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Hey, I'm not saying it is sensible or rational.  All I'm saying is that it is scary as f*** and denial is quite often a coping mechanism.  Think of people who stay in abusive relationships and rationalise their abuser's behaviour, kids who are stuck in insanely traumatic situations and think it is normal ...

Personally I'm with you.  I don't know anyone who has had this.  I don't know anyone who has died from it.  Enough people tell me that they have had it and they've lost friends / family / loved ones because of it.  That is enough for me.

So ... face mask, social distancing, washing aplenty .... Everything and anything to keep others safe.

A lot of the last couple of years (1991-3) of Eagle were mainly reprint.  IIRC the 13th Floor stuff at this stage was.  I'd have to dig through to be sure.

I'm saddemed that this thread, started, I presume, to give people an opportunity to express their anxiety, advice and so on during this weird and difficult time, has become an argument as to whether the coronavirus is a hoax or not.

Fair point.  Then again I wonder if latching on to conspiracy theories is a way of managing anxiety?

When you think about it, things are completely and utterly out of control at the moment.  In a "well, we are totally screwed" kind of way.  There is little scope for exercising personal control, especially since so much of our personal life is highly regulated now, up to and including who we can spend time with.

So any tiny opportunity to exercise some sort of personal control is likely to be seized on.  If that is just what you can believe then so be it?  It gives a tiny sliver of control over circumstances.

That's pretty much where I come down, Tordels.  Given a choice between a scientist and a politician I'll go with the scientist any day of the week and twice on Sunday.  The charlatans in 'power' at the moment?  Aye, right!

My real concern at the moment though is that the way science is being presented undermines its efficacy in the public eye.  That's a dangerous road.

There is an aspect of Sharkey's observation that I would suggest does have small merit.  This idea that politicians are elevating science in a way that is problematic.  The old "we are following the science / led by the science / guided by the science" mantra appears to be less about measured and reasonable actions and more about trying to find some sort of shield.

What I mean is that science is not always completely certain or correct.  It is an ongoing process rather than a finished product.  Covid has illustrated that more than anything else this year.  As time has gone on more data has become available that has allowed us to make better decisions.  One example is asymptomatic infection.

The danger now is that politicians have simultaneously raised expectations whilst undermining confidence in scientists.  So much is pinned now on the vaccine despite the fact that there is still considerable work to be done.  On the other hand since scientists have been refining their guidance throughout the year as more data becomes available, this has undermined the 'absolute certainty' inference that politicians have employed to support their own flawed decision making.

So now we do have this insane situation in which perfectly reasonable guidance to wear face coverings to try and minimise transmission comes up against the intransigence of certain individuals.  Twitter and Facebook are laughably seen as more trustworthy and reliable than the BMJ.  The 'guy on the internet' is seen as more knowledgeable and reputable than someone who has spent decades studying the problem in minute detail.

At its core though I would politely suggest that the "believers" to whom Sharkey refers are these types who will seize on whatever dubious remark made online takes their fancy and the "heathens" are those who turn around and say, "well, based on science there is a greater probability that ..." and try to approach it rationally.  ... and yes the likes of Trump, Johnson and Bolsanaro need to be held accountable for this.

I'm not sure I would agree with the idea of Lunar City as a Mega-Epic.  Then again I can sort of see the logic.  I mean in some respects stories like the Judge Child Quest and Cursed Earth saga following similar structures.  Whereas the likes of the Day the Law Died and Apocalypse War are more unified stories (AW in particular).

I guess that is just me being pedantic.  At least we can all agree on Crusade ...

At its core, the strip is a period piece and there should be no problems with making new stories in the same way there aren't insurmountable problems in making stories about someone like Hornblower or Perseus.

That is a fair point.  Perhaps that is where recent incarnations have gone wrong.  The period is being looked at through cynical eyes.  Rather than reflecting on what could be seen as positive: the 'white heat of technology', post-Imperial Britain looking to adopt a more appropriate international role, a sense of duty and honour permeating public service ...

I don't know if anyone else has had a chance to look at Spaceship Away but the adaptation there is well worth a look see.  Very much in the original vein.

I have to be fair to Rebellion, I've always had excellent service from them. 

Ordered a treasury bookplate hardback, they didn't have it in stock so they refunded and sent a non-bookplate edition.

Support over the recent RM debacle was first rate with them chasing up to see where it was after I'd raised the initial query and checking on what had happened.

