Notes from a "Brownshirt" Apologist

Who is the the brownshirt in question, you ask? That would be science fiction author Tom Kratman, at least in the words of Charles Stross. And the apologists, by Stross' definition, would be readers of Tom Kratman's work, like myself.

What brought this up? Well, in the same comment thread I was referring to in yesterday's post, a commenter named "atlatl" invoked Kratman's unholy name, which drew this response from Stross:

298:

( RACIST KOOKERY DELETED BY MODERATOR )

Fuck off, Atlatl, you're banned.

Posted by: atlatl | May 29, 2008 3:28 PM

299:

Kratman is delusional.

Posted by: Andrew G. | May 29, 2008 3:39 PM

300:

Andrew G:

1. Do Not Feed The Trolls.

2. Atlatl is now banned. (Invoking someone who seems to worship the Waffen-SS as an authority will do that around these parts.)

Posted by: Charlie Stross | May 29, 2008 3:47 PM

Since atlatl's post was altered, I have no idea what he said. But one can reasonably assume that since atlatl was labeled a "racist," he must have gained the upper hand in the debate. After all, these days a "racist" (or a "fascist" or a "brownshirt") is simply someone who is winning an argument with a liberal.

To drive the brownshirt accusation home, Stross then posted:

303:

Andrew G: I'll go a bit further. From what I know of Tom Kratman's avowed beliefs (and I've run across him on usenet a few times) he's not welcome here. I see no reason to provide a free soapbox and megaphone for brownshirts or their apologists, and quoting Kratman seems to be a good indicator for such scum this decade.

Posted by: Charlie Stross | May 29, 2008 6:35 PM

As for Tom Kratman, this is his bio as printed in A State of Disobedience:

In 1974, at age seventeen, Tom Kratman became a political refugee and defector from the PRM (People's Republic of Massachusetts) by virtue of joining the Regular Army. He stayed a Regular Army infantryman most of his adult life, returning to Massachusetts as an unofficial dissident while attending Boston College after his first hitch. Back in the Army, he managed to do just about everything there was to do, at one time or another. After the Gulf War, and with the bottom dropping completely out of the anti-communism market, Tom decided to become a lawyer. (Big mistake, way big. Chilluns don't do it.) Every now and again, when the frustrations of legal life and having to deal with other lawyers got to be too much, Tom would rejoin the Army (or a somewhat similar group, say) for fun and frolic in other climes. His family, muttering darkly, still puts up with this. Tom is currently an attorney practicing in southwest Virginia. A State of Disobedience is his first novel.

From that description alone, I can see how Kratman might annoy a leftard or two.

For the record, I have read two of Kratman's books: A State of Disobedience and Caliphate. If Stross had actually read A State of Disobedience, he would have seen that Kratman is anything but a "brownshirt." But I think Stross is likely hung up on one of Kratman's collaborations with John Ringo: Watch on the Rhine. I have a copy of Watch on the Rhine and will read it once I finish Claire Berlinski's Menace in Europe.

The only reason I mention this episode is because the whole drama of lefty hysterics and insult-throwing amuses me to no end. What is also funny is that Stross has real brownshirts - Islamic radicals - active in his own country, yet turns a blind eye to the problem. After all, those who decapitate infidels in the name of Allah are just venting their justified anger against the racist, imperialist West, right?