Omnesia June 16, 2014June 16, 2014 2nd QUARTERLY ESTIMATED TAX DUE Don’t forget to mail in your estimated income tax today if you’ve had appreciable income on which tax has not been withheld. NKTR Suggested here at $10.30, NKTR touched $14.65 Friday on good news, closing at $13.89. Guru: “It should go higher. They have a blockbuster. Will be approved in September. They get $135 million from Astra Zeneca. Everyone on opioids will be on this. They get a double digit royalty.” So — with all the usual caveats — I hold on. If it went into the higher teens fairly soon I’d likely sell much or all of it. If it doesn’t — but things continue to go well for the company — I might hold out for a higher price a year or two from now. DID YOU KNOW? Did you know you can make the type on your iPhone bold and/or bigger? Just go to SETTINGS / GENERAL / ACCESSIBILITY. Did you know you can coordinate care for a friend or relative — or coordinate who brings what to the potluck dinner so it’s not all potato salad — or coordinate study groups or office hours with signupgenius.com? And lots of other things that need coordinating, too. (“Should be in every sports parent’s playbook.” — Family Fun Magazine.) I saw it in action with a friend way too young and fit to have had quadruple by-pass surgery whose support group signed up for time slots to provide coverage. Worked really well. Did you know NYC seniors can get a photo ID half-price metro card that refills itself automatically from your credit card and even automatically gives you the even lower monthly rate if it sees you’ve used it enough for that to save you money? I, of course, refuse to acknowledge I am even within 20 years of being old enough to be eligible. But for your aunt. Did you know that the days may continue to get longer only until June 21 (check your location here), but to those of us who measure the length of the day by the time of the sunset, the longest day in the Northern hemisphere turns out to be July 4th or so. (The sunrise starts to get slightly later a week or two before June 21 — shortening the day. But the sunset, not having gotten the memo, also keeps getting slightly later for a week or two, though not by quite as much.) OMNESIA I made up a new word! The condition of knowing it all. And since no one truly can, it is in fact the condition of thinking one knows it all. Roughly the opposite of amnesia, but insufferable.
Video Weekend! – UPDATED June 13, 2014 [SORRY: Just wanted to add three things. First, not to make you crazy, but if you HAVEN’T lightened up on ETRM, hang on — today’s results came in better than one of my smart guys expected, so there’s a pretty good chance of approval Tuesday. In my mind, the odds have now gotten better again, though it remains a gamble. Second, don’t think I didn’t notice the California decision against teacher “tenure” this week, an important, hopeful development that should be replicated in other jurisdictions where the balance has tipped too far in favor of job security for ineffective teachers at the expense of children. Third, I’m sick over the developments in Iraq, which of course it’s now clearer than ever we never should have invaded. It seems to me zealotry of whatever variety — whether Catholics crusading 900 years ago or Islamic extremists crusading today — is humanity’s Achilles heal. I’m an atheist. I “believe in” science, logic, enlightened capitalism, and the Golden Rule. That still leaves plenty of room for disagreement; but far less room for inequality, resentment, oppression, strife, and atrocity. And now . . . back to our regularly scheduled programming.] KINDA WHY THE POLICE WEAR UNIFORMS Start with these 4 minutes: how Wyatt Earp ended “open carry” on the streets of Dodge City in the 1870’s — and how Kansas Republicans have now made it illegal for Dodge to ban six-shooters and AK-47s from its streets and saloons, even if it wants to. Now, take 6 minutes to see how we’ve come to “the intersection of ‘Open Carry Street’ and ‘Stand Your Ground Place.'” According to the NRA, Jon Stewart explains, you have the right to carry a weapon that may cause a reasonable person to fear for his life; and they have a right, if they feel that way, to respond with deadly force. “It’s a perpetual violence machine.” Because while in hindsight it’s clear the fellow entering the 7-Eleven with an AK-47 has good intentions, that’s not clear to everyone inside as it’s happening. You don’t know he’s a “good guy with a gun.” Indeed, Stewart notes, that’s why the police wear uniforms. So you can tell the good guys with guns from the bad guys with guns. Finally, no matter what else you have scheduled for today, find 5 minutes to watch this, wherein the etiquette of open carry is explained — by a white guy and a black guy. JOHN OLIVER ON NET NEUTRALITY Still with me? Remember, you have all weekend to enjoy this stuff. Take 13 minutes for this explanation of the Internet controversy, at the end of which I predict you will (a) find it hard to stop laughing; (b) rush over to fcc.gov to leave a comment; (c) program your DVR to watch John Oliver whenever he appears. KANSAS AGAIN Finally, if you didn’t have time for them Tuesday, I can’t recommend these segments highly enough: Kansas as a laboratory for what the right hopes to do nationwide. Kansas as Koch brothers country. Kansas Republicans denying the working poor Medicaid (even though the state wouldn’t have to pay for it). Kansas Republicans cutting back on education (and shutting down the only school in town). Kansas Republicans putting six-shooters back on the streets of Dodge (the clip you just saw, up above). Kansas Republicans working to force you to bear your rapist’s baby. Have a great weekend!
