RD fic: "Machine in the Ghost" 4/8 (R)

“Machine in the Ghost”
Rated: R for language, slashy sexytimes, talk of torture
Chars: Lister/Rimmer, Kochanski, Cat, Kryten, Hol, original characters
Disclaimer: Property of Grant Naylor. I don't get to keep these characters, I just get to take them home for the night on occasion.
Summary: The crew gets more than they bargain for when they find a derelict in deep space. Can be read as a standalone, or as the continuation of Urgent, which itself juts out of a short earlier series I wrote. (In other words, do what you want, LOL.)
Spoilers: The entire TV series, some borrowed elements from the novels.
A/N: This fic begins back here.


( Lister was on edge and not in the mood to trade barbs. Rimmer wondered if he should instigate conversation a few times, just to take Lister’s mind off the next substance he was likely to be bathed in. )

here's your sign

Years ago, Bill Engvall made his name with a song titled "Here's Your Sign." The sign was "Stupid" (or, according to the updated Internet spelling, "STOOpid").

Well, anyone standing next to this dude definitely needs an "I'm With STOOpid" t-shirt. Does he have the right to burn books in this country? Yes. Do I have the right to burn the American flag? You bet your sweet ass I do. However, to pretend there isn't a difference is also STOOpid. As an American citizen, if I burn my own flag in protest of something I don't agree with in my country, I'm only offending fellow Americans. They might have choice words for me, but the same laws govern me and them, keeping us from waging war or killing each other over it. However, it is very well known 'round the world that the Koran is not the book of this country's dominant religion - moreover, this is very well known in parts of the world where the Koran IS the dominant religious text. Parts of the world that do not fall under our system of law. Parts of the world that might not have any compunction about doing something unpleasant about it.

You think they wouldn't? Sixty-five years ago, the world didn't believe the United States government would send its military to invade a nation on no evidence of them committing illegal activity in our country or in allied countries, too. Things can change.

So, burn that Koran. Just don't forget your sign.