..[Some people]..have a depraved taste for equality, which impels the weak to lower the powerful to their own level, and reduces men to prefer equality in slavery to inequality with freedom. I believe that it is easier to establish an absolute and despotic government amongst a people in which the conditions of society are equal, than amongst any other; and I think that, if such a government were once established amongst such a people, it would not only oppress men, but would eventually strip each of them of several of the highest qualities of humanity. Despotism, therefore, appears to me peculiarly to be dreaded in democratic times.--deTocqueville
The recent Reuters Investment Outlook summit gave us lesser mortals a peek at the future of the West. "QE", low interest rates, low growth and low employment is locked in for the present and beyond. The debate is not over whether it is a good idea or not or whether it is sustainable or not. The debate is over the belief of some that the easy money distortion is making the wrong people successful. These people have figured out who the "right people" and the "wrong people" are. And they think that a few smart guys in a room with a computer can control the factors that influence the economy.
Think man on the back of a tiger.
Third World Vacation alert: Part of the stadium that will host the World Cup opener in Sao Paulo, Brazil next year has collapsed.
In the 1540s, the guinea fowl, a bird with some resemblance to the American Thanksgiving bird, was imported from Madagascar through Turkey by traders known as "turkey merchants." The guinea fowl was also nicknamed the turkey fowl. Then, the Spanish brought turkeys back from the Americas by way of North Africa and Turkey, where the bird was mistakenly called the same name. Europeans who encountered the bird in the Americas latched on to the "turkey fowl" name, and the term was condensed simply to "turkey." The Turkish name for the bird is hindi, which literally means "Indian." This name likely derived from the common misconception that India and the New World were one and the same.
A perfect circle of confusion.
Researchers at the University of Michigan found that the number and use in of light vehicles in the U.S. peaked in 2004.
The Montgolfier brothers sent up the first manned balloon in 1783. The French were very interested in balloons and Jefferson, when there, was captivated by their efforts.
A 1640 book of psalms translated from Hebrew sold for a record breaking $14.16 million at auction on Tuesday. Known as the Bay Psalm Book, it is the first book published in English in what is now the U.S. There are only 10 other known copies.
Who was....Albino Luciani?
Three weeks before Vladimir Nabokov's challenging and revolutionary "Lolita" arrived in bookstores in France (no one in the U.S. would publish it), where it first came out that September, Dorothy Parker published a story-in The New Yorker-titled "Lolita," that centered on an older man, a teen bride, and her jealous mother. Galya Diment has a nice story in New York Magazine about this astonishing "coincidence."
Never think great minds are above it all.
"Transliteration" is the conversion of a text from one script to another. It is not concerned with representing the sound of the original: it only strives to represent the characters accurately. Transcription specifically maps the sounds of one language to the best matching script of another language.
| Greek word | Transliteration | Transcription | English translation |
|---|
| Ευαγγέλιο | Euaggelio | Evangelio | Gospel |
The wisdom of Charlie Munger: "easy money corrupts, and really easy money tends to corrupt absolutely."
Golden oldie:
The popularity of The Hunger Games series is fueling an interest in the sport of archery, particularly among girls. Some sporting equipment outfitters say they've seen a big boost in bow and arrow sales since the film series began in 2012. Archery ranges are busier too.
In "12 years a Slave" a free man is spirited off from the free North to the South as a slave. The story--a true story--was the result of The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850, the country's first nation law. Part of this law, crafted by Clay, states "In no trial or hearing under this act shall the testimony of such alleged fugitive be admitted in evidence."
Good news: The City of Vancouver, British Columbia has outlawed doorknobs in new buildings. Every once in a while government finds appropriate levels of action. On the other hand, DeKalb County, Georgia has a juror form that has "slave" under "occupation" so maybe you can't trust government with anything.
Gerrymander is a coined word that is a blend of Elbridge Gerry and salamander. Massachusetts Governor Gerry's party rearranged the electoral district boundaries and someone fancied the newly redistricted Essex County resembled a salamander. A cartoon showing the district in the shape of a salamander appeared in March 1812 issue of the Federalist newspaper.
The poet, translator and Soviet dissident writer Natalya Gorbanevskaya has died at age 77. She was held in a psychiatric hospital from 1969 until 1972 as a result of her opposition to Soviet human rights abuses; what possible risk could there be from the state controlling health care? She was one of the founders of the underground magazine The Chronicle of Current Events.
From "Prisonocomics," a book about British prisons:
Among women in prison, 15 per cent of prisoners report that they are homeless before entering prison and 32 per cent of prisoners lose their homes while in prison, 5 per cent of their children are able to stay in their own home when their mother is in prison, and 3% of the women prisoners had no idea who was caring for their children with them gone.
AAAAAnnnnnddddd........the cartoon from the newspaper creating the "Gerrymander":
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