Nope, can't fault them.

It's also worth noting that on the subject of the New Eagle version he only covered the more generally remembered Mekon storyline of the first couple of years as opposed to some of the subsequent stories, the reinvention by Tully that harked back to the aborted Tully / Gibbons post-Fortress tale or the reversion to the 'original' Dare of the last few years (Pugh on art was it?)

I guess I'd agree with some of the comments about the more recent revival attempts and the rather gauche cynicism that tends to pervade them.  Ennis / Weston's attempt also suffers from comparison with Ellis' "Ministry of Space" which covers similar ground and potentially far more effectively.

The core point does seem valid though.  Dare is very much a creation of a specific historical moment that has potentially been lost.  There are many sensibilities of the original work that don't sit well with us now, perhaps explaining why there is so much difficulty for modern writers in dealing with the core aspects of the character.

When you consider the anti-establishment sensibilities that run through much British comic writing since the 60's / 70's, the old Glorious Empire and Patriotic Officer are tropes that cannot really be handled sympathetically.  Perhaps this is why the early Tooth version of Dare stands out so starkly in the history of the character.  It discarded those aspects and remoulded Dare into something almost unrecognisable.  Not to mention Bellardinelli's absolutely bonkers (and gorgeous) artwork.

City benefits from superb Dillon artwork.  As an idea it has merit.  Execution wise however ... reminded that Grant / Wagner bored of it and wrapped it up quickly, that makes sense.  There was so much scope there.

The other epic that always sits a little uncomfortably for me is Necropolis.  I get the decision to suddenly jump to the city in the thrall of the DJ's.  It just still jars a lot.

TJM, there is no doubt that spreading the cost of civilisation is extremely helpful, but I question the need for it to be enforced by the barrel of a gun. The problem is that the enforcers come to see this contribution as theirs to control. Thus we get obscene banker bailouts that divert resources from more tangible things like homelessness, hospitals, and hostels.

For me the 'enforcement' side is highlighted by some of the issues that you talk about here.  As I said previously, I do have major issues with some of the ways in which we as a nation prioritise things.  Finance is considered more important than any other industry despite the very distortions you mention.

In an ideal world enforcement would not be necessary since everyone would accept the need to contribute appropriately.  Regrettably we don't live in an even remotely ideal world.  Human nature has a regrettable habit of getting in the way.

... and Mr Pops?  Felicitations and Salutations to your Splendiforously Groovy Hairdo man!

A government takes your money without your permission = taxation.

I do feel like this is a bit of a historical aberration.  By this I mean that the idea dates back to a time when taxation was all about the crown taking what they needed for their own purposes.

Over the course of the last century the state has grown to include health care, education and social security as well as those objectives that have historically been pursued. 

Personally I would argue that this is the true price of a civil society.  There is a collective contribution towards a common good.  Education is available to all for instance as it is paid for out of general taxation.

Arguing that the monies are taken without permission is a little problematic.  Certainly there is little control over this.  That said there are still democratic mechanisms available to challenge it (albeit of variable quality).

Personally I'm in the "no man is an island" camp.  I feel that there is a case to be made for providing support for the most needy since it benefits all of us.  Also, none of us can be sure that we won't find ourselves there.  We have a moral responsibility to support our fellow 'man' (however they define themselves).

I have major problems with government policy that channels this in inappropriate ways.  Arguably over the last 20 odd years this has become an ever increasing problem, from outsourcing on.

Ultimately though, as a social democrat and idealist, I would rather contribute a portion of my earnings to the 'common good'.  [that said, I do have problems as well with the fact that 'labour' is more heavily taxed than capital]

Why is the prog like a London bus?

Because you wait ages for one and then three turn up at once!  (plus the meg).

Interesting to see what happens with the end of year prog now then.

Well now 3 weeks without any sign of either prog or meg.  Other mail is getting through but it feels a little like parcel mail is more reliable.  I do wonder if this is the shape of things to come as RM is trying to kill off letter post in favour of parcel post.

On the positive side, having been asked by subs to hang on and give it 3 weeks to see if owt turns up, I find an email from the aforementioned subs department asking if anything had arrived or if they needed to sort a replacement.  In this day and age it is more than a little unusual to find the company chasing the customer rather than the other way round.

Fair dues.

3pm and still not post.

Looks like another week without.