The cover design for my novel, Universal Coverage, has been finalized. Here is a look at the front:

A few cover blurbs came in at the last minute, which kept the designers working over time. I think it was worth it. I like the look, the message it sends, and the way it stands out among other books. Look for it online or at a bookstore near you on 15 December 2009. You can pre-order if you like, too.

In the my latest novel, Universal Coverage, an entrepreneurial-minded doctor named Steven Jossy converts a cruise ship into a floating hospital. This is not exactly a new idea. The U.S. Navy has had hospital ships for many years. However, could you imagine striking out and re-establishing your life aboard a permanent location in the ocean? Well, some creative people have envisioned just that.

Seasteading is the term they have coined, and I think appropriately so. The concept is that the ocean is a new frontier, a place to form new societies. Given the current political climate around the world, it might be a good idea. The engineering challenges are not as great as they might have been years ago. After all, there are mega-cruise ships trolling the ocean, carrying up to three or even four thousand passengers plus an equal amount of crew. Six to ten thousand people is a small community, but it could certainly be a pleasant one. Furthermore, it is possible for these smaller groups to be linked to others in loose or firm alliances. The legal ramifications are quite intriguing.

For more about seasteading, check out the website www.seasteading.org. It will make you think. That’s a good thing.

…early this morning. Went out, bought The New York Times, and instead of sticking to the travel section and the book reviews, I read some of the other pieces. How stupid I was!

The New York Times has its point of view; I appreciate that. Viva la diferencia! as my old pal Charlie used to say. Trouble is, through the various articles I read, there was nothing short of a vapid, pathetic, ignorance bandied about like so much high-minded civic righteousness. These sundry writings of today’s issue degenerated into a pablum of calls for allegiance to the state. That’s right, swearing fealty to the all-knowing, all-providing greatness of government, which is the only entity capable of solving perceived problems. Woodrow Wilson is invoked. Harvard scholars are quoted. Damn fools expound at length on the supposed merits of the premise that the citizen needs a higher purpose than his own goals. No, there are no instructions for making the official oath or public salute. They veil the essence in sweeter sounding platitudes than overt devotion.

Perhaps I awoke in another reality this morning. Or maybe not. Maybe America is no longer the land of the free to pursue their happiness, nor the home of the brave enough to deal with the failure if they don’t find it. America might have waned into a sort of half-life isotope of a society, only strong enough to kill itself while doing minor damage to others.

Consider the facts: A congress that wants to seize control of an industry to doll out benefits to less than 10% of the population. The same congress wants command of every tickle of energy produced. A President who strategizes politically to further his personal influence while soldiers die in the field. State governments littered with debt, most of which was incurred to pay-off (in one form or another) various reliable constituencies. Cities that harbor criminals from the law.

And this is the group to which the citizen is to prostrate himself before in the name of a higher purpose. What would that purpose be? King and country? Like it or not, the American who was once free now lives in the yoke of royalty put in place by his own hand. The citizen is fastening the chains about his neck, volunteering for servitude. Where there is service, there are the served. No greater a messenger than The New York Times is calling for more of this. Get your collar fitted while the really snazzy ones last.

And if you want to know where it ends, I can reliably say that it does not end. Tyranny is forever. When you turn your back, deny its existence, or placate it with tribute, tyranny will dominate you. Tyranny will start by taking your dignity, continue by destroying your achievement, and not stop until you are its slave.

Sound dramatic? Well, ask those who survived Soviet Russia or Mao’s China. They were told to find a higher purpose. They were told to make sacrifices. They were told there would be more for everyone if they only gave all they had. Stalin had his dachas as did the rest of the apparachniks while too many others starved. Mao had his dojo by the lake while bullets landed in the backs of the heads of less conforming people. Unfortunately, The New York Times doesn’t talk much about these kind of consequences. Maybe their writers and those Harvard dons have know knowledge of the reality of the uber-state. Maybe they live in a state of denial that doesn’t reach their lofty offices or leafy campuses. Sadly, the rest of us don’t have that option.

Or, maybe I’m wrong. Maybe the average citizen is quite happy with bread and circuses (low interest loans and World Series Baseball as it is called today.) As George Orwell wrote at the end of 1984, “Winston loved Big Brother.”

The Salvare is a 120,000 ton displacement former cruise liner which Dr. Steven Jossy converted to a floating hospital. In case you missed the video as part of the previous post, here is the website for Dr. Jossy’s venture: www.the-salvare.com.  Click on the live links at the website to discover more.

Through the course of writing Universal Coverage, I could hardly believe the many things I thought were fiction are actually becoming fact. When it comes to health care systems, choose wisely.

Salvare, a floating hospital off the coast of Cape May, NJ may be the future of quality medical care in the United States. Watch the video.

Check out the website for more details: www.the-salvare.com.

Something to think about.

…from my man, Benjamin Franklin, philosopher, scientist, founder of a nation:

If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write something worth reading or do things worth the writing.

Those are words to live be.

Here are two newspapers, one from Poland, the other from the Czech Republic.

Too bad an American has to read the foreign press to get the facts. Of course, what remains of the so-called “press” in the United States is reminiscent of Pravda circa 1962. Thus, to demand any semblance of honesty is to bark up an empty tree.

To my friends in Poland, including former professors, those I’ve met in the course of book events, and others, I am deeply saddened to see your nation once again in peril. Of course, you do not have to hear this from me. You’ve known it for months now. The difference is that the rest of the world knows it, too. I fear your sovereignty will once again be trampled, your populace abused, your progress and hard work stolen. You’ve been bargained away, traded like yard sale leftovers in exchange for precious little.

Does anyone remember 1938… 1939… 1945?

Trust no one, especially allies bearing promises.

It’s hard to believe that Mario Puzo’s The Godfather was published forty years ago. The story has become part of the American lexicon thanks to the popular movies adapted from the novel. I’ve read the complete book many times and frequently find myself reading passages. What I like most about the book is the sweeping nature of the story. It stretches from the east coast to the west coast of the United States as well as to Sicily. Similarly, the character and plot development span the outer reaches of human experience. One thing missing from the movie adaptation was a more in depth look at the Johnny Fontane character. Thankfully, the book has entire sections devoted to Fontane, showing a character who develops into more than a simply crooner.

Puzo has left a brilliant legacy with this book. At the same time, don’t neglect Fools Die, another brilliant look at humanity, it’s foibles and follies, something Puzo knew how to show better than most.

Mont Blanc hosted a fun event last week. They introduced some new fountain pens, watches, and other exotic wares at their King of Prussia, PA, USA location. They were good enough to invite me, and I showed up toting my favorite Mont Blanc pen, one that’s written much of several novels. Now, I’ve never been one to go in for psychics and the like but Mont Blanc had a handwriting analyst on hand, one Paula Sassi. Let me tell you dear readers of The Bent Page, this lady knew her stuff! Here’s a photo of her after the analysis discussed below. In the photo we’re chatting about my notebook.

In the first place, she asked that I write out a single sentence and then my signature. She proceeded to interpret these after a few moments of contemplation. Well, she had my personality pegged, flaws and all, to such a degree that my wife nearly blacked out. No kidding! More than just general traits, she zeroed in on the specifics and I kept my mouth shut, partly out of awe and partly because I didn’t want to give her any clues. All I can say is this lady knows how to delve into your characteristics with nothing more than a few lines on paper.

Thus, my thanks go out to Mont Blanc for the invitation to a thrilling event. Plus it was interesting to see their new fountain pens as well as a few old standbys. Keep up the good work, fellows, but remember, they’re hard to wear out.