juries have a right to acquit a guilty defendant if they so choose - but
> > the legal system hides this and has made it de facto law that you can't.
>
> Um, not true, at least in the US. You're referring to "jury
> nullification", which has been greatly curtailed in modern times.
>
I think you're right here, Steve. I know some Cro-Magnon Right
Wingers, and their primary goal is repealing the Sixteenth Amendment of
the Constitution that would make the Income Tax illegal....as it was at
the founding.
> > Likewise in the US, there's no actual law that says you have to pay income
> > taxes (this is true, believe it or not, though there are many later laws
> > relating to how it ought to be paid), but the system ensures that it's a de
> > facto law heavily enforced.
>
> Sorry, again, not true. :-) There are very specific provisions of the
> Internal Revenue Code which criminalize the nonpayment of taxes. It's
> also a criminal offense to not file a return, even if you don't owe any
> taxes at all.
I think you're right here too, Steve. That's the reason we want to do
away with the IRS. Though I suspect we wouldn't oppose a tax plan that
determined that only liberals should pay taxes, as they're the only
one's silly enough to believe that only good comes from the government.
Poetic justice in my view... <EG>
Robrey
>
> Arlie wrote:
> >
> > Pretty interesting story!
> >
>
>
>
>
> > And hardly any Tom at all....
>
>
Sardonically,
Citizen G'Kar
EvilBill[AGQx] <evilbill.D...@nutter.swinternet.co.uk> wrote in
article <83p32p$ht5$1...@news6.svr.pol.co.uk>...
> "Citizen G'Kar" <Na...@bluelily28.freeserve.co.uk> wrote in message...
> >
> > We persecuted writers must show solidarity- the death of ideas and
dreams
> > is something that must always be fought against to the bitter end.
> >
>
> As your namesake once said: "Greater than the death of flesh is the death
of
> hope, the death of dreams. Against this peril we can never surrender."
I have a framed picture of him with that quote on the living room wall...
Citizen G'Kar
Steve Christianson <stevechr...@yahoo.com> wrote
Obviously I have to stop reading these crypto-anarchist manuals...
I'd still query just how watertight the rules against jury nullification
are- every country has little technicalities that slipped through which,
while not a basis for doing things differently, are amusing little pieces
of trivia. Especially since I can quote legal documents supporting jury
nullification dating from up to 1980.
Shall I add tthe one about assorted Supreme Court Justices (or someone)
proving that legally, the Constitution is binding only to those who were
actually there to sign it?
EvilBill[AGQx]
>
Cool! :-)
I love B5, and G'Kar is one of my favourite characters :-)
"The future is all around us, waiting in moments of transition, to be born
in moments of revelation. No-one knows the shape of that future, or where it
will take us. We know only that it is always born in pain."
Julianna Feigl
>
> Citizen G'Kar <Na...@bluelily28.freeserve.co.uk> wrote in article
>
> > As a Christmas treat to those interested, DM has given his permission for
> > me to post the outline for his VOyager novel. This was pitched to John
> > Ordover, who liked it, but the deal got nixed because part of Pocket's
> > contract with Paramount says that he's not allowed to work with anyone
> who
> > wrote an unlicenced book. Even if it is basically video reviews of the
> > series.
>
>
> Cool story. I thank you Citizen, for presenting us with a taste of DM's
> work.<g>
> Tuvok rocks and Chuckles gets tortured. What more could a guy ask for (and
> still avoid an NC-17 rating)?
Nothing! (getting all dreamy-eyed thinking how much she'd have liked
such a novel...)
Julianna Feigl
> >
> > Arlie wrote:
> > >
> > > Pretty interesting story!
> > >
> > > But *way* too much Chuckles
> >
> > that's apparently a prerequisite if you want a story to get published...
> >
> > > and not enough Harry. :-)
> >
> > :-(
> >
> > > And hardly any Tom at all....
> >
> > that's the part I like! :-)
> >
> :::SPANK::::
>
He's *way* overused on the show already, we don't need him to dominate
the books as well!
Julianna Feigl
>
> > "Citizen G'Kar" wrote:
>
> >> But not a bad vehicle for Tuvok.
