Uncategorized

Over at words mean things, Adam shares this exchange from A Man For All Seasons. He’s right, it is eerily appropriate for the times we now live in.

More: And go he should, if he were the devil himself, until he broke the law.

Roper: So now you’d give the devil benefit of law!

More: Yes. What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get to the devil?

Roper: Yes! I’d cut down every law in England to do that.

More: Oh? And when the last law was down and the devil turned round on you – where would you hide, Roper, the laws all being flat? This country is planted thick with laws, from coast to coast, man’s laws, not God’s, and if you cut them down – and you’re just the man to do it – do you really think you could stand upright in the winds that would blow then? Yes, I’d give the devil benefit of law — for my own safety’s sake.

Well, even though we have some three more years to contend with Bush’s increasingly awful presidency, it’s nice to know that elections are already underway in ancient Rome. I suddenly wish I knew more about Roman history than what I happened to see in I, Claudius.

It was sunny today

for a moment,

but moments pass.

Quickly now, be careful,

or the rain might hit you,

hurt you,

beat you back against the door.

Run!

Splash past puddles, slick sidewalks.

If the drops can’t catch you then nobody can.

Gene Fowler once said, “Writing is easy: all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.” When that happens, I’ll let you know. Until then, of course, you will have to content yourself with what others have written. Neil Gaiman recommends this poem by Hugh Sykes Davies. Why not start there? There’s also some nice poetry over at this week’s Writer’s Almanac. Go on, stretch your legs a little. It’s good for you. I’ll still be here when you get back.

So Neil Gaiman has a weblog, and Wil Wheaton has a weblog. Who’s next? Julius Caeser, that’s who. But does he have his own personalized action figure? I mean, come on. Don’t we all wish we had patented kung fu grip?

The Economist writes:

I am reminded, naturally, of the corrections page at the now defunct Might:

“On page 111, in our ‘Religious News Round-up,’ we reported that Jesus Christ was a deranged, filthy proto-hippy. In fact, Jesus Christ was the son of God. We regret the error.”