My Impromptus today is headed “The beauty of courts, &c.” It begins, “A court can be a beautiful thing. There, mere assertion must stop, and the question is asked, ‘Where’s the proof?’” I also write about the GOP presidential race (which is down to a “binary choice”), the John Birch Society (which is excited to be present at CPAC), and the Montgomery Biscuits (a minor-league baseball team in Alabama). For this column, go here.
My column a week ago quoted from an article about Gustav Mahler: With the Symphony No. 9, “he appeared to go gently into that good night. Yet Mahler’s life carried on.” I commented,
Well and good. But that word “gently.” You remember what Dylan Thomas wrote in his poem, don’t you? “Do not go gentle into that good night.” Big difference. The adjective is so much better than the adverb there.
A reader writes to ask, essentially, “Why?” Well, “Do not go gentle . . .” means, “Do not go in a state of gentleness . . .” That adjective is strong. “Don’t go to bed angry.” “After he finished the Saturday crossword puzzle, he walked triumphant into the living room to tell us.”
These things are perhaps more felt than reasoned out . . .
Also in my column last week, I sang the praises of Young’s Jersey Dairy, in Yellow Springs, Ohio. I have heard from many readers who have been there, and who would like to return as often as possible.
One reader even sends a tip, saying,
Jersey milk really is special. If you’re ever in Philly, seek out Pequea Valley Farm yogurt. It’s from Delta, Pa., on the border with Maryland, and made from Jersey milk. You can find it at the Reading Terminal Market.
Finally, I’ve been writing in recent weeks about the Detroit Lions. This season, we made it to the conference championship — where we had not been since 1991, and which we have not won since 1957 (when we went all the way). Roger Clegg, of the Center for Equal Opportunity, writes,
In 2022, I was watching Detroit play in its traditional Thanksgiving Day game with my dad, then 94 and in hospice. I said, “Dad, you know, I have been watching Detroit play in these games my whole life [I was 67 then] and I can’t remember that they have ever had a decent team.” My father replied, “Nonsense. They had good teams in the 1950s, led by a couple of Texas quarterbacks.”
We are from Texas, I should note.
Well, with the magic of Google, I quickly verified that we were pretty much both right, if you overlook 1991 and don’t start counting until I was over four years old.
I tell this story whenever I have to show that, as people age, they may not remember what they had for breakfast that morning — but beware of getting into an argument with them about something that happened 50 years ago.
Thank you to the Cleggs and to one and all.