podcast friday

[sabotabby]

 It's been another good week for podcasts but the most gripping to me was Behind the Bastards' four-part series on Lawrence of Arabia. "How Lawrence of Arabia Invented Modern War." (Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV)

I can't recall if during my brief teenage obsession with the man after seeing the film on IMAX I actually managed to read Seven Pillars of Wisdom but I certainly want to read it now. This is an interesting series because despite some clear cases for Lawrence's bastardry (like, you know, screwing up the Middle East in ways that may, in the Year of Our Lord 2024, lead to fucking nuclear war, not to mention the war crimes), he remains likeable and sympathetic—including to Robert and Margaret—pretty much throughout the story. So while famously he was literally a bastard, figuratively it's a more complex case to make. And yes, they do go into Dune at the end and the problem with a story—both the real version and the space version—that is essentially a polemic against white saviours where the white saviour is pretty cool though, ngl. 

Anyway, fortunately for ace people looking for a problematic historical role model, and unfortunately for my teenage self who shipped Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif's versions of the characters (and also for director David Lean, who did as well) we actually have as much closure on the answer of Lawrence's sexual orientation as we ever get with any historical figure. Which is pretty cool. (I know, I know, Sherif Ali is a composite character anyway, but counterargument: Omar Sharif's pretty pretty eyes.)

Stepping back into history is actually pretty instructive for the present moment, come to think of it. Also, how you maybe do a guerrilla war against a far more powerful empire, if you have to do that kind of thing in the future.

Comments

[greylock]

I've never watched LoA, much less on IMAX?

Anyway, fortunately for ace people looking for a problematic historical role model, and unfortunately for my teenage self who shipped Peter O'Toole and Omar Sharif's versions of the characters

I mean... there's a lot to unpack in that alone.

Also, how you maybe do a guerrilla war against a far more powerful empire, if you have to do that kind of thing in the future.

I had similar thoughts about Keystone XL, TransCanada et al. For example.

[sabotabby]

I mean. If, say, the planet were in danger of becoming uninhabitable, it might be a moral act. Fortunately I hear climate change is a left-wing hoax.

[greylock]

The fact is, one could impact TransCanada or whatever.
One COULD use, dice, to randomise target locations, and times, and maps of sensitive ecological locations, and a range of interactions. A 1000km pipeline is inherently risky. And some areas (metering stations) are very important to profit.

Yes, some areas will release dilbit or methane. But, really... it's going to get burned anyway.

Not that I have given this or other issues any thought.

But I have seen comments from the US lately that if just 5% of the population went on a national strike the economy would grind to a halt.
Is that true? No idea. It seems too small.
But.... the number matters less than the impact.

[frandroid]

I've skipping a bunch of his series recently... Though I was listening to his Laura Schlesinger week for some reason, and one specific ad libbed ad transition was just *chef's kiss*. Robert being Robert. :). Anyway, LoA had joined the queue and I'm doubly interested now reading that Margaret is the guest.

[sabotabby]

She's great too, of course.

[greylock]

I may need this icon on clothing for my niece.

[minoanmiss]

awww my little shippy heart is broken. which is of course the most iimportant thing about Lawrence of Arabia.

[sabotabby]

Right? The thing that I took away from that movie was that Lawrence of Arabia and Sherif Ali definitely boned.

[rydra_wong]

Hey, ace but not aro is always possibility! I mean, as a general principle: I don't know enough to have any clue whether this might have been true of Lawrence.

(I do know he seems to have fallen into the "ace but kinky af" category.)

[sabotabby]

My impression is aro when it came to Dahoum. He specifically said that he loved the kid so much that it inspired him to liberate the Arabs.