Video Weekend! June 13, 2014June 12, 2014 KINDA WHY THE POLICE WEAR UNIFORMS Start with these 4 minutes: how Wyatt Earp ended “open carry” on the streets of Dodge City in the 1870’s — and how Kansas Republicans have now made it illegal for Dodge to ban six-shooters and AK-47s from its streets and saloons, even if it wants to. Now, take 6 minutes to see how we’ve come to “the intersection of ‘Open Carry Street’ and ‘Stand Your Ground Place.'” According to the NRA, Jon Stewart explains, you have the right to carry a weapon that may cause a reasonable person to fear for his life; and they have a right, if they feel that way, to respond with deadly force. “It’s a perpetual violence machine.” Because while in hindsight it’s clear the fellow entering the 7-Eleven with an AK-47 has good intentions, that’s not clear to everyone inside as it’s happening. You don’t know he’s a “good guy with a gun.” Indeed, Stewart notes, that’s why the police wear uniforms. So you can tell the good guys with guns from the bad guys with guns. Finally, no matter what else you have scheduled for today, find 5 minutes to watch this, wherein the etiquette of open carry is explained — by a white guy and a black guy. JOHN OLIVER ON NET NEUTRALITY Still with me? Remember, you have all weekend to enjoy this stuff. Take 13 minutes for this explanation of the Internet controversy, at the end of which I predict you will (a) find it hard to stop laughing; (b) rush over to fcc.gov to leave a comment; (c) program your DVR to watch John Oliver whenever he appears. KANSAS AGAIN Finally, if you didn’t have time for them Tuesday, I can’t recommend these segments highly enough: Kansas as a laboratory for what the right hopes to do nationwide. Kansas as Koch brothers country. Kansas Republicans denying the working poor Medicaid (even though the state wouldn’t have to pay for it). Kansas Republicans cutting back on education (and shutting down the only school in town). Kansas Republicans putting six-shooters back on the streets of Dodge (the clip you just saw, up above). Kansas Republicans working to force you to bear your rapist’s baby. Have a great weekend!
Losing Weight, Losing Money June 12, 2014June 12, 2014 DON’T EAT Saves time, saves money, good for your health, good for the planet. (It takes 2,500 gallons of water and three-quarters of a gallon of oil to make a pound of hamburger.) And we don’t treat the cows and chickens all that well either. Now comes this (very preliminary) finding — “fasting triggers stem cell regeneration of damaged, old immune system.” It is of immediate interest only if you are undergoing chemotherapy. And you are a mouse. But I’m telling you: Except mostly for fresh fruit and vegetables, plus nuts and quinoa (I know: keen-WHA????) — and whatever nutrition there may be in Dentyne Ice to keep your breath minty fresh — don’t eat! GET A LOAD O’ THIS FARMER This is an inspirational clip you cannot fail to love. ETRM It’s almost show time for this weight loss device and I’m losing some of my nerve. Guru thinks it’s a slam dunk to be approved but is no longer talking about $10 or $20 as the upside. There is a huge element of “who knows?” in any of these things . . . and there are an awful lot of people — like us — waiting to unload our shares at a huge profit when approval is granted. Which would create a lot of headwind for the stock, at least short term. That’s if it goes well. I have another really smart friend who thinks, yes, it may get approved, because it seems safe, but even if it does — and it may not — it will get trashed by the scientists evaluating it, and he’s short the stock. So with ETRM having nearly doubled since it was first suggested here, I sold a good chunk yesterday. If it does double or triple — peachy. But I no longer see this as “heads, you win $5 or $10, tails you lose 90 cents,” but more like “heads, you win maybe $2 from here, tails you lose $1.50.” The truth is (as if it weren’t obvious), I have no idea what will happen or how the stock market — or obese patients and their health care providers — will react. MONT It looks as though the Chinese are going to go through with their acquisition of this deeply flawed company after all. If so, our puts will expire worthless, even if someday it turns out we were right — and even if it turns out the Chinese decision makers had “misaligned personal incentives” (shall we say) to make this deal. I’m holding my now nearly worthless puts, because “you never know.” But this would appear to be one of the speculations it’s a good thing we made with money we could truly afford to lose.
