• Adages

    Greatest comeback ever – Alexandre Dumas edition

    April 7, 2015 /

    It turns out he was of mixed race – or so says wikipedia anyway

    Despite Dumas’ aristocratic background and personal success, the writer had to deal with discrimination related to his mixed-race ancestry. In 1843 he wrote a short novel, Georges, that addressed some of the issues of race and the effects of colonialism. His response to a man who insulted him about his African ancestry has become famous. Dumas said:

    My father was a mulatto, my grandfather was a Negro, and my great-grandfather a monkey. You see, Sir, my family starts where yours ends.

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  • Uncategorized

    Ever More Quotes of the day

    March 26, 2015 /

    Again from Slate Star Codex

    The difference between “religion” and “culture” has always been pretty vague. Shinto is the best example; it’s less a coherent metaphysical narrative than a bunch of things Japanese people do and a repository for Japanese traditions and rituals. A quick look at Hinduism reveals that they have no idea what gods they believe in, it’s a bunch of different religions stuck together under one umbrella, but the point is that it’s the sort of thing Indian people do and a repository of Indian traditions. Even though Jews have a pretty coherent religion, the line between “Jewish culture” and “Jewish religion” is equally fuzzy. Religion as distinct from culture seems like a pretty Western phenomenon, the result of a triumphant Christianity colonizing cultures it never originated from, ending out with the modern conception of culture as ethnic food + silly costumes.

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  • Aging

    Random insight on New Years Eve

    December 31, 2014 /

    I suppose my current consuming insight is that America is lacking in quality old people.  As my dad put it (around 2003 IIRC) foolishness used to be fatal, but now everything is seat belted, idiot-proofed, and somewhat treatable medically, thus permitting a lot of the less wise to reach old age, and bringing down the average level of wisdom in society.  We can expect young people to be reckless and impulsive, but traditionally the older generation grows out of that.  Thanks to technology, they have not been doing that lately.

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