Category Archives: Opinion

Luna, the Artificial Intelligence that could when we humans don’t or won’t.

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Luna is an artificial intelligence being created for the 7.4B people in today’s world. The non-profit organization, Robots Without Borders, focuses on three applications of artificial intelligence: education, medical assistance and humanitarian aid. In many ways, Luna exemplifies Luis’ life and his passion for an artificial intelligence that guides all. … And I respectfully ask the world this question: How could an artificial intelligence help humans during and after natural disasters (such as hurricanes and wildfires); in the midst of deliberate, human-engineered atrocities, such as the Las Vegas shooting?

Tsng comes at Luna from a wider perspective than I was expecting, and enters some of the territories I’m exploring in Chaos Engine, a novel that’s in production.

Humans have a gift for creating amazing things to help us do exceptional things, but then we also create terrible things that enable us to do horrendous things. But the worst thing we do is nothing, when something could or would change the world — and an Artificial Intelligence won’t help us there.

Terrorism has no creed or colour

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As 2015 draws to an end, we ponder the introduction of a new synonym for terrorism: conservatism.

Religious conservatism, in particular, is a bunch of men — regardless of colour — shaking an angry fist at the world, who can’t get it up without beating someone down, women for the most part.

It’d be comical if it weren’t true. It’d be hilarious if these men weren’t so numerous, so empowered, and so dangerous. It’d be a relief if they weren’t politicians, police officials and officers, legislators, educators, pastors, padres, imams, and rabbis, or the owners of major multi-national corporations.

Terrorism, in this modern age, is as much a notion, or an idea, as it is an act or deed.

Superhero stories aren’t just black and white

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Somewhere, in and amongst the controversial topic of race, the stories became lost, or themselves hidden by the arguments, which is sad. Perhaps more sad is that the real stories — those about people from racial minorities dealing with everyday racism — became overshadowed.

Michelle Rodriguez weighed in on the subject of race with regards to superheroes, and in doing so contributed to an on-going discussion about race in fiction.

If you’re not familiar, then Idris Elba as a possible future James Bond, the hispanic Spider-Man, and the female Thor are prime examples of race — and also gender — becoming lost in a furore that needn’t be such.

As a disclaimer, I am not of a racial minority; being of Anglo-Saxon stock kind of greases the wheels of life for me, which I take great care to be aware of, to avoid that sense of entitlement, privilege, and of victimhood from creeping in, which is so prevalent in parts of Northern Europe.

No, we Caucasians are not under threat from a tidal wave of immigrants. If anything, we’re a danger to ourselves.

A few years ago, I would have known little of the on-going superhero-of-colour debate (I’m not much into DC or Marvel comics), but I did understand — or at least, was aware — that there weren’t many minority superheroes, and that even fewer of them were British.

So I wrote A Darkening of Fortune, a near-future sci-fi crime thriller, to address both of these issues. But more important was the need to address some of the aspects of what it means to be British and Asian — or at least as to the best of my own abilities, observations, and vicarious experiences.

Let’s imagine for a moment A Darkening or Fortune becomes a huge success and I receive an offer of a cinematic adaptation. If during those discussions the movie studio was to propose changing Yusef “Joe” Iqbal to a white Caucasian, there the discussion would come to a grinding halt. End of story.

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Just in case you’ve found yourself on my website for no obvious or apparent reason, it’s likely that you’re the victim of a scam which is targeting me along with several other websites. In the meantime, take a moment for calm reflection and consider more pleasant things. Enjoy the rest of your day!

No, not like the Marvel Universe

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Just after writing Earth Day, I had an idea (more of an epiphany, really), which — on reflection — should have given me more pause for thought, but didn’t.

I made the decision to create my own universe, or more specifically, a continuum.

“What, like the Marvel Universe?” Christy suggested.

Not quite, no. But then again, yes. I don’t pay too much attention — if any at all — to what other people are doing, as I have my own ideas.

In my universe, every novella and novel is part of a constellation of stories, each connecting with another in some way, be it a character, a technology, an event, a business, a location, or an idea.

“They won’t really care.” Christy reasoned. “The readers, I mean.”

She had a point.

“I write for myself.” I said.

Yes, I am a selfish author.

It’s the creation of these nebulous connections, and the challenge of ensuring every story is a part of the same continuum that motivates me as much as anything.

However, it does impose certain rules; certain ideas I have are out of bounds, since they do not fit within the scope of the continuum.

You’d think that there’d be plenty of room in an entire universe. No, certain genres just don’t fit.

I have made a commitment, which I intend remaining true to, come what may.