The greedy and the generous have the same end.

The dead know nothing of what we say to them; 
Still, in that silence let me write: dear friend.

- "Another Anniversary," Elaine Feinstein

When one individual inflicts bodily injury upon another such that death results,

we call the deed manslaughter; when the assailant knew in advance that the injury would be fatal, we call his deed murder. But when society places hundreds of proletarians in such a position that they inevitably meet a too early and an unnatural death, one which is quite as much a death by violence as that by the sword or bullet; when it deprives thousands of the necessaries of life, places them under conditions in which they cannot live – forces them, through the strong arm of the law, to remain in such conditions until that death ensues which is the inevitable consequence – knows that these thousands of victims must perish, and yet permits these conditions to remain, its deed is murder just as surely as the deed of the single individual; disguised, malicious murder, murder against which none can defend himself, which does not seem what it is, because no man sees the murderer, because the death of the victim seems a natural one, since the offence is more one of omission than of commission. But murder it remains. I have now to prove that society in England daily and hourly commits what the working-men's organs, with perfect correctness, characterise as social murder, that it has placed the workers under conditions in which they can neither retain health nor live long; that it undermines the vital force of these workers gradually, little by little, and so hurries them to the grave before their time. I have further to prove that society knows how injurious such conditions are to the health and the life of the workers, and yet does nothing to improve these conditions. That it knows the consequences of its deeds; that its act is, therefore, not mere manslaughter, but murder… 

- Friedrich Engels

I want people to examine their relationships

 as one might examine art.

You know how one's thoughts

 can be a pack of wolves.

- Iris Murdoch

It was better

 when it was really bad.

- graffiti in Bosnia, Sebastian Junger's "Tribe"

I say:

What are they looking for in heaven, all these blind people? 

- Two Brothers

Souls

 grown dizzy. 

Beautiful

 dirt. 

This talisman is fragile, and the day will come when it will collapse miserably.

Then the ancient stony gods will rise from the forgotten debris and rub the dust of a thousand years from their eyes, and finally Thor with his giant hammer will jump up and smash the Gothic cathedrals.

- Heinrich Heine

Often wrong,

 never in doubt.

- Mike D's family motto

The human cost

 of the mattress price wars. 

Threading

 the infinite. 

- Tartarus #10

The one you feed.

The New Mutants - 2/5

It's bad, but I also don't want to discount the good things in it. It's got the aesthetics of a CW show, and that's meant to be an insult as well as a compliment. The characters, barring the main, are characters! A lot comes across in their one note. Sam Guthrie is Southern troubled, Rahne Sinclaire is Catholic troubled, Roberto daCosta is rich boy troubled, and Anna Taylor-Joy's Illyana Rasputin is instantly crush-able. I like them. There's a season-long plot in here; too bad it was thrown away in a movie.

He comforts her. They spark. That's the lightning. They kiss. Thunder.

 Top Hat – 2.5/5

It's baby's first Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers' joint. And if it's the best, as they say, I don't think I entirely understand the pairing. He, I get, all lightness, all air. And what's said of her is that she did it all backwards, and high heels. Props to you, ma'am, indeed, no disrespect intended, but that sounds like work, and Fred Astaire as seen on-screen has never worked a day in his life. You were keeping up and he, simply, was. 

This movie I will also use as a jumping-off point for why I have lately found it difficult to write these little things. I used to think a whole of a movie was everything, looking for perfection from front to back and everything against that was a half-a-point docked. And well, not to overly simplify a bigger rationale and how larger cultural trends fit into it, but it's fine to just have some good spots. There's some good spots in here. 

Watched 1/9/21

A Low and Distant Sound Gradually Swelling and Increasing

Tickled – 2.5/5

"Funny video about Extreme Endurance Tickling takes a sinister turn." It's a fun thing to say you're watching and that's about the tall and short of it. 

Watched 1/7/21