"Let h stand for the summation
of all discrete events in the
entire course of human history,
And let p stand for progress,
Where p is a function of h
Such that p = f(h).
Now,
Can anybody calculate for me
the value of p?
Of course, the brighter ones
will already have figured it out,
Because it really quite simple: p = 0."
"If you wish to be a writer,
The Way of Harry should be
your way,
Because the Way of Harry
does not close off any options,
But just makes your job simpler,
And easier to do."
"In the beginning was the void,
and the void was all there
was, for a long time.
And then there was something
that was not the void,
Although maybe it still was,
Really,
And just looked like it wasn't,
Being an illusion,
And a pretty convincing one
at that,
To everything that was part of
the illusion,
Unless it wasn't an illusion,
But really separate from the void,
And actually came into existence
somehow,
Even though it's impossible
to know,
And wouldn't change anything
anyhow,
Because this was a long
long long time ago,
Before there were gods,
Before there were men,
Before there was life as we
know it,
Before there were planets,
And even before the very
first star exploded into existence,
or into the illusion of existence,
Which amounts to the same thing,
When all is said and done,
Because back then, there was
nobody to notice the difference,
Or pretend there was a difference,
Which makes it all pretty irrelevant."
"And which of you can show
show me a molecule of a single blade
of grass or gradon of sand that is
evil?
The molecules are not evil.
They are simply chemicals.
And chemicals are neither
good nor evil. They simply
are."
"Until the clever apes were
all alone on the earth, with the
exception of the other living
things and many, many trees
that could be turned into pointed
sticks."
"We don't know if there are
Gods,
Or even one God,
Who made everything all by
himself,
Completely from scratch,
But we don't believe that everything
is just some big accident
either,
Because that's what a lot of
you think
And look at you."
At the beginning there was a point
of almost infinite
matter.
Then it exploded.
Thus began time and space.
"Or something like that."
"And you can make up history
from the present as easily
as I can.
For is this not the principal
gift of the education you
paid so many dollars to obtain?"
"There will be things for men,
including comfortable chairs
and remote-controlled television
sets, and bowling balls, and
baseball caps, and thick sweaters,
and girlie magazines, and
beer, and bourbon, and scotch,
and potato chips, and cheese
curls, and pretzels, and pizza,
and submarine sandwiches, and
fishing tackle,"
"At the beginning there was
nothing but a big ball of
gases.
For a long time it just sat there
in the nothingness, getting hotter
and hotter.
Then it exploded."
Slashdot Mirror
"Now, I'd really hate for you
computer jocks to feel left
out,
Because we all talk different
languages,
Don't we?"
"Let h stand for the summation
of all discrete events in the
entire course of human history,
And let p stand for progress,
Where p is a function of h
Such that p = f(h).
Now,
Can anybody calculate for me
the value of p?
Of course, the brighter ones
will already have figured it out,
Because it really quite simple:
p = 0."
"If you wish to be a writer,
The Way of Harry should be
your way,
Because the Way of Harry
does not close off any options,
But just makes your job simpler,
And easier to do."
"In the beginning was the void,
and the void was all there
was, for a long time.
And then there was something
that was not the void,
Although maybe it still was,
Really,
And just looked like it wasn't,
Being an illusion,
And a pretty convincing one
at that,
To everything that was part of
the illusion,
Unless it wasn't an illusion,
But really separate from the void,
And actually came into existence
somehow,
Even though it's impossible
to know,
And wouldn't change anything
anyhow,
Because this was a long
long long time ago,
Before there were gods,
Before there were men,
Before there was life as we
know it,
Before there were planets,
And even before the very
first star exploded into existence,
or into the illusion of existence,
Which amounts to the same thing,
When all is said and done,
Because back then, there was
nobody to notice the difference,
Or pretend there was a difference,
Which makes it all pretty irrelevant."
"And which of you can show
show me a molecule of a single blade
of grass or gradon of sand that is
evil?
The molecules are not evil.
They are simply chemicals.
And chemicals are neither
good nor evil. They simply
are."
"Until the clever apes were
all alone on the earth, with the
exception of the other living
things and many, many trees
that could be turned into pointed
sticks."
"We don't know if there are
Gods,
Or even one God,
Who made everything all by
himself,
Completely from scratch,
But we don't believe that everything
is just some big accident
either,
Because that's what a lot of
you think
And look at you."
of almost infinite
matter.
Then it exploded.
Thus began time and space.
"Or something like that."
"And you can make up history
from the present as easily
as I can.
For is this not the principal
gift of the education you
paid so many dollars to obtain?"
"If there was a God,"
"There will be things for men,
including comfortable chairs
and remote-controlled television
sets, and bowling balls, and
baseball caps, and thick sweaters,
and girlie magazines, and
beer, and bourbon, and scotch,
and potato chips, and cheese
curls, and pretzels, and pizza,
and submarine sandwiches, and
fishing tackle,"
"At the beginning there was
nothing but a big ball of
gases.
For a long time it just sat there
in the nothingness, getting hotter
and hotter.
Then it exploded."
"As played by stuffed mechanical ape"