Sunday December 30, 2007

Sunday, December 30, 2007

Sunday December 30, 2007

Filed under: General — Tags: Sorkin — m759 @ 1:00 pm

The Christmas Tiger

Part I:
The Gauntlet

On Jonah Goldberg's new book Liberal Fascism– an attack on, among others, Woodrow Wilson:

"'… at some point,' Goldberg writes, 'it is necessary to throw down the gauntlet, to draw a line in the sand, to set a boundary, to cry at long last, "Enough is enough."'"

The Goldberg declaration is from a review in today's New York Times titled "Heil Woodrow!"

Part II:
Uncle Duke
Goes to Washington

Today's Doonesbury:

Part III:
A Holiday Tradition

Dialogue from the classic Capra film "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington"–

SUMMERS: When the country needs men up there who know and have courage as it never did before, he's just gonna decorate a chair and get himself honored.

DARRELL: Oh, but he'll vote! Sure. Just like his colleague tells him to.

DIZ: "Yes, sir," like a Christmas tiger. He'll nod his head and vote…

REPORTERS: "Yes."

DIZ: You're not a Senator! You're an honorary stooge! You ought to be shown up!

The film starred
James Stewart,
Princeton
Class of 1932.

Part IV:
The Tigers of Princeton

The Christmas evening Pennsylvania Lottery 4-digit number was 0666, the Christian "number of the beast." For the beast itself, see the Dec. 3 Log24 entry "Santa's Polar Opposite?" with its link to a discussion of a metaphorical tiger at the South Pole. A more realistic version of the beast appeared in the news on Christmas evening.

The Christmas number may also be interpreted as a reference to 6/6/6, the graduation date of the Class of 2006 at Princeton University.

Part V:
"Heil Woodrow!"

As noted above, this title from a book review in today's New York Times refers to Woodrow Wilson, President of the United States (1913-1921) and President of Princeton University (1902-1910).

A suitable heraldic emblem
to accompany the Goldberg Heil:

The Princeton Shield