On November 4, 1879, American humorist Will Rogers was born. Aside from his cowboy act, and his work as an actor in Hollywood, he gained much fame for being a topical comedian “just reporting what’s in the papers.” Among his most famous quips? “Be thankful we’re not getting all the government we’re paying for.”
On November 3, 1783, the American Continental Army — its mission fulfilled — was disbanded.
On November 3, 1969, U.S. President Richard M. Nixon made a television and radio appearance, asking the “silent majority” to join him in solidarity on the Vietnam War effort.
We do not call anything wrong, unless we mean to imply that a person ought to be punished in some way or other for doing it; if not by law, by the opinion of his fellow creatures; if not by opinion, by the reproaches of his own conscience. This seems the real turning point of the distinction between morality and simple expediency. It is a part of the notion of Duty in every one of its forms, that a person may rightfully be compelled to fulfil it. Duty is a thing which may be exacted from a person, as one exacts a debt. Unless we think that it might be exacted from him, we do not call it his duty.
John Stuart Mill, Utilitarianism (London: Longmans, Green, and Co., 1879), Chapter V, “On the Connexion Between Justice and Utility.”
On November 2, 1772, Samuel Adams (pictured) and Joseph Warren formed the first Committee of Correspondence.
May our land be a land of liberty, the seat of virtue, the asylum of the oppressed, a name and a praise in the whole Earth, until the last shock of time shall bury the empires of the whole world in one common undistinguished ruin!
Joseph Warren, “Boston Massacre” oration, March 5, 1772. Image: detail of portrait by John Singleton Copley, c. 1765.
Where liberty dwells, there is my country.
H.L. Mencken attributed this popular statement to Benjamin Franklin, written in a March 14, 1783 letter to Benjamin Vaughan. That letter, however, has not been located. Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations notes this was the motto of James Otis (Latin: Ubi libertas, ibi patria; the 1780 A Complete Book of Heraldry marks it as the motto of Daniel Huger, Esq. Many early biographies of Thomas Paine portray Ben Franklin mystically speaking these words to Paine. The slogan has also been attributed to Algernon Sidney, the forgotten founding father. In “Defining Liberty: An Analysis of Its Three Elements” (ABA Journal, April 1965), Wendell J. Brown identified John Milton as its author. Which is why we picture the great poet, above. Help in correctly citing priority for this great quotation would be greatly appreciated.
On November 1, 1790, Edmund Burke published his Reflections on the Revolution in France, predicting that the French Revolution would end in disaster. Though many have disputed his premises, few dispute his prophecy, which proved spot on.
Ireland, Canada, United Kingdom, United States and other nations celebrate Halloween on October 31.
The word Halloween or Hallowe’en dates to about 1745 and is of Christian origin, meaning “hallowed evening” or “holy evening.” It comes from a Scottish term for All Hallows’ Eve (the evening before All Hallows’ Day). In Scots, the word “eve” is “even,” and this is contracted to “e’en” or “een.” Over time, (All) Hallow(s) E(v)en shortened into Halloween.
It is one of those darker-themed celebrations, often conjuring up images of death and horror. As if in keeping with this theme, Josef Stalin’s body was removed from Lenin’s Tomb on October 31, 1961.
To acknowledge a horrifying possibility, Common Sense marks the occasion with images of the two major-party candidates for the presidency, both seeking votes in early November. One of these will (likely) become president!
He [Anthony Weiner] might run in Alaska.* I don’t think it’s a good idea that he think about it in the next five years, but who’s to say what’s going to happen in five years.**
Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-N.J.), in “The backstory: Weiner’s final undoing,” Jonathan Allen and Maggie Haberman, Politico, June 16, 2011 07:23 PM EDT, as forwarded in an email to Hillary Clinton from Cheryl Mills, 2011-06-16 02:23, courtesy WikiLeaks.
* Allen and Haberman characterize the first sentence as a joke, and the next sentence as said seriously.
** This past June marked five years from Pascrell’s utterance. We may be now witnessing Weiner’s FINAL “Final Undoing.”
pictured, above: Anthony Weiner
Well, with Election Day nearly a mere week away, the scandals just keep coming in. One doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Instead, click on over to Townhall and maintain some perspective.
Then come back here for even more: