Truth
The WORDmeister Sez: Chicago Tribune columnist Rex Huppke recently reported the death of Facts, which earlier this month finally succumbed to the scourge of political inanity (The Death of Facts, 360 B.C.-A.D. 2012). NPR took up the tale Saturday. In 2005, philosopher-King Stephen Colbert recognized that Truth also was on its deathbed when he swapped “truthiness” for truth. Here, some commentary on the decline of truth and fact over time.
“Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.” — Buddha“I am a firm believer in the people. If given the truth, they can be depended upon to meet any national crisis. The great point is to bring them the real facts.” —Abrahan Lincoln (1809-1865)
“Facts and truth really don't have much to do with each other.” —William Faulkner (1897-1962)
“In wartime [or politics], truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies.” —Winston Churchill (1879-1965)
“Truth is so rare that it is delightful to tell it.” —Emily Dickinson (1830-1886)
“Truth is by nature self-evident. As soon as you remove the cobwebs of ignorance that surround it, it shines clear.” —Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948)
“You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you mad.” —Aldous Huxley (1894-1963)
“If you ever injected truth into politics you’d have no politics.” —Will Rogers (1879-1935)
“To the shock of most sentient beings, Facts died Wednesday, April 18, [2012] after a long battle for relevancy with the 24-hour news cycle, blogs and the Internet.” —Rex Huppke, columnist, 2012
• Editorial Comment: Like obscenity, I know truth when I see it.
• Yesterday’s WORD: Mad Advice Did you miss yesterday’s WORDs from advertising mogul David Ogilvy, on how to write? Click here.
News from our award-winning student news site, The Hard News Café
• History named top teaching department at USU in fierce competition, by Allie Jeppson • Astronomer warns of ‘Death from the Skies’ in Science lecture, by Mary Stocking
• Commencement 2012: Aggies have less debt than national average, by Kristi Ottley
• Aggies team up with Nike to launch new ‘look’—uniforms, bull, logo, by Rebecca Holliday
• Young couple finishes restoration of historic Hyde Park house, by Shannon McCleve
• ‘Great Shakeout’ drill went well at Utah State, coordinator says, by Shannon McCleve
• Wellsville residents’ opinions divided on proposed truck stop, by Jemina Herrero
• Aggies TV News—Cache Rendezvous (April 25)
• Decision nears on proposed Oneida Narrows dam, but fight not over yet, by Allie Jeppson
PeezPIX by Ted Pease
Catalog here
Lulu the Bighearted Dog left us much too soon.
2002-2012 RIP
To paraphrase Jack Nicholson's line from A Few Good Men, "We can't handle the truth."
ReplyDelete