A Gentleman of Leisure is the story of Jimmy Pitt, the rather wealthy gentleman of leisure from the title, who on a trip from England to New York falls in love with a girl, but sadly never learns her name, gets back to New York, converses with some friends about a play involving a burglar, makes a bet with his friends he can burgle a house that very night, goes home and falls asleep only to wake up and find his house being burgled, interrupts the burglar, pretends to be a bigtime thief himself … [Read more...] about What a Coincidence
Great Books
Kanye 2024
“In democracies changes are chiefly due to the wanton license of demagogues.” Aristotle wrote that in Politics. Hamilton, in The Federalist Papers warns: “of those men who have overturned the liberties of republics the greatest number have begun their career, by paying an obsequious court to the people, commencing Demagogues and ending Tyrants.” I think it is safe to say that nobody is a big fan of demagogues. Where does that leave democracy? Can we conclude that in a democratic society, we … [Read more...] about Kanye 2024
A History of Futility
The Question of the Day: When is a history book not a history book? Or, maybe this should be the Question of the Day: When is an author simply trying to be too clever for his own good? The Answer to both questions: Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens: A Brief History of Mankind. Let’s start with the positive. This is a fun book to read. A very fun book to read. It is the sort of book that makes you realize again that the world is littered with fascinating anecdotes and facts and factoids which are … [Read more...] about A History of Futility
The Structure of Confessions
Augustine’s Confessions has a curious structure. It is divided into 13 chapters. The first nine read like autobiography; Augustine tells the story of his life concentrating on all the sins he has committed. He confesses them, and then he points constantly to God who is the real object of Augustine’s attention. Lots of things we can learn and ponder from these nine chapters. But, then, in Chapter 10, the book takes a rather stunning turn for those reading it for the first time. Chapter 10 is … [Read more...] about The Structure of Confessions
Do You Have a Soul?
“O my friends, he said, if the soul is really immortal, what care should be taken of her, not only in respect of the portion of time which is called life, but of eternity! And the danger of neglecting her from this point of view does indeed appear to be awful.” That is Socrates talking in Phaedo, Plato’s account of the last conversation of Socrates’ life. If the soul is immortal, then surely Socrates is right. Indeed, if the soul is immortal, it is hard to imagine how that could be … [Read more...] about Do You Have a Soul?
Evil For No Reason
Who is the greatest villain in the Comic Book World? That sounds like one of those debates you can merrily have with your friends. But, truth be told, while it easy to imagine debating who is the second greatest villain, the top spot is obvious. The Joker. A few years back, in honor of its 75th anniversary, DC comics released a series of retrospectives of its greatest heroes and villains. The Joker: A Celebration of 75 Years is an interesting history, not just of the character but of … [Read more...] about Evil For No Reason