Latest quotes | Random quotes | Vote! | Latest comments | Submit quote

Edward James Olmos

I'm not prepared for holding office any more than I think Arnold is.

quote by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Related quotes

The Flame

I'll never be far from home
Talkin' on the telephone
You told me it's over, you made up your mind,
I'm part of the life that you're leaving behind
I'm left holding the torch
And the heat from the flame,
Only ease me a pain
Don't you know how much it hurts,
You took all i had and you threw it away
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am
Holding the flame once again
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am
Holding the flame once again
Nomatter what you say, it hurts
You didn't had to make it worse
It wouldn't be better as you told me yourself,
Instead that you left to somebody else
Maybe i could understand
You'd been staying with another man
Day isn't long and nights can be lonely
I wasn't there and you needed to hold me
I'm left holding the torch
And the heat from the flame,
Only ease me a pain
Don't you know how much it hurts,
You took all i had and you threw it away
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am
Holding the flame once again
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am
Holding the flame once again
I'll never be far from home
Talkin' on the telephone
You told me it's over, you made up your mind.
I'm part of the life that you're leaving behind.
I'm left holding the torch
And the heat from the flame,
Only ease me a pain
Don't you know how much it hurts,
You took all i had and you threw it away
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am
Holding the flame once again
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am
Holding the flame once again
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am
Holding the flame once again
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am
Holding the flame once again
I'm left holding the flame, yes i am

song performed by Fine Young CannibalsReport problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Fundamental of Liar Chapter CXII: Well Prepared

It’s not because a paranoia
It’s not because too cautious
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because a behavior
It’s not because a ritual
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because a genius
It’s not because a clairvoyant
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because detailed analysis
It’s not because calculative plan
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because great strategy
It’s not because flexible mind
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because fantastic budget
It’s not because faithful skill
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because full concentration
It’s not because amateur luck
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because long experience
It’s not because under pressure creativity
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because improved condition
It’s not because natural selection
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because the way of destiny
It’s not because the welcome opportunity
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because calmness
It’s not because maturity
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because success experiment
It’s not because perfect system
It’s just well prepared

It’s not because evil prediction
It’s not because love attention

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Arnold Rode Behind

WE galloped down the sodden track
Close buttoned 'gainst the wind;
I took the lead with whip and spur,
And Arnold rode behind.

The skies were wild; a rending gale
Ran roaring through the trees;
It sounded now like shouting hosts,
And now like angry seas.

'Spur on! Spur on!' I turned and cried,
'The fatal moments fly!'
I cursed him then-his trembling hand-
I cursed his bloodshot eye.

I cursed him for the lust of drink
That held his will a slave;
For skill to tend and mend was his
To succour and to save.

I thought of her, the golden girl,
My life, my love, nigh spent,
Nigh death, with fever clutching her,
And what his coming meant.

Through driving rain and tossing trees
I saw her pale with pain ;
And if my eyes grew wet, perchance
'Twas not the wet of rain.

I turned on Arnold, and I vowed
To pay with coin of hate
His ten-mile ride, his boasted skill,
If he should prove too late;

I mixed my words with searing scorn,
And turned and told him plain,
Of how I found him stupid, drugged,
With dull and sluggish brain.

And how the wasted hours went by-
I waiting by his side-
Till he should wake, and be himself,
And mount his horse and ride.

And 'Arnold, if she die'-I said-
'Be yours the lot accurst-
In life to thirst, to thirst in death,
In Hell to thirst and thirst.'

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Sobre Horizontes

soccer az youth
soccer babes nude
soccer babe sex
soccer babes 200
soccer babes naked
soccer babes 20
soccer b ives
soccer babe boobs
soccer b acl amd white
soccer babby doll
soccer back acks
soccer babes tits
soccer baby gifts
soccer babes wallpaper
soccer babes strange
soccer babes porn
soccer babes uk cardiff city
soccer back ground
soccer babes paint
soccer baby crib bedding
soccer babes women
soccer baby toys
soccer babes painted
soccer babes nue
soccer back flip
soccer babes uk
soccer babies from disney
soccer baby cups
soccer babes renee
soccer baby bedding
soccer backgrounds html
soccer backetball shoes
soccer back stop nets
soccer background for myspace
soccer backgrounds myspace
soccer background pic
soccer backgrounds for soccer
soccer backpack adidas copa
soccer backpack wholesalers
soccer back kick
soccer backpack with mesh ball pocket
soccer backpack with embroidered name
soccer back pack
soccer backgrounds for myspace
soccer back injury
soccer background net
soccer background codes
soccer back packs
soccer background graphics
soccer back pack bags

