Episode 19 - Altar Boy

TBD - To Be Determined

Theme: Vote or die. Or, vote AND die. You pick.

Episode Connections
Authors, stories. Dean Koontz, Star Quest, Odd Thomas series. Harlan Ellison. Dean Koontz, Midnight. Harry Harrison, Soylent Green. Aldous Huxley, Brave New World. John W. Campbell, “Who Goes There?”
Films. Odd Thomas. Logan’s Run. Star Wars.
TV episodes, series. Quantum Leap. Stargate. Star Trek. Dr. Who.
Ideas. A little Dean Koontz trivia and esoterica. Government by consensus. The soul as the driver for identity. Exploring the long-term impact of government by polling. Fear of dissent makes for a compliant citizenry. Time travel through mental discipline. When government experts say “trust me,” don’t. In the wrong hands, consensus can be a weapon for world domination. Intersections of sci fi and horror. Intersections of philosophy and politics through sci fi. In Koontz’s eyes, the society he depicts is irredeemable. “Altarboy” reflects the values and ideas of 1970s sci fi. Government = control. Story is post Viet Nam war, fueling government mistrust. Patriotism is a form of government control. Mind control and mental discipline in sci fi. The story’s title has us stumped.
Whoa - Hmmm - WTF. Bill began all-in on WTF, but softened his read to include a little bit of hmmm upon revisiting the story. Dan agrees, but adds in a whoa factor.

Previous episode: James Causey, “Inferiority”
Next episode: Stephen King, “The Jaunt”

Music Credit: "Ouroboros" Kevin MacLeod (Incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
Link: Creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/