The Querist

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Topical Query: The Day After (All U.S. Voters)

“Now, what?” ~ All U.S. Voters , The Day After Referring back to Query 184 (May 24, 2020) , was the Anonymous Facebook meme correct in its assessment of the 2020 Democratic Presidential Nominee? Discuss the outcome of the 2020 Presidential Election. Are you satisfied with the outcome? Why or why not? Are you surprised at the outcome? Why or why not? How might the U.S. be safer, now that the 2020 results have been tabulated? How might the U.S. be less safe? ____________________________ NOTE: This entry was created in December 2019 and scheduled for today’s date; therefore, at this writing, the webmaster did not know the outcome of the election.

21st Century: Query 197 (Voltaire)

“Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” ~ Voltaire (François-Marie Arouet) was a French Enlightenment writer, historian, and philosopher famous for his wit, his criticism of Christianity , especially the Roman Catholic Church , as well as his advocacy of freedom of speech , freedom of religion , and separation of church and state . Donald Trump has convinced his supporters to believe what kind of absurdities? How close are his supporters to committing, in his name, atrocities? What can ordinary citizens do about it?

21st Century: Query 195 (Harriet Beecher Stowe)

“I did not write [ Uncle Tom’s Cabin ]. God wrote it. I merely did his dictation.” ~ Harriet Beecher Stowe was an American abolitionist and author. She came from the Beecher family , a famous religious family, and is best known for her novel Uncle Tom’s Cabin (1852), which depicts the harsh conditions for enslaved African Americans. The book reached millions as a novel and play, and became influential in the United States and Great Britain, energizing anti-slavery forces in the American North , while provoking widespread anger in the South . Stowe wrote 30 books, including novels, three travel memoirs, and collections of articles and letters. She was influential for both her writings and her public stances and debates on social issues of the day. What does Stowe’s assertion about God’s “dictation” reveal about her writing process? ( Note : Divine inspiration is probably another form of “ automatic writing ,” a claimed psychic ability allowing a person to produce writt...

21st Century: Query 194 (An Internet Meme)

“ Yoga pants don’t lie.” ~ An internet meme How might this meme be true? False? Both true and false? In what ways might Yoga pants lie? What social norm is expected of a person, usually female, who wears Yoga pants? What assumptions are made when a male wears Yoga pants? A person of size? In the images presented on Google , what are some common factors exhibited by the models posing in Yoga pants? What are the political overtones of “Yoga pants don’t lie”? How might a Yoga pants wearer turn stereotypes on their head? When Yoga pants are worn outside of social norms, what is the typical reaction?

Part 1: Query 287

Qu. Whether a view of the ruinous effects of absurd schemes and credit mismanaged, so as to produce gaming and madness instead of industry, can be any just objection against a national bank calculated purely to promote industry?

21st Century: Query 193 (Hattie McDaniel)

“I don’t belong on this earth. I always feel out of place – like a visitor.” ~ Hattie McDaniel was an American actress of stage and screen, professional singer-songwriter, and comedian. She is best known for her role as “Mammy” in Gone with the Wind (1939), for which she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress , the first Oscar won by a black entertainer. In addition to acting in many films, McDaniel recorded 16 blues sides between 1926–1929 (10 were issued), was a radio performer and television star; she was the first black woman to sing on radio in the United States. She appeared in over 300 films, although she received screen credits for only 83. As an African-American actor of the 1930’s and 1940’s McDaniel often experienced rampant racism and prejudice in both her personal and professional life. She was typecast in domestic roles, such as her well-known “Mammy” role. In 2020, how might an African-American entertainer experience some of the same p...

Part 1: Query 286

Qu. Whether, whatever inconveniences those people may have incurred from not observing either rules or bounds in their paper money, yet it be not certain that they are in a more flourishing condition, have larger and better built towns, more plenty, more industry, more arts and civility, and a more extensive commerce, than when they had gold and silver current among them?