Here Come the Ambucycles! June 11, 2014June 11, 2014 LIFE SAVERS THAT DON’T GET STUCK IN TRAFFIC Four minutes to watch this clip — more than twice the time it takes them to come save your life. If you live in a town with traffic, maybe you can get Ambucycles, too. HE MAY HAVE BEEN UNHINGED, BUT THAT UNABOMBER COULD WRITE Margie: “Loved Zac’s sample from How to Write a Sentence. It reminded me of an old article in the March 2004 issue of The Atlantic Monthly, entitled ‘Would Shakespeare Get Into Swarthmore?‘ Judged against the criteria of the SAT writing test introduced in 2005, failures would have included Shakespeare, Hemingway, and Gertrude Stein. Shakespeare would not test out of freshman English and Stein would have to take a remedial class. But the Unabomber’s manifesto got a perfect 6.” UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES I once advocated a boycott of American Airlines — which was planning to move its headquarters from a then-troubled New York to low-tax Dallas — on the theory that, while boycotts usually fail, the airline industry operates on such low margins, and it was so easy at that time (when most planes flew with lots of empty seats) for New Yorkers conveniently to switch to a competitor — maybe the threat of a boycott could make them rethink the move. Needless to say, both New York and American survived somehow. (And I remain a fan of each.) Now comes the boycott of the Beverly Hills Hotel — joined by people as thoroughly good-hearted and mainstream as Jay Leno — over the despicable, barbaric, archaic human-rights policies of its owner, the Sultan of Brunei. (E.g., death by stoning for gay sex.) But nothing in a complex world is easy, as this excerpt shows: INSIDE THE BOYCOTT: A server at the Polo Lounge shares her side of the boycott of The Beverly Hills Hotel: . . . How does this boycott affect the Sultan and his politics? The short answer is that it doesn’t. The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Brunei, as well as many other countries with dubious human rights records, are heavily invested in the West, in hotels and movies, in Apple and Twitter, in Citigroup, Time Warner and Valentino to name a very few. In fact, Qatar Investment Authority (the sovereign wealth fund of the Sharia nation of Qatar) is the lead investor of Miramax. But most of these countries’ money doesn’t come from any of these investments, large as they may be. It comes from oil. It comes from the oil we all use. And therein lies the both the flaw and the hypocrisy of the boycott. To threaten the demise of The Beverly Hills Hotel does not begin to touch the Sultan financially or politically. We don’t pay his check, Shell does. Using the hotel as leverage is really no leverage at all. How does this affect me? The Sultan isn’t our boss; he’s our investor. His laws, which are completely not aligned with our code of conduct, do not reach Dorchester Collection properties. We at The Beverly Hills Hotel are women. We are men. We are gay. We are straight. We are multinational and multicultural. We are the ones who will feel the monetary loss. Profits from the hotel don’t go back to Brunei; they go back into the hotel, to us and to the community. We participate in AIDSWalk, The Revlon Breast Cancer Walk; we participate in charities and contribute to the preservation of our environment. Some of the celebrities who struck out most venomously against us were some of those we saw most often. I wonder how, knowing us as they do, they have no problem making The Beverly Hills Hotel the face of their outrage? They, to my knowledge, have no problem with any of those companies listed above whose money is also stamped with the blood of Sharia Law, companies who (with the exception of Miramax) have no personal connection to them as we do. What should we do? Some have called for us to quit or to strike and join the boycott. We don’t want this. We love our job and the incredible company for which we work. This is the company that recognized same-sex partnerships before gay marriage was legalized by recognizing and offering insurance to the partners of my co-workers. This is the company whose benefits and commitment to equality transcend any I’ve known. The concern for human rights is commendable. We should all be part of finding a solution for this global problem. The solution starts with our government and others. Reducing our dependency on oil would help, too. But reducing my income won’t help, I promise you. THE PERFECT FIVE-SECOND CLIP This woman rejoins the workforce after 30 years. It’s like riding a bicycle: some skills are long retained in motor memory. Here. NEW WHEELTUG COMPETITION The Russians are now trying to do this for the Sukhoi Superjet 100 — as reported here — which just adds to the air of “e-taxi” inevitability. But if this were easy to do — let alone without violating our patents — I think it would have been done by now.
