Neanderpundit

All through the presidential campaign, all through debate after debate, and more recently in the news, I’ve been hearing the term “nuanced”. It gets thrown around like an insult: “He’s not nuanced” “I’m more nuanced” A recent commentor on the Machete of Truth:
“*sigh* I guess Republicans really don’t do nuance.”

Being, apparently, naive as shit, I was under the misguided impression it meant this:

nuance
noun [C]
a very slight difference in appearance, meaning, sound, etc:
The painter has managed to capture every nuance of the woman’s expression.
Linguists explore the nuances of language.
(from Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary)

Now, greatly to my surprise, I find it means this:

nuance
noun [C]
a lie employed to promote a pet theory or degrade an opponent.

Damn. I guess republicans don’t “do” nuance.

Thurl Ravenscroft, voice of Tony the Tiger, died yesterday. He was 91.

His voice was used so many places you can’t imagine, and his voice was incredible. Though he made a career out of saying “grrrrreat!” he also sang the theme for the ORIGINAL “Zorro!”, and my favorite, he is the man who sang “You’re a mean one, Mr Grinch” in the REAL “How the Grinch stole Christmas.”

Earth is a little bit lessened with his passing.

Godspeed, Thurl, I hope the rest of the heavenly choir can sing up to the quality of your booming bass.

I read a lot. Really, more than most people can imagine. In addition to blogs etc. I usually go through one short novel a day. I have read a lot of science fiction, mystery, horror, but also a lot of what i consider “classic” stuff, the Iliad, the divine comedy, early science fiction. I read manuals, I read technical literature on products relating to my field.

It has come to my attention that I have some gaping holes in my library, and i’m attempting to fill them; one, the works of Ayn Rand, the other, the works of CS Lewis. Since I’ve gotten somewhat ahead of my reading list I’ve decided to interject the Ayn Rand, and I must say, what a monumental waste of time.

I’m reading Atlas Shrugged, and it is unspeakably tedious. I’m sure the concept was to paint people in an over the top way, to cement your hatred for them, or respect for them, but my god almighty. I already know people like the “liberals” in the book, and I hated them already, I didn’t need it shoved down my throat at mach 4. I also know that the Reardons of “Atlas Shrugged” do not exist in real life- decent, good men who are driven to empires? Reardon would have been undermined by assholes LONG before he became the empire builder he is shown as.

I’ll finish this, and do so with as open a mind as I can muster, but I fear that my interest in reading anything else by miss rand will be tainted. Hell, I’m enjoying the new translation of Beowulf more.

On the brighter side, it looks like I’ll enjoy Mr Lewis a great deal.