21st Century: Query 192 (Frank Lloyd Wright)

“Bureaucrats: they are dead at 30 and buried at 60. They are like custard pies; you can’t nail them to a wall.” ~ Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect , interior designer, writer, and educator, whose creative period spanned more than 70 years, designing more than 1,000 structures, of which 532 were completed. Wright believed in designing structures that were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture . This philosophy was best exemplified by Fallingwater (1935), which has been called “the best all-time work of American architecture.” As a founder of organic architecture, Wright played a key role in the architectural movements of the twentieth century, influencing three generations of architects worldwide through his works. How might Wright’s statement be true or false? What, exactly, does he reveal about his feelings toward bureaucrats, which, presumably, includes politicians? What does he mean when he says, “...

Part 1: Query 285

Qu. Whether these people do not exercise all arts and trades, build ships and navigate them to all parts of the world, purchase lands, till and reap the fruits of them, buy and sell, educate and provide for their children? Whether they do not even indulge themselves in foreign vanities?

21st Century: Query 191 (Nathan Hale)

“It is the duty of every good officer to obey any orders given him by his commander in chief.” ~ Nathan Hale was an American soldier and spy for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War . He volunteered for an intelligence-gathering mission in New York City but was captured by the British and executed. Hale has long been considered an American hero and, in 1985, he was officially designated the state hero of Connecticut . Should this statement always be true? Why or why not? When, if ever, should a “good officer” refuse to carry out an order? What should the penalty be for not carrying out an order? Should a refusal for ethical reasons be punished differently than for less-than-altruistic reasons? Why or why not?

Part 1: Query 284

Qu. Whether there are not to be seen in America fair towns, wherein the people are well lodged, fed, and clothed, without a beggar in their streets, although there be not one grain of gold or silver current among them?

21st Century: Query 190 (Angelina Jolie)

“If you have enough people sitting around telling you you’re wonderful, then you start believing you’re fabulous, then someone tells you you stink and you believe that too!” ~ Angelina Jolie , an American actor, filmmaker, and humanitarian. The recipient of such accolades as an Academy Award and three Golden Globe Awards , she has been named Hollywood’s highest-paid actress multiple times. What does Jolie’s statement generally reveal about fame, whether one is an entertainer or politician? What is the danger of being surrounded mostly by sycophants and back slappers? How might a President of the United States improve his presidency by surrounding himself with “ a team of rivals ”?

Part 1: Query 283

Qu. Whether, therefore, the circulating paper, in the late ruinous schemes of France and England, was the true evil, and not rather the circulating thereof without industry? And whether the bank of Amsterdam, where industry had been for so many years subsisted and circulated by transfers on paper, doth not clearly decide this point?

21st Century: Query 189 (Martha Washington)

“I live a very dull life here [The White House]... indeed I think I am more like a state prisoner than anything else.” ~ Martha Washington , First First Lady of the United States (FLOTUS), was the wife of George Washington , the first President of the United States . Although the title was not coined until after her death, Martha Washington served as the inaugural First Lady of the United States . During her lifetime she was often referred to as “Lady Washington.” How might this statement be true for First Ladies? How have some past First Ladies handled this job? In your opinion, which First Lady has handled this mostly thankless role the best? How is the current First Lady handling her role? How does her approach to public life compare to that of the previous First Lady?

Part 1: Query 282

Qu. Whether it must not be ruinous for a nation to sit down to game, be it with silver or with paper?

21st Century: Query 188 (Fred Allen)

“I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me.” ~ Fred Allen , born John Florence Sullivan, was an American comedian. His absurdist, topically pointed radio program The Fred Allen Show (1932–1949) made him one of the most popular and forward-looking humorists in the Golden Age of American radio . Using humor, how does Allen twist a virtue into a quasi-negative activity? What does this form of wit reveal about Allen? Allen passed away in 1956, long before the boon in formal exercise became a “thing.” How does the overall fitness of the average 1950’s adult compare to that of a 2020 adult? Do you see a dissonance in this comparison? Why or why not?

