Old truths never die

We caught a glimpse of the secret life of inanimate objects down Goomp's over the Christmas holiday, where cardboard boxes used to transport the movable feast we'd whipped up in Chelsea were transformed by the early-morning light fantastic.

"Thank you very much for the lovely link . . . It has stirred up an interesting bit of commentary from readers old and new, not to mention pushing my visitor stats closer and closer to the one-million mark -- Just over 2,000 visits to go, and the sun isn't even over the yardarm yet," we emailed the Professor, who emails back:

Yes, I was just browsing your comments.

Indeed. A shopping list of all that's wrong with the world -- and who's to blame [Bush's Fault™] -- presented in free verse by BDS-wracked opinionator Jim Christ, inspired a virtual shoppingcart full of food for thought. Be sure to read them all. A sampling to whet your appetite:

Teresa of Technicalities:

You guys actually read that whole comment??? I bow to your fortitude. I got tired after the first 3 or 4 lines and skipped to the end. Same old - same old simply bores me to tears.

Gregory Koster, who offers an irony-filled history lesson positing that if Leander Starr Jameson -- a possible ancestor of yours truly -- had succeeded in his South African adventures, he "would have nipped apartheid in the bud." Kostner backs up his claim with two titles, and Tuck, who reports he read over 17,000 pages -- mostly history books and mostly gifts from us -- in the last year, perked up at the thought. Koster finishes up with an inspired take-off of Jim Christ's free verse:

I hope Jim Christ doesn't take this advice. All that reading would tire out his lips, get them all numb and swollen, so that when he attempted to kiss his girlfriend, he'd slobber, she'd say ewww, hit him, getting him all excited and pressing forward, followed by more hitting, flying objects, a call to 911, prosecution of the only crime the police seem to be able to enforce these days, and nine months later, a small contribution to the answer to Mark Steyn's worries in AMERICA ALONE.

This fellow should be blogging himself! Meanwhile, blogger Joan of Argghh! of Primordial Slack has good advice for the hands that rock the cradle:

Growing boys into good Men has to be the one of the best things one can do for their own self, their community, and their country.

"Rudyard Kipling had to deal with the Jim Christs of his time, and how they dishonored and lied about those who served," notes reader SDN. Some things never change. Lots more good prose and poetry in the comments, but we'll give the final word here to our own Energizer Bunny, the Goomp:

To think that the author of all those books I read and loved as a boy can still arouse such passion.

With apologies to General Douglas MacArthur: Old truths never die; they only come back into focus as each new generation gets mugged by reality.

Update: Speaking of which, "Surprising news from Britain" via Instapundit. Maybe there'll always be an England after all.

Comments

[no.apology]

Thanks again for your timeless inspiration, Sissy. Happy New Year!

[goomp]

It seems that when staying alive becomes too easy many people forget that survival depends on understanding human nature. Human nature is aggressive. It has to be else we would be extinct. Aggressive drive channeled by a code of honor and equal rights for all citizens under the law are what made America the freest and most successful nation the world has ever seen. Beware of those who deny Human nature and would have us be sheep led by aggressive goats.

[Teresa]

Why thank you ma'am I'm glad you liked my comment. *grin* And I'm so excited for your next blog milestone - what an accomplishment!!! Congratulations!