Pen-Elayne on the Web

Criminal Editing?

Both Teresa Nielsen Hayden and Linkmeister have must-read opinion essays on the Treasury Department's warning to "publishers they may face grave legal consequences for editing manuscripts from Iran and other disfavored nations, on the ground that such tinkering amounts to trading with the enemy." Unbelievable. Can we get more provincial and ridiculous in the eyes of the world (not to mention more Orwellian)? As Melanie Mattson notes, "America seems to be closing its borders to international culture -- and understanding." Moreover, this could be a slippery slope to all sorts of things, depending on which nations our whimsical Administration suddenly decides are "disfavored." Look at comics, for instance. The Big Two use lots of overseas freelancers; how much of a leap is it from "you can't edit stuff written in selected foreign nations" to "you can't edit/commission artwork drawn in selected foreign nations"? If the Philippines were suddenly declared an Official Enemy (after all, there are Al-Qaeda outposts there), what happens to people like Gerry Alanguilan? If Tony Blair decides to abandon lapdog status in order to salvage his political career, and the UK is consequently given "France but with English-speaking people" suspect-nation status, what does that mean for the countless UK-based freelancers (many of whom have seen actual payment for their work drop precipitously anyway as the value of the dollar has fallen, despite some recent insistence to the contrary)? And why is the Treasury Department even getting involved in these matters in the first place? History may provide one reason. Update: Mark A.R. Kleiman is outraged too. Looks like this one may have very long legs.