> >
> >Funny that, isn't it?
>
> I don't get it. The way you wrote Tuv....er....the way DM wrote Tuvok seemed to
> flow easily, so so much for the theory that his character is hard to write for!
>
I told you it's just a lame excuse! If they *wanted* to use him they
could.
> [whispering: nice to see you, btw!]
Julianna Feigl
> >
> > We persecuted writers must show solidarity- the death of ideas and dreams
> > is something that must always be fought against to the bitter end.
> >
>
> As your namesake once said: "Greater than the death of flesh is the death of
> hope, the death of dreams. Against this peril we can never surrender."
>
how true! The death of hope is worse than *anything* else :-((((
Citizen G'Kar
Steve Christianson <stevechr...@yahoo.com> wrote
> > Obviously I have to stop reading these crypto-anarchist manuals...
>
>
> I was beginning to think you were spending too much time in the
> conspiracy hierarchy. <g>
But they're so much fun...
(No I don't really believe their bollocks, but they're good hunting grounds
for devious plots for novels etc... Then again, I *am* descended from
Masons and Templars, and have worked as an instrument of the media, so I
would be one to try assuage people's fears about our attempts to rule the
world...)
> > I'd still query just how watertight the rules against jury
nullification
> > are- every country has little technicalities that slipped through
which,
> > while not a basis for doing things differently, are amusing little
pieces
> > of trivia. Especially since I can quote legal documents supporting jury
> > nullification dating from up to 1980.
>
>
> Well, I suspect the documents you're referring to address the limits of
> acceptable jury persuasion by defense attorneys and unacceptable appeals
> to jury nullification.
Pretty much.
For example, Johnnie Cochrane walked a fine line
> when he said "if it doesn't fit, you must acquit" and ranted about
> Hitler et al to the OJ jury. To my mind, he was clearly playing the race
> card,
Not just your mind!
> > Shall I add tthe one about assorted Supreme Court Justices (or someone)
> > proving that legally, the Constitution is binding only to those who
were
> > actually there to sign it?
>
>
> Good lord, what an absurd notion!
I'll dig out the exact reference later - it's to do with the line "We the
people" which can of course be taken to refer only to the undersigned...
Lisa
Steve Christianson wrote with amazing lawyerly insight the following words:-
>
>
>> I'd still query just how watertight the rules against jury nullification
>> are- every country has little technicalities that slipped through which,
>> while not a basis for doing things differently, are amusing little pieces
>> of trivia. Especially since I can quote legal documents supporting jury
>> nullification dating from up to 1980.
>
>
>Well, I suspect the documents you're referring to address the limits of
>acceptable jury persuasion by defense attorneys and unacceptable appeals
>to jury nullification. For example, Johnnie Cochrane walked a fine line
>when he said "if it doesn't fit, you must acquit" and ranted about
>Hitler et al to the OJ jury. To my mind, he was clearly playing the race
>card, in other words cueing the jury to acquit OJ despite his obvious
>guilt because OJ was black. However, the judge didn't exercise his
>discretion (which exists pursuant to the rules of court as promulgated
>by the state of California's highest court under the authority given to
>it by the state's judiciary acts or other authority) and so yes a form
>of jury nullification was able to slip by. There are radicals on both
>sides of the political fence who argue in favor of such jury
>nullification: on the left they argue that juries should acquit
>minorities in order to strike back at white oppression, etc., on the
>right they argue that juries should acquit members of militia groups
>because they're "freedom fighters," etc.
I watched alot of the trial on tv over here, but who do you think did the
best job in the courtroom out of all the lawyers?
Lisa
"Regret is a part of being alive, but keep it a small part"
"As you do?"
"Demonstrably"
Robrey
>
> X-No-Archive: yes
>
> Citizen G'Kar wrote:
> >
> > > conspiracy hierarchy. <g>
> >
> > But they're so much fun...
> >
> > (No I don't really believe their bollocks, but they're good hunting grounds
> > for devious plots for novels etc... Then again, I *am* descended from
> > Masons and Templars, and have worked as an instrument of the media, so I
> > would be one to try assuage people's fears about our attempts to rule the
> > world...)
