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W Quotes

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All W Quotes

“We go up to the convent. […] To the right of the entrance, some letters of a mysterious language are traced on the wall. We are told that Michetti invented this language for his personal use. Why? Prison inmates use a secret language among themselves so as not to be understood by their jailers. Obviously, Michetti considered humanity to be totally composed of jailers. […] To show how difficult it is to read this introductory epigraph, we are told that not even Gabriele d'Annunzio succeeded in interpreting it. […] "Who do you think you are — Dante Alighieri?" According to the most reliable version, the epigraph goes as follows: "Whoever brings evil into this house, may he be buried in shit.” It is a legitimate wish and one that, for all we know, Providence has thus far fulfilled. But why not express it in a clearer way? […] The visit to the convent continues. Rooms and corridors are of a virginal whiteness. In the hall where the convent elders assembled for their meals, the credenza has been replaced by a small harmonium. A painting by Sartorio in his "early manner" hangs over a console. [..] The painter has signed with only his initials, without realizing that the initials for “Giorgio Aristide Sartorio” spell the word "gas.”

Fine ArtConventSecret Language
Author:Alberto Savinio
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“We go up to the convent. […] To the right of the entrance, some letters of a mysterious language are traced on the wall. We are told that Michetti invented this language for his personal use. Why? Prison inmates use a secret language among themselves so as not to be understood by their jailers. Obviously, Michetti considered humanity to be totally composed of jailers. […] To show how difficult it is to read this introductory epigraph, we are told that not even Gabriele d'Annunzio succeeded in interpreting it. […] "Who do you think you are — Dante Alighieri?" According to the most reliable version, the epigraph goes as follows: "Whoever brings evil into this house, may he be buried in shit.” It is a legitimate wish and one that, for all we know, Providence has thus far fulfilled. But why not express it in a clearer way? […] The visit to the convent continues. Rooms and corridors are of a virginal whiteness. In the hall where the convent elders assembled for their meals, the credenza has been replaced by a small harmonium. A painting by Sartorio in his "early manner" hangs over a console. [..] The painter has signed with only his initials, without realizing that the initials for “Giorgio Aristide Sartorio” spell the word "gas." [FROM: Speaking to Cleo (1939)]”

Fine ArtConventSecret LanguageFart Joke
Author:Alberto Savinio
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“We godless lack that certainty, and we know the world is a complex place that requires compromise and is not ruled by a moral force - virtue is subject to negotiation, and is found in working together with others to find mutually satisfactory solutions. Good is not absolute, it is an emergent property that arises from successful networks of individuals. It is also something that is measured by evidence: we look at the good that people do, not the promises that they make and never keep, or the lies that dovetail nicely into dogma. Competence is a virtue. Intent is meaningless without action.”

PeopleKnowsWorldLooksActionTogetherLyingFoundIndividualForceMoralVirtueSuccessfulSubjectsPromiseSolutionsEvidenceAbsolutesPropertyComplexesAtheistAriseCompromiseCertaintyWorking TogetherMeaninglessDogmaNegotiationCompetence
Author:PZ Myers
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“We got a commitment that 3 million nurses are going to be trained to better identify these signs [of PTSD], because, you know, when these troops come home and they become veterans and they go back into the civilian community, they're not always going through the VA system for medical care. They're going to show up at community hospitals and clinics.”

KnowsShowsHomeCareCommunityMillionsCommitmentMedicalComing HomeHospitalsNurseTroopsVeteranPtsdCiviliansClinicMedical Care
Author:Michelle Obama
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“We got a wonderful present from Stalin and Hitler that they never meant to give us. We were immune for 60 years or so to aggression, racism and militarism. They made us partly immune to these things. Now it appears this Stalin-Hitler present has reached its expiration date. We were spoiled by this. So maybe we are just emerging out of a relatively golden age.”

GivingYearsMadeAgeWonderfulRacismGoldenAggressionEmergingImmuneSpoiledGolden AgeMilitarismStalin And Hitler
Author:Amos Oz
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“We got an expression ride back to the palace of Hades. Nico sent word ahead, thanks to some ghost he summoned out of the ground, and within a few minutes the Three Furies themselves arrived to ferry us back. They weren't thrilled about lugging Bob the Titan, too, but I didn't have the heart to leave him behind, especially after he noticed my shoulder wound, said, "Owie", and healed it with a touch.”

HeartSaidThreeBehindsMinutesExpressionWoundsGhostShouldersThanksBobPalacesFuryHealedHadesTitansFerry
Author:Rick Riordan
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“We got email today from an LGF reader who was browsing the Lexis research system and discovered that anti-American, anti-capitalist icon Noam Chomsky has embarrassingly capitalist tastes; among other expensive property he owns a 36,155 square foot home near Cambridge, a 13,503 square foot vacation home, and four boats. And we won't even mention the cars. Teaching kids to hate their own country seems to pay quite well.”

WellsCountryHomeSeemsKidsTodayHatePayFourFeetTeachingCarReaderTasteResearchPropertyBoatExpensiveSquaresVacationCapitalistEmailIconsCambridgeAnti-americanTeaching KidsBrowsing
Author:Charles Foster Johnson
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