Fascinating. It's one more thing. I'm one more thing. Two notes from the world of science fiction. Jack, I know you love that genre of entertainment slash literature.
I am not a science fiction person.
I don't know why. I just don't know. I don't know why either. It's it's great. There's some that's just it's some of the wisest best things. You see. You change the setting, Katie, What did did? Did your dog break wind? Why do you have that look on your face?
It feels the same way I do about science fiction science.
I work with philistines. No, it changed, all right, you know what. I'm not going to try to explain Beethoven to a couple of bassett hounds. No offense. Funny now, you either like it or you don't. But it is somebody more. I'll bet Tim Sandefer could could wax incredibly eloquent on why science fiction is so good because it changes enough frames of reference that you can isolate various aspects of human behavior in a way that highlights them
in a way that's difficult with other fiction. Anyway, fascinating exactly. I have no blanket idea. This is note from science fiction number one. Why this popped into my head. I'm wandering off to the bathroom the radio ranch. It must have been. I was thinking about something that was really interesting, and I heard Spock's voice in my head saying, fascinating, fascinating, and you know what occurred to me? Tell me about mister Spock, Michael, I'm putting you on the spot here.
What is the most distinctive thing about the character mister Spock? It was his ears?
No, no, you know what, that's not a bad assimal. That's a perfect answer. If you're gonna look at him, but not physically. How about his personality? What was most notable class anyone?
That's right?
Well, I'm interested to Michael, you don't have answer. Have you never seen Star Trek here and there? But not really? He was emotionless, right, exactly? Have you seen Star Trek Katie?
When I was a kid, the original Trek, my dad watched a bit of it and I was forced. Oh I was. I was a big fan. And then I got to college and a bunch of buddies in mine and I would get baked every Sunday night after our like homework was done and stuff like this study and we would get baked and watch Star Trek.
Guy one episode or multiple No, just one, just one, over and over again.
There was one of the TV stations that aired Star Trek at nine o'clock Sunday nights.
What a different era in that you would now you know, be able to binge the whole series in one weekend.
Right exactly. But oh, we had ground rules about there's no saving seats. If you got up to hit the john, you're you're the next guy is going to jump into that good seat and you come back and you'd you know, shuffling feet, lose your seat. There's etiquette. It was very formalized. Anyway, it occurred to me Spock saying, fascinating, that's an emotional reaction.
His catchphrase contradicted his very essence. If you are a robot like and feel no emotion, you're not gonna be fascinated by a problem, no or an issue.
It's just more information, but it has no emotional effect.
On right exactly. His very catchphrase contradicted his character. I hope Tim Sandifer hears this. I would love to hear his comments someday.
Or the episode where he thought Jim was dead and he was so excited to see Jim that he has a big smut, Jim, you're alive, briefly breaking character and having emotions.
Of course, he was half human, Jack, Oh, that's right, he was half human. Tim Sandfer has written a piece on the evolving point of view and plots of Star Trek and how it parallels American foreign policy that is knockout good.
Oh really, Oh yeah, that's interesting. It's not about how William Shatton or some seasons would be fat and some seasons would be fit.
No, al loough. That is worthy of studying itself. All right, birds science fiction note number two, And there are a couple of people who email this. We were talking about gene splicing, editing designer baby.
Yeah, and how it's a real thing. This New York Times columnist writing about how she and her husband with IVF were given the choice of whether they wanted a boy or a girl, and they decided they didn't like the power to choose that, but then found out that there are a whole bunch of other things you can choose. And a poll came out that forty percent of Americans said they would make choices in embryos if it would make it more likely that their kid could get into
a good school whatever. I hate that phrase. I don't even know what that moves.
Oh yeah, I kind of hate that attitude.
Yeah, so like make taller, better looking, smarter. You can choose that or.
Just quote unquote happy, happier.
Yeah, you guys ever see that show Black Mirror?
On that No, I've got a note to watch that and I haven't yet.
What's the premise?
The premise it's basically way in the future, and it's very tech like technology based. So at one point you have people walking around and they have like a social status above their heads that you can see, you know, and if you do something that's socially unacceptable, your status goes down. It's just like a bunch of really terrible technology scenarios. This sounds like something out of Black Mirror.
But did you enjoy that show? I love that, which is science fiction? You hypocrite.
I don't do the whole space Aliens thing.
