Comments on: MIND MELD: Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers That Should Be on Earth’s “First Contact” Team

By: Cat Bohannon

Cat Bohannon — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 16:01:33 +0000

Send him liberally coated with ketchup. Tell ‘em we’re sending lunch.

By: mike feher

mike feher — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 22:43:45 +0000

amen

h ellison = nuttier than a fruitcake

By: Sally

Sally — Fri, 18 May 2012 17:16:21 +0000

Timothy Zahn should be on this list!

By: Helen Lowe

Helen Lowe — Fri, 18 May 2012 05:54:55 +0000

I think that Think Tank definitely needs CJ Cherryh in there on the strength of her imagining of several different takes on First Contact (Downbelow, Chanur, Gehenna, Cuckoo’s Nest) plus different options for survival; Joe Haldeman for the long game of a Forever War scenario; Orson Scott Card for bringing in smart kids with x-box scenarios to end the game; David Brin to add value with both mobilising our fellow species (Rosie the Riveter style)to boost our numbers through some genetic engineering boot strapping; Nicola Griffith on the potential for germ warfare to change the stakes–and Captain John Sheridan from Babylon 5 for some good oldfashioned interspecies diplomacy backed up with a White Star or 50 …

By: jeff vandermeer

jeff vandermeer — Fri, 18 May 2012 02:26:56 +0000

That’s right! Send the curmudgeon! LOL.

By: Improbable Joe

Improbable Joe — Thu, 17 May 2012 05:04:42 +0000

What’s most important here is to keep Harlan Ellison as far away from this project as possible. He’s probably going to have a higher likelihood of being right about the details than anyone else, but if you let him actually talk to an alien then they’ll kill us all!

By: David Louis Edelman

David Louis Edelman — Thu, 17 May 2012 01:14:30 +0000

That’s it, Jeff. We’re sending you, and you alone.

By: jeff vandermeer

jeff vandermeer — Thu, 17 May 2012 00:04:33 +0000

May I suggest *no* SF/F writers be on the first contact team? I would rather not leave it to a big bunch of f— ups. JV

By: TW

TW — Wed, 16 May 2012 17:54:08 +0000

With the UN and science fiction authors/creators in charge…

We would be so doomed.

By: Mantar

Mantar — Wed, 16 May 2012 17:00:46 +0000

Something like this was done a few years ago with a panel to discuss security threats and potential terror plots. It was kind of a farce, though, with a good number of the SF author guests being kooks and all.

They veered wildly off topic almost immediately, from what I gather. I remember hearing that Larry Niven rehashed an old notion of his by proposing that the government could save money by spreading rumors in the Latino community that illegal immigrants who wound up in the hospital were having their organs secretly harvested by the government. (He’s been riding that hobby horse since his very first short story!) In all, the panel was a huge waste of time and money.

They probably should have picked the authors more carefully to avoid the crank brigade, but this was the Bush presidency and I think some government-appointed cranks just wanted an excuse to meet their favorite authors.

Also, don’t let Stan Lee talk to the aliens, he’ll probably tell them that Earth was all his idea, and all mankind will end up under galactic copyright to Marvel comics.

By: Peggy

Peggy — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:05:37 +0000

But would we want to risk the aliens taking them as average members of the human race and deciding the Earth needed nuking?

By: Jeff Patterson

Jeff Patterson — Wed, 16 May 2012 15:41:39 +0000

Our first contact team should be made up of Scientologists, ancient alien buffs, and members of Westboro Baptist church, thus proving to our starfaring overlords that we have a sense of humor.