no. 870

 “Kick at the darkness, until it bleeds daylight.” 

Bruce Cockburn.

no. 869

 

no. 868

 “For every complex problem there is a solution which is clear, simple and wrong.” 

H L Mencken

no. 867

 "Try to realize that you don’t have to annihilate yourself in the face of cultural annihilation. Hold onto who you are and try not to be afraid to live your truth in the midst of an avalanche of toxic bullshit." 

Marc Maron

no. 866

 “What passes for identity in America is a series of myths about one’s heroic ancestors. It’s astounding to me, for example, that so many people really appear to believe that the country was founded by a band of heroes who wanted to be free. That happens not to be true. What happened was that some people left Europe because they couldn’t stay there any longer and had to go someplace else to make it. That’s all. They were hungry, they were poor, they were convicts. Those who were making it in England, for example, did not get on the Mayflower. That’s how the country was settled. Not by Gary Cooper. Yet we have a whole race of people, a whole republic, who believe the myths to the point where even today they select political representatives, as far as I can tell, by how closely they resemble Gary Cooper. Now this is dangerously infantile, and it shows in every level of national life.”

James Baldwin in a Talk to Teachers working in the New York Public School System on October 16, 1963 discussing the American Identity

no. 865

 

no. 864

 

no. 863

 

Barbara Kinsolving

no. 862

 

no. 861

 "I had placed my stick on the table, as I do every evening. It had been specially made to suit my height, to enable me to walk without too much difficulty. As I was standing up, a customer called: 'Monsieur, don't forget your pencil.' 

It was very unkind, but most funny."

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

It’s important to be able to laugh at yourself, but it’s also important to recognize when people are being assholes. 

no. 860

 

Langston Hughes

no. 859

 “As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.”

Proverbs 26:11

no. 858

 

no. 857

 “ A little patience, and we shall see the reign of witches pass over, their spells dissolve, and the people, recovering their true sight, restore their government to its true principles,” 

Thomas Jefferson

no. 856

 “The best thing for being sad," replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow, "is to learn something. That's the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then — to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn.” 

T.H. White: The Once and Future King 

no. 855

 “There is no hope but us. 

There is no mercy but us. 

There is no justice. 

There is just us…

All things that are, are ours. 

But we must care. 

For if we do not care, we do not exist.” 

~Terry Pratchett

no. 854

 

“All wars are class wars.”

@socialiststeve6 on Twitter

no. 853

 

no. 852

 If you can keep your head while all those about you are losing theirs, then perhaps you have misunderstood the situation. 

- Graffiti on the side of the Flushing Street Temple of Eris in New York 9

from Daniel Keys Morgan’s novel “The Long Run”

no. 851

 “One seventh of your life,” he said politely, “will be spent on Mondays.”

Trent The Uncatchable in Daniel Keys Morgan’s “The Long Run”

no. 850

 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

Jesus in Matthew 6: 5-6

no. 849

 

no. 848

 

no. 847

…”and like any other secret society, the local chapter meetings seemed mainly composed of extremely long rituals of little consequence run by the loudest gentleman in the room, whose pomp and circumstance existed in inverse proportion to his intelligence.”

from Gail Carriger’s “Ambush or Adore”

no. 846

 “We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. Sometimes we must interfere.” 

Elie Wiesel (1928-2016), writer and Auschwitz survivor

no. 845

Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

Matthew 7:14-16

no. 844

 

no. 843

 A rabbi was asked by one of his students “Why did God create atheists?” 

After a long pause, the rabbi finally responded with a soft but sincere voice. “God created atheists” he said, “to teach us the most important lesson of them all – the lesson of true compassion. 

You see, when an atheist performs an act of charity, visits someone who is sick, helps someone in need, and cares for the world, he is not doing so because of some religious teaching. 

He does not believe that God commanded him to perform this act. In fact, he does not believe in God at all, so his actions are based on his sense of morality. Look at the kindness he bestows on others simply because he feels it to be right. When someone reaches out to you for help. 

You should never say ‘I’ll pray that God will help you.’ Instead, for that moment, you should become an atheist – imagine there is no God who could help, and say ‘I will help you’.”

— Martin Buber, “Tales of the Hasidim”

no. 842

 

no. 841

 

no. 840

 

no. 839

 

no. 838

 

no. 837

 Demanding that the Bible be taught in public schools and the Ten Commandments be posted on their walls while not even holding your preferred politicians accountable to either of them is the height of hypocrisy.

