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== Edit Warring == == Movie adaptations lacking ==


Hi folks, I've just noticed this article doesn't talk about the movie adaptations of Heinlein's writings. I don't know how many there are, but I know Predestination (2014) and Starship Troopers (1997) are of the lot. ] (]) 20:11, 2 February 2022 (UTC)
Here are some things Misplaced Pages has to say about Edit Warring and reverts:
:Destination Moon was the first one, as I recall. Heinlein has written about his experience as a technical consultant with that one. ] (]) 03:36, 4 March 2022 (UTC)
:Heinlein also shares screenwriting credits for Project Moonbase.
:I've added these two to the new Movies section; are there other films for which Heinlein made direct contributions? The adaptations of his written works to film are in the separate Heinlein bibliography article. The new section links to the bibliography article, where I've added the missing IMDb links. ] (]) 22:03, 7 March 2022 (UTC)


== Military-controlled government ==
''If reverting other editors' changes, be sure to indicate your reasons (unless the reason is obvious, as in the case of vandalism reversion). This can be done in the edit summary and/or talk page. Reverting without giving good reasons is more likely to be perceived as combative. Remember that reverting "throws away" the work done by the other editor; '''consider working to improve on the other editor's text, or discussing it with them, rather than simply undoing their changes.'''''


The statement "Space Cadet describes a future scenario where a military-controlled global government enforces world peace." seems inaccurate. There is no suggestion that the government is controlled by the military (the Space Patrol). The government is never mentioned. The only accurate statement is that the Space Patrol has a duty, presumably to a government but that is only an inference, to enforce peace. I think this statement should be changed. ] (]) 21:30, 13 August 2022 (UTC)
and...
:The for that para says {{tq|"In his 1949 novel Space Cadet, Heinlein depicts a future where peace is preserved through a global government controlled by the military."}}. ] ] 21:47, 13 August 2022 (UTC)
::Zaslav is right, and the National Review article is wrong.-Ben Crowell <!-- Template:Unsigned IP --><small class="autosigned">—&nbsp;Preceding ] comment added by ] (]) 20:53, 3 April 2023 (UTC)</small> <!--Autosigned by SineBot-->
:::What source is Zaslav citing when making their assertion? —''']''' (]) 21:00, 3 April 2023 (UTC)
::::His own reading comprehension, obviously. ] (]) 10:52, 4 May 2023 (UTC)
:::::So you agree that the description should not be changed, then, since a change would rely on ]? —''']''' (]) 11:52, 4 May 2023 (UTC)
::::::The source is dubious and as he pointed out, obviously wrong. ] (]) 08:51, 9 May 2023 (UTC)
:::::::Again, what '']'' has presented an analysis of the novel counter to ''National Review''{{'}}s? —''']''' (]) 11:29, 9 May 2023 (UTC)


== "Diane Parkin-Speer suggests that Heinlein's intent seems more to provoke the reader and to question sexual norms than to promote any particular sexual agenda" ==
''Being reverted can feel a bit like a slap in the face—"I worked hard on those edits, and someone just rolled it all back". However, sometimes a revert is the best response to a less-than-great edit, so we can't just stop reverting. What's important is to let people know why you reverted. This helps the reverted person because they can remake their edit while fixing whatever problem it is that you've identified.''


This is a topic worth expounding on - I have no source but it seems that on a wide range of topics, not just sexual mores, RAH's incessant pontification via his protagonists could at least equally well be viewed as provocation (or perhaps just making the piece interesting and lively enough to sell) as it could be taken as a political act per se. The point seems germane as various groups like to claim RAH as their ideological champion. ] (]) 09:08, 9 May 2023 (UTC)
''Explaining reverts also helps other people. For example, it lets people know whether they need to even view the reverted version (in the case of, e.g., "rv page blanking"). Because of the lack of paralanguage online, if you don't explain things clearly people will probably assume all kinds of nasty things, and that's how edit wars get started.''


