Ray's X-Blog

Deathstar (This is an article from the latest edition of my ezine Ray X X-Rayer #149. You can find it at https://efanzines.com/RXXR/RXXR-149.pdf . Back issues are listed at https://efanzines.com/RXXR/ . Or you can join my free and private subscription list by contacting me at raypalmx[at]gmail[dot]com, subject line: Subscription.) Deathstar ] The election of Donald Trump to the US presidency marked the onset of the present dark age. All the ugliness -- greed, racism -- that had been boiling in the background erupted. Anti-science and insane conspiracy theories rule. For some emotion based on a black-and-white worldview pushed by an authoritarian leader is the answer. And like the Middle Ages this modern dark age has become dominated by a plague, the COVID-19 pandemic. So far I've dodged the bullet -- actually, the artillery shell. My age and underlying health problems make me a prime target for the coronavirus. Living alone for decad...

The latest issue is available at https://efanzines.com/RXXR/RXXR-148.pdf . Previous issues can be found here: https://efanzines.com/RXXR/index.htm Below is a sample article from XR #148. Potty-Mouth Reviews Stars Wars: The Rise of Skywalker A review evinces high standards by the use of coarse language. Nothing gets the point across than saying a movie studio is sending a big F.U. to fans with a new release. Someone with the dubious appellation of That Star Wars Girl ranted on YouTube how she thought the latest Star Wars movie was a fragment of fecal matter. (Or in words to that effect.) I enjoy a good rant but there's more to one than a string of obscenities that an immature middle grade school student would use. You don't impress me with a plethora of potty pronouncements. Such words don't bother me, they bore me. Try reading Roger Ebert reviews if you want to intelligently make points about a movie. ...

Download the PDF file of RX XR #147 through this direct link:  https://efanzines.com/RXXR/RXXR-147.pdf Access a list of back issues here:  https://efanzines.com/RXXR/index.htm

It was no longer worth the money.  The original Blogspot URL works just as well.  Activity at this blog was been crickets and tumbleweeds.  Every year the renewal price has been going up while hits have been dropping.  I haven't received any comments in a long time.  My ezine Ray X X-Rayer does receive a LOC or two so I know a few people are out there with that outlet.  I've grown tired with the duplicative effort of publishing the same material on my blog and in my zine.  I'm considering using this blog only to announce the latest issue of RX XR with a link to efanzines.com . If you want to read my stuff as a zine go to  http://www.efanzines.com/RXXR/index.htm  .

By coincidence the two movies I watched the other evening each featured the title character trapped in ice. The Thing From Another World (1951.) A remote arctic research station detects the crash of an unusual object. Upon investigation they discover an alien being encased in ice. Somehow the men are able to carve out a coffin-sized ice block to bring the creature back to their base. Uh-oh. Quibble time. How did they dig underneath the alien Popsicle to create the block, especially with a bad storm on the way limiting their time? How did they raise the block to fly it back home? Did someone crawl under, carving away without the ice falling and crushing him? At the base the frozen ET is stored in a cold room. OK, the monster has to get free or watching an ice-encased alien just sitting there gets boring really quick. How a delayed reaction by a damaged heating device on the alien, melting him free? No, they have to use the "I didn't know th...