Eric Raymond


Eric Raymond, aka ESR, is a hacker celebrity. He is to Open Source as Richard Stallman? is to Free Software. Sort of. In addition, he is a stone-cold gun-toting misogynist libertarian crypto-fascist nutcase.

SF-relevant things include his 'A Political History of SF' <http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/sf-history.html> and 'Conventions at Light Speed: What Hackers Can Learn From SF Fandom' <http://www.catb.org/~esr/writings/sfshows/>. The Jargon File is also worth a read.

Read 'A Political History of SF', and am relieved to have been informed that Heinlein is more liberal than the New Wave. Must reread 'Farnham's Freehold' in a new light on that basis. Also, must remember to inform Senator Mc Carthy? that Aldiss, Ballard and Moorcock are 'socialists and Marxists who rejected individualism'.... Surely, if we can't afford to provide all US citizens with passports we could at least arrange for them to have some European SF shipped over so they can actually read it....

ESR's nuttiness is sufficiently entertaining that he is often chronicled in NTK (<google:site:ntk.net+esr>).


Wed, 03 Mar 2004 17:03:53 GMT Front Page Recent Changes Message Of The Day