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

The Columbiad: Book VI

The Argument


British cruelty to American prisoners. Prison Ship. Retreat of Washington with the relics of his army, pursued by Howe. Washington recrossing the Delaware in the night, to surprise the British van, is opposed by uncommon obstacles. His success in this audacious enterprise lays the foundation of the American empire. A monument to be ere on the bank of the Delaware. Approach of Burgoyne, sailing up the St. Laurence with an army of Britons and various other nations. Indignant energy of the colonies, compared to that of Greece in opposing the invasion of Xerxes. Formation of an army of citizens, under the command of Gates. Review of the American and British armies, and of the savage tribes who join the British standard. Battle of Saratoga. Story of Lucinda. Second battle, and capture of Burgoyne and his army.


But of all tales that war's black annals hold,
The darkest, foulest still remains untold;
New modes of torture wait the shameful strife,
And Britain wantons in the waste of life.

Cold-blooded Cruelty, first fiend of hell,
Ah think no more with savage hordes to dwell;
Quit the Caribian tribes who eat their slain,
Fly that grim gang, the Inquisitors of Spain,
Boast not thy deeds in Moloch's shrines of old,
Leave Barbary's pirates to their blood-bought gold,
Let Holland steal her victims, force them o'er
To toils and death on Java's morbid shore;
Some cloak, some color all these crimes may plead;
Tis avarice, passion, blind religion's deed;
But Britons here, in this fraternal broil,
Grave, cool, deliberate in thy service toil.
Far from the nation's eye, whose nobler soul
Their wars would humanize, their pride control,
They lose the lessons that her laws impart,
And change the British for the brutal heart.
Fired by no passion, madden'd by no zeal,
No priest, no Plutus bids them not to feel;
Unpaid, gratuitous, on torture bent,
Their sport is death, their pastime to torment;
All other gods they scorn, but bow the knee,
And curb, well pleased, O Cruelty, to thee.

Come then, curst goddess, where thy votaries reign,
Inhale their incense from the land and main;
Come to Newyork, their conquering arms to greet,
Brood o'er their camp and breathe along their fleet;
The brother chiefs of Howe's illustrious name
Demand thy labors to complete their fame.
What shrieks of agony thy praises sound!
What grateless dungeons groan beneath the ground!
See the black Prison Ship's expanding womb
Impested thousands, quick and dead, entomb.
Barks after barks the captured seamen bear,
Transboard and lodge thy silent victims there;
A hundred scows, from all the neighboring shore,
Spread the dull sail and ply the constant oar,
Waft wrecks of armies from the well fought field,
And famisht garrisons who bravely yield;

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Are You Ready?

Are you ready?
Action boy now
Action girl now
Be prepared to climb another mountain
Are you ready?
Action boy now
Action girl now
Be prepared to swim across the ocean
Are you ready?
Be prepared
To fill you plate
Be prepared
Dont hesitate
Be prepared
For a great big bust
Be prepared
To do what you must
Be prepared
To take a hit
Be prepared
To go for it
Be prepared
For a sneak attack
Be prepared
Just dont look back
They say, where theres a will theres a way
Weve heard, these are the things that they say
So.
Reach out for that big fat star
Stick to the groove
And go real far
Outrun the ones who steal the abar (? ? )
Are you ready?
Action boy now
Action girl now
Be prepared to blast into the future
Action boy now
Action girl now
Be prepared to rearrange the picture
Are you ready?

song performed by DevoReport problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Care For The Elderly - A Conference

They gather in the Greeting Place
A smaller flock than once expected
Still elated - out from work and office

All around - the empty space
Is pressing on the keen - collected
Taking pointers - out from work and office

Inside the hall there is small trace
Of anyone to ‘stand corrected'
They're all working - inside work and office

Still curtains drift - in finest lace
The certain eyes not disaffected
Hide behind the lace of work and office

And speakers high in group embrace
Speak on and clap in unelected
Fluffy tones of every Higher Office

The higher speakers high disgrace
Is hid below their undetected
Lack of use - their waste of work and office

In keening grief - tears hid from face
A speaker - practical - affected
Brings human life within their work and office

And human thoughtfulness will base
Its Older Care on need selected
From that shown - away from work and office

Its time to fix he High and chase
By methods certain - unsuspected
Out form power - out from work and office

Foregather - follow to their base
See them - incestuous - connected
By wires unseen - inside work and office

27Mar2011 CPR

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

October the Post Office Cat

Some thought she was a stray
That had come for scraps along the way
That might be left from the lunch
Of the post office staff; a kindly bunch.
But others knew her for what she was,
October the Post Office Cat.