== Big Three -Vandalism ==
''If your reasons for reverting are too complex to explain in the edit summary, drop a note on the Talk page.''' A nice thing to do is to drop the note on the Talk page first, and then revert (referencing the talk page in your edit summary), rather than the other way round.''' Sometimes the other person will agree with you and revert for you before you have a chance.''


The Big Three are, according to Brian W. Aldiss in Billion Year Spree, Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke and Ray Bradbury. Robert A. Heinlein never was one of them, this claim is "alternative facts" and this vandalism doesn't seem to be recent. Please correct.] (]) 15:36, 19 June 2023 (UTC)
and...
:'''' identifies the "big three" as Asimov, Clarke, and Heinlein, as does '''', '''', and '''' (which notes that van Vogt was replaced as one of the "big three" as his popularity waned and Clarke's grew). ]&nbsp;] 15:56, 19 June 2023 (UTC)
:See also: ] and ]) ]&nbsp;] 15:59, 19 June 2023 (UTC)
:I finally got hold of a copy of ''Billion Year Spree''. I cannot find the phrase "big three" anywhere in the book. I looked up each mention of Bradbury in the book, and it is never paired with Asimov and Clarke in any meaningful way. Do you have a page number for your reference? ]&nbsp;] 19:48, 27 July 2023 (UTC)
Obviously, there was no "big three". There were, of course, some science-fiction writers who were better known, more highly esteemed by critics or general audiences, or more commercially successful than others. I began reading science-fiction in the late sixties, and my impression then was that the three most important and best-known living science-fiction writers were Clarke, Asimov, and Bradbury. This valuation may have been colored partly by seeing Bradbury more often on television and personally much prefering Bradbury to Heinlein; I'm not sure. I ranked Heinlein fourth in stature, but I liked Fred Hoyle, whom I ranked fifth in stature, much more. Around the time I turned thirteen I decided that the only science-fiction writer who ever really mattered was H.G. Wells. A decade and a half later I added Stanislaw Lem. A few worthy one-works forays into the field by various other writers aside, I've never since wavered. ] (]) 12:48, 6 June 2024 (UTC)


==Original research and opinion in article==
''But if you feel that an edit should not stand yet can't point to any specific reason, for heavens sake, stop and think before you act. (never make any edit without a reason!)''
While generally a good article, with lots of details, the article does seem to include a lot of unsourced opinions about Heinlein's inspirations and evaluations of his work. All opinions need to be attributed to reliable sources (random fan websites do not count). I'm going to start cleaning it up. If you feel stronly about any of it, let's discuss it here. ] (]) 13:29, 18 April 2024 (UTC)

''In general:''

''1.Stop. Think.''
''2.Try to edit the page to better incorporate the edit in question''
''3.If you really can't find a way to incorporate the edit, revert it''
''4.Explain in detail what you tried, and why it didn't work. Even if the reason seems obvious to you, it will not always be obvious to someone else.''


Imagine the trouble that would have saved - had that been followed. I know I would have felt better.

] (]) 13:13, 28 August 2010 (UTC)

Unfortunately Bill Patterson has passed but I'm honoured he responded to this discussion. I would prefer we like Gifford stick to the actual text of the book rather than claims of supra-text 'context' but I think the best solution is to refer and source the conflicting viewpoints in the entry itself and allow the reader to decide from the sources rather than decide for them as the current entry does. ] (]) 08:16, 9 April 2020 (UTC)

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Cheers.—] <span style="color:green;font-family:Rockwell">(])</span> 02:28, 30 December 2017 (UTC)

I'd prefer we remove the editorializing on either Franklin or Panshin. I think both books are excellent but an article on Heinlein is not the place to insert our personal opinions on their worth. ] (]) 07:44, 9 April 2020 (UTC)

Better to remove all editorializing of this sort from the article about either Franklin or Panshin's books. ] (]) 08:19, 9 April 2020 (UTC)

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The following Wikimedia Commons file used on this page or its Wikidata item has been nominated for deletion:
* ]<!-- COMMONSBOT: discussion | 2020-12-06T05:26:40.941886 | Libertarianism in the United States Collage 2.jpg -->
Participate in the deletion discussion at the ]. —] (]) 05:26, 6 December 2020 (UTC)

== Sayings of Heinlein - section here or list article ? ==


There are a number of fairly famous said by characters in his stories. Would it be better to have a mention here of that with just the more famous ones, or should it be a list article and go into the less common ones ?

