Benjamin Franklin declared the sun on the back of President Washington’s chair to be rising. I wonder now if it is setting. Some nuggets of wisdom from G.K.Chesterton:
On ethics: "We are learning to do a great many clever things. The next thing we are going to have to learn is not to do them."
On morality: "The next great heresy is going to be simply an attack on morality: and especially on sexual morality. The madness of tomorrow is not in Moscow but much more in Manhattan."
On nationalism: "There are three stages in the life of a strong people. First, it is a small power, and fights small powers. Then it is a great power, and fights great powers. Then it is a great power, and fights small powers, but pretends that they are great powers, in order to rekindle the ashes of its ancient emotion and vanity."
Related to the last point:
Where Does Iraq Stand Among U.S. Wars?
Total Casualties Compare to Spanish-American, Mexican and 1812 Conflicts
By Thomas E. Ricks, Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, May 31, 2004; Page A16
"With more than 800 U.S. military personnel killed and more than 4,600 wounded, U.S. casualties in Iraq over the past 14 months now compare to those of several of the smaller wars in the nation’s history."