She had a duty like any employee
To be on time and serve the public daily
And as any other as all know,
Had an official position just so.
October the Post Office Cat.

As soon as the walks were swept
And the doors were opened for the daily visits,
She found her space upon the walk
A bit removed so that none would balk
As they came to do their task or mail whatever.
October the Post Office Cat.

She often times was given the duty
Of minding some child whose custodian
Had business to attend
In dealing with the letters or packages within,
So she laid there carefully in the sun
Till end of day when her work was done.
October the Post Office Cat.

She was known by all who came along that way
Parking carefully throughout the day
Making sure that she was not disturbed
As she, her duties did perform.
Watching and listening to the sounds of pleasure
That only can be bestowed on one to treasure.
Yet adults knew not how to measure.
October the Post Office Cat.

On the post across the way
A yellow sign was placed on display
By the lady who ran the insurance office
Who wanted to be sure that others notice
That this was the path taken each day
As the cat came to begin her official stay.
October the Post Office Cat.

There came a time when she did not appear
And it was certainly a time to fear
That something had befallen this special one
Who worked so hard to please everyone
And the sign was removed so that all would know

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share
John Dryden

Sigismond And Guiscardo. From Boccace

While Norman Tancred in Salerno reigned,
The title of a gracious Prince he gained;
Till turned a tyrant in his latter days,
He lost the lustre of his former praise,
And from the bright meridian where he stood
Descending dipped his hands in lovers' blood.

This Prince, of Fortune's favour long possessed,
Yet was with one fair daughter only blessed;
And blessed he might have been with her alone,
But oh! how much more happy had he none!
She was his care, his hope, and his delight,
Most in his thought, and ever in his sight:
Next, nay beyond his life, he held her dear;
She lived by him, and now he lived in her.
For this, when ripe for marriage, he delayed
Her nuptial bands, and kept her long a maid,
As envying any else should share a part
Of what was his, and claiming all her heart.
At length, as public decency required,
And all his vassals eagerly desired,
With mind averse, he rather underwent
His people's will than gave his own consent.
So was she torn, as from a lover's side,
And made, almost in his despite, a bride.

Short were her marriage joys; for in the prime
Of youth, her lord expired before his time;
And to her father's court in little space
Restored anew, she held a higher place;
More loved, and more exalted into grace.
This Princess, fresh and young, and fair and wise,
The worshipped idol of her father's eyes,
Did all her sex in every grace exceed,
And had more wit beside than women need.

Youth, health, and ease, and most an amorous mind,
To second nuptials had her thoughts inclined;
And former joys had left a secret string behind.
But, prodigal in every other grant,
Her sire left unsupplied her only want,
And she, betwixt her modesty and pride,
Her wishes, which she could not help, would hide.

Resolved at last to lose no longer time,
And yet to please her self without a crime,
She cast her eyes around the court, to find
A worthy subject suiting to her mind,
To him in holy nuptials to be tied,
A seeming widow, and a secret bride.

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Desperate Heart

One night, one empty room, one man gettin over you
One star, one lonely moon, I make a wish, I know will never come true
You call my name, and you beg me to hold you again
But the truth remains, Im only a fool who cant help but pretend
Chorus:
Its all over but Im holding on, I cant let go until the love is gone
Its all over but I keep holding on with a desperate heart
With my desperate heart
Some nights, I try in my mind, I see myself learning someone new
Still I know, Im wasting my time, no one can take the place of you
So I close my eyes, I swear I feel you here by my side
But its all only a lie, I need to believe for my heart to survive
Its all over but Im holding on, I cant let go until the love is gone
Its all over but I keep holding on with a desperate heart
With my desperate heart, I keep holding on
(guitar solo)
All this time Ive been drowning in hopeless illusions Im keeping inside
That someday youll walk out of the shadows and back into my life
Its all over but Im holding on, I cant believe your love for me is gone
Its all over but I keep holding on (with a desperate heart)
Yeah with my desperate heart, I cant let go until the love is gone
(all over but Im holding on) I keep holding on
(all over but Im holding on) I cant believe your love for me is gone
(all over but I keep holding on)
(all over but Im holding on)
(all over but I keep holding on)...

