My break with Sci-Fi nerds

Those of you who know me know that I'm a big science fiction fan, almost to the point of being a nerd about it. ("Almost?" - The Peanut Gallery)

In fact, I'm a big defender of those of us who like the genre, against those who would look down on us and think less of us because of what we like. Remember how much of our current technology has its roots in old Star Trek episodes?

But there comes a point when they go too far, and I have to abandon them.

Those fans in Detroit have reached that point.

According to the Ogemaw County Herald (h/t: Deborah Mann on Twitter), fans of Robocop were up in arms when Detroit mayor Dave Bing stated that the city would not put up money for a Robocop statue in Detroit.

While the article is written tongue-in-cheek (and hence, there's nothing really quote-worthy in it), the controversy was real. Fans were truly upset.

Yes, the cost of the statue would be relatively small. But in this day and age of public deficits, with governments (city, state, and federal) bleeding money right and left, can a statue of Robocop really be justified?

These people who were upset really need to get their head out of the alternate universe they're in and pay attention to the real world.

Thankfully, according to DetroitNews.com, fundraising efforts have raised enough money for the statue.

In addition to the public financing stupidity, there were other reasons for debating whether this statue should be created:

"It has since generated national media attention and substantial debate within Detroit between those who believe a statue is fun and could be a tourist attraction and those who believe it is silly idea at best and condescending reminder of the city's crime problems at worst."

Those are all good reasons not to publicly do it too.

I'm glad they were able to raise the funds privately. I think it is a cool idea, though not one that I would personally contribute money to.

And as Jerry Paffendorf, the person who spearheaded the campaign to raise funds, said:

"If people can raise money for something like RoboCop, then they can do it for their neighborhoods or their schools"

Hear hear, Mr. Paffendorf. Let's hope that others will jump on that particular bandwagon.