The NYTimes opinion section’s former token far-rightie and well-regarded grammar snoot had previously written some of Nixon and Agnew’s most infamous lines, in a speechwriting staff that also included MSNBC’s token wingnut Pat Buchanan. But by modern standards, he was an example of that rapidly dwindling species, a sane Republican who believed in rational persuasion rather than X-treme demagoguery. He’s already missed.
PASSAGE (from Radley Metzger’s 1976 film The Image “I remembered clearly the look Claire had given her. It was the look of one viewing a rerun of a successful film one had directed oneself, whose plot couldn’t possibly have any surprises.”
…a long, scathing anti-Bush essay to the UK paper The Observer. It’s not online (which means the American masses on whose behalf he speaks won’t get to read it). But a short summary of it sez he calls for a big investigation (by whom?) into whether the administration knew about 9/11 in advance and chose to do nothing, because it would further the Bush gang’s anti-freedom domestic agenda. The summary also includes the following quotation:
“We still don’t know by whom we were struck that infamous Tuesday, or for what true purpose. But it is fairly plain to many civil libertarians that 9/11 put paid not only to much of our fragile Bill of Rights but also to our once-envied system of government which had taken a mortal blow the previous year when the Supreme Court did a little dance in 5/4 time and replaced a popularly elected President with the oil and gas Bush-Cheney junta.”
(Of course, it should be noted the “popularly elected President” in Vidal’s quotation is his own distant cousin.)
…to enjoy this short list of “Slightly Less Common Latin Phrases.” “Is that a scroll in your toga, or are you just glad to see me?”
WE’RE NOT REALLY POETRY PEOPLE HERE, but can’t help admire UW prof Richard Kenny’s versified thoughts about the “timorous Congress” acceding to war-fever.
…reviews a new book about today’s up-’n'-coming miniature art forms, including film clips and trailers, websites, and even banner ads. (The book being reviewed is apparently not yet available Stateside.)
ADVENTURES in celebrity name misspellings.
ANOTHER DIGITAL DIVIDE FALLS: More and more women are getting hooked on that onetime geeks-only craze, online gaming.
EXPLORE WILLFULLY-FORGOTTEN MEMORIES of Saturday mornings past at Bad Cartoons of the ’80s.
…to lovely equinoxic Seattle. Apparently, y’all have had New York-style late-winter weather while the NY area, where I was these past 5.5 days, had very Seattle-esque weather (steady rain, low clouds, and only warm enough to not snow).
In the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament, I ended up finishing 150th out of approximately 412 entrants using the tournament’s complex accuracy-and-speed scoring system. (Out of the 145 first-time entrants, I finished 21st.) It was a good weekend; I stayed at a good hotel room, met a lot of others who share the odd hobby of speed-solving, made some contacts, got some advice re: putting my own X-Word back into national syndication, and scored several interesting puzzle books.
There was one downbeat point to the week, however. My lovely Olympus digital camera disappeared in the Stamford hotel. After being warned repeatedly by my mom and others to watch all my material belongings in big bad Manhattan, I lose my fourth-costliest possession in the heart of the whitebread suburbs. (Further details to follow.)
…writers, and speakers: A systematic examination of logical fallacies. (Found by Fark.)
THOSE OF YOU who looove written English as composed by non-native-English speakers will undoubtedly enjoy this instruction sheet from a box of imported Chinese “stop-smoking” tea bags. (Warning: 235K .jpg file!)