song performed by StarshipReport problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Whats She Like

Whats she like when she turns around to kiss you goodnight? /
When she wakes up in the morning by your side? / whats she like?
Whats she like? / the yellow moon or the deep blue of the sea? /
Do you feel the same way you did when it was me? / whats she like?
Oh Ive been holding on / Ive been holding on for far too long /
Ive been holding on / Ive been holding on much too long.
Whats she like when youre making love and stars are in her eyes? /
When youre looking for the answers in her smile? / whats she like?
Oh Ive been holding on / Ive been holding on for far too long /
Ive been holding on / Ive been holding on much too long / too long.
I never knew I could love somebody the way I loved you /
I never thought Id be the broken-hearted /
Well, nothing hurts you like the truth.
So whats she like when she turns to you, when push comes to shove? /
When she whispers in your ear that shes in love? / whats she like?
Oh Ive been holding on / Ive been holding on for far too long /
Ive been holding on / Ive been holding on much too long /
So whats she like?

song performed by RoxetteReport problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Suicide Lovers

suicide lovers 6x
suicide lovers are always there in the dark still together
still huging eachother still holding eachother up
suicide lovers are the only ones in the dark
shering ther feeling and shering ther thoughts
feeling pain and feeling love thinking about dieing
and thinking about been with eachotherno matter what
they talk about how there going to die together
holding hands and deareming about the day that comes

suicide lovers are the only ones int he dark still
hugging eachother and holding eachother up dreaming
about love and dreaming about the heart when it stops
we all die and we'll never give it up they think life has no point
theres nothing in the worldfor them exept for eachother
ther thinking about having a baby and dieing together

suicide lovers have a babythere baby is growing up good
and strong. healthy and stands up for herself the
she finds a guy just like her they are together forevere
they will never give it up ther love becomes pure and up ther
thinking about marriageand having a baby of there own
they have a son there dreams come truethey will call him
skyler a name they both like, they are thinking about another
baby so they have a girl and call her carli they thought that carli was
a goog name for there child skyler and carli are getting along
one is 17 and one is 21, damb they grow ou fast and strong
i cant belive what they been throug years dreaming and thinking
the world of each other they both find ther one and the both
are happy so they will be together forever! !
suicide lovers, suicide lovers, suicide lovers
suicide suicide i already diiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeedddddd...... loverrrrrrrrrrrrrss
suicide lovers suicide lovers are always in the dark

suicide lovers 6x
suicide lovers are always there in the dark still together
still huging eachother still holding eachother up
suicide lovers are the only ones in the dark
shering ther feeling and shering ther thoughts
feeling pain and feeling love thinking about dieing
and thinking about been with eachotherno matter what
they talk about how there going to die together
holding hands and deareming about the day that comes

suicide lovers are the only ones int he dark still
hugging eachother and holding eachother up dreaming
about love and dreaming about the heart when it stops
we all die and we'll never give it up they think life has no point
theres nothing in the worldfor them exept for eachother
ther thinking about having a baby and dieing together

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Get Prepared [xmas Song ]

get prepared


get prepared for christmas with happiness and joy
santas got a sack of gifts for a girl and boy
get prepared for mince pies with a glass of wine
get prepared for shopping queue up in a line


christmas is a happy time christmas is so good
so lets just celebrate one more year
merry christmas hoho ho
christmas is a happy time christmas is so good
so lets just celebrate one more year
merry christmas everyone


get prepared for rubies emeralds and ice
you can pick just want you want no matter what the price
get prepared for santa with a glass of wine
get prepared for turkey with stuffing to combine


christmas is a happy time christmas is so good
so lets just celebrate one more year
merry christmas ho ho ho
christmas is a happy time christmas is so good
so lets just celebrate one more year
merry christmas everyone


get prepared for presents open them with haste
when youve ripped the wrapping off recycle all the waste
get prepared for christmas cake pour some brandy on
youve gotta get it quickly its to late when its gone


christmas is a happy time christmas is so good
so lets just celebrate one more year
merry christmas ho ho ho
christmas is a happy time christmas is so good
oh lets just celebrate one more year
merry christmas everyone
repeat chorus

