ONTD

So last night, after the joy's of WonderCon, I got the first email response from Henry, last night was dead, wasn't going to post it then, will have more when he responds with the rest. Sorry this is frazzled, working WonderCon with a friend.

This man is more amazing than you faves, and deserves your undying love.
And not highlighting or bolding anything, because it's all amazing, and you should read it all because he was nice enough to do this for us.

Here's some of the questions answered, more to come. Thanks. H

1. Your current views on the state of feminism?

========= I think what is relevant at this time is the constant assault on women’s reproductive health rights. There’s nothing new about this issue and it should be well behind us now but it seems that it’s still a tried and true fund raiser for some politicians and so it remains with us. It is not for men to lord over women’s ovaries. The term feminism, in my mind, somewhat ghettoizes women’s civil rights. For me, all these issues fall under the heading of Civil Rights.



3. Is there any topic that you have radically changed your views on through the years due to his travels or general experiences?

========= Not really. It’s not like I all of a sudden think child slavery is a bad idea. What has happened to me has been a steady series of discoveries from travel. More awareness of things in the world. Water shortages, famine, civil wars and the like. These things, having seen them up close in different degrees has been quite something for me.



4. "Dear Mr. Rollins,

Big fan. "My War" will forever be my rip-the-world-to-shreds anthem.

My question for you regards the place of science in society. As a Chemistry graduate student, what I grapple with most often is the danger my craft can pose. Agent orange, napalm, nerve gas, CFCs, the nuclear bomb - unlocking the mystery of nature is equal parts fun and lethal. Do you think it's possible to be an ethical scientist, or am I bound to end up creating/discovering something that will only cause misery? Any advice on how I should balance my curiosity and love for the universe and its inner workings with the potential clusterfuck those secrets could unleash? Thanks for any input, - Laura

======== It would take a chemist to make Tetrachlorodibenzodioxin possible, certainly. I think many people in the science world are tasked with the burden of being ethical, seeing what they can concoct. I wonder if the scientists who brought us all that nuclear information were all that happy about where it went and what was the result of their research. I think it comes down to the person. If someone was to give you a large sum of money to design a better nerve gas of higher potency and longer shelf life for use in future conflicts or union strikes (!), you could opt out. Someone else in your field would no doubt take the money and deliver but at least it wouldn’t be on you. I think it’s a matter of when to say no as well as how loud you want to say it.



6. Or, what books he's read this year that he'd recommend? He's my best source for good stuff :) Or, if he had to make one book compulsory reading for everyone, which would it be?

========== I really liked Chris Hedges new book Death of the Liberal Class. I also liked Matt Taibbi’s last book Griftopia. Those are two new ones I read recently. I am now reading First Kill Your Family: Child Soldiers of Uganda and the Lord's Resistance Army by Peter Eichstaedt. Last year in Uganda, I met some of the kids who were abducted by this group, very sad. I think a book Americans should read is Naomi Klein’s book The Shock Doctrine.



9. How he got involved with Drop In the Bucket

====== They asked me to speak at one of their fundraisers. I checked them out, got to know them and have been working with them ever since. I think they are an exceptional bunch and I have seen them in the field. They are doing the real work and changing the lives of the people who they drill the wells for.


Source: My Email