Dump of a City

From David Harsanyi at The National Review:

One of the greatest accomplishments of the urban liberal do-gooder was cleaning up these cities. At some point in the early 1980s, citizens, not merely the wealthy but also the middle and working classes (in those days they could still afford to live in our big cities), got sick of wading through rubbish and began browbeating their neighbors into decency.

It still took decades to fix the litter problem — and, obviously, it would never be completely corrected — but the city streets were no longer complete dumps. Not Switzerland or Tokyo clean, for sure, but bearable. And though laws certainly helped with the cleaning up, it was a dramatic shift in social norms that really did the trick. Signs told people to curb their mutts. Signs told people to throw out their trash. PSAs began inundating the airwaves in the ’70s. How long could we ignore Iron Eyes Cody, the fake Indian in one of those PSAs imploring us to “keep America beautiful,” after he saw some savage throw trash from a speeding car? “People start pollution; people can stop it.” They could. Mostly by shaming those who trashed the city.

I bring up all this unpleasantness because it seems to me that many of the children and grandchildren of these heroic litter-fighters, people who haven’t had to step over broken bottles daily, are allowing our cities to backslide. I have no way of quantifying the relapse, but whenever I go back to my hometown it sure feels a bit more like the 1970s, and I don’t write those words nostalgically. “All of us have to deal with the filth that collects on the side of the road, making our community look uninviting and run down,” a spokesperson for one of the few current anti-litter campaigns in the city, Staten Island’s “Operation Clean Sweep,” recently complained. “The more litter we have on our streets, the more it becomes an accepted part of life.” (Read more.)

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New York's Transit Revolution

From Curbed:

For a city gripped by some of the worst traffic in America, even this humble beginning must have seemed miraculous. A decade earlier, Harper’s magazine had reported that “in New York, we speak within limits when we say that a lady not unfrequently is compelled to wait half an hour” to cross the street, “and even then she makes the crossing at any point below the Park at her peril.”

New York needed a mass transit solution. The new “el,” as the train soon came to be known, was the city’s first real stab at reclaiming the street. For the next 80 years, the elevated railway would shape the city, spurring rival transit developments, pushing the city’s population outward, and changing the architectural fabric of the city. Today, New Yorkers who remember them are nostalgic for the elevated railways. But as New York struggles with an antiquated and seemingly unfixable subway system, snarled street traffic, and few viable alternatives, the story of the elevated railway seems a cautionary tale about how politics and greed are too often the motivating forces behind decisions that affect millions of New Yorkers. (Read more.)

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Holiday Etiquette Dos and Don’ts

From Southern Lady:

So here are some humorous but true thoughts on being the perfect guest:

The perfect guest always arrives on time.

This is a biggy. Being late to any event where food has been prepared and timed for the appointed hour really drives a hostess mad. If you are going to be late, you probably know about it before the time to be there. Call, let her know, and tell her to go ahead without you. Then jump in at the course they are on when you arrive.

The perfect guest leaves the cellphone off the table and puts it away until after the party.

If you are expecting a call, excuse yourself from the table and check your phone. Using your cellphone at the table is rude and totally unacceptable. One lady I know has a cellphone box that she keeps at the door, and each guest is asked to place their phone in it. I have often wanted to see one phone ring and eight people dive for the box! Common sense should prevail.

The perfect guest does not bring another guest.

End of comment.

The perfect guest usually brings a hostess gift.

However, do not bring food unless the dinner is covered dish, where all guests are bringing food. There is nothing more irritating than when a guest shows up with a dish of food and expects it to be served at the meal. The hostess has planned the menu and isn’t expecting any additions. If you feel you must take food (being from the South, I know some just can’t help it, bless their hearts!), then take something for the family to eat at another time. If you want to make a dessert, then clear it with the hostess before you begin making it. If she says she has everything covered, take her at her word. Great hostess gifts include flowers (already in a container), wine, candy, or a book—something to show appreciation.

