place of tears, whisper of me, he sang a song that reached the hearts of men
Adapted from “The Reward” by James Weldon Johnson.
No greater earthly boon than this I crave, That those who some day gather ’round my grave, In place of tears, may whisper of me then, He sang a song that reached the hearts of men.”
As it appears in Fifty Years and Other Poems by James Weldon Johnson (Cornhill Company, Boston, 1917).
According to Wikipedia, James Weldon Johnson … in 1930, at the age of 59, Johnson returned to education after his many years leading the NAACP. He accepted the Spence Chair of Creative Literature at Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee. The university created the position for him in recognition of his achievements as a poet, editor and critic during the Harlem Renaissance. In addition to discussing literature, he lectured on a wide range of issues related to the lives and civil rights of black Americans. He held this position until his death. In 1934, he also was appointed as the first African-American professor at New York University, where he taught several classes in literature and culture.
my heart has become as hard as a city street, it sings like iron
My heart has become as hard as a city street, The horses trample upon it, it sings like iron, All day long and all night long they beat, They ring like the hooves of time. My heart has become as drab as a city park, The grass is worn with the feet of shameless lovers, A match is struck, there is kissing in the dark, The moon comes, pale with sleep. My heart is torn with the sound of raucous voices, they shout from the slums, from the streets, from the crowded places, And tunes from a hurdy-gurdy that coldly rejoices Shoot arrows into my heart. O my belovèd, sleeping so far from me, Walking alone in sunlight, or in blue moonlight, Are you alive there, far across that sea, Or were you only a dream?
Discordants II as published in Turns and movies, and other tales in verse by Conrad Aiken (New York, Houghton Mifflin company, 1916).
I get up and have my coffee.
I get up and have my coffee and look at the news on my tablet.
I swipe and swipe and look for news that might be news.
I swipe and swipe.
Is it any wonder that my heart has become as hard as a city street.
When a government fires the umpire, we all have reason to wonder: What game are we playing? One danger certainly is that a future Bureau of Labor Statistics head might feel political pressure to fudge a jobs report. The deeper risk is cynicism, the quiet corrosion of faith in institutions. If we can’t believe the numbers, how do we believe anything?
Sadly, Mr. Akerlof doesn’t follow through and answer the question, What to Do When the President Acts Like a Five-Year-Old?
He does point out the that President should follow the rules.
He writes: Past presidents respected this boundary. Ronald Reagan didn’t fire the head of the agency when it reported double-digit unemployment during his first term.
But what should we do?
As already quoted, Mr. Akerlof says If we can’t believe the numbers, how do we believe anything?
Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.
All the the deeper risk is cynicism?
Deeper risk?
I was schooled in the school there are lies, damn lies … and Government Statistics.
I was schooled that during World War 2, unemployment figures were at their lowest levels ever. That they country couldn’t show Full Employment however, was due to way the figures were added up.
I always thought that I could get rid of the US Debt by telling the Government to use the long scale Billion where a billion is a million million, not a 1000 million as the US debt is now counted.
Over night, the debt would fall from $36.7 Trillion dollars to a much more realizable $37.6 Billion.
And you could believe the numbers!
Here’s how that conversion works:
Standard U.S. system (short scale):
1 trillion = 1,000 billion
1 billion = 1,000 million So, 1 trillion = 1,000,000 million (one million million).
Therefore:
$36.7 trillion = 36.7 million million dollars (in other words, $36,700,000,000,000).
So if you’re counting a billion as a million million (which is the long scale used historically in some parts of Europe), then:
Long scale conversion:
1 billion (long scale) = 1 million million (i.e., 1,000,000,000,000 or 1 trillion short scale).
So in long scale, $36.7 trillion (short scale) = 36.7 billion (long scale).
Summary:
Short scale (used in the U.S.): $36.7 trillion = 36.7 million million.
Long scale: $36.7 trillion = 36.7 billion (long scale definition of billion).
I am reminded of the old TV Show, Yes, Minister, where the local authorities are not sending in their reports on time.
The exchange between Sir Humphrey, Hacker and Bernard goes:
Sir Humphrey: If local authorities don’t send us statistics, Government figures will be a nonsense. Hacker: Why? Sir Humphrey: They’ll be incomplete. Hacker: Government figures are a nonsense, anyway. Bernard: I think Sir Humphrey wants to ensure they’re a complete nonsense.
To repeat again, If we can’t believe the numbers, how do we believe anything?
Folks, if we have to believe the numbers … well …
As Sonny Corleone said about Luca, [ If Luca sold out,] … we’re in a lot of trouble, believe me. A lot of trouble.
