Quotation of the day for July 31, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 31, 2011 "Cheryl's mind turned like the vanes of a wind-powered turbine, chopping her sparrow-like thoughts into bloody pieces that fell onto a growing pile of forgotten memories." - Sue Fondrie, winner of the 2011 Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest. (The contest challenges entrants to compose bad opening sentences to imaginary novels.) [http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/2011.htm] Submitted by: Bob Bruhin Jul. 26, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 30, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 30, 2011 "Culturally speaking, finding a McDonald's in a Walmart is like finding a cyst in a tumour." - Alan Park, on CBC's The Debaters, arguing against the megachain in the episode Walmart & Beauty vs Brains. [http://www.cbc.ca/thedebaters/episode] Submitted by: D. Joseph Creighton Jul. 13, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 29, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 29, 2011 "The moon looking coyly down at us through the swarm of bloodsucking gnats." ... "Ladies and gentlemen, the bugs are coming in heavy. But as long as we have skeletons, we will continue to play." - Josh Ritter, singer-songwriter, while playing the main stage at the Mariposa Folk Festival, July 8, 2011. [http://joshritter.com/] Submitted by: Terry Labach Jul. 11, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 28, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 28, 2011 "Civilization is a movement and not a condition, a voyage and not a harbour." - Arnold Toynbee Submitted by: Reddy, Michael Jun. 8, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 27, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 27, 2011 "4.06pm: Basso is now the one setting the pace for the chasing pack, which has also passed Casar. The Schlecks sit behind on each shoulder, waiting to attack. Out front, Vanendert rewards an especially enthusiastic fan with a high five. Well, that or he tried to hit him." - Paolo Bandini, reporting on Stage 14 of the Tour de France for the Guardian. [http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/jul/16/tour-de-france-stage-14-live] Submitted by: Prem Pahlajrai Jul. 17, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 26, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 26, 2011 "I spent some time working in the television industry, and I learned a technique that writers use. It's called "the bad version." When you feel that a plot solution exists, but you can't yet imagine it, you describe instead a bad version that has no purpose other than stimulating the other writers to imagine a better version. "For example, if your character is stuck on an island, the bad version of his escape might involve monkeys crafting a helicopter out of palm fronds and coconuts. That story idea is obviously bad, but it might stimulate you to think in terms of other engineering solutions, or other monkey-related solutions. The first step in thinking of an idea that will work is to stop fixating on ideas that won't. The bad version of an idea moves your mind to a new vantage point. "With that technique in mind, I will describe some bad versions of how society might go about the job of convincing the rich to accept higher taxes on themselves. But first I need to address the illusion of fairness. "We like to think that fairness is an objective condition. If you and a friend simultaneously find a dollar on the street, fairness suggests that you split it. But what if your friend is a billionaire and you are starving? Is it still fair to split the dollar? And what if you and your friend noticed the dollar at the same time but your friend was quicker to pick it up? Does that count for anything? "In reality, fairness is not so much about the actual distribution of loot as it is about the psychology of how you feel about it. That's important to understand because the rich won't give up their cash unless they feel they are getting something in return. And so far, saving the country doesn't seem to be enough of a payoff." - Scott Adams, creator of "Dilbert", from his article How to Tax the Rich, in The Wall Street Journal. [http://online.wsj.com/article_email/SB10001424052748703293204576106164123424314-lMyQjAxMTAxMDEwMTExNDEyWj.html] Submitted by: Kathleen Magone Apr. 20, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 25, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 25, 2011 With the traffic and our heartbeats Beating in straight time, Let our hatred and affection March in the same line, Before we say goodnight. Oh, protect our secret handshake Once more with feeling. Let the toast to absent members Push through the ceiling. Before we say goodnight. - John K. Samson, from his song Psalm For The Elks Lodge Last Call, recorded by his band, The Weakerthans on the album Reconstruction Site. Submitted by: Terry Labach May 12, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 24, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 24, 2011 "It's a bumper sticker culture. People have to get it like that, and if they don't, if it takes three seconds to make them understand, you're off their radar screen. Three seconds to understand, or you lose. This is our problem." - Lawrence Lessig Submitted by: Dorene Smith Jun. 6, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 23, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 23, 2011 "There was a time when you had to earn the right to draft a memoir, by accomplishing something noteworthy or having an extremely unusual experience or being such a brilliant writer that you could turn relatively ordinary occurrences into a snapshot of a broader historical moment. Anyone who didn't fit one of those categories was obliged to keep quiet. Unremarkable lives went unremarked upon, the way God intended." - Neil Genzlinger [http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/30/books/review/Genzlinger-t.html] Submitted by: Terry Labach Jul. 7, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 22, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 22, 2011 "My concern is not whether God is on our side. My great concern is to be on God's side." - Abraham Lincoln, in the midst of the Civil War, on being asked if God was on his side. Quoted by Clifford May, as being in reply to a clergyman, National Post, June 8, 2011. Other sources claim Lincoln was speaking at a scientific convention. Submitted by: Z.D. Hora Jun. 10, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 21, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 21, 2011 "Well, let me put it this way. "All of us assign blame in our own best interest. Right? "Well, if we assign blame in