Monthly Archives: April 2009

RATING AGENCIES SHOULD USE PROBABILITIES.

RATING AGENCIES SHOULD USE PROBABILITIES. I posted here that intelligence estimates by the CIA should be expressed in terms of probabilities just as weather forecasts are. More information is conveyed and people can compare and discuss opinions. Charles Calomiris makes … Continue reading

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REWRITING AFTERWARD–A TEST FROM HENRY JAMES.

REWRITING AFTERWARD–A TEST FROM HENRY JAMES. Terry Teachout gives an example of rewriting after publication by Henry James. Here is a sentence from the 1881 version of THE PORTRAIT OF A LADY: “”His kiss was like a flash of lightning; … Continue reading

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REWRITING AFTER IT’S DONE.

REWRITING AFTER IT’S DONE. Finishing a book can be hard. Terry Teachout writes here about authors who have second thoughts after a book is published (the essay is inspired by Arthur Laurents’s rewriting of the book of West Side Story … Continue reading

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A KEY SYMPTOM: “I DON’T FEEL WELL.”

A KEY SYMPTOM: “I DON’T FEEL WELL.” One of J.R. Richard’s symptoms was simply that he wasn’t feeling right. Richard says in the interview: “I told the Astros, ‘Something is wrong, something is wrong.’” I read years ago about a … Continue reading

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ACTS OF KINDNESS—J. R. RICHARD.

ACTS OF KINDNESS—J. R. RICHARD. Here is a recent interview with J.R. Richard (link via Baseball Musings). I have posted before on an act of kindness that rescued a life. How did J.R. Richard rescue his life when he found … Continue reading

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THE HARDEST THROWER IN THE MAJORS.

THE HARDEST THROWER IN THE MAJORS. A 95 mile an hour fastball is considered a dominating fastball. Few major leaguers can sustain that kind of velocity throughout a game. When Bobby Jenks or Joel Zumaya reaches 100 miles per hour … Continue reading

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VERONESE’S BIG IDEA.

VERONESE’S BIG IDEA. I think Veronese did have a big idea, and it’s right there in his testimony to the Inquisition: “Q. Does it seem suitable to you, in the Last Supper of our Lord, to represent buffoons, drunken Germans, … Continue reading

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IDEAS IN MEDIEVAL ART.

IDEAS IN MEDIEVAL ART. I posted here about how contemporary critics like Peter Schjeldahl look for art to express ideas, just as Baudelaire did. The belief that art should express ideas goes back a lot farther. Medieval art was expected … Continue reading

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“THE SAME LICENSE AS POETS AND MADMEN.”

“THE SAME LICENSE AS POETS AND MADMEN.” Veronese in defending himself before the Inquisition in effect denied that ideas lay behind parts of his painting. He is simply filling up spaces in his picture: “when I have some space left … Continue reading

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VERONESE AND THE INQUISITION.

VERONESE AND THE INQUISITION. In 1573 Paolo Veronese was called before the Inquisition for questioning about his painting which came to be called The Feast in the House of Levi. This article (which shows the painting) points out that in … Continue reading

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