To ignore the government’s poor performance of its present duties when deciding on whether it should or should not take on new duties is obviously wrong.
Ronald Coase, 1910-2013
Eating in Restaurants
Before venturing out of your home to eat in a restaurant, learn to chew with your mouth closed.
This applies whether you’re 7 or 70 . . .
I Killed a Guy in Florida
Hi everybody! it’s me, Lightning!
I knew I should have killed those two guys under the truck so there wouldn’t be any witnesses.
HA HA! Kidding! I wasn’t even in Florida!
— Lightning 
See You in Hell, New Orleans
[See You in Hell is a feature by our guest blogger, Satan — PE]
A 1-year-old girl was shot dead in her babysitter’s arms in New Orleans, prompting the city’s mayor to declare “enough is enough” as police hunted for two suspects with little help from witnesses.
Londyn Samuels, who was just learning to walk, was struck by a bullet fired into her 18-year-old nanny’s back as she carried the toddler home from the park.
There’s a train they call the City of New Orleans, and it is on a fast track to Hell.
First of all, let me say for the record that everyone is equal in Hell — regardless of race, color, religion, creed, national origin, blah blah blah, or any other legally protected status.
That said, when I see a headline like 1-year-old shot to death on New Orleans street, I know when I click through, I’m going to see a black face on the other side.
White people have their own peccadilloes, but they don’t shoot babies in the street.
As for the second part of the headline — “Enough is enough” — an 11-year-old New Orleans girl rocking her baby cousin to sleep was killed a few days later when gunmen started shooting into her house.
It’s getting to where I myself am afraid to go to New Orleans. Ha ha, no I’m not, but you see what I mean.
Anyway, here’s some advice from a guy who’s been around: If you’re black, and you want to be remembered fondly, or remembered at all, make sure you get shot by someone who’s not black.
For example: a kid in Florida named Trayvon Martin was shot by a Hispanic man with a white name: George Zimmerman. Everyone remembers Trayvon Martin. Even the president talks about him. Black “leaders” shuffle his parents in front of various assemblages demanding Justice for Trayvon.
He’s remembered lovingly by people willing to overlook the fact that he was trying to beat George Zimmerman to death when, unfortunately for him, Zimmerman pulled a gun and shot him.
Trayvon Martin is . . . well, let’s just say that God doesn’t like violent troublemakers, despite being a violent troublemaker himself. What a phony.
Londyn Samuels is in heaven, of course. She led a short, blameless life.
But because the man who shot her was black, not only is no one demanding Justice for Londyn, witnesses won’t come forward to ID the shooter, and no black “leader” has directed so much as a “shame on you” toward anyone involved.
See you in Hell!
Seeing the Thing Through
Ah, poor fellow!–and Herzog momentarily joined the objective world in looking down on himself. He too could smile at Herzog and despise him. But there still remained the fact. I am Herzog. I have to be that man. There is no one else to do it. After smiling, he must return to his own Self and see the thing through.
The Life That Exhibits Itself
“In paths untrodden,” as Walt Whitman marvelously put it. “Escaped from the life that exhibits itself . . .” Oh, that’s a plague, the life that exhibits itself, a real plague! There comes a time when every ridiculous son of Adam wishes to arise before the rest, with all his quirks and twitches and tics, all the glory of his self-adored ugliness, his grinning teeth, his sharp nose, his madly twisted reason, saying to the rest — in an overflow of narcissism which he interprets as benevolence — “I am here to witness. I am come to be your exemplar.” Poor dizzy spook!
The Unexamined Life
Socrates has said that the unexamined life is not worth living. He neglects to add, however, that the examined life is no picnic either.
Well, there is a piece of famous advice, grand advice even if it is German, to forget what you can’t bear. — Saul Bellow, Herzog
What You Don’t See
When you watch someone perform, you’re seeing them at the top of their game. When they score the winning point or sell their company for millions — you’re seeing them in their moment of glory. What you don’t see is the thousands of hours of preparation. You don’t see the self doubt, the lost sleep, the lonely nights spent working. You don’t see the moment they started. The moment they were just like you, wondering how they could ever be good.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=daC2EPUh22w
If sin and folly get punished appropriately, we’re in for a bad time. — Charlie Munger
Seamus Heaney, 1939-2013
The way we are living,
timorous or bold,
will have been our life.
Related articles
- In Memoriam Seamus Heaney (text-patterns.thenewatlantis.com)
Comedy Pug
Hi everybody! It’s me, Lightning!
I never have any leftovers when I eat but if I did, I would ask for a doggie bag.
WHAAAAA–?! Thanks, I’ll be here all week!
— Lightning
Do Something Different
"If you're not doing anything different, you're not doing anything at all." ET video interview with WashPost. http://t.co/a8vgyRxXOV
— Edward Tufte (@EdwardTufte) August 25, 2013
More People I’m Sick Unto Death Of
People who think it’s okay to insult members of certain groups (e.g., homophobes, people from the state of West Virginia), but not members of certain other groups (e.g., homosexuals, fat women), and particularly not members of groups that they themselves belong to.
People who bully others into taking offense at things that they’re “supposed to be” offended by because the bully is offended by those things.
People who allow themselves to be bullied into taking offense at things that they’re “supposed to be” offended by, even though it never occurred to them to be offended and they really couldn’t care less.
Animal Cruelty
Hi everybody! It’s me, Lightning!
I’m so mad! The guy behind us in the Starbucks drive-thru lane is taking pictures of himself and his dog but he’s not SHOWING the pictures to the dog!
YOU HAVE TO SHOW THE PICTURES TO THE DOG! GRRRRRRR!
— Lightning
The Price is Right
Guess how much I paid for this stack of books . . .
Hint #1: I bought them at the One Dollar Bookstore.
Hint #2: There are 10 books in the stack.
A Lot on My Plate
Hi, everybody! It’s me, Lightning!
I hear people say “I’ve got a lot on my plate” like it’s a bad thing. I LOVE to have a lot on my plate!
We’re talking about food, right?
— Lightning
A Tradeoff
If female employment rates matched male rates in the U.S., the GDP would rise by 5%. This stat & more: http://t.co/XsBVJW1xtE
— Harvard Biz Review (@HarvardBiz) August 25, 2013
Okay . . . but who would be raising our kids? Or is that not important?
The Kind of Outside-the-Box Thinking That Pays Dividends in Hollywood
Here’s the kind of outside-the-box thinking that propels executives to the top of Hollywood: Paying a woman for sex is illegal. Paying a woman to act in a sex scene on camera is not.
Not to say there won’t be consequences, but at least you won’t have a prostitution beef on your record.
Roll ’em . . . aaaaand ACTION!