The perfect guest knows when to go home.

There have been times when I look back and remember dinners where I was still talking to a guest long after everyone had left and wishing in my heart that she knew how bad my feet hurt from standing and cooking. Not to mention that after guests leave, the cleaning begins. So leave when it’s over. If it’s your very best friend, then tell her to take her shoes off, put on an apron, and help.

The perfect guest writes a thank you note.

Just a few simple lines written by hand mean so much to the hostess who prepared a lovely meal for you. (Read more.)

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Why Sexual Morality?

Why sexual morality is far more important than you ever thought for maintaining a healthy, thriving society. From Kirk Durston:

Prior to the sexual revolution which began in the late 1960’s, prenuptial chastity was still held in strong regard by Western culture. But, starting in the 1970’s, pre-marital sexual freedom became increasingly acceptable. By the early 2000’s, the majority of teens  were sexually active, to the extent that remaining a virgin until marriage was regarded with disbelief if not ridicule. At the same time, our culture moved from a social norm of absolute monogamy to “modified monogamy”.

Thanks to the rationalist generations that preceded them, the first generation of a society setting aside its sexual restraints can still enjoy its new-found sexual freedom before any significant decline in culture, but the data shows that this “having your cake and eating it too” phase lasts a maximum of one generation before the decline sets in. Unwin wrote:

The history of these societies consists of a series of monotonous repetitions; and it is difficult to decide which aspect of the story is the more significant: the lamentable lack of original thought which in each case the reformers displayed, or the amazing alacrity with which, after a period of intense compulsory continence (sexual restraint), the human organism seizes the earliest opportunity to satisfy its innate desires in a direct or perverted manner. Sometimes a man has been heard to declare that he wishes both to enjoy the advantages of high culture and to abolish compulsory continence. The inherent nature of the human organism, however, seems to be such that these desires are incompatible, even contradictory. The reformer may be likened to the foolish boy who desires both to keep his cake and to consume it. Any human society is free to choose either to display great energy or to enjoy sexual freedom; the evidence is that it cannot do both for more than one generation.[6]

Looking at our own sexual revolution, the “having your cake and eating it too” phase would have lasted into the early 2000’s. We are now at a stage where we should begin to observe the verification or falsification of Unwin’s predictions. (Read more.)

Via The Inn at the End of the World. Share

Law and Order in Medieval England

From Ancient Origins:

One aspect of general Anglo-Saxon law was granting the lords and ealdormen – the nobles – a privilege to execute summary justice (capital punishment), within the borders of their own lands, i.e. their fiefs. These privileges were known as infangene-þēof (Infangthief) and ūtfangene-þēof (Outfangthief) – or “a thief seized within” and “a thief seized without”. 

The first dealt with thieves caught “red handed” and in possession of stolen goods – on the lord’s land. For the poor – this almost always meant a quick execution. But for thieves of rank, the captor was given an option of ransoming the thief. The outfangthief meant that even if a thief came from outside the boundaries of a lord’s fief, the said lord still had the full rights to execute justice of his own accord.

For the lords, these privileges were a great benefit. Summarily dealing with thievery not only helped them to keep law and order on their own land, but also helped them cement their authority. Show too much kindness, people won’t fear you. If they don’t fear you, they don’t obey you. 

Up until the arrival of the Normans, several unique criminal cases were documented in Anglo-Saxon England. For any such cases that were “out of the norm”, the king himself had to summon a witan – a council of wise men – in order to successfully solve the crime. Plenty of cases were documented, all showcasing that honor and justice were held in the highest regard in the society. 

In the early 1000’s there was a documented trial against a free man, named Thorkel, and his wife. They had murdered their son. In the mid-11 th century, a cleric was branded and three men executed, because they robbed the Abbey Church of Waltham Holy Cross. But perhaps the most notable series of crimes, trials, and exiles is connected with the infamous Earl Sweyn Godwinson. This was the eldest son of Earl Godwin of Wessex and the brother of Harald Godwinson , who would fall in the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Earl Sweyn was a particularly restless man, and a string of his crimes and “misdemeanors” survived in writing. 