What IS The Matter With Kansas? June 10, 2014 (And with the price of Borealis? But first . . .) KANSAS This was such a good 45 minutes . . . Chris Hayes, reporting from Kansas, segment after segment (if you have only 7 minutes, here’s a summary): Kansas as a laboratory for what the right hopes to do nationwide. Kansas as Koch brothers country. Kansas Republicans denying the working poor Medicaid (even though the state wouldn’t have to pay for it). Kansas Republicans cutting back on education (and shutting down the only school in town). Kansas Republicans putting six-shooters back on the streets of Dodge (Wyatt Earp be damned). Kansas Republicans working to force you to bear your rapist’s baby. BOREF According to its latest weekly letter, Wheeltug has “completed a major slot sale which looks to be announced at Farnborough. We can expect our slot sales to be in 4 digits soon” — which would be 1,000 or more, up from the currently announced 785. They say this would represent about 10% of all the 737’s and A320’s currently flying. Farnborough is just one of several upcoming trade shows and conferences at which they say they will have a presence: June 9-10 Flight and Airport Operations Conference Prague July 14-20 Farnborough International Airshow 2014 Farnborough Airport August 26-27 IATA Airline Cost Conference 2014 Geneva Sept/Oct (TBD) WheelTug Entry Into Service Conference Prague October 7-9 MRO Europe Madrid December 3-4 8th Annual Flight Operations Conference Frankfurt So — as usual — who knows? But one likes to think this pipe dream, so long in the making, is becoming ever more real. (At least, one does if one is drowning in Borealis shares, as I am.) At its current market value of $50 million – about one fifth of that really nice Cezanne — the company remains, to me, a remarkable lottery ticket. Not least because, if the technology underlying WheelTug is real, as it seems to be, it may have other applications. In cars, perhaps? In forklifts or locomotives or elevators? And the companies other improbable technologies may be real as well. I have zero capacity to evaluate this post, on a site dubiously titled, “cold fusion now” (quick! run for the hills!). But as the old line goes, usually with a heavy yiddish accent — “couldn’t hoyt!” I am also keenly aware this begins to take on the tone of a late night infomercial. “And that’s not all! If you order now, you get not just the WheelTug, and not just the Chorus Motors technology, and not just a bag of Power Chips and a carton of Cool Chips. No, if you are one of the first 1,000 callers, you will also get an interest in the company’s vast Roche Bay and Faraway mineral holdings! All this for the unbelievable price of $50 million. Not available in stores.” Crazy, no? And yet if there’s not something real here, explain to me how this 737 is taxiing around with its engines off. And why 14 or 15 airlines, and serious partners like Parker Hannifin, and an airline industry legend like Bob Crandall, appear to be believers. Fun, no?
Bergdahl, Benghazi, and the Real Scandals June 9, 2014June 9, 2014 THE PRISONER EXCHANGE “SCANDAL” JOHN McCAIN AND THE JOINT CHIEFS ENDORSED If you have an open mind but think the President botched Bowe Bergdahl, take the time to watch this. And then perhaps the segment that follows. Did you know that John McCain endorsed the prisoner exchange before he denounced it? Like so many “scandals,” it turns out there is no “there” there. (And when something does go wrong, it’s investigated and sensible attempts are made to fix it. For example: healthcare.gov — fixed within weeks and working now to the benefit of millions. For example: Benghazi — the tragedy that might have been averted if Republicans hadn’t blocked requested funds for beefed up security abroad and that certainly would have been averted if our brave and selfless Ambassador, well knowing the danger, hadn’t chosen to make that trip on 9/11 — but that, in any event, led to 29 recommendations the Secretary swiftly adopted. For example: the IRS targeting — ordered by a Bush appointee and, as it turns out, directed at left-wing as well as right-wing groups, not for political purposes but as a way to prioritize a flood of applications. For example: the VA delays — which could have been mitigated if Republicans hadn’t blocked additional funding to handle the demand, and which, happily, it appears Bernie Sanders and John McCain may now have arranged to resolve.) The real scandals, from my point of view, are that the governors of 19 states have rejected the Medicare expansion