I came across a couple of great quotes about the state of the world while reading the papers this morning:
- By ignoring predictions of an insurgency and refusing to do homework before charging into Iraq on trumped-up pretenses, W. left our troops undermanned, inadequately armored and psychologically unprepared. — from a Saturday column by Maureen Dowd
- Late yesterday, Home Depot issued a statement that said in part, “While we understand that the approach we took to the annual meeting was a departure from past practice, it should in no way be construed as either a lack of respect for our shareholders or a lessening of our commitment to high standards of corporate governance and transparency.” Apparently, Mr. Nardelli and the Home Depot board think their shareholders are stupid, too. — from a column by Joe Nocera titled The Board Wore Chicken Suits
- Indeed, a lawsuit resembles less a mathematical problem with a single correct solution than a chemical reaction, the result of which may depend on any number of slight variations in the ingredients used and the conditions under which the reaction occurs. One may theorize endlessly about the likely outcome of a given reaction, but the reliable result must always come from the test of real experience.
and
We can think of no workable test or principle that would distinguish “legitimate” from “illegitimate” news. Any attempt by courts to draw such a distinction would imperil a fundamental purpose of the First Amendment, which is to identify the best, most important, and most valuable ideas not by any sociological or economic formula, rule of law, or process of government, but through the rough and tumble competition of the memetic marketplace. — Apple v. Does