Quote of the day
 

It started out as a way to save funny or interesting taglines I saw on bbs messages. I never used taglines much, but I continued to keep a collection as I browsed usenet and got email. I've since added longer quotes that I think are worth keeping around.

I will try to post one every weekday.

'Progress might have been all right once, but it has gone on too long.'
- Ogden Nash

Me too! 'cept the post/weekday thang. I could contribute however. What's your pleasure?

The more, the merrier.

As in 100k of collected wisdom? Pacing and restraint are not my long suits. Oh, and expect a special guest appearance of Lazarus Long, more than once! :)

You'll come to regret those words, heh, heh, heh!

"We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount … The world has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants." - Omar Bradley

"The race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong --
but that's the way to bet." - Damon Runyon

The only request that I have is to emphasize quality over quantity. I think there's a timelessness to a good quote. There's already other places on the board for humor on current events.

I also am a Heinlein fan and I have several of the notebook quotes highlighted in my copy of TEFL. I just never put them in the file because I have them in the book.

`Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?'
`That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,' said the Cat.
`I don't much care where--' said Alice.
`Then it doesn't matter which way you go,' said the Cat.
`--so long as I get SOMEWHERE,' Alice added as an explanation.
`Oh, you're sure to do that,' said the Cat, `if you only walk long enough.'
- Lewis Carroll "Alice in Wonderland"

It's a trick. Get an axe.~Ash, Army of Darkness

Supernatural or not, Jesus had some good things to say.

marichiko's quote reminded me of this one:

The Things That Will Destroy Us Are:
Politics Without Principle;
Pleasure Without Conscience;
Wealth Without Work;
Knowledge Without Character;
Business Without Morality;
Science Without Humanity;
And Worship Without Sacrifice. -- Mahatma Gandhi - (1869-1948)

*****************

Hearing that President Bush called together former Secreataries of State and Defense, including Colin Powell whose advice he ignored by invading Iraq, I thought of this scene from Alice in Wonderland. Now since the book was disguised political satire, it might be that it was referring to a similar situation in British history.

There are other aphorisms about the need for setting a goal, but none that say it quite as well.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass are both great books and full of useful tidbits like this. I find that most programmers have read them - they seem to strike some chord.

Larry Wall (the author of the computer language Perl) in an interview once quoted Humpty Dumpty from Through the Looking Glass - `When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, `it means just what I choose it to mean -- neither more nor less.' It was both humerous and a wonderful use of the quote to describe a part of the Perl language. However, the text of the interview indicated that the interviewer didn't get it.

I wrote Larry to ask about the interview and actually got a reply. He also is a big fan of the books. He told me that it is no accident that his son is named Charles.

Quote of the Day
 

"Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately
explained by stupidity" - Hanlon's Razor