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Goddess Of Love

(shes okay)
(shes okay)
(hey)
(shes okay)
(shes okay)
(hey)
Goddess of love
Goddess of love
She never slows down
And she cant get enough
The goddess of love
The goddess of love
Shes holding her heart to the stars above
She cant afford dreams
And her clothes are old
She cant afford hope
Wouldnt be so bold
But shes holding his heart
And she wont let go again
Shes a femme fatal
Well thats what they say
But she knows he couldnt love her
Any other way
Cause shes holding him now
And she wont let go again
Yes, shes holding him now
And she wont let go again
Goddess of love
Goddess of love
She never slows down
And she cant get enough
The goddess of love
The goddess of love
Shes holding her heart to the stars above
She never slows down
And she doesnt play straight
Just cruising around in her own sweet way
But shes taking her time
And hes gonna get fooled again
She learned about life
Til she wished shew were dead
So she treats that guy like a hole in the head
Can you see him now
Hell never get lucky again
Goddess of love
Goddess of love
She never slows down
And she cant get enough
The goddess of love
The goddess of love

[...] Read more

song performed by OmdReport problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Five Visions Of Captain Cook

I
COOK was a captain of the Admiralty
When sea-captains had the evil eye,
Or should have, what with beating krakens off
And casting nativities of ships;
Cook was a captain of the powder-days
When captains, you might have said, if you had been
Fixed by their glittering stare, half-down the side,
Or gaping at them up companionways,
Were more like warlocks than a humble man—
And men were humble then who gazed at them,
Poor horn-eyed sailors, bullied by devils' fists
Of wind or water, or the want of both,
Childlike and trusting, filled with eager trust—
Cook was a captain of the sailing days
When sea-captains were kings like this,
Not cold executives of company-rules
Cracking their boilers for a dividend
Or bidding their engineers go wink
At bells and telegraphs, so plates would hold
Another pound. Those captains drove their ships
By their own blood, no laws of schoolbook steam,
Till yards were sprung, and masts went overboard—
Daemons in periwigs, doling magic out,
Who read fair alphabets in stars
Where humbler men found but a mess of sparks,
Who steered their crews by mysteries
And strange, half-dreadful sortilege with books,
Used medicines that only gods could know
The sense of, but sailors drank
In simple faith. That was the captain
Cook was when he came to the Coral Sea
And chose a passage into the dark.
How many mariners had made that choice
Paused on the brink of mystery! 'Choose now!'
The winds roared, blowing home, blowing home,
Over the Coral Sea. 'Choose now!' the trades
Cried once to Tasman, throwing him for choice
Their teeth or shoulders, and the Dutchman chose
The wind's way, turning north. 'Choose, Bougainville!'
The wind cried once, and Bougainville had heard
The voice of God, calling him prudently
Out of a dead lee shore, and chose the north.
The wind's way. So, too, Cook made choice,
Over the brink, into the devil's mouth,
With four months' food, and sailors wild with dreams
Of English beer, the smoking barns of home.
So Cook made choice, so Cook sailed westabout,
So men write poems in Australia.
II

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share
John Dryden

Cymon And Iphigenia. From Boccace

Old as I am, for lady's love unfit,
The power of beauty I remember yet,
Which once inflamed my soul, and still inspires my wit.
If love be folly, the severe divine;
Has felt that folly, though he censures mine;
Pollutes the pleasures of a chaste embrace,
Acts what I write, and propagates in grace,
With riotous excess, a priestly race.
Suppose him free, and that I forge the offence,
He showed the way, perverting first my sense:
In malice witty, and with venom fraught,
He makes me speak the things I never thought.
Compute the gains of his ungoverned zeal;
Ill suits his cloth the praise of railing well.
The world will think that what we loosely write,
Though now arraigned, he read with some delight;
Because he seems to chew the end again,
When his broad comment makes the text too plain,
And teaches more in one explaining page
Than all the double meanings of the stage.

What needs he paraphrase on what we mean?
We were at worst but wanton; he's obscene.
I nor my fellows nor my self excuse;
But Love's the subject of the comic Muse;
Nor can we write without, nor would you
A tale of only dry instruction view.
Nor love is always of a vicious kind,
But oft to virtuous acts inflames the mind,
Awakes the sleepy vigour of the soul,
And, brushing o'er, adds motion to the pool.
Love, studious how to please, improves our parts
With polished manners, and adorns with arts.
Love first invented verse, and formed the rhyme,
The motion measured, harmonized the chime;
To liberal acts enlarged the narrow-souled,
Softened the fierce, and made the coward bold;
The world, when waste, he peopled with increase,
And warring nations reconciled in peace.
Ormond, the first, and all the fair may find,
In this one legend to their fame designed,
When beauty fires the blood, how love exalts the mind.
In that sweet isle, where Venus keeps her court,
And every grace, and all the loves, resort;
Where either sex is formed of softer earth,
And takes the bent of pleasure from their birth;
There lived a Cyprian lord, above the rest
Wise, wealthy, with a numerous issue blest.

