Casualties.

Today at 8:55 am, the Storm Crow Tavern posted the following to its Facebook page:

There’s no easy way to do this, so we’ll just say it plainly: the Storm Crow Tavern will not be re-opening, regardless of the short-term resolution of the Covid-19 crisis. 

It’s been estimated that up to 75% of all the independent restaurants that closed in the wake of the virus will never re-open. Restaurants run on narrow margins at the best of times. The Tavern already had many challenges, such as an expiring lease, and the coronavirus, for us and many other small restaurants, is a fatal blow while we’re already down. 

That said... the Alehouse on Broadway (and the Manor in Toronto) are potentially different stories, and we are going to fight like hell to re-open those Storm Crows as soon as we can. 

It’s a sad day for us, for our employees, and for our regular guests. For over seven years, the Storm Crow Tavern has been a special place in all our lives: more than just a “nerd bar,” it was a neighbourhood haven for the misfits, the geeks, the oddballs and bohemians of Commercial Drive and Vancouver in general. 

The Tavern had an amazing run. And while it may be gone, other Storm Crows will rise, like those less-awesome phoenix-y birds, up from the ashes when this conflagration has ended. 

Stay safe. Stay sane. We’ll see you all again one day.

A sad day indeed. Although I switched my allegiance over to their Broadway location when it opened, solely due to its adjacency to home, the original branch always held a special place in my affections.  The original Storm Crow introduced a kind of pub that I'd always wanted, and on behalf of "misfits, geeks and oddballs" everywhere, thanks for proving that not every bar has to have a hockey game playing.

- Sid

"It's okay, I have a permit."

This week, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order endorsing the right of United States citizens "to engage in commercial exploration, recovery and use of resources in outer space, consistent with applicable law.  Outer space is a legally and physically unique domain of human activity, and the United States does not view it as a global commons."

Now, from the perspective of global politics and outer space, this isn't a great moment.  There's a existing international agreement from 1979, the Moon Agreement, that stipulates that non-scientific use of extra-terrestrial resources be controlled by international oversight, but the United States has never been a signator - in fact, in 2015 Congress passed a law that basically said that any US citizen involved in the commercial recovery of "space resources" is entitled to them.

The new Executive Order specifically states that "...the United States does not consider the Moon Agreement to be an effective or necessary instrument to guide nation states regarding the promotion of commercial participation in the long-term exploration, scientific discovery and use of the Moon, Mars or other celestial bodies."

The key word there is "commercial" - the 1967 Outer Space Treaty states that nations cannot claim space or any celestial bodies, but the United States is saying that corporate exploitation by US citizens is completely permitted, rather like drilling for oil in international waters, and that they can keep whatever they find.  The new order does say that this should be consistent with applicable law, but then immediately announces that the existing agreements aren't applicable.

In other words, to quote Ron Swanson's permit from Parks & Recreation,  "I can do what I want."

From the perspective of a science fiction fan, this is a fascinating development, given that one of the common tropes of near-future science fiction is the exploitation of mineral resources as the driving force for expansion into the further reaches of our solar system - and eventually, other planetary systems.  This kind of development provides a logical purpose for space exploration, combined with an obvious return on investment.

However, the potential for disaster is epic, which is why there need to be controls in place.  As with undersea oil drilling , if something goes wrong, it's unlikely that its effects will be restricted to the area where the accident took place.  True, there's no equivalent to aquatic life that can be harmed, but the real analogy is that eventually the oil reaches a coastline - and in this case, we're talking about the entire planet, rather than a few miles of beach.

We're decades away from any kind of practical industrial exploitation of space, but if something goes wrong that results in asteroid mining debris or radioactive waste hitting Earth, it's going to take a lot more than a few drums of Dawn dish detergent to deal with the consequences.

- Sid

“There is good in him. I've felt it.”

 

Although I've never been a serious autograph hunter, over the years my modest science fiction collection has come to include a few personalized items:  my recent William Gibson autograph for Agency, the autographed copy of The Difference Machine that my friend Norah gave me as a birthday gift a few years back, and my mirror reversed Ursula K. Le Guin signature.*  Now, thanks to Karli's sister Lisa, I have an autographed set of the Epic Yarns Star Wars adaptations created by Holman Wang and his brother Jack- well, I should say we rather than I, given that both our names appear.

After meeting Holman Wang at an event in January (and buying us the first book in the Epic Yarns series as a gift), Lisa invited him to be a keynote speaker at one of the learning conferences that she produces for teachers in British Columbia, and asked us if we would like to have him autograph his books for us.

We somewhat cautiously agreed - we're fairly typical Canadians, which makes us reluctant to bother people - and Karli handed over the books the next time she saw her sister.

Mr. Wang was happy to provide his signature on all three copies, and although the return of the autographed books was delayed by the current social distancing environment, they're now back in our possession.  Our sincere thanks to both Lisa and Holman!

- Sid

* I also have a set of autographed comics that were written and drawn by my friend Wendy's partner Steven, but that somehow doesn't seem the same. I certainly value those comics, but given that I see Steve on a somewhat regular basis, it's not the same challenge, I could probably get him to sign something every time - although that might get a bit strange after a while.