Posted on 10/03/2018 6:44:08 AM PDT by vannrox
There are often things that inspire us. This is most especially true when you are young and looking for direction. In my case, I was greatly influenced by the books that I read. My favorites were short-length science fiction “pulps”. These were often paperback books that I could shove in the rear pocket of my bluejeans. I would read them, and often reread them. The authors of these stories varied, but my favorites included Ray Bradbury and Robert Heinlein.
Here is one such story.
This story illustrates that sometimes, it take one person to take a necessary action. Often that person doesn’t want the role. However, there is no one else who can do it. So that person, out of necessity, must become the hero. He must do the difficult and uncomfortable job because he is the only one who is available.
This story holds special meaning to me.
The Long Watch
Nine ships blasted off from Moon Base. Once in space, eight of them formed a globe around the smallest. They held this formation all the way to Earth.
"The small ship displayed the insignia of an admiral-yet there was no living thing of any sort in her. She was not even a passenger ship, but a drone, a robot ship intended for radioactive cargo. This trip she carried nothing but a lead coffin and a Geiger counter that was never quiet."
(Excerpt) Read more at metallicman.com ...
Heinlein fan, here.
Just read this story a few months back......................
Heinlein rocks. He is the bedrock of my personal philosophy. Tanstaafl! (German for: stop bitching)
I could read well from a very young age. The local library wouldn’t allow children in the main section, so I searched the children’s level until I found some science and science fiction books because they had the most advanced vocabulary, etc.
‘Starship Troopers’ was one of the first acceptable books I found there and I was hooked on science and SF! About age seven.
Now at least many can wonder wtf GROK means!
;)
Gunny G@ PlanetWTF????
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I remember this story from long ago—a good one.
Thanks for posting this.
I too am a Heinlein fan, since I was a teenager.
I note that this story was written in 1949, and certain details it contains about atomic bomb operation may have been classified, or at least are schematic representations of information that was probably classified at the time, thinly obscured.
Other Heinlein stories of that time contain further details of atomic weapon design that IMHO reveal that Heinlein was privy to things he probably shouldn’t have been.
He did have a Navy background, and so might have been let in on some inside dope through those contact. Also, IIRC, he was for a time in the orbit of Jack Parsons and the other members of the GALCIT rocket research group that later became Aerojet General, so he might have heard some details through that pathway.
I was reading at about seven as well. My first SF book was "The Star Conquerors" by Ben Bova (1959), shortly followed by "Raiders from the Rings" by Alan E. Nourse (1962). I was continually signing them out of the library.
When the library was getting rid of its older books, I made sure that I purchased both of these for my shelves. I still have them ...
Thought Star Ship Trooper was great when I first read it
Not so much the second time around
And the movie killed it completely...
I think Dahlquist and The Colonel’s Rebellion are also mentioned in Space Cadet.
bflr
Aside from the story, all the subsequent movies are junk. It’s just Hollywood nonsense.
Read Job.
Weird!
I had the same problem with our Catholic school library (it was Grade 1-High School at the time, Christian Brothers).
At age 6 they would not let me into the “big boys” section. I bitched until they did.
The story’s message is as valid as ever, but the trappings and color of it are very much a product of their time, and amusingly so.
Heinlein fan from way back.
“Starship Troopers” also. “Moon is a Harsh Mistress”
A bit later, “Glory Road” . I found it as a adult though.
Heinlein fan my whole life! Was hooked reading old Boy’s Life mags. My later fave was The Moon is a Harsh Mistress, my least fave was one of his Methusela’s Children books where he went back in time to seduce his Mother.
Starship Troopers was the inspiration for a lot of the modern digitization of the battlefield, especially for the man-machine interfaces.
Heinlein was way ahead of his time. Not bad for a US Naval Academy Graduate!
Time Enough For Love and The Notebooks of Lazarus Long...
Then you might be interested in this: https://archive.org/details/pulpmagazinearchive?&sort=-downloads&page=2
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