Presented by the Atomic Sleepwalker

Howdy, Sleepwalkers! We have a very special guest on the blog today–Steve Ditko’s very own creation, the two-fisted Objectivist philosopher Mr. A! Even though he’s very busy, Mr. A has agreed to answer a few reader-submitted questions (which will, of course, remain anonymous). Now I’m going to step back and give Mr. A the floor. On to the reader questions!

1) Hey, A! I just–

Geez, ow! Sorry, sorry. Sir. Mr. A sir. I just–okay. I’ve had this plan ever since I graduated high school, right? I was going to go to Cal Tech, get a double major in Physics and Computer Engineering, then get a job at NASA, where I would rise through the ranks, revitalize the space program, send a manned, multi-cultural expedition to Mars, and win the Nobel Peace Prize for my efforts at bringing the world together in the stars.

But I couldn’t get in to Cal Tech, or MIT, or any of my other fallback schools. I’m working part-time at the gym cleaning clumps of hair out of the shower drains. Where did I go wrong?

2) Hello Mr. A. I’m very proud of my car–it’s a 1973 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Coupe. I got it seven years ago and painstakingly refurbished it, and it’s been my baby ever since. But my wife is expecting soon, and I’ll have a real baby on my hands. The Stingray’s beautiful, but I’m afraid it’s not safe enough for my unborn son. I’ve found a guy willing to trade me his 1995 Volvo for the Corvette–should I make the trade?

3) Hi Mr. A. I’ve got a problem.

What? No, I–no! I run a landscaping business. I’ve got a bunch of clients, and I’ve made quite a bit of money, if you don’t mind me saying so.

Honestly, I promise! Anyway, I have a small crew of hired hands that I use on big jobs, right? Most of them are good men, hard workers. Except there’s this one guy, he never comes in on time, he never works as hard as the other workers, and he’s sarcastic when I try to get him to change his attitude.

Yeah, tell me about it. The problem is, I knew his father, and I made a promise  that I’d always take care of the kid. But he’s a terrible worker–does the promise I made to his father mean he deserves special treatment? What about the rest of the workers?

4) Mr. A. Big fan. Got a quick math question: Where does a line segment start?

Thanks!

5) Mr. A,I need your help. I’m trying to write a screenplay about an angel that comes to Earth to fight crime and becomes a superhero named Angel, and–don’t worry about the details.I need help writing some of the dialogue. See, I’ve got this character that’s meant to be evocative of 1970s blaxploitation cinema, and I can’t get a feel for his voice. Any thoughts on what a character like that would say?

That’s all the time we have for today, Sleepwalkers! A big, big “thank you” to Mr. A for taking the time to appear today. We’re going to try to have some more special guests like this in the future, so if you have any questions, send ‘em in! Stay cool out there, Sleepwalkers, and remember:

Don’t @#$% with Objectivists. They’re hardcore.