Rev. Benjamin Cremer

no. 836

 "If you don't want your tax dollars to help the poor, then stop saying you want a country based on Christian values, because you don't.”

- Jimmy Carter

no. 835

 “If someone says it’s raining and another person says it’s dry, it’s not your job to quote them both. It’s your job to look out the window and find out which is true.” 

Unknown journalist 

no. 834

 

no. 833

 

no. 832

 “There are no pockets in a shroud.”

Irish saying. 

no. 831

 “You do not invite a cat. You offer to a cat. There is no rushing or forcing of a cat, without consequence. Even for an indoor cat freedom is very important to them. Its usually a reason they will stay at an open doorway, its not about going through, its about knowing the option is there.”

Ryan Cass, discussing a character in the ch 25 comment section of the manga Isekai Craft Gurashi Jiyu Kimamana Seisan Shoku No Honobono Slow Life as presented on the Mangakalot site. 

no. 830

 

no. 829

 

no. 828

 "A small child once said to me: 'You don't draw Bugs Bunny, you draw pictures of Bugs Bunny.’ That’s a very profound observation because it means he thinks the characters are alive, which, as far as I am concerned, is true.’'  

Chuck Jones (1912-2002) was born on this date.

no. 827

 "Donald Trump was fired by 81 million people..and he's clearly having a very hard time processing that."

--Kamala Harris

no. 826

 Bill Maher, proving that even a stopped clock can be right twice a day. 

no. 825

 “To recommend thrift to the poor is both grotesque and insulting. It is like advising a man who is starving to eat less.”

- Oscar Wilde

no. 824

 

no. 823

 "If it's not broke then fix it till it is"

Unknown 

no. 822

 It isn’t “sharing your faith” when you’re using legislation to do it. That’s “forcing your faith.”

Jesus never gave us the right to impose our religious beliefs on anyone.

When it violates human free will and matters of conscience, it isn’t about Jesus.

It’s about control.

Rev. Benjamin Cremer

no. 821

 

no. 820

“We are all human. 

We don't have *a point within* society. 

We *are* society”…

“We ARE society. This means that the whole point of society is us. It exists to sustain us, and while we bear the responsibility to be ourselves within it, it is a thing made by humanity and for humanity. It isn't a big box store to buy for billions and then sell off for parts.”

A. R. Moxon “The Whole Purpose”

no. 819

 "Religion and government will both exist in greater purity, the less they are mixed together." 

James Madison, Letter to Edward Livingston, 1822.

no. 818

 "History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest- ridden people maintaining a free civil government, This marks the lowest grade of ignorance of which thei civil as well as religious leaders will always avail themselves for their own purposes."

Source: Letter of Thomas Jefferson to Alexander von Humboldt, Dec. 6, 1813.

no. 817

 "In every country and in every age, the priest has been hostile to liberty. He is always in alliance with the despot, abetting his abuses in return for protection to his own."

Source: Letter of Thomas Jefferson to Horatio G. Spafford, March 17, 1814.

no. 816

“Your boos mean nothing, I’ve seen what makes you cheer.”

American philosopher Rick Sanchez

no. 815

 “Socialism is a scare word they've hurled at every advance the people have made. Socialism is what they called public power, social security, deposit insurance, and independent labor organizations. Socialism is their name for anything that helps all people.”

Harry Truman, 1952

no. 814

 

no. 813

 “Fascism begins the moment a ruling class, fearing the people may use their political democracy to gain economic democracy, begins to destroy political democracy in order to retain its power of exploitation and special privilege.”

-Tommy Douglas, 1942

no. 812

“This constant lying is not aimed at making the people believe a lie, but at ensuring that no one believes anything anymore. 

A people that can no longer distinguish between truth and lies cannot distinguish between right and wrong. And such a people, deprived of the power to think and judge, is, without knowing and willing it, completely subjected to the rule of lies. 

With such a people, you can do whatever you want.”

Hannah Arendt

German historian and philosopher

(1906–1975)

no. 811

 

Apparently, Freeman didn’t actually say this. Still a great quote, whoever said it. 

no. 810

 “Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted.”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

no. 809

 C. S. Lewis

no. 808

 "We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both." 

Justice Louis Brandeis

It’s possible that I’ve posted this before. Don’t care, really. 

no. 807

 

no. 806

 "Yes, people are in large part disappointing and/or disgusting. They're best avoided and observed at a safe distance." 

