Tracing Quotations
Arthur C. Clarke? Gene Youngblood? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: While reading about the economic notion of a universal basic income I came across a statement attributed to the farsighted science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke advocating the goal of “full unemployment” instead of “full employment”. Clarke felt that the computers and robots of the future …
Continue reading “The Goal of the Future Is Full Unemployment, So We Can Play”
Sergey Brin? Stacy Sullivan? Hiroshi Yamauchi? Paul Buchheit? Amit Patel? Marissa Mayer? Organization: Google? Nintendo? Student Pugwash Conference? Dear Quote Investigator: Google was founded in 1998, and after a few years one of its employees suggested the following company motto: Don’t be evil. Would you please explore the provenance of this slogan? Quote Investigator: The …
Mark Twain? William Morris? Edward Dicey? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: Skeptics have questioned the economic viability of small isolated or insular communities by derisively envisioning rudimentary economies based on simple tasks, e.g., individuals would wash clothes for one another. This notion has been credited to humorist Mark Twain and socialist activist William Morris. In modern …
Continue reading “They Eked Out a Precarious Livelihood by Taking in Each Other’s Washing”
Pogo? Walt Kelly? Porky Pine? Albert Alligator? Elbert Hubbard? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: Walt Kelly created the landmark comic strip “Pogo” which combined beautiful artwork with entertaining humor. One strip contained a philosophical remark suggesting that one should not take life too seriously because of its transience. Would you please help me to find a …
Continue reading “Don’t Take Life So Serious, Son … It Ain’t Nohow Permanent”
Creator: George R. R. Martin, popular author of fantasy, horror, and science fiction who also works as a screenwriter and television producer; he is best known for the television series “Game of Thrones” adapted from the book series “A Song of Ice and Fire” Context: In 2011 George R. R. Martin published “A Dance with …
Creator: Louis L’Amour, very popular novelist who primarily wrote about the American Old West Context: In 1989 Louis L’Amour published a memoir titled “Education of a Wandering Man”. He eloquently expressed an idea that other writers of fiction and non-fiction have stated. Emphasis added:[1]2008 reissue (1989 Copyright), Education of a Wandering Man: A Memoir by …
Continue reading “For One Who Reads, There Is No Limit to the Number of Lives That May Be Lived”