SO I TOOK JOHN VARLEY’S STEEL BEACH with me for, um, beach reading as part of my reread-old-John Varley project, and I was struck by this passage, which I had forgotten:

“There’s something else,” he went on. “We know there are aliens out there. We know interstellar travel is possible. The next time we meet aliens they could be even worse than the Invaders. They might want to exterminate us, rather than just evict us. I think we ought to keep some fighting skills alive in case we meet some disagreeable critters we can fight.”

Brenda sat up, wide-eyed. “You’re a Heinleiner!” she said.

It was MacDonald’s turn to shrug. “I don’t attend services, but I agree with a lot of what they say.”

Heh.

UPDATE: Yeah, it’s not in print — I had to buy a used one. Hope they reissue it soon. It’s good. Meanwhile, reader Robert Evans asks if I’m a Heinleiner. Well, you know, I don’t attend services, but . . . .

ANOTHER UPDATE: Reader Ted Rathkopf writes: “Is there a fish we Heinleiners can get to put on the back of our cars?”