Wednesday, November 02, 2005

GK Chesterton

Who: Gilbert K. Chesterton
Source: Heretics

Science in the modern world has many uses; its chief use, however, is to provide long words to cover the errors of the rich. The word Akleptomania@ is a vulgar example of what I mean. It is on a par with that strange theory, always advanced when a wealthy or prominent person is in the dock, that exposure is more of a punishment for the rich than for the poor. Of course, the very reverse is the truth. Exposure is more of a punishment for the poor than for the rich. The richer a man is the easier it is for him to be a tramp.
The richer a man is the easier it is for him to be popular and generally respected in the Cannibal Islands. But the poorer a man is the more likely it is that he will have to use his past life whenever he wants to get a bed for the night. Honor is a luxury for aristocrats, but it is a necessity for hall-porters. This is a secondary matter, but it is an example of the general proposition I offer the proposition that an enormous amount of modern ingenuity is expended on finding defenses for the indefensible conduct of the powerful.

2 comments:

Theteak said...
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Me, Myself and I said...

The Poet was actually a missionary to china, Japan, and Taiwan from the thirty's to the 70's? I think. I found His book and really liked the work so I thought I would post it on the web.