Robot Jazz

  💢💢💢 This is your reminder that we are now 203 days into the Trump cover-up of his being in the Epstein files. 💢💢💢 To the seven brave souls still reading this blog—thank you. You already know I’m a PC gaming devotee, and not just for the pixelated explosions. Like a good book or film, games can be portals into history, ideology, and the uncomfortable truths we’d rather not face. While the sticks-in-the-mud who are the Baby Boomers find this a shocking idea, Gen X and beyond know this to be true; hence, it is often video game franchises that command the type of fanatical devotion that popular movies once did (whither thou goest, Hollywood?).  As I watch this once great nation slip into authoritarianism, it is no surprise that I have been playing a great deal of my two favorite Cold War gone hot wargames, WARNO and Regiments .  As a child of the Cold War, I've always been interested in this period of history, one that I suspect, due to the lack of a major East versu...

  [The following is another short fiction inspired by a session with one of my favorite 'Cold War gone hot' wargames, this time WARNO.  I'm sorry: I just have too much fun with these games not to memorialize the session! As ever, don't expect any of these World War III chronicles to tie together in any sort of sensible way. I am not writing a novel. I just look at the battle's events and try to come up with a backstory.] East German Border Incident  GDR claims West Germany launched a cross-border night raid West Germany denies the accusation Many casualties reported [EuroNewz] Today, the government of the German Democratic Republic accused its neighbor, the Federal Republic of Germany, of engaging in cross-border hostilities. The incident allegedly occurred overnight in the sparsely-populated Zhornhorst region. "We are outraged by the unprovoked hostilities of the criminals in Bonn," said Jens Wirtz, spokesman for East Berlin's Ministry for Foreign Aff...

  I believe in homicide I rest my case, don't cast aside You better believe it That's the truth of it Take it or leave it Resign to it Homicide, homicide Homicide, homicide…  - ‘Homicide’ by 999 (1978) “Keep firing!” shouted Leonidov.  “Don’t let those fascists near the farm!” Leonidov felt the butt of his AK-74 pound deeper and deeper into his shoulder until a dull ache began to grip the right side of his body.  But there couldn’t be any letup. The West Germans were scouting the battalion’s left flank, attempting to find any weakness the fascists could use against his comrades. He wasn’t going to allow that to happen. As if to prove that to himself, Leonidov fired off a three-round burst from his weapon at an enemy soldier who was firing from behind a tree.  He was gratified when he saw his rounds stitch their way up the enemy soldier's exposed arm, causing the soldier to drop the rifle from his now mangled arm.  Leonidov fired another burst at the pain-st...

  In this city so proud Full of noises and crowds This once was a monument Now, it's a grave And they warned us about When reason gave out Now, it's too late for miracles There's nothing to save Armageddon Armageddon It came too soon - “Armageddon” by Planet P Project (1983) Private Lance Nigels starred intently at that “Woodland” camouflage pattern on the BDU (Battle Dress Uniform) trousers on the soldier seated beside him inside the M113 APC.  Black swirling to brown swirling to green swirling back to black again, round and round, he thought.  You can’t escape the black. Nothing can escape the black.   The M113’s Detroit V6 two-stroke diesel engine suddenly roared, as if in warning, and the entire vehicle lurched to a halt, causing the soldiers inside to bump into each other as they sat side by side on the twin benches that lined the interior of the aluminum hull.   The vehicle commander, perched on his elevated seat for better visibility from outside th...