Archive for June, 2026

Philogelos 223

June 20, 2026

I don’t have extensive experience with Philogelos but it seems to me unfunny in exactly the same way newspaper cartoons are.

λιμόξηρος ἰδὼν ἄρτον ἐν ὑπερθύρῳ κείμενον εἶπε· θεέ, ἢ ἐμὲ ὔψωσον ἢ τοῦτον ταπίνωσον.

The hungry one seeing bread lying over the door said — hurry, either make me higher or make that lower.

(These are things people think, not things that are funny.)

(Philogelos)

20,000 Leagues, 1954

June 18, 2026

Crossing the intersection, fourth of the five four-way stops, fifth of the eight five-way intersections. Discipline, patience, habit, fear, inhibition, inanition, rut, Francis, ghosts, Convenience, lack of a path, “hiding and creeping” (what is the relation of the 8-fold path to the fifth of the eight-way intersections?) (none) what of the four noble truths…? (none)

Fragonard, Hill top, climactic broken edge of cement, climax means ladder. STOP. This area needs a replica, either gigantic or life-sized, of the sandaled foot of Aristophanes. STOP. Climax not related to climate etymologically. (It is actually) More pressure on the knees and ankles at this point.

I, Nemo to my Nautilus, the not-me, am fully aware of my descent, yet only partially and crudely aware of what instrumental readings this descent might engender or result in (my mindbeing essentially Benjamin Partridge)

how many leaves did I pass as I thought that? How many leaves did I pass as I thought “Kirk Douglas is excellent in Lust for Life as Van Gogh and is not bad as Ned Land in 20,000 Leagues”?

20,000 Leagues, 1954.

June 15, 2026

It’s tempting to mention bread and circuses here, except there’s no bread... Michelle Goldberg

June 10, 2026

Unexpected result. Ngrams: cladistic.

June 10, 2026

ngrams: hermeneutic

June 10, 2026

Second Superman movie better than the first, 1980.

June 10, 2026

ngrams: “heuristic”

June 10, 2026

ngrams: “epistemics”

June 10, 2026

An idea about “coincidence” — that it’s meaningless, yet a good sign. The more engaged with life you are, the more you find yourself experiencing coincidence.

June 9, 2026

Tu quoque, specific kind of ad hominem argument, and useful concept. Example:

Alice: Smoking is associated with chronic health disorders. You shouldn’t smoke.
Bob: But you smoke yourself. So much for your argument!

Bob reasons that because Alice is being hypocritical, her statement about the effects of smoking must be false. But the truth of Alice’s claim has no connection to whether or not she is a hypocrite.

June 9, 2026

avoir beau French expression, to do something in vain.

June 2, 2026

“To be is to be the value of a variable,” Willard Quine

June 2, 2026

Hm. “Glue” and “Gluten” related.

June 2, 2026

Good round up of Trump’s corruption. AP.