Without All Doubt

Without all doubt, charity to the poor is a direct and obligatory duty upon all Christians.

-- Edmund Burke (1729 - 1797), British and Irish statesman and philosopher, Thoughts and Details on Scarcity (1795)

Difficult To Resume

Nothing is more dangerous than discontinued labor; it is habit lost.  A habit easy to abandon, difficult to resume.

-- Victor Hugo (1802 - 1885), French poet, novelist, and dramatist of the Romantic movement, Les Misérables, Volume Four: Saint Denis and Idyl of the Rue Plumet, Book II - Eponine, Chapter I: The Field of the Lark

Does Not Count

To each according to his threat advantage does not count as a principle of justice.

-- John Bordley Rawls (1921 - 2002), American philosopher, and a leading figure in moral and political philosophy, A Theory of Justice (1971) Chapter III, Section 24, pg. 141

Their Servants

Many forms of Government have been tried and will be tried in this world of sin and woe.  No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise.  Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time; but there is the broad feeling in our country that the people should rule, continuously rule, and that public opinion, expressed by all constitutional means, should shape, guide, and control the actions of Ministers who are their servants and not their masters.

-- Sir Winston Churchill KG OM CH TD FRS PC (1874 - 1965), British statesman who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945, during the Second World War, and again from 1951 to 1955, speech in the House of Commons (11 November 1947), published in 206–07 The Official Report, House of Commons (5th Series), 11 November 1947, vol. 444, cc.

To Feather Their Nests

We must especially beware of that small group of selfish men who would clip the wings of the American Eagle in order to feather their own nests.

-- Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882 - 1945), American statesman and political leader who served as the president of the United States, from 1933, to 1945, Eighth State of the Union Address, known as the Four Freedoms Speech (6 January 1941)

Even More Important

While it is well enough to leave footprints on the sands of time, it is even more important to make sure they point in a commendable direction.

-- James Branch Cabell (1879 - 1958), American author of satirical fantasy works, Beyond Life (1919) Ch. VI : Which Values the Candle, § 2, p. 173

On The Truth

Mr. President, Ukraine did not "start" this war.  Russia launched an unprovoked and brutal invasion claiming hundreds of thousands of lives.  The Road to Peace must be built on the Truth.🇺🇸🇺🇦

"Russia Invades Ukraine in Largest European Attack Since WWII" @FoxNews (February 24, 2022) https://foxnews.com/world/russian-invades-ukraine-largest-europe-attack-wwii.amp

-- Former Republican Vice President Mike Pence, in a tweet responding to Donald Trump's false claim Wednesday that Ukraine started the current war with Russia (19 February 2025 11:54 AM)

To Provide

The function of the artist is to provide what life does not.

-- Thomas Eugene Robbins (1932 - 2025), American novelist, Another Roadside Attraction (1971)

Strange Alchemy

The strange alchemy of time has somehow converted the Democrats into the truly conservative party of this country -- the party dedicated to conserving all that is best, and building solidly and safely on these foundations.  The Republicans, by contrast, are behaving like the radical party -- the party of the reckless and the embittered, bent on dismantling institutions which have been built solidly into our social fabric.

-- Adlai Stevenson (1900 - 1965), American politician and statesman, statement during his 1952 presidential campaign, quoted in Unadjusted Man in the Age of Overadjustment: Where History and Literature Intersect (1956) by Peter Viereck

Individuals Count

Revolutions are the periods of history when individuals count most.

-- Norman Mailer (1923 - 2007), American novelist, playwright, and film director, Barbary Shore (1951) McLeod, in Ch. 29

Layers

Does President Trump understand money?  Not money as in cash, but the supply of money, the price of money as measured by interest rates, and their impact on inflation?  The answer would appear to be no after Mr. Trump called for lower interest rates on Wednesday -- the same day the Labor Department reported an increase in inflation for the third straight month.

"Interest Rates should be lowered, something which would go hand in hand with upcoming Tariffs!!!" Mr. Trump posted on his social-media site.  The layers of intellectual confusion here are hard to parse, especially since higher tariffs will mean higher prices on the affected goods.  But perhaps the President wants the public to look elsewhere when assigning blame for rising prices.

-- Wall Street Journal Editorial Board, alleging economic blunders by President Trump for the second time in three days, "Trumponomics and Rising Inflation" (12 February 2025)

Without Fear Or Favor

I received a memorandum from acting Deputy AG Emil Bove, directing me to dismiss the indictment against Mayor Eric Adams without prejudice, subject to certain conditions, which would require leave of court.  I do not repeat here the evidence against Adams that proves beyond a reasonable doubt that he committed federal crimes; ... the case team conducted this investigation with integrity and the charges against Adams are serious and supported by fact and law.  Mr. Bove's memo, however, which directs me to dismiss an indictment returned by a duly constituted grand jury for reasons having nothing to do with the strength of the case, raises serious concerns that render the contemplated dismissal inconsistent with my ability and duty to prosecute federal crimes without fear or favor and to advance good-faith arguments before the courts.

