COMMONPLACE BOOK, SAINT PATRICK'S DAY

A“He was like a murderer annoyed at being called a shoplifter.” – Anthony Burgess
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“The “I’m really a libertarian” trend has been picking up steam lately among conservatives who want to seem reasonable in the face of undeniable corruption, but it should be pointed out that a real libertarian (assuming you can find one) wouldn’t spend half their time complaining about abortion, homosexuality, drug use, violent video games, etc. People who favor “small government” tend to do so because they want to be left alone, but conservatism has shown us time and time again that when push comes to shove, imposing regressive social values always trumps any professed love of limited government.
Even funnier than the popularity of bogus libertarianism is the pleas of “I’m conservative, but not a Republican” among wingnuts. For a crowd that prides itself on its toughness and resolve, it’s amazing to see how many of them are too cowardly to stand by the party they unquestionably support. This usually manifests itself in self-righteous odes to fiscal discipline with the chorus of “I didn’t leave them, they left me”, but anyone who would vote for a Republican after Ronald Reagan’s first term has no right to feign ignorance over the GOP’s irresponsible governance. Though they may try to absolve themselves of responsibility for the choices they make in the voting booth, anyone with a long record of supporting GOP candidates and bashing Democrats is a Republican in my book. -- Greg Saunders
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"Mary Sue"
Comic book slang defined by Anonymous: "A Mary Sue is a thinly-disguised, highly idealized author self-insertion. The term comes from the world of fanfiction, which is rife with them. Typical Sue-ish traits include a lack of flaws other than sympathetic ones (such as naïvité or a lame leg), exotic pets (especially steeds that "only she could tame"), exotic eye color, and being beloved by all canonical good guys (particularly if one of the good-looking protagonists is instantly smitten regardless of pre-established canonical relatonships).” – definition by “gwalla”
... And from the always questionable Wikipedia: “The story that gave her a name was "A Trekker's Tale" by Paula Smith, published in the [Star Trek|Star Trek Fan Fiction] fanzine, Menagerie in 1973. It featured a character named Lt. Mary Sue. This story, written as a piece of satire, mocked a type of fan fiction featuring unbelievably competent and beautiful female characters. Fanfiction analyst Laura Hale described them as "female characters that were involved with Kirk or Spock, Bones or Sulu, characters that could and did save the day when the heroes could not."”
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“Here's what I don't understand
“So Bush's numbers are dropping and dropping and dropping and are now around...what? Thirty percent approval? Something like that?
“Here's what I don't get: Two years ago, when people voted for him...
“WHAT THE HELL DID YOU THINK HE WAS GOING TO DO IF NOT CONTINUE TO SCREW THINGS UP?!?
“I mean, honest to God. NOW nearly four out of five people are expressing disapproval? NOW?! What the bleeding hell were you expecting two years ago when you pulled the lever or filled out the ballot for him? Did you think he was suddenly going to get smart? Did you think he was going to stop screwing the country up?
“For crying out loud, I'm not the brightest penny in the box, and *I* knew things were just going to get worse. Anyone with a brain should have figured it out at the time. It took TWO MORE FRICKING YEARS for people to realize that, in the words of John Cleese as spoken by Jamie Lee Curtis, there are sheep that could outwit him? That there are dresses with higher IQs?
“Jeez, people. A little forethought next time, okay? That's all I'm asking.”
-- Peter David, Writer of Stuff, on his web site

[Partial Response from David Hunt: “More directly related to your comments, I've read that about 40% of people vote Democrat regardless of who the candidate is and about 40% of the people vote Republican regardless of who the candidate is. The key to national elections is to swing the other 20%.”]
[... and from Michael D.: “I don't mind the right-wingers still having faith in the chimp; he's Their Man and is still on the right side of the issues as far as they're concerned.
“It's the aforementioned 20% that I want to punch in the face and scream "I F***ING TOLD YOU SO!" to while they lie on the sidewalk bleeding. Not very enlightened of me but what the hell.”]
-- Responses posted on "Peter David, Writer of Stuff" web site

