Tag Archives: Big corporations

Romance, Science Fiction, Short story/novella

Augustin, KS: Collateral Damage (2013)

2014-05-26 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

Collateral Damage is an erotic space opera short-story with little emphasis on the realities of space and more on the story between the two characters Meyal and Waryd. The only realistic bit about the Science Fiction lies in the state of the Earth. So, your reason for getting this story would have to be to see what develops between Meyal and Waryd and the story of how big corporations might treat their employees.

Do I believe a large corporation might kill its employee to get out of financial obligations? Hell, yes!!! If there is one thing I have come to realize, it is that the leadership of big corporations will sometimes be so concerned with the financial status of their shareholders and possible deniability that the sky is the limit when it comes to potential nefarious deeds.

Meyal and Waryd both seem like people who want to take care of their families and earn a bunch of money in the doing. Not being supposed to know about the other person and definitely not being allowed to communicate with each other probably only adds spice to their romantic relationship.

The ending of the story leaves me understanding that there is more to come in the future. According to Augustin’s web-site, Collateral Damage could be said to be the origin story of her other work. Collateral Damage was a pretty good story.

Reviews:

Collateral Damage

ISBN: 978-0-9873174-3-8
ASIN: B00B0NOYGW

Animals, Reblogged

Dolphins are victims of Australia’s most environmentally controversial project at Gladstone

Link 2013-02-18 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

Flipper is in trouble yet again. Will their rights be able to survive this time? Unlikely, when it is big corporations against environment. Once again it seems corruption is rearing its ugly head. I wonder if humans are genetically unable to plan for long-term consequences.

Craig Hill Media and Consulting

Australia’s most environmentally controversial project, the $33 billion expansion of Gladstone port in Queensland, is under investigation after being accused of breaching strict federal government audit conditions on harbour dredging and dumping of spoils in a World Heritage area.

Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke confirmed a review was under way into whether the project had breached its conditions by failing to get an independent assessment of its work.

The Gladstone port expansion has been plagued by controversy since the discovery of widespread fish disease in the harbour in 2011, which has been blamed both on record floods and the impact of dredging.

Allegations of audit failure, raised by environmental group Australians for Animals, came as long-term monitoring of humpback dolphins in Gladstone Harbour showed a population reduction of 40 per cent since dredging began. Researcher Daniele Cagnazzi said he would undertake a new survey in April to establish whether…

View original post 745 more words

Adventure, Humour, Science Fiction

Pratchett, Terry: Strata (1981)

2012-08-17 humanitysdarkerside Leave a comment

Cover by Josh Kirby

Kin Karad works for the Company. Her job is to oversee the creation of planets. Some of the workers like to play jokes on future inhabitants. The one she has discovered this time is a plesiosaur in the wrong stratum holding a placard reading “End Nuclear Testing Now”. While she is impressed with the inventiveness of the culprit, Kin is getting tired of her life. It has been a long one.

Then she meets a mysterious person who invites her on a journey. Kin Karad decides to go and when she gets to the spaceship she discovers that she is alone, but will be picking up two companions – a kung called Marco Farfarer, and Silver the Shandi. They are told that they will be going to a flat world.

The spaceship takes off and off they go on their adventure.

Strata precedes Pratchett’s Discworld series, but we clearly see how the foundations are laid for the later series. Kin Karad and her fellow explorers are fun characters with clearly defined personalities. Plays on words and concepts are obvious from the first pages. Pratchett was a pretty good author even back in his early days.