The Air at the Top of the Bottle

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An Ullage Dozen (31): Feathers in the Lather

November 19th, 2010 · 1 Comment

Why are people so fond of positivism? Do they really trust their own senses and intellects?

I have another anecdote that shows my sister’s personality. She was a committed member of the Daughters of the American Revolution; when I mentioned that I thought they were wrong to bar Marian Anderson from Constitution Hall, her response was swift and hostile: “You don’t understand. Segregation was the law. They were upholding the law.”

toxic exotic

Another watershed: I just heard a radio commentator mention the discovery of Moses in the bulrushes, not as a passage in the Bible, but as a scene in the movie The Ten Commandments.

I hope that your amanuensis
Was counted in the latest census.

loggers with lagers

Did reports of angels, devils, gods and heavens come from elders with senile dementia? I also suspect that many folktales began as people simply telling their dreams.

Take back my plateful:
This dinner’s hateful.

One of life’s dirty little secrets: accomplishing something doesn’t necessarily accomplish anything.

The hippo’s mouth is very wide,
But it’s not safe to sit inside.

Does it never occur to Biblical literalists to read stories as parables? Parables are, after all, an ancient genre of religious instruction.

(Posted by Doug Skinner)

Tags: Education

1 response so far ↓

  • 1 Angela // Nov 20, 2010 at 3:49 pm

    i really enjoy these. amanuensis…dirty little secret and hippo mouth especially.