Dear Richard:
You have said it so well!
I fell for the taunt of the tar-baby.
Thank you for the literate and appropriate quote from Johnson. For some
unexplainable reason, I once read all of Boswell's journals. I had more
time in those days.
73 Mac N8TT

--
J. Mc Laughlin; Michigan U.S.A.
Home:
"Richard Clark" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 5 Feb 2006 22:50:55 -0500, "J. Mc Laughlin"
wrote:

Reg: Your making such an obviously false statement calls into
question
all of your pronouncements.
There is not a single student in my University (or any other similar
institution that I know of) who will graduate without providing many
demonstrations of their significant arithmetic and mathematical ability.
Your veracity is gone.


C'Mon Mac,

Reggie has been doing this so many years, it's his trademark schtick.
To give Reggie credit where credit is due, can be found in a
remarkable body of work of programs. Unfortunately, this
accomplishment is seriously tipped out of balance when he scorns his
audience as software addicts.

Instead of teaching them Kelvin's principles by example, we get his
poor English stagings of Le Misanthrope de Moliere.

One of my favorite irascible English characters is Dr. Samuel Johnson,
but his ire is tempered with a faith in humanity:
"this boy rows us as well without learning, as if he could sing
the song of Orpheus to the Argonauts, who were the first sailors.'
He then called to the boy, 'What would you give, my lad, to know
about the Argonauts?' 'Sir (said the boy,) I would give what I
have.' Johnson was much pleased with his answer, and we gave him a
double fare. Dr. Johnson then turning to me, 'Sir, (said he) a
desire of knowledge is the natural feeling of mankind; and every
human being, whose mind is not debauched, will be willing to give
all that he has to get knowledge.' "

73's
Richard Clark, KB7QHC