>
theories, only because they're so inventive. I don't think you're the
only author who does either. I don't think the Tom Clancy's love of
Navy Intelligence, the Vatican, (and Jesuits at Georgetown) the CIA, FBI
and the British Royal Family is entirely a coincidence. It's funny how
that cabal always seems to save the world....
> I haven't been too active in the conspiracy hierarchy lately, maybe it's
> time I start some Y2K rumors. Or better yet, how I saw alien spacecraft
> visit Area 51 during the full moon of the Winter solstice...
>
> Hmmm...
>
Nah, the boys at Nellis go home for the holidays too, Steve. It's a
skeleton crew out there...hmmm... <EG>
[snip lawyertalk]
> > > > Shall I add tthe one about assorted Supreme Court Justices (or someone)
> > > > proving that legally, the Constitution is binding only to those who
> > were
> > > > actually there to sign it?
> > >
> > >
> > > Good lord, what an absurd notion!
> >
> > I'll dig out the exact reference later - it's to do with the line "We the
> > people" which can of course be taken to refer only to the undersigned...
>
> I don't see how, since those are only the first three words of the
> phrase "We the people of the United States" which begins the Preamble to
> the Constitution. <g>
This is just a sneaky British plot to invalidate that other great
document that begins "When in the course of human events..." I suppose
if that only applied to those signers we're all officially subjects of
the Queen. Cecil Rhodes succeeds! <G>
Cordially,
Robrey
...BTW, Trivia: What President of the United States was once a member of
the Anti-Masonic party?
Citizen G'Kar
Steve Christianson <stevechr...@yahoo.com> wrote
> I haven't been too active in the conspiracy hierarchy lately, maybe it's
> time I start some Y2K rumors. Or better yet, how I saw alien spacecraft
> visit Area 51 during the full moon of the Winter solstice...
I'm about to start a good one myself, though it's more a Templar propaganda
one...
> > > Good lord, what an absurd notion!
> >
> > I'll dig out the exact reference later - it's to do with the line "We
the
> > people" which can of course be taken to refer only to the
undersigned...
>
>
> I don't see how, since those are only the first three words of the
> phrase "We the people of the United States" which begins the Preamble to
> the Constitution. <g>
Hang on... Ah, Lysander Spooner (shaky ground then) - applying the rules of
contract law of the 19th century, it was only binding to those who signed
it.
Of course then you've got the question of whether it was nullified in 1933
by Roosevelt declaring a state of national emergency on March 9th - which
has supposedly never been retracted...
Robrey
>
> X-No-Archive: yes
>
> >
> > > > > I was beginning to think you were spending too much time in the
> > > > > conspiracy hierarchy. <g>
> > > >
> > > > But they're so much fun...
> > > >
> > > > (No I don't really believe their bollocks, but they're good hunting grounds
> > > > for devious plots for novels etc... Then again, I *am* descended from
> > > > Masons and Templars, and have worked as an instrument of the media, so I
> > > > would be one to try assuage people's fears about our attempts to rule the
> > > > world...)
> > >
> > Heh, you too, D...err...G'kar? I love reading good conspiracy
> > theories, only because they're so inventive. I don't think you're the
> > only author who does either. I don't think the Tom Clancy's love of
> > Navy Intelligence, the Vatican, (and Jesuits at Georgetown) the CIA, FBI
> > and the British Royal Family is entirely a coincidence. It's funny how
> > that cabal always seems to save the world....
>
>
>
And how many Navy Officers Have been Presidents since FDR was Assistant
Secretary of the Navy? Hmmm? Incidentally, I heard William Kristol (Son
of a Neo-conservative-intellectual, and former Henry Wallace supporter,
as well as editor of a CIA funded leftist magazine, Irving Kristol) say
he thought John McCain would be the next President of the United
States....
> > > I haven't been too active in the conspiracy hierarchy lately, maybe it's
> > > time I start some Y2K rumors. Or better yet, how I saw alien spacecraft
> > > visit Area 51 during the full moon of the Winter solstice...