our own best interest, that means blame is relative. And if blame is relative, then one of the important functions in society becomes who controls the blame patterns. "Why is it that large bodies of workers, like in my country, assign blame downward to some welfare chisellers down at the bottom, you know, they say "trying to get a little bit of something for nothing" and they never assign blame upward to the handful of big-time chisellers at the top who get a whole lot of something for doing nothing at all? "Well, that's because the blame pattern is manipulated....the government reaches out through its media, in every home, and pushes those buttons and pulls those levers and elicits massive response for or against anything it chooses." - Utah Phillips, folk singer and activist, during a 1981 concert in Vancouver, BC. The concert was recorded on the album "We Have Fed You All A Thousand Years". Submitted by: Mike Krawchuk Apr. 19, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 20, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 20, 2011 "I was lying in bed one day, thinking about my death, wondering if I'd be conscious enough to talk to my children, what I'd want to leave to them; famous last words, as it were. "The key word is trust. Trust everything that happens in life, even those experiences that cause pain, will serve to better you in the end. It's easy to lose the inner vision, the greater truths, in the face of tragedy. There really is no such thing as suffering simply for the sake of suffering. Along with developing a basic trust in the rhyme and reason of life itself, I advise you to trust your intuition. It is a far better guide in the long run than your intellect. "Next on my list is to learn what love is. It is complete and utter surrender. That's a big word, surrender. It doesn't mean letting people walk all over you, take advantage of you. It's when we surrender control, let go of our egos, that all the love in the world is there waiting for us. Love is not a game, it's a state of being." - Henry Miller, from Reflections, edited by Twinka Thiebaud. Submitted by: Kathleen Magone Jun. 10, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 19, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 19, 2011 Why must the show go on? Why not announce the closing night of it? The public seem to hate the sight of it, Dear, and so Why you should undergo This terrible strain we'll never know. We know that you're sad, We know that you've had A lot of storm and strife But is it quite fair To ask us to share Your dreary private life? We know you're trapped in a gilded cage But for Heaven's sake relax and be your age, Stop being gallant And don't be such a bore, Pack up your talent, There's always plenty more And if you lose hope Take dope And lock yourself in the John Why must the show go on? I'm merely asking Why must the show go on? - Noel Coward, from his song Why Must The Show Go On? Submitted by: Mike Krawchuk May 12, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 18, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 18, 2011 "What Brantford had expected from life and what it had actually given him must have been so distinct and so dissonant that he probably felt his dignity dropping away little by little until he simply wasn't himself anymore. He didn't seem to be anybody and he had no resources of humility to turn that nothingness into a refuge." - Charles Baxter, from his story "The Cousins" from the collection Gryphon: New and Selected Stories. Submitted by: Mike Krawchuk Jun. 16, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 17, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 17, 2011 "A few years back everyone one wanted the Jennifer Lopez look but now everyone asks for a bottom like Pippa's -- curvy but not too peachy." - Lesley Khan of the Harley Street Skin Clinic in London. The images of Pippa Middleton at the Royal Wedding have influenced women seeking cosmetic surgery. Submitted by: Mike Krawchuk May 18, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 16, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 16, 2011 "But then she could download no books at all. The Sony e-reader is not compatible with the new Mac. She made a few long technical-support calls. The MacBook is too fast for the device, explained a technician, so you have to slow down your operating system. You change it from a 64-bit to a 32-bit kernel; no problem, you can change it back again when you need it to be fast. ... "She did change the kernel, or whatever you call it, to 32-bit, and the thing worked for a day or so, but then the Mac automatically updated its operating system and it reset itself. No e-books could be opened -- although she had paid for them and they were sitting waiting for her somewhere. She found and bought the rare and expensive USB cable, which is now useless. "I am currently almost through a poppy Taschen book called Photo Icons: The Story Behind the Pictures, which is two volumes of short entries about famous photos. It is quite light in content but it does function well without a USB cable. "My partner finally solved the technical problem of the inaccessible books on the server: She went to a bookstore and bought them. Her technological education has now been interrupted by reading. We had better get back to our computer study soon, though; obviously the future of literature contains a great deal of electronics." - Russell Smith, in E-reader envy: A cautionary tale. [http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/arts/russell-smith/e-reader-envy-a-cautionary-tale/article2071045/] Submitted by: Terry Labach Jun. 28, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 15, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 15, 2011 "Your life story would not make a good book. Don't even try." - Fran Lebowitz, in the documentary Public Speaking. Submitted by: Terry Labach Jul. 7, 2011

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Quotation of the day for July 14, 2011

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Quotation of the Day for July 14, 2011 "The conversation drifted from profundities about the nature of God, the universe and man, to lighter questions. Suddenly, Einstein lifted his head, looked up at the skies and said, "We know nothing about it at all. Our knowledge is but the knowledge of school children." "Do you think that we shall ever probe the secret?" "Possibly," Einstein said with a movement of his shoulders, "we shall know a little more than we do now. But the real nature of things -- that we shall never know, never." - Ronald W. Clark, from his book Einstein: The Life and Times. Submitted by: Kathleen Magone Jul. 6, 2011

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