I'm thinking of things like
* There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.
* Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.
* Never attempt to teach a pig to sing; it wastes your time and annoys the pig.
* There are no dangerous weapons; there are only dangerous men.
* No project is ever completed on time or within budget.
* Writing is not necessarily something to be ashamed of, but do it in private and wash your hands afterwards.
* Ignorance is curable, stupid is forever.

Cheers ] (]) 13:01, 18 March 2021 (UTC)

:I think you want ]. --] <sup>]</sup> 13:04, 18 March 2021 (UTC)

== "A2 negative" ==

Is there an RS for Heinlein's blood being A2-negative? In a quick search, I could find ''only'' fringe libertarian blogs, and occasional science fiction bios copied from those or Misplaced Pages. Does anyone have an RS, even a good self-source, on this? - ] (]) 14:44, 11 October 2021 (UTC)
:I've requested ''Robert A. Heinlein : in dialogue with his century. Volume 2, 1948-1988'' from the library, which should cover it. ]&nbsp;] 15:29, 11 October 2021 (UTC)
:Got the book. I found this: {{tq|Since Robert had an uncommon blood type (universal recipient—Ginny had the even rarer universal donor type), it was almost certain that his life had been saved by the efforts of the National Rare Blood Club he had come across while researching ''I Will Fear No Evil''.}} Web search says universal recipient is AB positive. I'll have to read the whole thing to see if there are any other mentions. ]&nbsp;] 22:53, 16 October 2021 (UTC)
:A 1977 says his blood type is A-negative. ]&nbsp;] 17:00, 18 October 2021 (UTC)
::None of these types is rare. ] (]) 13:26, 25 December 2021 (UTC)

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Movie adaptations lacking

Hi folks, I've just noticed this article doesn't talk about the movie adaptations of Heinlein's writings. I don't know how many there are, but I know Predestination (2014) and Starship Troopers (1997) are of the lot. MonsieurD (talk) 20:11, 2 February 2022 (UTC)

Destination Moon was the first one, as I recall. Heinlein has written about his experience as a technical consultant with that one. sbelknap (talk) 03:36, 4 March 2022 (UTC)
Heinlein also shares screenwriting credits for Project Moonbase.
I've added these two to the new Movies section; are there other films for which Heinlein made direct contributions? The adaptations of his written works to film are in the separate Heinlein bibliography article. The new section links to the bibliography article, where I've added the missing IMDb links. sbelknap (talk) 22:03, 7 March 2022 (UTC)

Military-controlled government

The statement "Space Cadet describes a future scenario where a military-controlled global government enforces world peace." seems inaccurate. There is no suggestion that the government is controlled by the military (the Space Patrol). The government is never mentioned. The only accurate statement is that the Space Patrol has a duty, presumably to a government but that is only an inference, to enforce peace. I think this statement should be changed. Zaslav (talk) 21:30, 13 August 2022 (UTC)