> > >
> > > Hmmm...
> > >
> > Nah, the boys at Nellis go home for the holidays too, Steve. It's a
> > skeleton crew out there...hmmm... <EG>
>
> AHA!! See, the government wants to keep the number of witnesses down!
>
>
Curses! Foiled again! How will we *ever* get the Aurora project
completed... <EG>
> > [snip lawyertalk]
>
> [poke]
>
:::SPANK::::
:)
>
> > > > I'll dig out the exact reference later - it's to do with the line "We the
> > > > people" which can of course be taken to refer only to the undersigned...
> > >
> > > I don't see how, since those are only the first three words of the
> > > phrase "We the people of the United States" which begins the Preamble to
> > > the Constitution. <g>
> >
> > This is just a sneaky British plot to invalidate that other great
> > document that begins "When in the course of human events..." I suppose
> > if that only applied to those signers we're all officially subjects of
> > the Queen. Cecil Rhodes succeeds! <G>
>
> You'll have to forgive them, Rob. After all, they drive on the wrong
> side of the road and think soccer is football. <g>
>
But do you DO recall what Cecil Rhodes first six wills called for,
don't you? Or the fact that not only is the current president a Rhodes
Scholar, but so is the front runner in the Dem NH primary?
<EG>
Incidentally the son of the aforementioned author of "TWO CHEERS FOR
CAPITALISM" also predicted that Bradley would win the Dem nomination...
>
> > ...BTW, Trivia: What President of the United States was once a member of
> > the Anti-Masonic party?
>
> Oh crap, this is embarrassing, because I've written about it one of my
> books and now I can't remember. Andrew Jackson? What with his gripe
> about the First Bank of the United States, that sounds about his speed.
Millard Fillmore, but kudos for remembering the man who crusaded
against the national bank. 'Tis said that the International Banking
Conspiracy ("The Gnomes of Zurich") have controlled the US ever since.
You DO understand how The Federal Reserve works, don't you? And how
much they profit off our money? So why do I support it, unless I'm part
of the conspiracy too....
<VEG>
Conspiratorially,
Robrey
...Long Live Alan Greenspan! <VEG>
Lisa
Steve Christianson wrote in message <3861CF...@yahoo.com>...
>X-No-Archive: yes
>
>Lisa wrote:
>>
>> Steve Christianson wrote with amazing lawyerly insight the following
words:-
>
>> >acceptable jury persuasion by defense attorneys and unacceptable appeals
>> >to jury nullification. For example, Johnnie Cochrane walked a fine line
>> >when he said "if it doesn't fit, you must acquit" and ranted about
>> >Hitler et al to the OJ jury. To my mind, he was clearly playing the race
>> >card, in other words cueing the jury to acquit OJ despite his obvious
>> >guilt because OJ was black. However, the judge didn't exercise his
>> >discretion (which exists pursuant to the rules of court as promulgated
>> >by the state of California's highest court under the authority given to
>> >it by the state's judiciary acts or other authority) and so yes a form
>> >of jury nullification was able to slip by. There are radicals on both
>> >sides of the political fence who argue in favor of such jury
>> >nullification: on the left they argue that juries should acquit
>> >minorities in order to strike back at white oppression, etc., on the
>> >right they argue that juries should acquit members of militia groups
>> >because they're "freedom fighters," etc.
>>
>> I watched alot of the trial on tv over here, but who do you think did the
>> best job in the courtroom out of all the lawyers?
>
>
>Johnnie Cochrane: he won an acquittal (and I never heard thirty pieces
>of silver jingle louder as he did so...). As far as overall lawyering, I
>guess Barry Scheck (sp? OJ's scientific evidence lawyer, the short
>Jewish guy who yelled "what about THAT Mr. Fung???" at one point) or
>Marcia Clark because she had to juggle so many balls on a state
>prosecutor's limited budget.
Yeah, from a layman's point of view I liked Barry Scheck enormously, he was
one of the few who seemed really professional about what he was doing, as if
he was just there for the trial and not the publicity. Didn't he help to
defend Louise Woodward as well?
