h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

"Ooh, that'll be controversial..."

I thought when I saw this flagged up the Queen's Birthday honours list the other day.

...and surprise surprise there's been much tearing out of hair, flag burning and effigy burning going down...

So what on earth were they thinking of?
Deliberated diplomatic ploy?
Just plain stupidity?
Or does he thoroughly deserve a knighthood and hang the consequences of obviously further stoking up the ante in an already inflamed part of the world?

Why does my misspelt title remind me of Monty Python...

Just been reading up on it.
Yep, it's bound to cause grief, but hey every country rewards folks that other countries find obnoxious.

As for the Pakistan reaction (and Iran's, what a surprise. Ooh, is that a bandwagon?) it's to be expected. You do what we want, we do what we want, everyone's happy. Stuff 'em. Just another chance to win kudos with the home crowd and have a go at 'the West'.

Not a particularly clever move by us, but now it is done it would be even less clever to rescind it. Although if the Saudi's get in on the act I can see if being quietly shelved and done some other time, on the quiet.

Yes, but obnoxious is not really the word for how much they collectively seem to hate the man.
I just think it is stupendously stupid timing if nothing else.
...and frankly I'm a little suspicious of the motive.
Our government and diplomats can't surely be stupid enough not to realise the furore this would create at a time when surely don't want any more motivation for anti-western groups in afghanistan/iran/iraq? For our own troops protection if nothing else.
Or can they?

However much one might depise the fatwa declared on Rushdie, and however much we might despise such values in islamic doctrine, we *do* have to live alongside the world's billion or so muslims and I would imagine this move is not really approved of in even moderate islamic circles.

All in all, I think at best it's gross stupidity or at worst some strange hawkish agenda aimed at stirring up even higher levels of hatred than presently exist (if that is possible).

You are right that it would be more stupid to withdraw it of course. Stable doors, horses and all that...

yep, but they can;lt back out now. If you make a public stand and then back down you're going to lose face in the world, and we've certainly lost more than enough of that over the last 5 years.

simulpost

Salman Rushdie is Honorary Professor in the Humanities at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He was made Distinguished Fellow in Literature at the University of East Anglia in 1995. He was awarded the Austrian State Prize for European Literature in 1993 and the Aristeion Literary Prize in 1996, and has received eight honorary doctorates. He was elected to the Board of American PEN in 2002.

1988 Booker Prize for Fiction (shortlist) The Satanic Verses


1988 Whitbread Novel Award The Satanic Verses


1989 German Author of the Year The Satanic Verses


1992 Kurt Tucholsky Prize (Sweden)


1992 Writers' Guild Award (Best Children's Book) Haroun and the Sea of Stories


1993 Austrian State Prize for European Literature


1993 Booker of Bookers (special award made to celebrate 25 years of the Booker Prize for Fiction) Midnight's Children


1993 Prix Colette (Switzerland)


1995 Booker Prize for Fiction (shortlist) The Moor's Last Sigh


1995 British Book Awards Author of the Year The Moor's Last Sigh


1995 Whitbread Novel Award The Moor's Last Sigh


1996 Aristeion Literary Prize


1997 Mantova Literary Prize (Italy)


1998 Budapest Grand Prize for Literature (Hungary)


1999 Commandeur de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (France)


1999 Freedom of the City, Mexico City (Mexico)


2005 Whitbread Novel Award (shortlist) Shalimar The Clown


2006 Commonwealth Writers Prize (Eurasia Region, Best Book) (shortlist) Shalimar The Clown


2007 International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award (shortlist) Shalimar The Clown


2007 Man Booker International Prize (shortlist)

http://www.contemporarywriters.com/authors/?p=auth87


All these awards and honours. He seems to be a very well respected author and I believe one of his books is on the school curriculum. Given some of the non-entities on the honours list, who are we to say he shouldn't receive a knighthood?

Or should we send the provisional honours list to every Govt in the world first to see if it's ok?

Personally, I think he's an overbearing, pompous twit.

ah, so that's why the Queen likes him...

But he didn't get anything between 1999 and 2005!

Couldn't find him

with the current mood I can see him having to disappear again.

Unless of course the next fatwa is for queenieclogs for knighting him.

I like the freedom of the city one - "you can wander around Mexico City as much as you like Salman - just wear this fake wig and sunglasses"



sprout

A fake wig? Does this mean real hair?

Oh I'm not saying he *shouldn't* receive one and I don't doubt there are less deserving cases that do have one. But realpolitik would suggest it's not a good diplomatic move.

This doesn't come under the 'ooh look we never expected all *this*' banner does it?
So I don't think consulting with the Iranian embassy would have been required to spot the trouble this might cause.

It's almost a joke:
Q. What's the best way to insult the Muslim world.
A. Knight Salman Rushdie.

Of course, there are possilby better ways. a) Invade an islamic state (tick) (b) Pillory Mohammed in some way such as draw him with a bomb for a turban (tick).
Maybe we're just going down the list

I can picture the feature on Have I Got News for you already.

Or rather...

>Oh I'm not saying he *shouldn't* receive one and I don't doubt there are less deserving cases that do have one. But realpolitik would suggest it's not a good diplomatic move...<<

at this point in time.

"A fake wig? Does this mean real hair?"

I think sprout was referring to a mirkin!

What is a mirkin

Still, it is not very civilised to go and threaten people of death because they drew silly cartoons or knighted a controversial author. That I find even more offensive.

Besides, Salman Rushdie - pardon, Sir Salman Rushdie - is a knight in Great Britain now, not Pakistan or Iran. What should they care? It doesn't mean that he has any nobility in their own country, nor would the Queen insist that they call him Sir and treat him with deference if he went there (well, I don't think she would).

a merkin is a pubic wig.
It has also been used as slang for 'american', usually jocularly, but it isn't appreciated in my experience, so don't do it. (and I only say that as the sound is similar enough for people to come up with that idea on their own!).

No it's not very civilised to do such things and if you ask me, possibly there should be more of it until they learn to get a thicker collective skin.

However, just because we can upset them with such things it doesn't mean we should. Especially if the outcome is even more suicide bombers, insurgents in Iraq and weapons for them flowing from 'outraged' countries (whether officially sanctioned or not).
It's stupid to attract such stuff when it is simply avoided.