Feck.

[perlmonger]

I've just noticed that I've cocked up three LJ posts... I posted at 8.25 last night, pulled it back into logjam for editing and suffered a heat-related badger incident by clearing the text and posting my next two LJ posts as updates to that entry.

The posting from this morning I'll repost later, but my extract from Charles Harness' 1953 The Paradox Men:

"That's quite a knockout, Dr Talbot," agreed Alar. "But how do you draw a parallel between Assyria and America Imperial?"

"There are certain infallible guides. In Toynbeean parlance they're called 'failure of self-determination,' 'schism in the body social' and 'schism in the soul.' These phases of course all follow the 'time of troubles,' 'universal state' and the 'universal peace.' These latter two, paradoxically, mark every civilization for death when it is apparantly at its strongest."

Donnan grunted dubiously. "Amalgamated Nuclear closed at five hundred and six this morning. If you Toynbeeans think the Imperium is on the skids you're the only ones."

Dr. Talbot smiled. "We Toynbeeans agree with you. Yet we don't try to force our opinions on the public, for two reasons. In the first place Toynbeeans only study history—they don't make it. In the second place nobody can stop an avalanche."

Donnan remained unconvinced. "You long-haired boys are always getting lost in what happened in ancient times. This is here and now—America Imperial, June Sixth, Two Thousand One Hundred Seventy-seven. We got the Indian sign on the world."

Dr. Talbot sighed. "I hope to God you're right, Senator."

and my note that his time estimate was 150+ years too late was replaced by the geek meme from (thus far) sbisson, ramtops and syllopsium:

What Kind of Geek are You?
Name
DOB
Favourite Color
Your IQ is	high
You are a	computer geek
Your strength is	you actually have social skills
Your weakness is	caffine
You think normal people are	aliens
Normal people think that you are	deranged
This cool quiz by owlsamantha - Taken 4282 Times.

New - Dating Advice written by YOU!

And to anyone who might quibble, normal people are aliens, even if they are native to this planet. I'm not an alien, no matter where I end up.

It's true that I have problems with caffines too - ctransformational ones.