that would have been of such help — in some cases, life-or-death help — to millions of their citizens. And that the American Jobs Act, that would have put the unemployed to work revitalizing our crumbling infrastructure, was filibustered. And that the minimum wage, that would lift millions out of poverty and help to stimulate the economy, has been filibustered. And that extension of unemployment benefits was filibustered. And that immigration reform remains blocked. And that some are working to make it harder to register and to vote. THE PROS AND CONS OF OBAMACARE In looking for potentially interesting links for the paragraph above, Google took me to “Pros and Cons of Obamacare.” (“Too many online sources only want to give you one side of the story, we aim to bring you an unbiased look at both the negative and positive aspects of the Affordable Care Act.”) It doesn’t relate to the website launch, but I got hooked reading the table of pros and cons anyway. Consider some of the contrasts. Pro: “Tens of millions of uninsured will get access to affordable quality health insurance through the marketplace.” Matched with this con: “In order to get the money to help insure tens of millions there are new taxes, mostly on high-earners.” Pro: “You can’t be dropped from coverage when you get sick or make an honest mistake on your application.” Con: “Insurance companies must cover sick people and this increases the cost of everyone’s insurance.” Right? Think how inexpensive health insurance could be if it didn’t have to cover sick people! Hmmm. I get all these benefits, but people with more than $250,000 in income each year have to pay a little more tax. I think I’m against it! I can’t be denied coverage for having or developing a pre-existing condition, but health insurance companies are going to have to insure people with health issues. I think I’m against it! Sorry. I get these little sarcspasms.* What would be so awful if we all just proudly embraced our significant gains in making our people and our economy healthier, both of which the Affordable Health Care Act does? Was it really necessary for the Republicans to spend nearly half a billion dollars in TV ads to try to defeat it and — though having failed to do that — to leave so many Americans feeling bad about it? What IS the matter with Kansas? (If you missed Chris Hayes brilliant hour on that, I’ll be posting it later this week.) *Not a word, but is one now: a spasm of sarcasm. A sarcspasm.
Seven Heartening Minutes With a Little Deaf Boy June 6, 2014June 5, 2014 I WILL VOTE The DNC just rolled out iwillvote.com, with help registering . . . and with guidelines for each state — just click on yours. (Are you a student? A felon? Want to know how to check your registration status? Or what ID you’ll need? Have you recently moved? Wonder whether there will be early voting?) BUT I WON’T BUY THIS BOOK Zac Bissonnette — himself an author (Good Advice from Bad People: Selected Wisdom from Murderers, Stock Swindlers, and Lance Armstrong) writes: “So I came across a book yesterday called How to Write a Sentence. [‘Language lovers will flock to this homage to great writing.’— Booklist] In deciding whether to buy it, I did a test. I flipped to a random page and read one sentence. If that sentence was good, I decided, I would buy it. So help me God if I’m making this up, this is a random sentence (I only read one) from a book called How to Write a Sentence: They’ve already done that as a preliminary to writing in the service of an intention, and that intention will be substantive, a matter of content–the intention to praise or blame or reveal or complicate or exhort or rejoice or ponder or meditate or lament or anatomize or deconstruct (pardon the word) or “justify the ways of God to Man.” He did not buy the book. AND NOW THIS, WHICH WILL TOUCH YOU, I THINK Who could not feel for — and fall for — this little kid? HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND! The stock market’s at record highs! We’ve wound down our wars! None of us need ever again worry about having — or developing — a preexisting condition! We’ve begun to move on energy efficiency and climate change! The housing market’s strong in places! The deficit George W. Bush handed us has shrunk dramatically. And if you can afford an Internet connection and a smart phone, you have the whole world in your pocket! I know that may not clear up your concerns over the Benghazi talking points, or the IRS having targeted liberal groups for extra scrutiny, but it’s something, anyway. Have a great weekend.
