Open letters are the hissy fits of our times, petulant and tedious expressions of collective outrage. It is also by some considerable measure the laziest form of protest.
In other words, the terminally aggrieved could take to the barricades but that would mean having to walk all the way to the barricades, standing around, feeling uncomfortable and what if it rained? It’s much easier to simply put names to a letter someone else had written in strident agreement with its contents.
There is one particularly egregious example of the open letter that caught my eye last night. It comes from the Columbia Journalism Review and is allegedly an open letter from the American press corps to President-elect Donald Trump.
As if journalists weren’t despised enough by the community, along comes this haughty expression of well … a journalist’s basic job description albeit dripping in sanctimony and self-importance. It even includes the grammatical venal sin of writing ‘you’re’ as ‘your’. Tsk, tsk, tsk.
Full column here.
This
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/01/24/trump-signs-five-more-orders-pipelines-steel-and-environment/96988428/
plus an infrastructure offer from the Dems?
We wonder, Mr Insider, who the first big name World leader POTUS Trump is seen with as am sure he will want the World to see he is accepted by leaders. One M. Turnbull am sure will want to “snuggle up” to Donald but he’s just small fish. Trump needs someone like Teresa May or the likes. Interesting early days for sure.
Theresa May will visit on Friday.
WOW did not know that Dwight a good fit for the Donald 1st up imho great pic ops.
May will be there within the next week I gather.
Yes just saw Dwight’s post Yvonne no doubt about the Donald he moves fast!
Actually I think it was Theresa who moved fast, HB! No flies on that chick. She may even tame the Don. Wouldn’t mind being a fly on the wall there!
I wonder if Mr Trump will grab him on the pussy, cos Trump is a big star now, and you know Malcolm is an even bigger girl.
Theresa May is a female Wraith. She’s pretty tough – I don’t think that will happen
Tab time overdue Wraith?
Malcolm a hugeeeeeeeeeeee girl Wraith mmmm
He is not a girl Wraith just an old tart
Ohhh behave, Wraith!
he would achieve exactly that outcome by shaking his hand……
Someone grabbed my pussy once, Wraith. We never did find out what happened to it.
That’s funny Darren.!
They must have disguised it Daz. They shave them you know.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrZxPZs6tac
Dismayed .
Interesting China giant Yancoal will pay RIO more then 3 billion for the properties, marking a major exit from coal for the Australian miner .This is in the Hunter Valley as print media describes with China hungry for coal.
If you want greater figures Dismayed on this ,..look up article from John Dagge. Amazed the billions thrown around in this article.I am like Bob Hawke , nuclear is our greatest asset yet we ignore it.
Further to my comment on declining standards of education here, the comments by Prof. Simmons in today’s Oz are concerning.
Physics students being ask to write essays instead of equations? What? That does seem like a dumbing down.
Remember the days of the Pocono group – and brilliant young men like Feynman, Schwinger, Dirac, Heisenberg, Schrodinger – dozens of them filling the universities, enthusiastically playing with quantum physics and equations and reaching for the limits. What’s happened?
I can still wind up with students in my classes with almost no math background. They get a little panicky if I write an equation on the whiteboard.
Have you read Genius, the Life and Science of Richard Feynman by James Gleick, Dwight? Good read and very well written. Inspirational. Maybe it should be compulsory reading for your students?
Huh! Are you living under a………. oh of course you’re living in Tasmania.
http://www.thebestschools.org/features/50-influential-scientists-world-today/
And that’s jus a handful, brains just aren’t sexy anymore.
Well seems they could do with some of those brains at the NSW campus she refers to JB.
Tasmania doing nicely thank you. Going ahead in leaps and bounds here. It’s all happening. Now voted the most popular goto destination for the millennials. Groan. Coming down – opening cafes, bars, small businesses. Housing still affordable – which has spurred a housing boom – we’ve been discovered. Not sure how I feel about that.
So no, not living under a rock anymore – I sometimes think I’d like to be though. The rocks down here in paradise are pretty special. Check out the Three Capes Walk utube if you don’t believe me!
I still think brains are sexy, JB. I think you’re wrong about that. Always an asset.
My eldest was one of the (and the) top student(s) in his grade last year in maths and chemistry, in a large state school that has a good ranking (more important than that they do a good line in education!). After that shameless and needless boasting, I will add that his windows and large sliding mirror where covered in equations. Reminded me of A Beautiful Mind, until I naturally began to suspect he was a terrorist (so I burnt all his sheets). And whilst he may enjoy trying to explain it to his mum, little brother and I, over dinner as if it was passing chatter I have no idea what he is on about as at school I did what was called veggie maths! And whilst he may have a good. natural intelligence he gets his results from a LOT of hard work. I’m still thinking of getting that dna test done.
Don’t get it done Milt! You might deprive yourself of years and years of future shameless and needless boasting! That’s why I never got my oldest tested.
JB,…
Just off topic you used in a blog way back as a matter of interest , me copying your line recently “fowl he garbage you spruik” . I spent 20 minutes trying to find it in your blogs , me pinching your line knowing your unusual terms . I thought I may turn into a JB for one blog while not researching first the meaning .
Someone here questioned me on that mate!
I thought your self made dictionary might help me out .
A first class example of authentic geriatric gibberish. One of your best, but as such it is unintelligible so I have no idea what you are talking about.
How old are you JB? Old enough to he considered a geriatric?
Carl on the Coast 1:24PM 24th
You’re clearly gorm challenged but surely you have reached the stage in life where you can understand the official narrative is and always has been chook food for the dumpling headed proles? You seriously think Reagan could frighten Gorbachev?
You believe the cold war rhetoric? Pure theatre to impress the herds of voters?
You think the Russians didn’t know Star Wars was a load of sh*t and just one more mega scam to cream the treasury?
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/reagans-great-lie-in-the-sky-star-wars-scientists-may-have-deceived-moscow-and-congress-about-the-1463972.html
Just watch the Donald ramp it up and bulldoze trillions more into the military/industrial conspirators.
Good article from Paul Kelly today.
Penny 06;51pm
“Thang”… you mean “Thank” ,…. yes we all make errors Penny!
Maybe we are on the drink .
JB ,09:49pm .
Down to DR Charlie Teo JB as I said before dear chap!
Your silly stuff is now critical that you need Charlie to operate on you .
You say you have it on good authority that Trumps wife was a spy . Maybe Yvonne is right ,watching too many James Bond movies . Maybe you think you are the real James Bond .
Tidy up JB ,get rid of your conspiracies , mate!
Cheers .
You are not a personal friend and confidante of Colonel Igor Kablosnskivitch (ret) former head of the KGB Eastern Division are you Rodent? I doubt you have even met him. Or any KGB agent at all?
Igor and I go way back and we spend many a happy evening in his dacha in Siberian winters. He’s a most forthcoming chap with a skinful of slivovitz and he has told me things that would make the hair on the back of your little capitalist head stand up like Rostov wheat.
Russian agents lurk everywhere, there’s one living within a hundred metre radius of your house Rodent. No doubt you have seen her, she is beautiful has a vaguely military bearing and wears sensible shoes. When you see her next, sidle up to her and whisper “The Borsch is best in Blagoveshch.” She will reply “Baptiste believes it to be.”
I think you might be a bit of gullible dill just on the quiet Rodent.
Penny 09:35pm.
Just laughing now after you saying not going to read my posts again , .Knew it would not last .
Well you must be enjoying them ,keep it up.