Article 50

The Article 50 process is now underway, and in accordance with the wishes of the British people, the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union.

-- British Prime Minister Theresa May, informing the House of Commons that she has begun the formal process of withdrawing the U.K.'s membership from the European Union, 29 March 2017

The Pen And The Sword

The pen and the sword together will guide you on your way.

-- "Karate Nerd" Jesse Enkamp of KarateByJesse.com, on the WhistleKicksMartialArtsRadio Podcast, Episode #174, 27 March 2017, referring to ...

It is said the warrior's is the twofold Way of pen and sword, and he should have a taste for both Ways.

-- Miyamoto Musashi (c. 1584 – 13 June 1645), Japanese swordsman, in Go Rin No Sho [The Book Of Five Rings] (1645)

Tradition

Tradition is the handing down of the flame and not the worshipping of ashes.

-- Auguste Marie Joseph Jean Léon Jaurès (1859 - 1914), French Socialist leader (attributed)

Foreseeable Future

We're going to be living with Obamacare for the foreseeable future.

-- House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-WI), acknowledging that he could not muster enough votes to pass the Republican bill to repeal and replace Obamacare, 24 March 2017

Bulwarks Of Liberty

The freedom of the press is one of the great bulwarks of liberty, and can never be restrained but by despotic governments.

-- George Mason (1725 - 1792), Virginia planter, politician, delegate to the U.S. Constitutional Convention of 1787, and father of the United States Bill of Rights, Virginia Declaration of Rights, Article 12 (12 June 1776)

Be Critical

Be critical.  Don't simply accept your own declarations about yourself, about who you are.  Prove it through your actions.  Prove to yourself Who You Are.

-- Don Appleman, talking to his teenage daughter, 8 September 2016

1 In 750

Michael Madigan retains his power over the 12.8 million citizens of Illinois as a result of running unopposed in the recent election, having garnered 17,155 votes (65.18%) in a 4-way primary held on 15 March 2016 (Source: Ballotpedia). 

Five Most Important Things

Of the five most important things in life, health is first, education or knowledge is second, and wealth is third.  I forget the other two.

-- Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry (18 October 1926 - 18 March 2017), American guitarist, singer and songwriter, and pioneer of rock and roll music

The Real Struggle

The real struggle is not between East and West, or capitalism and communism, but between education and propaganda.

-- Martin Buber (1878 – 1965), Jewish philosopher, theologian, story-teller, and teacher, as quoted in Encounter with Martin Buber (1972) by Aubrey Hodes, p. 135

Negative Effects

The negative effects of the president's actions and their repercussions are grave, and the benefits to defending the Constitution by removing her from office are overwhelmingly large.

-- Acting Chief Justice Lee Jung-mi at a hearing where South Korean President Park Geun-hye was removed from office, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap

Vague, But Exciting!

28 years ago yesterday, the World Wide Web was conceived.

On 12 March 1989, Tim Berners-Lee submitted a proposal for an information management system to his boss, Mike Sendall.  "Vague, but exciting", were the words that Sendall wrote on the proposal, allowing Berners-Lee to continue.

-- From "Tim Berners-Lee's Proposal" at CERN
http://info.cern.ch/Proposal.html



Coincidentally, my first signon to the PLATO computer system at the University of Illinois in Urbana was created on 12 March 1975

Terms And Conditions

You also agree that you will not use these products for any purposes prohibited by United States law, including, without limitation, the development, design, manufacture, or production of nuclear, missile, or chemical or biological weapons.

-- Excerpt from the 20,669-word, 2005 iTunes Terms & Conditions, cited by Sian Cain in an article about Robert Sikoryak, who used the text in his graphic novel "Terms and Conditions", The Guardian, 8 March 2017



https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/mar/08/terms-and-conditions-itunes-t-and-c-graphic-novel-robert-sikoryak-interview

The Grass Is Dry

The grass is dry on both sides, so it only takes a very small match to light it on fire.

-- Ari Fleischer, former press secretary to George W. Bush, on the volatile relationship between the Trump White House and the news media, New York Times, 25 February 2017

It Isn't A Failure

Think of everything as a pilot.  If it doesn't work, it isn't a failure.  It's data.

-- Dorie Clark, Forbes Magazine 28 February 2017

The Gap Is Closing

400 hours -- Number of hours of content being uploaded to YouTube every minute.  The aggregate amount of time the human race spends watching web videos is still below the time spent watching television, but the gap is closing very fast.  YouTube viewers world-wide are now watching more than 1 billion hours of videos a day, threatening to eclipse U.S. television viewership.

-- Walt Hickey in FiveThirtyEight's "Significant Digits", citing a 27 February 2017 Wall Street Journal article by Jack Nicas

Addictive

I consider the media to be indispensable to democracy,  We need an independent media to hold people like me to account.  Power can be very addictive and it can be corrosive, and it's important for the media to call to account people who abuse their power, whether it be here or elsewhere.

-- Former President George W Bush, "Today" show interview, 27 February 2017