The Lexicographer's Rules

“He was forty years old on the day in 1930 when it occurred to him that he, in all likelihood, would turn out to be one of those fellows who would be his mother’s companion unto her death, and though Levis accepted this duty, he often found himself in a cantankerous disposition around her. While DoŅa ConcepciŪn coddled him—shampooing his hair, manicuring his hands and cooking special treats as the mood suited her—she quite expected that he wait on her in return. And so, when they were at home, and he was not at work before the piano, she ordered him about. He would take her walking in the parks of the city, to the cinema, off to the cemetery to visit his father’s and sibling’s graves, and not once on these excursions did she ask him about his life. She spoke about herself, her prayers to God, her dreams and the small diversions by which she amused herself. He would take her to the big deparment stores and to the dress shops along Neptuno, spending hours in a chair while she ordered the clerks about, criticising the fabrics and designs. Often she chastised him over his sudden lapse of attention to her if a beautiful woman happened to pass along the street, saying, ėWhat would you want, my son, with a woman like that, anyway?” (Source Link)

;You have to admit that Americans in one stroke were able to knock down the EU, NATO, Europe and the Middle Eastern region. As far as Europe is concerned, in just two or three weeks we will wake up with a terrible hangover. Maybe it’s happening right now. We’ve all realized that it’s easy to destroy something, harder to build it. So we’ve started to glue together the broken pieces. This will take place in connection with the reconstruction of Iraq. Europe still has a chance to draw a positive lesson from this catastrophe. In the face of the chasm that is the world economy there will need to be a greater European presence. If the world economy tanks, Americans will have a problem, because they will need to pay the gigantic costs of war. (Source Link)

“Supposing the truth of these statements, it is certainly arguable that deception may have been justified on the basis of the huge policy matters at stake. Many people felt that the US involvement in the Gulf War was vital to world peace. From that perspective, the usual ėdirty hands’ arguments can be invoked to support the deception. There are few absolutists who would say that deception is never justified no matter how vital the stakes. “One answer to the ėso what?’ question is that democracy is a sham if those with government power feel it is acceptable to gain support for their policies through such decepton. This answer does not settle the matter, for two reasons. First, not everyone wants genuine democracy. Second, a substantial number of people seem to accept deception, so long as it is for benign purposes. But, every so often, people glimpse the wrongdoing that lack of accountability encourages, and there is renewed demand for truthfulness and openness in government. Notable examples of this are Watergate and the Iran-Contra scandal. Recurring deceptions of the people have been used to impress on the public the need for more military expenditures. A problem with such deception is that it provokes a like response from the enemy. Perhaps the military gains from such a race, but not the general public. I.F. Stone noted the attempt to suppress information from a Coast and Geodetic Survey, which indicated that, contrary to the official position, underground nuclear explosions were detectable thousands of miles away. The suppression was important for heading off calls for nuclear test bans and thus continuing the arms race. The New York Times revealed military deceptions on the cost and need for weapons in the 1980s. Therefore, the argument against this kind of deception is that it can easily become rampant throughout the administration. If that happens, eventually cynicism and a sense of futility develop regarding the democractic process. This is good neither for the holders of power, nor for those subject to their decisions. “The argument as stated is consistent with deception being otherwise justified on a single-instance analysis, that is, not taking account of habit-forming repercussions. What if the actual decision, quite apart from the process used to enable it to be put into effect, is wrong?” (Source Link)

Twenty-five percent of children in central Harlem have asthma, the highest rate anywhere in the country.

“It was Hotta who had treated me to a dish of fruit-flavored ice when I first came to the school. Well, if he was as two-faced as that, I felt ashamed of accepting even that much from him. I’d only had one dish, so it had only cost him one and a half sen; but I’d feel bad for the rest of my life if I thought I owed one or even half a sen to an impostor. I decided that I’d give him back the money when I went to school the next day. “It’s true that, five years before, Kiyo had lent me three yen that I’d never paid back. It wasn’t that I couldn’t pay, but that I wouldn’t. She hadn’t thought of it as a temporary loan, nor had she ever been after my money, and I had no intention of returning it and making her feel as though I looked upon her as a stranger. The more I worried about such a thing, the more it would hurt Kiyo, because it would mean that I doubted her motives. It would be tantamount to accusing a wonderful person of usury.” (Source Link)