Unfamiliar Quotations – Corrected June 5, 2014June 4, 2014 I screwed up the Rachel Maddow link yesterday. Too good to miss, so re-sending this, fixed. OF INTEREST IF YOU BREATHE OR LIVE IN A COASTAL AREA Here’s how the proposed cut in coal-fired power plant emissions will help. (Not mentioned is how it will help mitigate inundation of the world’s major cities.) It’s urgent and long-overdue that we make these cuts but — of course — all the usual suspects are decrying them. Here Rachel Maddow shows how reliably they always do that, whether it is to fight the Clean Air Act or to keep us from dealing with the hole in the ozone layer or anything else. (Count on the Republican Party to fight restrictions on carcinogens — protecting the tobacco industry for so many decades — and to fight universal background checks. Count on them to fight access to affordable health care and to fight a livable minimum wage. Count on them to fight to keep from putting people back to work rebuilding our decaying national infrastructure. Count on them to fight to kill the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and to cut funds for protecting our embassies overseas — but to fight for lower taxes on the very most wealthy and their heirs.) Did you know that Republicans have spent nearly half a billion dollars on anti-Obamacare ads? If only the Koch brothers had been around decades ago to defeat Social Security and Medicare and Unemployment Insurance and the minimum wage and the Clean Air Act, we might not be afflicted by these things today. I hate clean air! Seriously: watch that Rachel Maddow clip to see how doom is always predicted when we try to make progress. A pattern that extends back decades. Speaking of which, yesterday’s quote may bear repeating (my thanks to Jim Burt for spotting it): A failure on the part of the Republican party to give the national policy wholehearted support, which, of course, includes outspoken criticism of incompetence, unwisdom and inefficiency, will have to be construed as meaning only one thing: that the party is gambling on the defeat of the United States and that it is staking its political future on a national disaster. If the Republican party in Congress merely sulks and opposes, waiting for trouble, and appearing to hope for trouble . . . the Republican party will have placed itself in the intolerable position of having a vested interest in the humiliation and defeat of the United States. That was Walter Lippmann writing in 1941, days before Pearl Harbor. (Per Craig Shirley’s, December 1941.) Plus ça change . . . Herewith some other . . . UNFAMILIAR QUOTATIONS Recent quotes of the day from this quirky site (thanks, Tom): If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one? – Abraham Lincoln It’s a small world, but I wouldn’t want to paint it. – Steven Wright Remember that as a teenager you are at the last stage of your life when you will be happy to hear that the phone is for you. – Fran Lebowitz If you’re not scared or angry at the thought of a human brain being controlled remotely, then it could be this prototype of mine is finally starting to work. – John Alejandro King And one more: Said the wife to her husband as she emerged from a clothing store dressing room (in a David Sipress New Yorker cartoon): “It’s two sizes too big, but it fits.”
Unfamiliar Quotations June 4, 2014June 4, 2014 OF INTEREST IF YOU BREATHE OR LIVE IN A COASTAL AREA Here’s how the proposed cut in coal-fired power plant emissions will help. (Not mentioned is how it will help mitigate inundation of the world’s major cities.) It’s urgent and long-overdue that we make these cuts but — of course — all the usual suspects are decrying them. Here Rachel Maddow shows how reliably they always do that, whether it is to fight the Clean Air Act or to keep us from dealing with the hole in the ozone layer or anything else. (Count on the Republican Party to fight restrictions on carcinogens — protecting the tobacco industry for so many decades — and to fight universal background checks. Count on them to fight access to affordable health care and to fight a livable minimum wage. Count on them to fight to keep from putting people back to work rebuilding our decaying national infrastructure. Count on them to fight to kill the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and to cut funds for protecting our embassies overseas — but to fight for lower taxes on the very most wealthy and their heirs.) Did you know that Republicans have spent nearly half a billion dollars on anti-Obamacare ads? If only the Koch brothers had been around decades ago to defeat Social Security and Medicare and Unemployment Insurance and the minimum wage and the Clean Air Act, we might not be afflicted by these things today. I hate clean air! Seriously: watch that Rachel Maddow clip to see how doom is always predicted when we try to make progress. A pattern that extends back decades. Speaking of which, yesterday’s quote may bear repeating (my thanks to Jim Burt for spotting it): A failure on the part of the Republican party to give the national policy wholehearted support, which, of course, includes outspoken criticism of incompetence, unwisdom and inefficiency, will have to be construed as meaning only one thing: that the party is gambling on the defeat of the United States and that it is staking its political future on a national disaster. If the Republican party in Congress merely sulks and opposes, waiting for trouble, and appearing to hope for trouble . . . the Republican party will have placed itself in the intolerable position of having a vested interest in the humiliation and defeat of the United States. That was Walter Lippmann writing in 1941, days before Pearl Harbor. (Per Craig Shirley’s, December 1941.) Plus ça change . . . Herewith some other . . . UNFAMILIAR QUOTATIONS Recent quotes of the day from this quirky site (thanks, Tom): If I were two-faced, would I be wearing this one? – Abraham Lincoln It’s a small world, but I wouldn’t want to paint it. – Steven Wright Remember that as a teenager you are at the last stage of your life when you will be happy to hear that the phone is for you. – Fran Lebowitz If you’re not scared or angry at the thought of a human brain being controlled remotely, then it could be this prototype of mine is finally starting to work. – John Alejandro King And one more: Said the wife to her husband as she emerged from a clothing store dressing room (in a David Sipress New Yorker cartoon): “It’s two sizes too big, but it fits.”