Quakt!
Special thanks: Laura Mulvey
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Friday, November 19, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
New Jersey: Look Before You Laugh
I got teased by a Mixed Martial Artist from Manchester UK yesterday. Why did I get teased by this guy? I got teased because I'm from New Jersey and The Jersey Shore has given my entire state a bad name. It doesn't matter that I live in the mountains. It doesn't matter that I have only been to the shore on rare occasions. It doesn't matter that I'm not Italian. It doesn't matter that I don't even have cable and I have never watched that program. Ha Ha! "You're from New Jersey!" That's what I hear. I heard it yesterday and I've heard it before.
I did some research today and guess what I found out.
Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino is from Staten Island.
Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi is from Chile.
Jenni "Jwoww" Farley is from Upstate New York.
DJ Pauly D is from Providence, RI.
I'm actually from New Jersey. Leave me alone about those clowns.
New Jersey: Look Before You Laugh
I did some research today and guess what I found out.
Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino is from Staten Island.
Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi is from Chile.
Jenni "Jwoww" Farley is from Upstate New York.
DJ Pauly D is from Providence, RI.
I'm actually from New Jersey. Leave me alone about those clowns.
New Jersey: Look Before You Laugh
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
War & Peace - Volume II, Part II, Chapter 25, Again
War is not being nice to each other, it's the vilest thing in human life, and we ought to understand that and not play at war. It's a terrible necessity, and we should be strict about it and take it seriously. It comes down to this: no more lying, war means war and it's not a plaything....
And what is war, what is necessary for success on the battlefield, what is the moral basis of a military society? The aim of war is murder, the weapons of war are spying, treachery and the fostering of further treachery, the destruction of people, looting their property and stealing from them to keep the army on the road, falsehood and deceit, which go by the name of clever tactical ploys, and the moral basis of the military class is the curtailment of freedom through discipline, linked with idleness, ignorance, cruelty, debauchery and drunkenness. And in spite of that, its' still the highest class, universally respected.1
1 Tolstoy, Leo. War & Peace. Anthony Briggs Trans. London: Penguin Books, 2005. p861 First published 1865.
And what is war, what is necessary for success on the battlefield, what is the moral basis of a military society? The aim of war is murder, the weapons of war are spying, treachery and the fostering of further treachery, the destruction of people, looting their property and stealing from them to keep the army on the road, falsehood and deceit, which go by the name of clever tactical ploys, and the moral basis of the military class is the curtailment of freedom through discipline, linked with idleness, ignorance, cruelty, debauchery and drunkenness. And in spite of that, its' still the highest class, universally respected.1
1 Tolstoy, Leo. War & Peace. Anthony Briggs Trans. London: Penguin Books, 2005. p861 First published 1865.
War & Peace - Volume III, Part II, Chapter 25
Prince Andrey glanced across at Timokhin, who was staring at his commanding officer in alarm and bemusement. In contrast to his commanding officer in alarm and bemusement. In contrast to his former silence and reserve, Prince Andrey now seemed to be all worked up. He seemed unable to stop himself blurting out every thought that came into his head.
'A battle is won by the side that is absolutely determined to win. Why did we lose the battle of Austerlitz? Our casualties were about the same as those of the French, but we had told ourselves earl in the day that the battle was lost, so it was lost. And we said that because then we had nothing to fight for. We wanted to get off the battlefield as fast as we could. "All is lost! Let's run away!" And run we did. If we had waited till evening before saying that, God knows what might have happened.
'But we shan't be saying that tomorrow. You talk about our position. The left flank's weak, and the right flank's too spread out," he went on. 'It's all nonsense. Irrelevant. So what is in store for us tomorrow? A hundred million contingent factors, and they'll all be determined by what happens on the day - who's run away and who's going to run away, us or them, who gets killed, one man or another. But what's going on right now is just fooling about. The point is this: those people who took you round the positions don't help things along, they just get in the way. They're completely absorbed in their own petty interests.'
'At a time like this?' said Pierre, full of reproach.
'Yes. At a time like this,' repeated Prince Andrey.'They think this is a good time to get one over on a rival and win themselves another cross or ribbon. The way I see it, tomorrow looks like this: a hundred thousand Russians and a hundred thousand Frenchmen have come together to fight, and the fact is these two hundred thousand me will fight, and the side that fights hardest and spares itself least will come out on top. And if you like, I'll tell you something else: whatever happens, however much the top brass messes things up, we shall win tomorrow. Tomorrow, whatever happens, we are going to win!'1
1Tolstoy, Leo. War & Peace. Anthony Briggs Trans. London: Penguin Books, 2005. p858-859 First published 1865.
'A battle is won by the side that is absolutely determined to win. Why did we lose the battle of Austerlitz? Our casualties were about the same as those of the French, but we had told ourselves earl in the day that the battle was lost, so it was lost. And we said that because then we had nothing to fight for. We wanted to get off the battlefield as fast as we could. "All is lost! Let's run away!" And run we did. If we had waited till evening before saying that, God knows what might have happened.
'But we shan't be saying that tomorrow. You talk about our position. The left flank's weak, and the right flank's too spread out," he went on. 'It's all nonsense. Irrelevant. So what is in store for us tomorrow? A hundred million contingent factors, and they'll all be determined by what happens on the day - who's run away and who's going to run away, us or them, who gets killed, one man or another. But what's going on right now is just fooling about. The point is this: those people who took you round the positions don't help things along, they just get in the way. They're completely absorbed in their own petty interests.'
'At a time like this?' said Pierre, full of reproach.
'Yes. At a time like this,' repeated Prince Andrey.'They think this is a good time to get one over on a rival and win themselves another cross or ribbon. The way I see it, tomorrow looks like this: a hundred thousand Russians and a hundred thousand Frenchmen have come together to fight, and the fact is these two hundred thousand me will fight, and the side that fights hardest and spares itself least will come out on top. And if you like, I'll tell you something else: whatever happens, however much the top brass messes things up, we shall win tomorrow. Tomorrow, whatever happens, we are going to win!'1
"I wouldn't mess with that website." -Hanshi Duessel
1Tolstoy, Leo. War & Peace. Anthony Briggs Trans. London: Penguin Books, 2005. p858-859 First published 1865.
Monday, November 15, 2010
Sunday, November 14, 2010
New Jersey needs people to stay, fight
Letter to the Editor - Express-Times Newspaper
An expatriated friend of mine encouraged me to “get out of New Jersey” the other day. That phrase comes up a lot (usually preceded by “dirty jerzy,” corruption, property taxes, “the Soprano state,” etc.) and for the umpteenth time now, it perplexes me. I was always taught the grass is greener on the other side. If I were to leave, where would I go?
I was born in Morristown. Except for a few years of college, I have lived in the Garden State my whole life. I can trace my family tree back to pre-revolutionary New Jersey. I don’t know anything else.
I feel very much trapped here. Many things are beyond frustrating, but what really gets me mad is the knee-jerk reaction so many people have just to flee the state.
How is it patriotic to fight for our country and not for our state? Stay. Fight. Make things better for the next generation. Abandonment is not a solution.
Martin Luther King Jr. said it best: “A man who hasn’t found something he is willing to die for is not fit to live.”
If staying here and suffering makes me crazy, then I’m crazy, but so was Dr. King.
ERIK B. ANDERSON
Independence Township
This letter is being discussed on HackettstownLife.com.
Geography Minor
When I was a Geography Minor at West Chester University, I used to love looking at historical maps. Now I love looking at this video. I wish it would have a date ticker or something, though.
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