When I took my oath of office three weeks ago, I vowed to well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I was about to enter.  In carrying out that responsibility, I am guided by, among other things, the Principles of Federal Prosecution set forth in the Justice Manual and your recent memoranda instructing attorneys for the Department of Justice to make only good-faith arguments and not to use the criminal enforcement authority of the United States to achieve political objectives or other improper aims.  I am also guided by the values that have defined my over ten years of public service. ...  I have always considered it my obligation to pursue justice impartially, without favor to the wealthy or those who occupy important public office, or harsher treatment for the less powerful.

I therefore deem it necessary to the faithful discharge of my duties to raise the concerns expressed in this letter with you and to request an opportunity to meet to discuss them further.  I cannot fulfill my obligations, effectively lead my office in carrying out the Department's priorities, or credibly represent the Government before the courts, if I seek to dismiss the Adams case on this record.

-- Danielle R. Sassoon, Acting Manhattan U.S. attorney, writing to US AG Pam Bondi, refusing to drop the case against Mayor Eric Adams (12 February 2025)

As He Threatens

President Trump gave the economy another jolt of uncertainty on Monday when he signed executive orders imposing 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports.  His advisers say these tariffs are economically "strategic" rather than a bargaining chip for some other goal.  Is the strategy to harm U.S. manufacturers and workers?

That's what his first-term tariffs did, and it's worth revisiting the damage of that blunder as he threatens to repeat it. 

-- Wall Street Journal Editorial Board, "The Truth About Trump's Steel Tariffs" (10 February 2025)

I Like Work

I like work: it fascinates me.  I can sit and look at it for hours.

-- Jerome K. Jerome (1859 - 1927), English author, Three Men in a Boat (1889)

The Ideal Strong Person

As I become Strong, Strength gives me Autonomy.  Now that I have Autonomy, I must act with Integrity so that I do not infringe on other individuals acting autonomously and with integrity.  This forbearance from interfering with the autonomy of others is Justice, which I expect from them in return.  In choosing among goals with Integrity, I must willfully embrace Right Prioritization, choosing to choose with Integrity.  A society of individuals acting in this way will be Interdependently Effective.

-- Don Appleman, in my essay "The Ideal Strong Person", submitted with my application to test in April for 4th Dan in Taekwondo (8 February 2025)

First Of All Pleasures

Illusion is the first of all pleasures.

-- François-Marie Arouet (1694 - 1778), most famous under his pen name Voltaire, French writer and philosopher, from the satirical poem "The Maid of Orleans" (1756)

Information Loss

Disintegration of structure equals information loss.

-- Gregory Benford (1941 -), American science fiction author and astrophysicist who is on the faculty of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of California, Irvine, In the Ocean of Night (1977) The Snark, a member of a machine-intelligence civilization, p. 195

Enshittification

Enshittification, also known as crapification and platform decay, is the term used to describe the pattern in which online products and services decline in quality over time.  Initially, vendors create high-quality offerings to attract users, then they degrade those offerings to better serve business customers, and finally degrade their services to users and business customers to maximize profits for shareholders.

Writer Cory Doctorow coined the neologism enshittification in November 2022, though he was not the first to describe and label the concept.  The American Dialect Society selected it as its 2023 Word of the Year, with Macquarie Dictionary following suit for 2024.

-- WikiPedia entry for Enshittification, describing a process just witnessed at Twitter, after its takeover by Elon Musk, and now being experienced by all in America, after its takeover by Elon Musk, where he seems to believe that he and Donald Trump are the shareholders

Our Closest Friends

Tonight, first, I want to speak directly to Americans, our closest friends and neighbours. 

As I have consistently said, tariffs against Canada will put your jobs at risk, potentially shutting down American auto assembly plants and other manufacturing facilities.  They will raise costs for you, including food at the grocery stores and gas at the pump.  They will impede your access to an affordable supply of vital goods, crucial for U.S. security such as nickel, potash, uranium, steel and aluminum.  They will violate the free trade agreement that the president and I, along with our Mexican partner, negotiated and signed a few years ago.

But it doesn't have to be this way.  As President John F. Kennedy said many years ago, "geography has made us neighbours, history has made us friends, economics has made us partners, and necessity has made us allies."

That rang true for many decades prior to President Kennedy's time in office and in the decades since.  From the beaches of Normandy, to the mountains of the Korean Peninsula, from the fields of Flanders, to the streets of Kandahar, we have fought and died alongside you.

Together we've built the most successful economic, military and security partnership the world has ever seen, a relationship that has been the envy of the world. Yes, we've had our differences in the past, but we've always found a way to get past them.

Unfortunately the actions taken today by the White House split us apart instead of bringing us together.

Canada is home to bountiful resources, breathtaking beauty and a proud people who've come from every corner of the globe to forge a nation with a unique identity worth embracing and celebrating.  We don't pretend to be perfect but Canada is the best country on Earth.  There's nowhere else that I and our 41 million strong family would rather be, and we will get through this challenge just as we've done countless times before, together.  Thank you.  Merci.  Vive le Canada. 

-- Prime Minister Justin Trudeau addressing media following the announcement of a raft of tariffs by U.S. President Donald Trump against Canada, Mexico, and China (2 February 2025)

Not Young Enough

I'm not young enough to know everything.

-- Sir James Matthew (J. M.) Barrie (1860 - 1937), Scottish novelist and dramatist, The Admirable Crichton, Act I (1903)