Marcia Clark's hair was fascinating throughout the trial, I think that was
the most memorable thing about her, also disliked intensely the bloke who
helped her, what a jerk! Worst of the lot had to be F Lee Bailey (I think
that's his name), what a pompous ass! Still they did the job I suppose, but
I don't think between them all they did much for the credibility of the
American Justice System. Mind you, have you ever watched the English
Parliament in session? It's like a cross between feeding time at the zoo
and playtime down the local nursery, talk about pillocks, these guys run our
country :-))
Lisa
Steve Christianson wrote in message <38630F...@yahoo.com>...
>X-No-Archive: yes
<<SNIPPED>>
>> Still they did the job I suppose, but
>> I don't think between them all they did much for the credibility of the
>> American Justice System.
>
>
>I couldn't agree more.
>
>
>> Mind you, have you ever watched the English
>> Parliament in session? It's like a cross between feeding time at the zoo
>> and playtime down the local nursery, talk about pillocks, these guys run
our
>> country :-))
>
>
>Remind me to send you a tape of Congress in session...<g>
>
>(Speaking of tapes, have you had a chance to think about my e-mail?)
Sorry, I owe a few e mails, I've been a little busy with the kids and
Christmas and stuff, not to mention sleeping and being ill, but the trial
tape should be done next week and then I'll mail you for an address.
Citizen G'Kar
Steve Christianson <stevechr...@yahoo.com> wrote
> > Hang on... Ah, Lysander Spooner (shaky ground then) - applying the
rules of
> > contract law of the 19th century, it was only binding to those who
signed
> > it.
>
>
> Ludicrous. The Constitution is a compact signed by the delegates from
> the thirteen states and later ratified by the state legislatures. It was
> in no way, shape or form a private contract between those delegates.
>
I'm only quoting someone who was himself a lawyer...
(none of which has much to with my- er, DM's story...)
Masked Man
The establishment clause of the first amendment is interpreted
diametrically opposite from what its authors intended...There are
probably other examples as well, but I am not informed enough about
constitutional law to make those claims.
On Fri, 24 Dec 1999 01:06:37 -0500, Steve Christianson
<stevechr...@yahoo.com> wrote:
|The Constitution can't be affected by ordinary laws or other actions
|such as executive declarations.
Who was that masked man?
Masked Man
On Fri, 24 Dec 1999 14:27:01 -0500, Steve Christianson
<stevechr...@yahoo.com> wrote:
|What I said was "The Constitution can't be affected by ordinary laws or
|other actions such as executive declarations." You're raising a
|different issue. Whether the courts have properly exercised their power
|to interpret the Constitution is a matter of much debate.
Citizen G'Kar
EvilBill[AGQx] <evilbill.D...@nutter.swinternet.co.uk> wrote
>
> I love B5, and G'Kar is one of my favourite characters :-)
I shall soon be debuting (in costume and makeup) at conventions - probably
Neutral Zone in March first...
Silverhawk
>I shall soon be debuting (in costume and makeup) at
>conventions - probably Neutral Zone in March first...
Is that our Neutral Zone in Newcastle or a different one?
Silverhawk
--
Sliders: The New Dimension
http://jump.to/sliders-rpg
Lisa
Silverhawk wrote in message <84tqk4$1ron$2...@quince.news.easynet.net>...
>Citizen G'Kar wrote...
>>I shall soon be debuting (in costume and makeup) at
>>conventions - probably Neutral Zone in March first...
>
>Is that our Neutral Zone in Newcastle or a different one?
I always thought Newcastle was in a Black Hole. <g>
Citizen G'Kar
Silverhawk <analo...@eidosnet.co.uk> wrote in article
<84tqk4$1ron$2...@quince.news.easynet.net>...
> Citizen G'Kar wrote...
> >I shall soon be debuting (in costume and makeup) at
> >conventions - probably Neutral Zone in March first...
>
> Is that our Neutral Zone in Newcastle or a different one?
That one.
Remember Ambassador Mollari, at last year's Summer Party? That's my other
half (though I couldn't make it last year)
I hasten to add that by "debuting" I mean debuting as G'Kar. The real me
has, of course been to many conventions...