I don't know. That's where you draw a lot, That's where I draw a line. Yeah, okay, I will watch it because it sounds really interesting. Yeah, it really is. So anyway, we were talking about this and I just did that Mike Judge, who was behind the We thought it was a comedy. Turns out it was a documentary idiocracy, one of our mutual favorite movies of all time. It's
it's dumb, but it's smart anyway. He needs to make an idiocracy for genetically engineered humans who are all, you know, good looking, tall, blue eyed, whatever, kind of a Stepford Wives baby.
And pleasant or happy. Because we mentioned the show, every writer, musician, artist was unhappy. Has there ever been a happy, great guitar player. I don't know if there has been.
Right, whether alienated or lonely or a misfit who is looking for some purpose to their life. Yeah, yeah, it's well,
discontent in general drives achievement anyway. So a couple of people, including Christy, wrote notes that said, hey, you're talking about the movie Gatica, which came out and I think somebody said nineteen ninety seven, it's not a comedy, but it's a beautiful film about the not too distant future where people choose traits and those who are born naturally are considered second class citizens.
Oh wow.
I'm a genetic counselor and former genetic research scientist, and it is literally referenced in ethical discussions all the time, it's normal to have someone ask the question, isn't that a little too gatica? Wow?
What would cause U naturally born to be second class citizens?
Well, because they're inferior, they're not all all and beautiful and perfect, And well, yeah.
Just naturally you would because you wouldn't be as good looking or as smart.
And by the way, Christine Rancho Cordova, I will, I'll drop her note, but she says, uh, I won't bore you with all the details, blah blah blah. No, go ahead, bore us with as many details as you want. To find this all fascinating. And she makes the point that, yeah, we talk about the ethics all the time, but I do think it's just a matter of time, especially because other countries have been dabbling in it anyway. Uh, And I thought, Gatica, that sounds really familiar. Getka, why does
that sound so familiar? And I think, I think that's the movie I got to retell a story that's been told more than once on the show through the last well nineteen ninety seven, twenty five years whatever. I took my kids to see Elf, a good movie in the theater, movie and they had a couple of previews, a young Zoey Deschanel. Oh so cute anyway.
Katie rolls her eyes. I'm a straight Maybe you were there for an older Ed Asner, so.
Any oh, she was so lovable in that movie. She's darling anyway. So a couple of previews and then another preview we thought of a very dark and serious nature, very dark and serious scene unfolds and it is as I recall, oh, what's her name, a beautiful African American actress, Yeah, who was sitting in a chair talking to some sort of counselor or detective or something like that. And get the bleepers ready, and what's the ages on your kids? Again?
This is a theater full of parents and children ages five through thirteen.
Oh yeah, you're seeing Elf.
In the theater. And the scene unfolded as follows. Blah blah blah. The detective or counselor or whatever the person was says to the halle Berry character, so are you telling me you talked to Satan? And the halle Berry character, I think it was halle Bery says, talk to Satan, I fucked him, and.
The whole theater goes, WHOA, what is happening here, and there's a huge uproar, including me, why you're doing everybody shouting at the projection booth, and they and everything stops and the lights go on. In about two or three minutes of there's a great deal of buzz in the theater.
You can imagine the parents and the kids going, oh my god, what does that mean? What does it mean to fuck Satan? Oh jeez, oh my gosh, es.
Elf come out crying.
They come on and say, we'd like to apologize the projection booth ran the wrong film. We'll have Elf cued up for you in just a moment.
If you'd like to sign some paperwork on the way out saying you will not hold us responsible for any future trauma, we will give you a free small popcorn.
And I think that movie was gatica.
Yeah.
I'm wondering if you guys actually enjoyed treating your customers like a piece of yeah.
Huh oh.
I can only imagine the parents in there, Oh.
My god, it is something, you know, since we got an F bomb in the show. Already out to the store, because this happened two days ago. I got the little local market by my house, a little grocery store that the good enough grocery store in case unless you need a whole bunch of stuff every but it goes to nice grocery store. It just came under new ownership, and the guy's working really hard to uh, to please everybody and saying hello to everybody and introduce himself and everything
like that. That's really nice and everything like that. I'm in the other there the other day and I'm going through and I said, it looks like it's a knocking the rain day, and he said, yeah, it's pretty fucking nice outside, all right.
I love that. I thought, what, No, it's of society. He's just a nice, cheerful guy. He's like sixty two or something.
Like that, well, owns the store, kind of a fat guy, and just very super pleasant, like helping the old ladies to their car. It's pretty fucking nice. Sam told me, he said, you gotta start talking to him that way. It's like, where's the fucking milk?
No, no, no, oh, that's awesome. Well, I guess that's it. I was really hoping you were gonna say, I guess that's fucking me too. Great minds. I thought of it.