WHAT WOULD JOHN ROURKE DO?

John Thomas Rourke, the SURVIVALIST, sits on a boulder outside the Retreat; a thin cigar hangs loosely between his fingers.  The wind is blowing but with so many objects surrounding him, it’s hard to tell exactly from which direction it originates.  It flows around the rocks and through the canopy of trees above and around him, whispering, and then loudly gusting to a roar.

            Although the sky is filled with a scattering of clouds, Rourke can still make out the sun’s slow descent.  The evening chill will soon follow.  Alone, he contemplates the state of the world. The days of savage wild men and cannibals may be long gone for the most part but other evils still remain. The taste for power has never been stronger.  Some take and hold power through brute strength, some through financial wealth, and some through control of the media. 

            Safe homes are filled with women and children hiding from abusive family members who use their power to control their lives.  They have no money of their own, may not speak the local language, and are kept isolated from the community.  They live in fear of physical abuse but are not even aware of the psychological damage done to them.  For some, the cycle continues.  For some, they are able to break away and find help.  Rourke thinks of Natalia and of her uncle’s intercession in her abusive marriage. He wonders if good people still exist.

            Money is power.  It buys material things that keep families afloat.  It buys influence.  Money buys people, their hearts and souls.  Money is a drug that some people can never get enough of.  Money buys political support and influential jobs.  Money buys love.

            He wonders why is there such diversity among reports of news.  Shouldn’t they all be telling us the facts instead of swaying the story to fit in with a particular agenda by adding or subtracting to the original, or with the insertion of additional comments? Why do you only hear good things about certain persons or companies on particular news outlets whereas another venue may have an entirely different point of view?  It’s noticeable particularly when it concerns politicians.

            Talking screens have taken control over common sense. People we don’t really know tell us how to dress, what to eat, and what type of bathroom tissue to use.  The screens applaud the virtues of some and attempt to destroy those of others.  The masses stare at the screens and never see what is right in front of them.  The real world is in one dimension, the screen draws them into another, less complicated one.

            People hurt other people with no thought of the consequences.  They hurt with their words, their fists, their guns, or their vehicles.  They hurt people they don’t even know just to satisfy their anger or inability to cope with racial, religious, and philosophical differences.

            After all the world has been through, why do we still have wars?  In the end, no one really wins except the ones who supply the weapons.  The people who start them don’t get bloody.  They don’t even get dirty.  The soldiers get hurt and die.  The medical personnel get hurt and die.  The war correspondents get hurt and die.  The women and children get hurt and die.  Homes, schools, and hospitals get destroyed.  Civilizations crumble. For what?

            Rourke reminds himself that there are still good people in the world who love their country and respect law and order.  These people are trying to raise their children to have questioning minds and value the rights of all, not just those who hang on the farthest edges of the left and right.  Much is expected from these people to clear the excrement from the arena and do battle to save humanity from itself.         

            The sun has set and the temperature is dropping.  A nighttime hush has settled in and the creatures nearby have found their way back to the cave, their nest, or their burrow.  Rourke pulls out his battered Zippo from his jeans and lights his cigar.  He inhales and watches the smoke curl up into the air, contemplating the state of the world and what a mess it’s in.  Can life go on like this, he thinks?  Have we finally screwed up things beyond compare?  He stands up, stretches, and heads back inside, already thinking up ways to put things back in order. He won’t give up and neither should we.

Sharon

What is a Survivalist?

Recently, a conversation came up concerning groups of people waiting outside a sporting goods store to buy ammunition, arriving before the store was even open for business.  The person had the impression that these “Survivalists” wasted so much of their lives waiting for the once-in-a-lifetime, if ever, chance to defend themselves against their perception of the “bad guys.”  Sure, there’s plenty of bad guys out there to watch out for and, we still want to defend ourselves against them, but isn’t there more to survival than just physical confrontation?  

A Survivalist needs to do whatever it takes to protect their family.  Occasionally that may translate to keeping everyone safe from physical harm. It means being aware of your surroundings in order to take action in case of any potential dilemma.   On a day-to-day, more boring level, it may mean working hard to keep a roof over their heads and food on the table.  It means making sure children get educated in both average school subjects and practical skills.  

Survivalists teach their children that life is not always fair.  They teach that there are no set rules everyone is willing to follow and, that they have to think and decide for themselves which way their moral compass points.  Children also have to learn that in order to survive in this world the phrase “my way or the highway” will only lead to trouble down the road when working with others.  Sometimes, listening to additional suggestions and working toward a mutually agreeable compromise can lead to a better situation for all.  

Over the course of this last year, many people learned the hard way that being prepared is not such a bad thing after all.  Suddenly, having extra provisions on the pantry shelves and more than a day’s worth of toilet paper in the closet doesn’t make a person paranoid, nor does not waiting until the last dose to reorder medication.  Having an extra blanket or two along with some water and snacks in the family vehicle doesn’t seem so far-fetched in case of being stranded during a storm any more than a packed bug-out bag at the ready in case your home is no longer safe to stay in and evacuation is a must.  

