Monthly Archives: November 2017

“The book is the most efficient technological instrument for learning that has ever been devised by the human mind.”–Northrop Frye “A book should serve as an ice-axe to break the frozen sea within us.”–Franz Kafka “In the case of good … Continue reading →

“A leader is a dealer in hope.” –Napoleon Bonaparte “A leader is a dealer in dope.” –Justin Trudeau

has started referring to himself as “we” in his media interviews. Lest anyone else forget, this is the egotist who once crashed the Remembrance Day ceremonies in Ottawa and walked among the crowds having selfies taken along the way, insulting … Continue reading →

“Begin at once to live, and count each day as a separate life.”

-Aristotle

I take comfort in the literary examples of Homer, John Milton, James Joyce, and James Thurber.

was not a gun problem is nuts. Guess who? Meantime, Wisconsin has gone nuts passing first reading of a bill which would allow kids under 10 to bear firearms without adult consent. If the bill becomes legislation, toddlers would be allowed … Continue reading →

(the haunting 1919 Harry Clarke illustrations are well-worth seeking out; Franklin has an excellent, recommended 1979 collection of Poe’s tales) It’s hard to find any other writer who compares with the depth and breadth of Edgar Allan Poe’s moribund imagination and … Continue reading →

Last week the dishwasher plug. Today the fire extinguisher handle. The pervasive atrophy and destabilization continues…

The two women with their supportive dogs who claim they suffered great hardships at sea. *We have to give Trump some credit for popularizing the term; it exists and has long existed. There are no shortage of cases where stories … Continue reading →