I’ve written before about the Canadian filmmaker who was working on a way to replace his prosthetic eye with a miniature video camera. He’s now completed a prototype and now his next goal is to wirelessly transmit the video to the Internet. I wonder if he’ll broadcast everything he sees; it could create some awkward moments for his spouse or significant other. I once read a science fiction story in which people lived hundreds of years and everyone had a little robotic insect hovering nearby to record every moment of their lives as a kind of memory aid. The author probably didn’t anticipate that such recording systems would eventually be built right into us. I’m already dreading the reality shows that will emerge with this technology.

While most people only encounter debtors’ prisons in 19th century Victorian novels, the Star Tribune is running a disquieting report on people getting arrested for failing to pay court-ordered judgments that arise out of outstanding debts owed to creditors. Creditors and their collection agencies are becoming more aggressive in pursuing debtors, going so far as to seek arrest warrants for those who don’t pay court-ordered judgments. Those who are arrested usually spend less than a day in jail, but the costs of the arrest can sometimes outweigh the actual amount of the debt.

I sympathize with the notion that people should be held responsible for their debts, but it’s troubling to see law enforcement officers used this way for the benefit of private creditors. When I do occasional pro bono work for people in debt, I often get asked if they will get sent to jail if they don’t pay a certain creditor. Most of my clients are on public benefits and protected from garnishment, so that’s unlikely, but I also tell them to inform me immediately if they receive court papers. Responding directly to a court summons is always preferable to ignoring it, but most people in financial trouble don’t have an attorney to whom they can turn for advice.

Redline Science Fiction, an on-line science fiction magazine, is inviting story submissions for a contest called Towards an Accessible Future. The concept behind the contest is to encourage stories that portray disability ” as a simple fact, not as something to be overcome or something to explain why a character is evil.” The winning story will appear in the September issue and the author will receive a $300 prize. The deadline is August 15th.

It’s an interesting idea, but I’m not sure what the contest sponsors hope to prove. There’s no reason why good science fiction can’t be written featuring characters with disabilities. But it should be in the service of a good story. Everything that happens within a story is “a simple fact,” whether it’s the character’s disability or a spaceship crashing into the desert. This contest seems to undermine its own ideal by requiring that disability be portrayed in a certain light. Why can’t I write about a disabled character who’s a misanthropic, philandering badass with a touch of narcissism? As long as the story is good and the characters believable, does it matter?

Hey, I think I have an idea.

Thanks to io9 for the link.

I was catching up on back episodes of Stargate Universe last night (another show that is quickly climbing my must-see list) and one of them featured a character with a disability. Sorta. The plot involves a scientist with quadriplegia who trades bodies with a woman who is stranded on a spaceship in a completely different galaxy because the scientist’s expertise is needed to repair the ship. The casting call for this episode caused a bit of controversy at the time and I was rather dismissive of the whole idea. But after viewing the final cut, I can’t find much to criticize. Sure, the conceit of swapping bodies has always been one of science fiction’s hokiest tropes, but the writers seem to have given some thought on what it would be like to adapt to their temporary host bodies. The scientist relishes her physical ability, but she isn’t overcome with self-pity when the time comes to return to her own body. And the woman from the ship pays a visit to her partner on Earth, who gets a lesson in accommodating disability as part of a relationship.

The scientist also tries to initiate a sexual encounter while in her temporary body (referring to it as a “once-in-a-lifetime chance”), but she gets turned down. I can’t really fault the writers for throwing this in. If I’m honest with myself, I’d probably try the same thing. But the episode doesn’t descend into cheap wish fulfillment, which might be a response to the criticism levied at the show last year. I wouldn’t want to see this as a recurring plot thread, but it was a solid effort at treating disability with a matter-of-factness that isn’t often seen in television.

For your Friday evening viewing pleasure, here’s the video for Broken Bells’ “Ghost Inside.” It’s got spaceships, an exotic alien world, and the gorgeous Christina Hendricks (Mad Men) as a cash-deprived android determined to take a vacation. I want to see the feature-length version of this video, which undoubtedly has a pivotal scene in which Ms. Hendricks battles alien bounty hunters who ambush her just as she’s emerging from the shower. And if such a feature doesn’t exist, I’m damn well writing it myself.

Thanks to Joe for the link.