It's been quite a year, between the Pandemic, wildfires, blizzards, and flooding.  We don’t know what is going to happen next but I think there are a number of converts to the concept of Survivalism and that they are not all hairy guys wearing plaid shirts living in a cave, feasting on roadkill, and beer.   

As The Survivalist, John Rourke taught us many years ago, “It pays to plan ahead”. 

Sharon 

Turning Back Time

Some random thoughts

Cher said it best when she recorded If I Could Turn back Time. If, that two-letter word has been repeated many times this year.  IF we had known about the Pandemic sooner we could have been better prepared.  IF the leadership of all countries could have communicated with each other, regardless of politics and other differences, information could have been shared.  IF sane and responsible leadership had trickled down to include every city and town, no matter how small.  IF we had listened to our mother and washed our hands more often and learned it’s not good to cough in other people’s faces.

Let’s face reality.  The world was caught completely off-guard with this Pandemic and we all were clueless as to what to do.  With schools closed and social distancing, many of us have been able to slow down and think.  For some, that translates into new ways to support the family, catching up on home projects or maybe just spending more time with the kids. For others, it may be a time of self-evaluation with hopes of coming out of this situation a stronger, better person.

Then we have those who spend their time finding things to complain about.  Finding wrongs and attempting to fix them is an admirable cause but only it is in concurrence of acceptable and workable solutions. Dialogue and compromise must be part of the process.  Dialogue entails words and thoughts that are not shouted or accompanied by threats. No government on this planet is perfect. No law enforcement agency, judicial system, or health care system is perfect.  I can’t think of one person, living or dead that would or could fit that description.  Maybe if we tried to repair things instead of destroying them we’ all come out of this better.

If people generations before us had been more perfect, more socially conscious, more caring – you know, like we are today – the world would be a different place.  Unfortunately, we’re stuck with what we’ve got and we can’t just turn our backs on the past.  History is a little like an old brick house and changing or ignoring the past is equivalent to pulling the bricks out one by one.  Eventually, the structure will collapse and leave all those residing within homeless. Let’s try to settle our differences and keep our house intact.

Truth is, we all need a breather.  Let’s take a break from this virus, violence, inequality, and politics and go back in time when none of this existed.  Yeah, right.  When you find it, let us know!!!

Seriously, we can’t turn back time but we can try to make a better future.

In other news… Folks have been checking if there is another Survivalist book in the works.  As you know, starting with number thirty, they were a joint project of Bob Anderson and me.  When Bob passed away this January I just had to step away for a while and regroup.  I wasn’t ready to think about working on it without Bob.  He loved the series, had some crazy ideas to move the story forward, and was a superb wordsmith. Mostly he was a good friend and I will miss him.  I’m ready to move on now and after a few other projects are completed, Survivalist #37, Ride the Dragon, will be in the works.   The Rourke gang still has a lot of trouble to get themselves out of. I’ll keep you posted.

Sharon

The Perfect Hero?

Recently, someone commented that he wasn’t a big fan of THE SURVIVALIST series because John Rourke’s character was too perfect; he was too smart, too good in a fight, and well, just too…  I wonder if this person realized that this was an intentional character flaw that we gave Rourke.  Most writers tend to make their main characters, especially action heroes, good at what they do such as shooting, driving and, getting all the girls.  Our thoughts were that too much of a good thing could turn out badly.

Here you’ve got a guy who wants nothing more than to live life with his family and protect them from danger.  Unfortunately, he knows too much about potential disasters-both causes and effects- and spends way too much time away from his family pursuing money to buy stuff to fill up a fancy cave where he intends for them all to happily live for however long the situation deems it necessary.  Can you just picture the conversation when Rourke decides the pizza is about to hit the fan?  “Hey, honey, it’s time for us to leave our home and trek up into the mountains where I’ve got this retreat.  We can stay there for years!  Sorry, no cable but plenty of VHS tapes to watch.  No, the kids can’t bring a friend. Oh, did I mention that there’s a waterfall in the living room?  Wait until you see the new microwave I got you!”

Rourke just can’t win.  He has made himself an expert on just about everything from flying planes, outdoor survival skills, to weaponry.  He speaks Russian, is a doctor who can perform life-saving surgical techniques, and he is a published author.  He sounds like a walking encyclopedia!  The one thing he could never get a grip on was the technique involved in understanding and communicating with women.

He loves his wife, Sarah, but continues a platonic relationship with another woman who is equally skilled in his areas of expertise and is, of course, beautiful.  He further destroys their marriage when he allows the children to grow into adulthood without Sarah’s involvement.  While he was searching for her, Sarah had been forced into becoming a survivor, doing whatever necessary to keep her children safe, including killing bad guys. Rourke continues to see her as a person needing his protection.

Adding to the tension, Rourke invites this other woman, along with his new found friend, a nerdy guy that he picked up along the way, to stay and live with them in this rocky retreat for however long it takes for civilization to stagger back.  So there goes any chance of having a good loud argument/hissy-fit.  Now she’s expected to cook for a crowd!  Oh yeah, and then they’re all going to sleep together!  In this cave! For how long???