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“But it was clear they didn't see the film the song was from, nor did they understand the context of the song.
“--I'm sorry, but what possible context could you be referring to? One where pimping can be seen as a good and positive thing? Maybe next year we can have a song from the Civil War called "It's Hard Out Here For a Slave Owner". Or maybe a WWII film called "It's Hard Out Here For a Nazi Executing Jews".” -- Craig J. Ries on the Oscar win for "It's Hard Out Here For a Pimp”

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"[T]he US is a country run by liars going to war on a fantasy, so it’s interesting to see people getting self-righteous about James Frey," he says. "I don’t see why everyone gets into such a fucking uproar because an addict is a liar!"
-- Australian writer Peter Carey

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“Summing up Purim in 10 words or less: They tried to kill us, we won, let's eat.” -- Blogger nydeborah.livejournal.com

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“Tikkun olam (תיקון עולם) is a Hebrew phrase which translates to "repairing the world." It is important in Judaism and is often used to explain the Jewish concept of social justice. In some explanations, the more mitzvot that are performed, the closer the world will be towards perfection. Some Jews that believe that acts of tikkun olam will either trigger or fulfill the prophesied coming of the Mosiach (messiah) or messianic age (the World to Come). The belief in tikkun olam is also central to the Zohar, the most important book in kabbalah (Jewish mysticism). .... Lurianic kabbalah holds that the very creation of the universe by God was unstable, and that the early universe, represented by a pottery vessel, could not hold the holy light of God (the Ein Sof or infinite). In this view, the original form of the universe shattered in shards; the universe that we encounter today is thus literally broken, and in need of repair. ... Therefore, through each fulfillment of a commanded deed (mitzvah) the kabbalists believe, a Jew performs an act of tikkun olam, gradually returning the universe to its form as God originally intended, and making mankind a partner in God's creation. ... In Reform and Reconstructionist Judaism, Tikkun olam has taken on political and religious significance in that it implies that Jews should work towards social justice. Tikkun magazine, edited by Rabbi Michael Lerner, reflects this worldview.”
-- Unknown, Wikipedia (yes, I know that Wikipedia has issues)
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"So, Scientology, you may have won THIS battle, but the million-year war for earth has just begun! Temporarily anozinizing our episode will NOT stop us from keeping Thetans forever trapped in your pitiful man-bodies... You have obstructed us for now, but your feeble bid to save humanity will fail!" -- South Park producers in Daily Variety, responding to the "pulling" of an episode mocking scientology. (Instead the network will air two popular Issac Hayes episodes, as a "tribute" following his departure from the show. Nothing generates viewers like the epithet "Banned in Boston".)
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"So there I am at this elegant party that Stan Lee of Marvel Productions threw, back in December of 1987, and his and Joan's home up in the Hollywood Hills was jammed to the walls with the hoi and the polloi, and at one point I'm introduced to these two young guys named Ed Neumeier and Michael Miner, and Stan or somebody says, "These are the guys who wrote Robocop. Didn't you just write a piece on Robocop?"
Well, they knew damned well I'd just written a review of Robocop, and I'd worked it over like a slab of beef jerky, because forty-something minutes into the damned flick, I'd had it up to here with the idiot violence and the low animal steam heat of the audience and the after-the-fact addition of "socially relevant satire" and I'd said, in effect, this is mean widdle kids pulling the wings off butterflies and setting fire to pussycats and nailing spaniels to ironing boards, and frankly Scarlett, this is like a pavane for perverts...so lemme outta here!
And well, hell, you know me: the kind of pain in the ass who, when he's asked by guests at a party what did you think of our incredibly successful, extremely popular, critically drooled-over movie that has made us two smartasses real hot tickets in this town, answers as charmingly as a cactus spine in your tongue "I think they ought to nuke you two until you glow".
Well, not exactly. I didn't exactly say that. But Stan and Joan haven't attended a dinner invitation since 1987, so I am driven, lashed if you will, toward the conclusion that I acted in a somewhat less than gilt-edged fashion."
-- Harlan Ellison, front-line soldier in the culture wars

See Also:
See also: Early March Quotations, Random Quotations, Commonplace Book:January, Commonplace Book: December