One editor prophetically wrote back "I might be making the mistake of the decade, but..." before rejecting the manuscript.
Bahahahahahahaha! OMG that makes me so happy that Herbert won a Hugo and a Nebula Award for the book that idiot editor passed up. Hee! Oooh, maybe I should try reading these books. My novel's all about the environment deteriorating too, only I attribute that to excessive population, blah blah blah. I like his idea, too, about keeping futuristic technology to a minimum and focusing on how people themselves will be in the future rather than concentrating on the flashy gadgets like Star Trek does. I see they're making a new Dune movie? Cool! I'll give them another chance. The last one just bored me so much after awhile that I couldn't keep watching any more. When you've seen one giant sandworm, you've seen them all. Doh!