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stranger
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The quote that accompanied the Word Of The Day SYZYGY was
There is hopeful symbolism in the fact that flags do not wave in a vacuum.
-Arthur C. Clarke, writer (1917- )
I've been puzzling for some time now, but I don't see this hopeful symbolism. Nationalism will not flourish in deep space? Astronauts should not carry flags? Vacuum cleaners are not bound by national borders? Help!
Cursquid
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Perhaps Mr. Clarke means to imply that the pety squables of nations won't prevail in space. I've read many times that astronauts are inspired by how nations seem insignificant when you see the Earth from above, with no boundaries drawn out. I find it quite inspirational.
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stranger
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Indeed it seems to be the only suitable solution. Although the problem remains, of course, a flag *does* wave in space. It only costs more money to get it waving, and it will wave endlessly from that moment on. But let's not get too scientific :)
Got to admit I start liking the quotes better than the words. Why not AQAD? Err- AWAD actually is AQAD ofcourse. Sorry.
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stranger
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merci beaucoup!
Cursquid
(holding back the urge to make a stupid, stupid joke
about Cata Stophic but failing hopelessly- sorry...)
===
"Why does noone ever quote *me* for someone's sake?"
-Richard Helmholz
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old hand
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>There is hopeful symbolism in the fact that flags do not wave in a vacuum.< Indeed this phrase bears multiple interpretations. Maybe this is a condition for being quoted at all  . Once I came across a collection of nonsensical aphorisms, of which I only remember: "Even lame dogs can carry flees"..
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addict
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One of the New Statesman competitions [in 1969] was to invent aphorisms or proverbs of a self-evident nature, the example being an Ashanti proverb "Do not rub bottoms with a porcupine".
Correspondents came up with the following [a selection only]:
He digs deepest who deepest digs.
He who has the biggest feet will cover the most ground.
A bird in a taxi's worth two in a bus.
If there's no lead in your pencil you don't need a rubber.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Here are a few more...He who laughs last, thinks slowest. A day without sunshine is like, well, night. On the other hand, you have different fingers. When the chips are down, the buffalo is empty. I wonder how much deeper the ocean would be without sponges (or used-up bicycles). Nothing is fool-proof to a sufficiently talented fool. It is said that if you line up all the cars in the world end to end, someone would be stupid enough to try and pass them. (probably a guy  ) Latest survey shows that 3 out of 4 people make up 75% of the world's population. The things that come to those that wait may be the things left by those who got there first. A fine is a tax for doing wrong. A tax is a fine for doing well. It was recently discovered that research causes cancer in rats. Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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Oh, bel!
I have laughed till my tummy hurts! Thank you!!
Oh, what fun!!
One correction: I'd be the one trying to pass
all the cars!
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old hand
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Thank you, belMarduk, That was a king-size box of pralinés surfins
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Pooh-Bah
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A belated welcome, Cursquid. (No relation to a Dogfish, I suppose?) I've missed all this whilst I've been moving house. (Strange expression: my old house is exactly where it has been this last three hundred years - it is I who have moved.)
I have always read the Arthur C.Clarke quote as being an anti-nationalist remark, and have liked him all the more for it. I believe that nationalism has been the cause of many more evils than the pursuit of money - and goodness knows that is plenty. I must here make a differentiation between nationalism, which is an excessive belief in the worthiness of your own country/race, to the extent that anyone or thing from anywhere else is, ipso facto, inferior, and patriotism which is a love of the country of your birth or adoption.
The latter is right and proper, and good. It makes you cheer your side in football matches, etc, and feel homesick when you are "abroad"
The former tends to lead to the excesses of racism.
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stranger
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The quote is getting more inspiring! I'm not very sure if cheering your side at a football match is exactly what I think of as being "good", (does this include throwing Molotov-cocktails at the other side?) but indeed nationalism is definitely bad. World unite in a vacuum!
Cursquid
PS
Congratulatiosn with the new house. I don't know if the expression is wrong: what if man actually can't move at all and the entire universe is spinning like mad to give us
the illusion of self-motion? It's practically possible...
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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[rant]
While I share your opinion of nationalism, I think few today would observe the very fine distinction you draw between nationalism and patriotism. My Chambers defines a patriot as: "One who truly, though sometimes, loves and serves his fatherland." If I remember the quote correctly, it says: "patriotism is the last refuge to which a scoundrel clings." Many who call themselves patriots are fond of the phrase "My - my country right or wrong, but always my country," which G.K. Chesterton described as being on the same moral level as "My mother, drunk or sober." It is not my intention to offend anyone, but the subject of nationalism/patriotism is one of very few that I feel so strongly about - both are anathema to me. Whether it should be so or not, it seems to me that the development of the nation-state has led to patriotism and nationalism becoming synonymous, at least in practice, if not in theory. As I type this I am listening to "An die Freude" - so that might be firing my supranationalist passions a little. I will close with a quote from G.B. Shaw that illustrates the apparent synonymity of patriotism and nationalism:
"Patriotism is your conviction that this country is superior
to all others because you were born in it."
[/rant]
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Pooh-Bah
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the new house. Yes, it is new, really - it was only built in c1870, whereas the one I was in previously was built c1690 I don't know if the expression is wrong: what if man actually can't move at all and the entire universe is spinning like mad It could be, in this case, that I am static in time as well as space, and both are moving past/around me.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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next thing you know, you'll have slipped into solipsism, in which case you'll need a new thread... all to yourself... alone.
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
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next thing you know, you'll have slipped into solipsism, in which case you'll need a new thread... all to yourself... alone.But how would he know that the thread existed?
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But how would he know that the thread existed But how does he know he's not already there? 
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