#fare

What passing bells for these who die as cattle? Only the monstrous anger of the guns. Only the stuttering rifle's rapid rattle Can patter out their hasty orisons. No mockeries now for them; no prayers, nor bells, Nor any voice of mourning save the choirs, The shrill demented choirs of wailing shells, And bugles calling for them from sad shires. What candles may be held to speed them all? Not in the hands of boys, but in their eyes, Shall shine the holy glimmers of goodbyes. The pallor of girls' brows shall be their pall, Their flowers the tenderness of patient minds, And each, slow dusk a drawing down of blinds. ↗

— Wilfred Owen

#war #warfare #anger

Why all this death? You might as easily ask ‘Why all this life?’. ↗

— Daniel McHugh

#fantasy #magic #warfare #wizards #death

Horror would not annoy a soldier any more than the sight of a hammer annoys a carpenter. It is sentimental to pretend that horror is not the tool of the soldier, just as the hammer is the tool of the carpenter. We live off death and the threat of death and we must take it calmly and use it well.... Eventually I came to enjoy killing, as a pianist enjoys the Czerny which keeps his fingers limber for the Beethoven. ↗

— Irwin Shaw

#warfare #death

As clear as it is important, the death of Detroit is nonetheless a topic avoided. Generally the gradual disintegration of a major metropolis would garner a fair amount of attention, but the scant coverage is hardly surprising. After all, the culprits are not the popular ones. In most circles, condemning taxation, regulation, unionization, welfarism and protectionism is unfashionable. It is necessary to cast aside prevailing notions of political correctness and appreciate that the case of Detroit isn’t an isolated tragedy. ↗

— Dan Greenup

#political-correctness #protectionism #regulations #taxation #unions

Someday I'll be a weather-beaten skull resting on a grass pillow, Serenaded by a stray bird or two. Kings and commoners end up the same, No more enduring than last night's dream. ↗

— Ryokan

#dreams

When you give up on your dream or give in to your challenges, you abort your dream and give the devil something to rejoice over! You also disappoint the Lord Jesus, who is waiting for you to enforce the victory he won on your behalf at Calvary. ↗

— Pedro Okoro

#dreams

Populism and elitism are the same thing. They are class prejudices, crude class prejudices that so-and-so, because they are uneducated, is less worthy, or so-and-so, because they are richer or more educated, is unworthy. ↗

— David Brooks

#education

A man without equals is a dangerous man indeed. He must exercise the most difficult of attributes, restraint. ↗

— Daniel McHugh

#fantasy #magic #warfare #wizards-of-waverly-place #equality

Free education, almost free healthcare, a generous benefits system and a better state pension than elsewhere, guarantee equal opportunities for all citizens. The only problem is that all these require a considerable amount of public revenue. This is why the common assertion that to be born in Finland is like winning the jackpot in the lottery is only applicable when you are at the receiving end. A far more common experience is that you need to win the lottery just to cover the tax bill. ↗

— Tarja Moles

#taxation #welfare #welfare-state #education

The animals of the planet are in desperate peril... Without free animal life I believe we will lose the spiritual equivalent of oxygen. ↗

— Alice Walker

#life