The source for that para says "In his 1949 novel Space Cadet, Heinlein depicts a future where peace is preserved through a global government controlled by the military.". Schazjmd (talk) 21:47, 13 August 2022 (UTC)
Zaslav is right, and the National Review article is wrong.-Ben Crowell — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2603:8000:8900:6E00:79C8:DB5F:3DBF:D95E (talk) 20:53, 3 April 2023 (UTC)
What source is Zaslav citing when making their assertion? —C.Fred (talk) 21:00, 3 April 2023 (UTC)
His own reading comprehension, obviously. 2600:1700:DA90:2AB0:CC40:5A96:6FF0:D992 (talk) 10:52, 4 May 2023 (UTC)
So you agree that the description should not be changed, then, since a change would rely on original research? —C.Fred (talk) 11:52, 4 May 2023 (UTC)
The source is dubious and as he pointed out, obviously wrong. 2A01:CB0C:CD:D800:1508:FC82:66CC:D167 (talk) 08:51, 9 May 2023 (UTC)
Again, what secondary source has presented an analysis of the novel counter to National Review's? —C.Fred (talk) 11:29, 9 May 2023 (UTC)

"Diane Parkin-Speer suggests that Heinlein's intent seems more to provoke the reader and to question sexual norms than to promote any particular sexual agenda"

This is a topic worth expounding on - I have no source but it seems that on a wide range of topics, not just sexual mores, RAH's incessant pontification via his protagonists could at least equally well be viewed as provocation (or perhaps just making the piece interesting and lively enough to sell) as it could be taken as a political act per se. The point seems germane as various groups like to claim RAH as their ideological champion. 2A01:CB0C:CD:D800:1508:FC82:66CC:D167 (talk) 09:08, 9 May 2023 (UTC)

Big Three -Vandalism

The Big Three are, according to Brian W. Aldiss in Billion Year Spree, Isaac Asimov, Arthur C. Clarke and Ray Bradbury. Robert A. Heinlein never was one of them, this claim is "alternative facts" and this vandalism doesn't seem to be recent. Please correct.2001:7E8:C29C:2400:983E:960F:67FC:EB6 (talk) 15:36, 19 June 2023 (UTC)

The Big Book of Science Fiction identifies the "big three" as Asimov, Clarke, and Heinlein, as does The Rise and Fall of American Science Fiction, from the 1920s to the 1960s, Science Fiction Literature Through History: An Encyclopedia, and Fifty Key Figures in Science Fiction (which notes that van Vogt was replaced as one of the "big three" as his popularity waned and Clarke's grew). Schazjmd (talk) 15:56, 19 June 2023 (UTC)
See also: Talk:Arthur C. Clarke#Big_Three_-Vandalism and Talk:Isaac Asimov#Big_Three_-Vandalism) Schazjmd (talk) 15:59, 19 June 2023 (UTC)
I finally got hold of a copy of Billion Year Spree. I cannot find the phrase "big three" anywhere in the book. I looked up each mention of Bradbury in the book, and it is never paired with Asimov and Clarke in any meaningful way. Do you have a page number for your reference? Schazjmd (talk) 19:48, 27 July 2023 (UTC)

Obviously, there was no "big three". There were, of course, some science-fiction writers who were better known, more highly esteemed by critics or general audiences, or more commercially successful than others. I began reading science-fiction in the late sixties, and my impression then was that the three most important and best-known living science-fiction writers were Clarke, Asimov, and Bradbury. This valuation may have been colored partly by seeing Bradbury more often on television and personally much prefering Bradbury to Heinlein; I'm not sure. I ranked Heinlein fourth in stature, but I liked Fred Hoyle, whom I ranked fifth in stature, much more. Around the time I turned thirteen I decided that the only science-fiction writer who ever really mattered was H.G. Wells. A decade and a half later I added Stanislaw Lem. A few worthy one-works forays into the field by various other writers aside, I've never since wavered. TheScotch (talk) 12:48, 6 June 2024 (UTC)

Original research and opinion in article

While generally a good article, with lots of details, the article does seem to include a lot of unsourced opinions about Heinlein's inspirations and evaluations of his work. All opinions need to be attributed to reliable sources (random fan websites do not count). I'm going to start cleaning it up. If you feel stronly about any of it, let's discuss it here. Ashmoo (talk) 13:29, 18 April 2024 (UTC)

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