- Grumpy Sociologist (@OhHowByronic)

no. 805

 The Rules of Acquisition

Here are all the known Rules of Acquisition from Star Trek. The Rules of Acquisition were the sacred precepts upon which all Ferengi society (a parody of capitalism) was based.

1: Once you have their money... you never give it back.

2: The best deal is the one that brings the most profit.

2: Money is everything.

3: Never spend more for an acquisition than you have to.

4: Sedition and treason are always profitable.

5: Always exaggerate your estimates.

6: Never allow family to stand in the way of opportunity.

7: Keep your ears open.

8: Small print leads to large risk.

9: Opportunity plus instinct equals profit.

10: Greed is eternal.

13: Anything worth doing is worth doing for money.

14: Sometimes the quickest way to find profits is to let them find you.

15: Dead men close no deals.

16: A deal is a deal... until a better one comes along.

17: A contract is a contract is a contract... but only between Ferengi

18: A Ferengi without profit is no Ferengi at all.

19: Satisfaction is not guaranteed.

20: He who dives under the table today lives to profit tomorrow.

21: Never place friendship above profit.

22: A wise man can hear profit in the wind.

23: Nothing is more important than your health... except for your money.

27: There's nothing more dangerous than an honest businessman.

29: What's in it for me?

30: "Confidentiality equals profit."

31: Never make fun of a Ferengi's mother. Insult something he cares about instead.

33: It never hurts to suck up to the boss.

34: War is good for business.

35: Peace is good for business.

37: The early investor reaps the most interest.

39: Don't tell customers more than they need to know.

40: She can touch your lobes but never your latinum.

41: Profit is its own reward.

43: Feed your greed, but not enough to choke it.

44: Never confuse wisdom with luck.

45: Expand or die.

47: Don't trust a man wearing a better suit than your own.

48: The bigger the smile, the sharper the knife.

52: Never ask when you can take.

53: Never trust anybody taller than you.

54: Rate divided by time equals profit. (Also known as "The Velocity of Wealth.")

55: Take joy from profit, and profit from joy.

57: Good customers are as rare as latinum—treasure them.

58: There is no substitute for success.

59: Free advice is seldom cheap.

60: Keep your lies consistent.

62: The riskier the road, the greater the profit.

63: Work is the best therapy-at least for your employees.

65: Win or lose, there's always Hupyrian beetle snuff

66: Someone's always got bigger ears.

68: Risk doesn't always equal reward.

69: Ferengi are not responsible for the stupidity of other races.

74: Knowledge equals profit.

75: Home is where the heart is... but the stars are made of latinum.

76: Every once in a while, declare peace. It confuses the hell out of your enemies.

77: If you break it, I'll charge you for it!

79: Beware of the Vulcan greed for knowledge.

82: The flimsier the product, the higher the price.

85: Never let the competition know what you're thinking.

87: Learn the customer's weaknesses, so that you can better take advantage of him.

88: It ain't over 'til its over.

88: Vengeance will cost you everything.

89: Ask not what your profits can do for you, but what you can do for your profits.

89: [It is] better to lose some profit and live than lose all profit and die.

91: Your boss is only worth what he pays you.

92: There are many paths to profit.

94: Females and finances don't mix.

95: Expand or die.

97: Enough... is never enough.

98: Every man has his price.

98: If you can't take it with you, don't go.

99: Trust is the biggest liability of all.

100: When it's good for business, tell the truth.

101: Profit trumps emotion.

102: Nature decays, but latinum lasts forever.

103: Sleep can interfere with opportunity.

104: Faith moves mountains... of inventory.

106: There is no honor in poverty.

108: Hope doesn't keep the lights on.

108: A woman wearing clothes is like a man without any profits.

109: Dignity and an empty sack is worth the sack.

110: Exploitation begins at home.

111: Treat people in your debt like family... exploit them.

112: Never have sex with the boss' sister.

113: Always have sex with the boss.

117: You can't free a fish from water.

121: Everything is for sale, even friendship.

122: Never Sleep with the bosses sister

123: Even a blind man can recognize the glow of Latinum.

125: You can't make a deal if you're dead.

135: Listen to secrets, but never repeat them.

139: Wives serve, brothers inherit.

141: Only fools pay retail.

144: There's nothing wrong with charity... as long as it winds up in your pocket.

147: People love the bartender.

151: Even when you're a customer, sell yourself.

