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Culturegasm: [Closed] Edison's Conquest Of Mars

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  1.  (547.1)
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      CommentAuthorroque
    • CommentTimeJan 17th 2008
     (547.2)
    "Sweep them! Sweep them!" cried Colonel Smith, as he brought his
    disintegrator to bear. Mr. Phillips and I instantly followed his example,
    and thus we swept the Martians into eternity, while Mr. Edison coolly
    continued his manipulations of the wheel.

    outstanding.
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      CommentAuthorCOMTE
    • CommentTimeJan 17th 2008
     (547.3)
    I actually read this online through Gutenberg, and it was - interesting. Unlike Well's original, it really plays up the notion of the United States as the technological "savior" of the world, in all it's racist, jingoistic, capitalistic glory.

    MINOR SPOILERS:

    (Great Scene: A sort of United Nations Summit is held in Washington D.C. to promote the idea of a retaliatory strike on the Martians - and of course, funds must be raised for this Noble Endeavor. The U.S. contributes "a thousand billion dollars", an amount only matched by one or two Western Nations. The monarchies of the Far East contribute things like caskets full of gold & jewels, and one, the world's largest diamond, because - see? - currency apparently is beyond their ken. After the orgy of donations, the U.S. kicks in an additional "thousand millions" to take the effort over-the-top, with the Secretary of the Treasury coyly responding, "oh, I think we can afford it.")

    And of course, Edison himself is represented as a genius on the order of Newton and DaVinci, the epitome of Yankee Ingenuity, being able to construct all manner of incredible devices: electrically-powered space ships, disintegrator rays, space suits, et al, with alacrity. Those poor Martians never stood a chance.

    Amazingly, a few of the descriptions, particularly the first time the Earth Armada ventures into orbit, are almost prescient in their vividness and realism. On the other hand, much of the science is ludicrously inaccurate.
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      CommentAuthortim12s
    • CommentTimeJan 17th 2008
     (547.4)
    Let me just point yr attention to this previous discovery of this wonderful tome, also @ WhiteChapel: Link

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