At first he quarreled with his own mother, seemingly over the true identity of his father. It seems he had some doubts and claimed that his true father was Cnut the Great . This grew into a feud and his mother insisted that his claim was false, presenting several well respected witnesses to vouch for her. 

His next escapade was an abduction. The earl abducted an abbess of Leominster Abbey, named Eadgyfu, hoping to marry her and thus claim the rich estates of the abbey. The king himself intervened and naughty Earl Sweyn earned himself an exile to Flanders.
From there he traveled to Denmark, from which he was also exiled for an offence. He returned to England and begged for forgiveness, seemingly receiving it. 

Back in England, Earl Sweyn messed up once again. While under a flag of truce, he murdered his own cousin, Earl Beorn. This was the last straw and a great outrage – the king and his council formally declared Sweyn as a niðing – a man without honor. This declaration made him an outcast in the entire realm and northern world, and he was forced into permanent exile. His story again shows us that a man’s honor was the very fabric that held the Anglo-Saxon society together. (Read more.)

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Jacques Grange's Storied Paris Apartment

From Architectural Digest:

Fifteen years later, after Madame Goudeket had died, Grange was able to purchase the 1,400-square-foot flat from the estate. But like Colette before him, he longed for the roost above; it had an unobstructed view over the squared-off linden trees to the historic Comédie-Française theater. Two years ago, he bought it and made a duplex, with spiral stairs inspired by the curling Man Ray chandelier in his entrance hall. “I’m very proud of the staircase,” he said. “It looks like a sculpture.” 

There was other major work to be done. On the lower floor, he replaced the leaky Belle Époque verrière with a new Cubist-style one after the Robert Mallet-Stevens–designed Villa Noailles in Hyères, and converted Colette’s (and his) bedroom into a guest room. Upstairs, he reorganized the flow of the 1,000-square-foot space so natural light could sweep through.

“To have lightness is so peaceful,” he said. From his beach house in Comporta, Portugal, he traveled throughout the southern Iberian Peninsula to collect neoclassical tiles—some glazed with sponge smears in plum, chestnut, and pine, which he used for the master bath, powder room, and fireplace, and others with classic blue-and-white geometric designs, which now enrobe the entrance hall. 

Then he filled the home with art, photography, and furnishings that are meaningful to him—usually by or of people he has known or admired. Like the string of photographs of French arts patron Marie-Laure de Noailles—by Man Ray, Dora Maar, and George Hoyningen-Huene, respectively—above the library sofa (de Noailles was also a friend of Bergé and Saint Laurent), and a soot-tinted tableau of a Paris artist’s atelier by Bernard Buffet, Bergé’s lover before Saint Laurent. It is poised over a sweet still life of buttercups by Grange chum Andy Warhol. “They go very well together, yes?” Grange mused. Next to them is a Marc Newson sculpted-marble console, and in the entrance hall, a pair of “little wire chairs” from Madeleine Castaing’s Chateau de Lèves, near Chartres, that he picked up at her estate sale. (Read more.)

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President Trump Is Defending Jewish Students

From The New York Times:

As the poison of anti-Semitism spreads with dangerous violence throughout Europe, the Middle East, and even here at home — most recently in a horrific attack on Tuesday in Jersey City — President Trump is taking meaningful action to crush this evil. 

On Wednesday, the president will sign an executive order to combat the rise of anti-Semitism on American college campuses. As a grandchild of Holocaust survivors, I understand the horrors of anti-Semitism. I could not be more proud of President Trump’s new policy. 