153: Sell the sizzle, not the steak.

162: Even in the worst of times someone turns a profit.

168: Whisper your way to success.

177: Know your enemies... but do business with them always.

181: Not even dishonesty can tarnish the shine of profit.

183: When life hands you ungaberries, make detergent.

184: A Ferengi waits to bid until his opponents have exhausted themselves.

188: Not even dishonesty can tarnish the shine of profit.

189: Let others keep their reputation. You keep their money.

190: Hear all, trust nothing.

192: Never cheat a Klingon... unless you're sure you can get away with it.

193: Trouble comes in threes.

193: It's never too late to fire the staff.

194: It's always good business to know about new customers before they walk in your door.

199: Location, location, location.

200: A Ferengi chooses no side but his own.

202: The justification for profit is profit.

203: New customers are like razor-toothed gree worms. They can be succulent, but sometimes they bite back.

208: Sometimes, the only thing more dangerous than a question is an answer.

211: Employees are the rungs on the ladder of success. Don't hesitate to step on them.

212: A good lie is easier to believe than the truth.

214: Never begin a (business) negotiation on an empty stomach.

216: Never gamble with a telepath.

217: Always know what you're buying.

217: You can't free a fish from water.

218: Sometimes what you get free costs entirely too much.

219: Possession is eleven-tenths of the law!

223: Beware the man who doesn't take time for Oo-mox.

227: If that's what's written, then that's what's written.

229: Latinum lasts longer than lust.

235: Duck; death is tall.

236: You can't buy fate.

239: Never be afraid to mislabel a product.

240: Time, like latinum, is a highly limited commodity.

242: More is good... all is better.

243: Always leave yourself an out.

248: The definition of insanity is trying the same failed scheme & expecting different results

255: A wife is luxury... a smart accountant a neccessity.

257: When the messenger comes to appropriate your profits, kill the messenger.

261: A wealthy man can afford anything except a conscience.

263: Never allow doubt to tarnish your lust for latinum.

266: When in doubt, lie.

267: If you believe it, they believe it.

272: Always inspect the merchandise before making a deal.

280: If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

284: Deep down, everyone's a Ferengi.

285: No good deed ever goes unpunished.

286: When Morn leaves, it's all over.

287: Always get somebody else to do the lifting.

288: Never get into anything that you can't get out of.

289: A man is only worth the sum of his possessions.

290: An angry man is an enemy, and a satisfied man is an ally.

291: The less employees know about the cash flow, the smaller the share they can demand.

292: Only a fool passes up a business opportunity.

293: The more time they take deciding, the more money they will spend.

294: A bargain usually isn't.

299: Whenever you exploit someone, it never hurts to thank them...That way it's easier to exploit them the next time.

431: When the shooting starts, let the mercenaries handle it!

no. 804

 “Men tend to have beliefs that suit their passions. Cruel men believe in a cruel God and use their belief to excuse their cruelty. Only kindly men believe in a kindly God, and they would be kindly in any case.”

Bertrand Russell

no. 803

“It's so great because it has zero shame or apologies for what it's doing. Really, the apex of ‘do not kill the cringe in you, kill the part of you that cringes’.”

@DixonBrandywine describing the movie “Buckaroo Bonzai”

no. 802

I’m not sure who to credit here, so you get a copy of the tweet, mostly because I’m too lazy to make this into a purely Watterson joint, but also because Dholani deserves the h/t for writing the tweet. 

no. 801

“One of the curses of history 

is that we cannot go back and change the course leading 

to disasters, no matter how much we might wish to. 

The past has its own terrible inevitability.

But it is never too late to change the future."

~Heather Cox Richardson

no. 800

 

no. 799

 

no. 798

 “The ideal subject of totalitarian rule is not the convinced Nazi or the convinced Communist, but people for whom the distinction between fact and fiction and the distinction between true and false no longer exist.”

― Hannah Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism

no. 797

 

no. 796

 “Travel isn’t always pretty. It isn’t always comfortable. Sometimes it hurts, it even breaks your heart. But that’s okay. The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind.”

In Memory of Anthony Bourdain 

June 25, 1956 - June 8, 2018

no. 795

 Mel Brooks was once asked whether he was a "glass half-full" guy or a "glass half empty" guy. He said he believed the glass was half full, but he also believed that if you drank what was in it, it would kill you.

no. 794

 

no. 793

 

T. S. Elliot

no. 792

 “There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'”

Isaac Asimov

no. 791

 “Conservatism consists of just one principle: That there is an in group that the law protects, but does not bind, and an out group that the law binds, but does not protect.”