But, as no gift of fortune is sincere,

[...] Read more

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Splitting Infinitives

Chief Justice Roberts hates to split
infinitives, and boldly goes
towards the future without wit,
his path as prim as that prim rose
that once Polonius boldly took,
advising Hamlet not to dally.
The Constitution almost shook
when he refused to shilly-shally,
and tried to wander in a way
that was unfaithful to the text
the oath of office. The next day
the problem was resolved, and now,
Queen’s English and our own unregal
language must agree that splitting
of infinitives is legal,
although pedantically unfitting,
since we’ve a President who swore
appropriately, and a Justice
who like Polonius is a bore
and clearly just as dry as dust is.

Inspired by Stephen Pinker’s Op-Ed article in the NYT, January 22,2009, appropriately titled “Oaf of Office, ” commenting on the fiasco created by Chief Justice Roberts when administering the oath of office to President Obama according togrammatical rules that conflict with the original text of the oath:
In 1969, Neil Armstrong appeared to have omitted an indefinite article as he stepped onto the moon and left earthlings puzzled over the difference between “man” and “mankind.” In 1980, Jimmy Carter, accepting his party’s nomination, paid homage to a former vice president he called Hubert Horatio Hornblower. A year later, Diana Spencer reversed the first two names of her betrothed in her wedding vows, and thus, as Prince Charles Philip supposedly later joked, actually married his father. On Tuesday, Chief Justice John Roberts joined the Flubber Hall of Fame when he administered the presidential oath of office apparently without notes. Instead of having Barack Obama “solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of president of the United States, ” Chief Justice Roberts had him “solemnly swear that I will execute the office of president to the United States faithfully.” When Mr. Obama paused after “execute, ” the chief justice prompted him to continue with “faithfully the office of president of the United States.” (To ensure that the president was properly sworn in, the chief justice re-administered the oath Wednesday evening.)
How could a famous stickler for grammar have bungled that 35-word passage, among the best-known words in the Constitution? Conspiracy theorists and connoisseurs of Freudian slips have surmised that it was unconscious retaliation for Senator Obama’s vote against the chief justice’s confirmation in 2005. But a simpler explanation is that the wayward adverb in the passage is blowback from Chief Justice Roberts’s habit of grammatical niggling. Language pedants hew to an oral tradition of shibboleths that have no basis in logic or style, that have been defied by great writers for centuries, and that have been disavowed by every thoughtful usage manual. Nonetheless, they refuse to go away, perpetuated by the Gotcha! Gang and meekly obeyed by insecure writers. Among these fetishes is the prohibition against “split verbs, ” in which an adverb comes between an infinitive marker like “to, ” or an auxiliary like “will, ” and the main verb of the sentence. According to this superstition, Captain Kirk made a grammatical error when he declared that the five-year mission of the starship Enterprise was “to boldly go where no man has gone before”; it should have been “to go boldly.” Likewise, Dolly Parton should not have declared that “I will always love you” but “I always will love you” or “I will love you always.”
Any speaker who has not been brainwashed by the split-verb myth can sense that these corrections go against the rhythm and logic of English phrasing. The myth originated centuries ago in a thick-witted analogy to Latin, in which it is impossible to split an infinitive because it consists of a single word, like dicere, “to say.” But in English, infinitives like “to go” and future-tense forms like “will go” are two words, not one, and there is not the slightest reason to interdict adverbs from the position between them.
Though the ungrammaticality of split verbs is an urban legend, it found its way into The Texas Law Review Manual on Style, which is the arbiter of usage for many law review journals. James Lindgren, a critic of the manual, has found that many lawyers have “internalized the bogus rule so that they actually believe that a split verb should be avoided, ” adding, “The Invasion of the Body Snatchers has succeeded so well that many can no longer distinguish alien speech from native speech.” In his legal opinions, Chief Justice Roberts has altered quotations to conform to his notions of grammaticality, as when he excised the “ain’t” from Bob Dylan’s line “When you ain’t got nothing, you got nothing to lose.” On Tuesday his inner copy editor overrode any instincts toward strict constructionism and unilaterally amended the Constitution by moving the adverb “faithfully” away from the verb. President Obama, whose attention to language is obvious in his speeches and writings, smiled at the chief justice’s hypercorrection, then gamely repeated it. Let’s hope that during the next four years he will always challenge dogma and boldly lead the nation in new directions.