According to the Anti-Defamation League, anti-Semitic incidents have been rising in the United States since 2013. Students, in particular, continue to face anti-Semitic harassment in schools and on college campuses. With Wednesday’s executive order, the president takes crucial action to support and defend Jewish students in the United States. For the first time, a president is making clear that Title VI of the Civil Rights Act’s prohibition against discrimination based on race, color or national origin covers discrimination against Jews. (Read more.)

From The Washington Times:

The audience, which included a few people wearing red yarmulkes with the word “Trump,” cheered its approval. The president also said his action is part of taking a stand against the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, or BDS, targeting Israel in legislation that was co-sponsored by 18 Democratic lawmakers earlier this year. “We forcefully condemn this anti-Semitic campaign against the state of Israel and its citizens,” Mr. Trump said. 

Baptist Pastor Robert Jeffress, who attended the event, made an apparent reference to the House impeachment inquiry as he praised the president’s action.“You’re on the right side of God and that’s why you are not going to fail, and we’re going to stand behind you 100%,” he told Mr. Trump. 

Alan Dershowitz called the order “a game-changer” for turning universities “away from being bastions of hatred and discrimination.” “It will go down in history as one of the most important events in the 2,000-year battle against anti-Semitism,” Mr. Dershowitz told the president. (Read more.) 

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Cataclysm and Mass Extinctions

From Ancient Origins:

According to geologists, in the interval from 10,000 to 8,000 BC, some 35 to 45 species of large mammals became extinct. This is called a mass extinction . Mass extinctions can be defined as species death within a relatively short interval of time. None of the mainstream theories which attempt to account for these great extinctions are entirely satisfactory. This is likely because orthodox geologists are operating out of the straitjacket of the theory of uniformitarianism, which suggests a rather slow, gradual change over time. 

In geology, the present is key to the past. However, it’s commonly agreed that geologic time is marked by a relatively sudden change in climate about 10,000 years ago or more, from a cold glacial to warm interglacial environment. During this time, there were catastrophic changes across the planet. For example, the asphalt and tar seeps of California, like those in South America and Africa, host a rich assemblage of evidence of faunal and floral life, the most spectacular having occurred in Rancho La Brea where the remains of numerous animals are tightly packed together. 

Approximately 700 skulls of saber-toothed tigers have been systematically excavated, accompanied by a huge number of remains from horses, camels, bison, mammoths, mastodons, coyotes, wolves, sloths, and other faunal contemporaries, broken, mashed, and contorted. This suggests a sudden mass extinction where animals, predator and prey alike, were suddenly thrown together. (Read more.)

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Marjorie Post and Marie Antoinette

Marjorie Post dressed as Marie Antoinette for a costume ball

From Hillwood Museum:

Marjorie Merriweather Post was particularly attracted to exquisite French decorative arts with aristocratic and royal provenance. In her successive New York City residences, Post amassed an impressive collection of French treasures that epitomize the period’s taste for French royals, especially Queen Marie Antoinette.

This lecture will explore the lesser-known early collecting period of Marjorie Post in the context of American taste, and shed new light on several works of art from Hillwood’s collection....

Dr. Wilfried Zeisler is Hillwood’s chief curator. He is a graduate of Sorbonne University and the Ecole du Louvre, Paris. Wilfried has written extensively on French and Russian decorative arts, including a 2010 book on ceramics and several articles. Wilfried’s dissertation, L’Objet d’art et de luxe français en Russie (1881-1917) [French Objets d’art and Luxury Goods in Russia], was published in Paris in 2014. Between 2009 and 2011, he has participated in and curated exhibitions in Paris and Monaco. At Hillwood, he has curated Splendor and Surprise: Elegant Containers, Antique to Modern (2015),  Konstantin Makovsky: The Tsar's Painter (2016), and Fabergé Rediscovered (2018), and has contributed to Friends and Fashion: An American Diplomat in 1820s Russia (2017) and The Artistic Table (2018). Wilfried wrote Fabergé Rediscovered, and co-authored Konstantin Makovsky: The Tsar's Painter in America and Paris  (2015). (Read more.)

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