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The following books by Robert Paul Wolff are available on Amazon.com as e-books: KANT'S THEORY OF MENTAL ACTIVITY, THE AUTONOMY OF REASON, UNDERSTANDING MARX, UNDERSTANDING RAWLS, THE POVERTY OF LIBERALISM, A LIFE IN THE ACADEMY, MONEYBAGS MUST BE SO LUCKY, AN INTRODUCTION TO THE USE OF FORMAL METHODS IN POLITICAL PHILOSOPHY.
Now Available: Volumes I, II, III, and IV of the Collected Published and Unpublished Papers.

NOW AVAILABLE ON YOUTUBE: LECTURES ON KANT'S CRITIQUE OF PURE REASON. To view the lectures, go to YouTube and search for "Robert Paul Wolff Kant." There they will be.

NOW AVAILABLE ON YOUTUBE: LECTURES ON THE THOUGHT OF KARL MARX. To view the lectures, go to YouTube and search for Robert Paul Wolff Marx."





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Tuesday, December 3, 2013

IDLE SNARKING

The latest excitement in the bloviating branch of the blogosphere is the report that Patty Murray and Paul Ryan may be close to a small-scale budget deal.  This puts me in mind of an old joke, dating from my college days:

Mrs. Finkel, the local shadchen [Yiddish term for a marriage broker] has for some time been trying to arrange a union for Mrs. Goldbloom's precious son, Morris, but Mrs. Goldbloom has an exalted view of her son's worth and summarily rejects all of Mrs. Finkel's proposals.  Finally, more in desperation than hope, Mrs. Finkel brings to Mrs. Goldbloom the suggestion that Morris marry the Princess Margaret Rose, Queen Elizabeth's younger sister.  Mrs. Goldbloom is at first outraged at the mere idea of Morris marrying a shiksa, but Mrs. Finkel persists, pointing out that the princess is very rich and has outstanding family connections.  Mrs. Bloom is growing anxious that her darling Morris will never marry, and she recognizes, as any sensible mother must, that no daughter-in-law is perfect, so at long last she relents and authorizes Mrs. Finkel to arrange the wedding.

Mrs. Finkel breathes a deep sigh of relief, leaves the Goldbloom house, offers a silent prayer to heaven, and says, under her breath, "Well, that's half of it."

The news reports have not indicated how Senator Murray and Representative Ryan plan to get their prospective deal through the House.

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