Rourke and Sarah never stop loving each other but nor can they live together.  They part company.  She falls in love and marries someone who understands her.  He continues to become involved in saving the world, one person at a time. Many, many years down the road, Rourke falls in love with another woman, Emma, a self-confident woman accustomed to taking charge.  Of course, the one time comes when Emma and the family really need him and he has gone AWOL during a mission, leaving them to straighten things out.  It seems like everyone can count on John Rourke, except his family.

Actually, Rourke may be the main character in The Survivalist but really, the series has and still relies on the other characters to show their growth and resilience. None of us are born with the knowledge necessary to survive life’s pitfalls but we learn, one upset to the next.  If we don’t learn, we don’t survive.

Yes, JTR is boring.  You pretty much know what he’s wearing each day.  His basic weapons tend to be the same except for some additions over the years.  His preference in alcohol and smokes never change.  He sees the world in black and white, right and wrong.  You are either with him or against him.  Yes, he is strong; he is self-confident, but every once and a while the facade cracks and we see a glimpse of who he really is. The Ubermensch is still just a mortal man.

Sharon

The Thin Line between Science Fiction and Science Fact

             A point was brought up that THE SURVIVALIST series has become too “science fiction” over the years.  I don’t know.  I’ll leave that up to the readers to decide but I will state my case as to why we let it happen.

            In 1876, Alexander Graham Bell makes the world's first long-distance telephone call, over a distance of about 6 miles.  With the device we carry with us, we can project our words into outer space, take studio-quality photographs, grocery shop, and play games.  Henry Ford started his auto business in 1903.  Many people might say he also was the inventor of highway congestion.  The Wright brothers are credited with the invention of the first working airplane that same year thus causing mass disturbance to our once peaceful skies.

            My dad was born in 1898.  At a very early age, he helped to support his family by propelling a horse-driven wagon through the streets of New York, making deliveries.  Sort of an early version of what would become UPS or FedEx.  Here is this little kid controlling a huge animal, pulling a dray wagon past peddlers who are pushing wooden carts loaded with produce while keeping a watchful eye out for the horse-drawn trolley carrying its passengers about town. It must have been an exciting place to live and to watch the world change so quickly.

            Eager to see more of the world, he rode the rails wherever they took him until he eventually settled down.  He found work, bought himself a Ford and eventually dated and married my mom.  They rented part of a two-flat apartment where she washed clothes in a large tub, using a washboard and hung everything outside to dry. They eventually got a telephone with a two-party-line, a black desk set with a chunky cord, which they used until the late 1950s.

            By the time I started working in downtown Chicago during the late 60s, I too rode a trolley each morning, although this trolley was powered by a cable line above the street that fed electricity to the vehicle via a pole that could swivel enough to allow the trolley some flexibility to maneuver.  Occasionally, the driver made a move that allowed the pole to disengage from its power source and passengers were stranded until help arrived to reconnect.  Today we have cars and trucks that can travel driverless.  Bullet trains in China travel at speeds of up to 200 MPH and a Tesla Roadster can do 250 MPH.  Yes, it’s claimed that a Hennessey Venom F5 clocks at 301 MPH!  My first car was a 1960 Hillman Minx that maxed out at 65 MPH; any faster and it shook so badly you could barely hold onto the steering wheel.

            When Jerry and I first started planning out the continuation of The Survivalist story after the Rourke’s had slept for many hundreds of years, we realized a decision had to be made as to what sort of world they were returning to.  Would it be inhabited by animal-like humans, cult worshipers or would it be a dead, wasteland?  Our decision was to create a world just as diverse as the one before.  Some things might have taken a step back, some remained the same and some ideas took a giant leap forward.

            Many of the technological advances written about in Mid-Wake were real or at least on the drawing boards.  We consulted with experts in the diving and underwater fields as to what would be coming in the future and we incorporated these advances into the books giving our characters a glimpse of what the new world could be under the right circumstances. 

            Yes, The Survivalist has aliens and cloaking devices, and advanced medical procedures, as well as underwater cities, but it also has crooked politicians, kidnappers and rapists, just as well as people who are determined to make the world a better place.  Our real world has encountered the genius and vision of da Vinci as well as the evil madness of Hitler. The world of The Survivalist should be no different.  One world is real; the other is fiction, catalogued as science fiction or adventure.  Fiction is not real but can reflect both reality and what the author sees as our future.

            John Thomas Rourke is still fighting for the same values he did in the 1980s and he and his companions will continue to do so.  So don’t think that Rourke’s world has changed too much, same problems, maybe different solutions.  When it comes time, Rourke pulls one of his thin dark cigars from his shirt pocket and the battered Zippo from the watch pocket in his jeans and lights up.  He shrugs his shoulders to straighten his Alessi shoulder holster carrying his twin Detonics pistols and mounts his Harley, ready to take on another battle. 

Sharon