Part 1: Query 281

Qu. Whether there be not a wide difference between the profits going to augment the national stock, and being divided among private sharers? And whether, in the former case, there can possibly be any gaming or stock-jobbing ?

21st Century: Query 187 (Irving Thalberg)

“Credit you give yourself is not worth having.” ~ Irving Thalberg was an American film producer during the early years of motion pictures. He was called “The Boy Wonder” for his youth and ability to select scripts, choose actors, gather production staff, and make profitable films, including Grand Hotel , China Seas , Camille , Mutiny on the Bounty and The Good Earth . His films carved out an international market, “projecting a seductive image of American life brimming with vitality and rooted in democracy and personal freedom,” states biographer Roland Flamini . Overall, how is Thalberg’s assertion true? Untrue? In the U.S., we must currently endure a president who credits and praises himself constantly. How has this approach been successful? Unsuccessful? What kind of person follows a self-important egomaniac blindly and completely?

Part 1: Query 280

Qu. Whether any man hath a right to judge, that will not be at the pains to distinguish?

21st Century: Query 186 (Ian Fleming)

“Men want a woman whom they can turn on and off like a light switch.” ~ Ian Fleming was an English author, journalist and naval intelligence officer who is best known for his James Bond series of spy novels . Fleming came from a wealthy family connected to the merchant bank Robert Fleming & Co. , and his father was the Member of Parliament for Henley from 1910 until his death on the Western Front in 1917. Educated at Eton , Sandhurst and, briefly, the universities of Munich and Geneva , Fleming moved through several jobs before he started writing. While working for Britain’s Naval Intelligence Division during the Second World War, Fleming was involved in planning Operation Goldeneye and in the planning and oversight of two intelligence units, 30 Assault Unit and T-Force . His wartime service and his career as a journalist provided much of the background, detail and depth of the James Bond novels . Fleming wrote his first Bond novel, Casino Royale , in 1952. It w...

Part 1: Query 279

Qu. Whether the subject of Freethinking in religion be not exhausted? And whether it be not high time for our freethinkers to turn their thoughts to the improvement of their country?

21st Century: Query 185 (Isadora Duncan)

“Any intelligent woman who reads the marriage contract, and then goes into it, deserves all the consequences.” ~ Isadora Duncan was an American and French dancer who performed to acclaim throughout Europe. In both professional and private life, Duncan flouted traditional mores and morality. She was bisexual and an atheist, and alluded to her communism during her last United States tour, in 1922–23: she waved a red scarf and bared her breast on stage in Boston , proclaiming, “This is red! So am I!” Her two out-of-wedlock children drowned in the care of their nanny in 1913 when their runaway car went into the Seine . Born in California, she lived in Western Europe and the Soviet Union from the age of 22 until her death in 1927 at age 50, when her scarf became entangled in the wheels and axle of the car in which she was riding . Duncan lived in an era when premarital sex and bearing children out of wedlock was considered to be taboo. Given her era, what does her attitude tow...

Part 1: Query 278

Qu. Whether interest be not apt to bias judgment? And whether traders only are to be consulted about trade, or bankers about money?

21st Century: Query 184 (Anonymous)

“Consider yourself warned: unless Democrats coalesce around a *viable* (non-unicorn) Presidential candidate, Donald Trump will win re-election.” ~ Anonymous meme, filched from Facebook In this context, what might the author mean by “a viable (non-unicorn) Presidential candidate”? What does that candidate look like, in terms of political leanings? Also, in this context, what might the author mean by “a unicorn Presidential candidate”? What does that candidate look like, in terms of political leanings? On November 4, 2020, jump here and discuss the outcome of the election. (Until November 4, 2020, this will be a dead link.)

Part 1: Query 277

Qu. Whether he who is bred to a part be fitted to judge of the whole?

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