Hogfather Quote

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BryanP

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While not specifically firearms related, the sword translates to gun quite nicely.

I was recently re-reading Terry Pratchett's novel Hogfather. I then picked up the DVD of the movie , which is based on the novel. It's a fantasy series and the Hogfather is their analogue of Santa Claus/Father Christmas. Death has to fill in for him and that's a good portion of the plot. Anyway, he's doing his best to do the Mall Santa bit and this exchange really made me laugh. He gives this little girl a big, shiny and quite sharp sword. And ...

The mother took a deep breath.

"You can't give her that!" she screamed. "It's not safe!"

IT'S A SWORD, said the Hogfather, IT'S NOT MEANT TO BE SAFE.

"She's a child!" shouted Crumley.

IT'S EDUCATIONAL.

"What if she cuts herself?"

THAT WILL BE AN IMPORTANT LESSON.
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I was pleased to see that in the movie they used Pratchett's dialogue without changing it.
 
And every good officer of the Watch wants something nice from Stronginthearm on Hogswatch's morning...

Death is probably my favorite Pratchett character, with the possible exception of Granny Weatherwax.
 
to start with at least trying to keep this somewhat on topic...

Personally I rather liked how Prattchet has seemed to have had his veiws evolve, between the time of Men At Arms (at first glance=anti-gun, but more anti- corrupting influence of the power of life and death, if that make sense) and Night Watch (where Sam vimes calls weapon bans an utter stupidity, b/c the criminals, by definition don't follow the laws, and just see such bans as making THEIR jobs safer and easier.)


As for Hogfather, I rather liked Billious (the, Oh-god! of hangovers). esp when the the wizards reverse his perpetual "primal hangover" and (in a part disapointingly NOT in the movie) Bibulous (the god of wine) gets what amounts to "all the hangovers he should have by rights gotten over the Millenia".
 
I'm not sure whether it was in one of his books or him speaking in real life, but he said or wrote of a gun ban (fictional or real):

"It might have worked too, if there were enough coppers. Say, three per person."
 
I'm not sure whether it was in one of his books or him speaking in real life, but he said or wrote of a gun ban (fictional or real):

"It might have worked too, if there were enough coppers. Say, three per person."
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that's from Night Watch. it's part of Vime's internal dialog regarding the Actual results of the city's ban on citizens carrying weapons of any kind.
 
I find it interesting, when expressed in the most absurd and amusing of fiction, how the issues we deal with in real life are laid out in very simple to understand ways. Pratchett manages to work various things into his books, many of them with more clarity than possessed those who argue these things in circles of power.
 
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