Orts #946

   
     Two comments anent the Casals quote in last week's Orts:

- a respondent observes (specifically about what young children should be taught): "Better to teach them humility and have them recognise that the genetic basis for their uniqueness is found in a handful of genetic sequences, all easily replicated . . . . They may be treasures to parents but in the eyes of an overburdened world, they are but one of five billion too many people.  By [the mid-twentieth century] the world population had reached the number of persons that could be supported in a modern life style . . . . The increase beyond that may be billions of little treasures individually but en mass, they are a horror."

- I add that in my lifetime the world's human population has tripled. This is clearly not sustainable.

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   The worst part of life is saying goodbye. Goodbye to people you love. Goodbye to people you have loved. Goodbye to your family. My own brother is still alive, but we haven’t spoken in years. We never said goodbye, but we might as well have. Most goodbyes are like that. Things rarely just stop. Things mostly drift.
    Until the long goodbye comes. When that happens, you’re never ready.
        -- Erik Shilling, in an article about Tom and Ray Magliozzi, the Car Talk guys of NPR fame     

    https://bit.ly/2kmEgCS

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Orquestra da Rua in Rio de Janeiro
(actually a string quartet)
https://nyti.ms/2JY9PwM
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a brilliant take-down of Malcolm Gladwell—
a fun read whether or not you’re a Gladwell aficionado
https://bit.ly/2k9ZdAE