Frank Wilhoit

no. 790

 “Something future historians will struggle to explain is that, in the 21st century, all of human knowledge became instantly accessible to anyone in the world & the primary effect was to make everyone much dumber.”

David Roberts   (@drvolts)

no. 789

 “You don’t fight fascism because you are going to win, you fight fascism because it is fascism.”

Jean-Paul Sartre

no. 788

“When the debate is lost, slander becomes the tool of the loser.”

Socrates

no. 787

 Mark Twain on war, from his book, 'The Mysterious Stranger':

no. 786

 

no. 785

 “ Oh my god fuck off. Not everything is fixed by bending.”

Randy Milholland, after someone suggested he try yoga as a cure for his health problems. 

no. 784

 "I've been around for some time and I've noticed that them as has it in them to shine will shine through six layers of muck, whereas those who ain't shiny won't shine however much you buff 'em."

 Terry Pratchett (by way of Nanny Ogg)

no. 738

 

no. 782

 “Jazz is the only unhampered, unhindered expression of complete freedom yet produced in this country.”

Duke Ellington 

no. 781

Alvy Singer: I'm so tired of spending evenings making fake insights with people who work for "Dysentery."

Robin: "Commentary."

Alvy Singer: Oh really? I had heard that "Commentary" and "Dissent" had merged and formed "Dysentery."

From the movie, “Annie Hall”

no. 780

 Not a single one of the cells that compose you knows who you are, or cares.

- Daniel Dennett

no. 779

 

no. 778

 “That which can be asserted without evidence, can be dismissed without evidence.”

Christopher Hitchens 

no. 777

 My wife is gone, my girl is gone, 

my books are loaned, my clothes 

are worn, I gave away a car; and 

all that happened years ago. 

Mind & matter, love & space 

are frail as foam on beer.

—Gary Snyder

no. 776

 If you want to write, you must write every single day of your life. You must read dreadful dumb books & glorious books. You must lurk in libraries & climb the stacks like ladders to sniff books like perfumes & wear books like hats upon your crazy heads. 

Ray Bradbury

no. 775

 “I work really hard to not ever think about my place in the world.

I'm aware of my good fortune. I'm very aware of it, and I'm very aware that, because of it, people offer me things. Opportunities to do extraordinary things. The ones that are interesting to me are collaborations. I get to work with people who 10 years ago I wouldn't have dreamed to have been able to work with. And that's a big change professionally, and it's something that I think about a lot. How can I creatively have fun, do some interesting stuff, not repeat myself? Have fun. Play in a creative way.”

–Anthony Bourdain

no. 774

 

no. 773

 

no. 772

 Worth revisiting during this Election season:

Luke 4: 5-8 And the devil took him up and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, 6 and said to him, “To you I will give all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whom I will. 7 If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.” 8 And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’”

no. 771

 "In this country, American means white. Everybody else has to hyphenate." 

Toni Morrison

no. 770

 Ursula K. LeGuin

no. 769

 

Don’t forget, this is the same guy who warned us about the Military/Industrial Complex.

no. 768

“I love how all the movies about teenagers have to be set in the 90s or earlier otherwise we’d just be watching  kids on their phones for two hours”

Cooper Lawrence

Sure, it’s a little you-kids-get-off-my-lawn, but that doesn’t make it any less funny or true. 

no. 767

 “To be wealthy and honored in an unjust society is a disgrace.”

Confucius, The Analects

no. 766

 “When you start thinking about what people like, you start thinking about what people expect. Then you start pandering to people’s expectations. Then you start talking about yourself in the third person. I learned very early on not to think about that. You go out there and do the best you can, and you do things that are interesting to you. Hopefully it will be interesting to other people. I don’t want to be adequate. I’d rather fail gloriously making something strange, awesome but ultimately a failure.”

–Anthony Bourdain 

no. 765

“No man, for any considerable period, can wear one face to himself  and another to the multitude, without finally getting bewildered as to  which may be the true.”        

Nathaniel Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter 

no. 764

 “Just as the orator marks his good things by a dramatic pause, or by raising and lowering his voice, or by gesture, so the writer marks his epigrams with italics, setting the little gem, so to speak, like a jeweler.”

~Oscar Wilde (recorded by Frank Harris)

I am amused that this was written without the use of italics.