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flexibeastTonight i was supposed to have a catch-up evening with ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
indigowolf; we haven't had an evening together for ages. Unfortunately, the busy-ness of the week finally caught up with me, and i felt so nauseously tired that i had to ask sacred_harlot for a bucket, afraid that i was going to vomit. In the end i didn't; but in the meantime, my plans for the evening were ruined, and i had to cancel the get-together. :-( Hopefully we'll be able to arrange for another get-together in the near future.
In other news, i recently came across a thought-provoking article on Snopes.com about something said by Nazi leader Hermann Goering. When it was pointed out to Goering that in the US, people elect Congress, and only Congress has the power to declare war1, Goering replied:
Clearly, our 'democratically elected representatives' in Australia and the US (and, i imagine, the UK) are happy to follow Goering's suggestion. :-P
And speaking of 'democratically elected representatives', does anyone else notice the doublethink that many politicians show with regards to capitalism? On the one hand, elected members of the major political parties will talk about how The Market will fix this and solve that and create Utopia from the other. On the other, we have the following:
:-P
Finally, on a lighter note, those familiar with academia might be amused by an article on How To Write A Scientific Paper :-)
1. Is this true? i mean, even if it's true in theory, i get the impression that the US Constitution can be interpreted fairly freely in practice . . . .
indigowolf; we haven't had an evening together for ages. Unfortunately, the busy-ness of the week finally caught up with me, and i felt so nauseously tired that i had to ask sacred_harlot for a bucket, afraid that i was going to vomit. In the end i didn't; but in the meantime, my plans for the evening were ruined, and i had to cancel the get-together. :-( Hopefully we'll be able to arrange for another get-together in the near future.In other news, i recently came across a thought-provoking article on Snopes.com about something said by Nazi leader Hermann Goering. When it was pointed out to Goering that in the US, people elect Congress, and only Congress has the power to declare war1, Goering replied:
"Oh, that is all well and good, but, voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same way in any country."
Clearly, our 'democratically elected representatives' in Australia and the US (and, i imagine, the UK) are happy to follow Goering's suggestion. :-P
And speaking of 'democratically elected representatives', does anyone else notice the doublethink that many politicians show with regards to capitalism? On the one hand, elected members of the major political parties will talk about how The Market will fix this and solve that and create Utopia from the other. On the other, we have the following:
- A natural disaster occurs. Suddenly, these politicians stuff their supply and demand curves into their pockets and instead start issuing proclamations against 'profiteering'. So apparently, profiteering is unacceptable during or after a natural disaster, but perfectly acceptable if all it does is wreck people's health, fail to provide a living wage, destroy the environment, etc.
- Oil prices skyrocket, for a variety of reasons. Suddenly, politicans start implying that businesses shouldn't pas son this increase in the price of a particular input to the consumer - despite regularly proclaiming that rising input costs in the form of wages are Evil, and must be combatted at all, er, costs.
:-P
Finally, on a lighter note, those familiar with academia might be amused by an article on How To Write A Scientific Paper :-)
1. Is this true? i mean, even if it's true in theory, i get the impression that the US Constitution can be interpreted fairly freely in practice . . . .