1/22/09

poem by Report problemRelated quotes
Added by Poetry Lover
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Holding Back The Years

Holding back the years,
Thinking of the fear Ive had for so long.
When somebody hears,
Listen to the fear thats gone.
Strangled by the wishes of pater,
Hoping for the arm of mater,
Get to me sooner or later,
Nothing ever could, yeah.
Ill keep holding on,
Ill keep holding on,
Ill keep holding on,
Ill keep holding on.
Chance for me to escape from all I know.
Holding back the tears.
Theres nothing here has grown.
Ive wasted all my tears,
Wasted all those years.
Nothing had the chance to be good,
Nothing ever could, yeah.
Ill keep holding on,
Ill keep holding on,
Ill keep holding on,
Ill keep holding on
So tight.

song performed by Simply RedReport problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

Runaround On The Underground

(a. bell / v. clarke)
Im waiting at the bus stop for a double-decker ride.
Supermarket checkout boy finds his way inside.
A shady looking character, his beady eyes on me.
I slip into a window seat, and then pretend to read.
Its a wild, its a wild, wild, wild world.
The hardest thing is holding on,
Holding on and take the strain.
Theyre coming at me at angles that I never knew existed.
They aint gonna get me.
Im building up my colours of resistance. (colours of resistance)
Its a runaround on the underground.
A cybermatic shopper, with a slight sadistic grin,
Pulls a zipper on her sleeping bag; shuts herself within.
A triple quilted chrysalis waiting for the sales.
A bargain basement butterfly going off the rails
Its a wild, its a wild, wild, wild world.
The hardest thing is holding on,
Holding on and take the strain.
Theyre coming at me at angles that I never knew existed...woah
They aint gonna get me.
Im building up my colours of resistance. (colours of resistance)
Its a runaround on the underground.
Its a wild, its a wild, wild, wild world.
The hardest thing is holding on,
Holding on and take the strain.
Theyre coming at me at angles that I never knew existed.
They aint gonna get me.
Im building up my colours of resistance. (colours of resistance)
Its a runaround on the underground the hardest thing is holding on,
Holding on and take the strain.
Theyre coming at me at angles that I never knew existed.
They aint gonna get me.
Im building up my colours of resistance. (colours of resistance)
The hardest thing is holding on,
Holding on and take the strain.

song performed by ErasureReport problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share

See Thru

No apology necessary shut your mouth
Youve closed your mind
Weve been walking this road forever
It dont lead to paradise
In the mirror your sad reflection haunting you
Now I see mine
Yes I see mine
And you just dont get it
But you just might regret it, you might regret it
Shooting the rainbows from the sky
Throwing your love to passers by
Begging forgiveness for your crime
Never prepared to do your time
Its always them and never you
cause youre so see thru, I see thru you
(cause youre so see thru)
Aint no use in demanding justice
Youre a victim of your sight
I held you up when your heart was heavy
Now you never give me mine
In the mirror my sad reflection haunting me
One more time, one more time
And you just dont get it, do ya?
But you just might regret it, yeah yeah yeah yeah
Shooting the rainbows from the sky
Throwing your love to passers by
Begging forgiveness for your crime
Never prepared to do your time
Its always them and never you
cause youre so see thru, I see thru you
(cause youre so see thru)
Shooting the rainbows from the sky
Throwing your love to passers by
Begging forgiveness for your crime
Never prepared to do your time
Its always them and never you
Boy youre so see thru, I see thru you
(cause youre so see thru)
You just dont get it, no you just dont get it
You just dont get it but you might regret it
You might regret it
Shooting the rainbows from the sky
Throwing your love to passers by
Begging forgiveness for your crime
Never prepared to do your time
Its always them and never you
cause youre so see thru, I see thru you
(cause youre so see thru)
Shooting the rainbows from the sky - youre so see thru
Throwing your love to passers by

[...] Read more

song performed by Culture ClubReport problemRelated quotes
Added by Lucian Velea
Comment! | Vote! | Copy!

Share
 

Search


Recent searches | Top searches