The Diary of an Aphorisiac

Are you an aphorisiac? You probably are but don’t realize it. An aphorism is a short pithy statement. And an aphorisiac is a lover of those statements. Everyone is an aphorist because every thought is an aphorism. We think, therefore we aphorize. Aphorisms are usually thought of as the literary brevities found on a desk calendar. But aphorisms are changing. We are a society addicted to brevity, where the dot point has replaced the paragraph, the tweet has replaced the sentence, the email has replaced the letter, the blog has replaced the essay and the five second bite has replaced the speech. The aphorism is now center stage, no longer in the literary wings. We have become aphorisiacs. This book is a collection of new aphorisms. Aphorisms have been freed, and in this collection the new aphorism appears. This is a modern tale of brevity, the Diary of an Aphorisiac. It is a modern book of the wisdoms of an observer. Just a sample: DEMOCRACY All humans must be on a leash. It’s called democracy. THE CONTRL FREAK You cannot, but I can. You will not, but I will. You are, but I am not. I, and I alone, am. CONDESCENSION When the partial information you know becomes the full information you don’t know.

Are you an aphorisiac? You probably are but don’t realize it. An aphorism is a short pithy statement. And an aphorisiac is a lover of those statements. Everyone is an aphorist because every thought is an aphorism. We think, therefore we aphorize. Aphorisms are usually thought of as the literary brevities found on a desk calendar. But aphorisms are changing. We are a society addicted to brevity, where the dot point has replaced the paragraph, the tweet has replaced the sentence, the email has replaced the letter, the blog has replaced the essay and the five second bite has replaced the speech. The aphorism is now center stage, no longer in the literary wings. We have become aphorisiacs. This book is a collection of new aphorisms. Aphorisms have been freed, and in this collection the new aphorism appears. This is a modern tale of brevity, the Diary of an Aphorisiac. It is a modern book of the wisdoms of an observer. Just a sample THE TWENTY-EIGHTH AMENDMENT Government of the people, by the people and for the people has been amended to Government of the bureaucrats, by the bureaucrats and for the bureaucrats. The amendment was proposed by a bureaucrat, ratified by a bureaucrat and witnessed by a bureaucrat. DEMOCRACY All humans must be on a leash. It’s called democracy. THE CONTROL FREAK You cannot, but I can. You will not, but I will. You are, but I am not. I, and I alone, am. THE FRIENDSHIP MARKET Friendship is like a market. Friends buy attributes from each other and sell attributes to each other. The equilibrium price is the one that stabilizes the feelings of both. As in any market, a friendship needs transactions. Without transactions, the friendship is illiquid and the friends become former acquaintances. Just like a delisting. CONDESCENSION When the partial information you know becomes the full information you don’t know. THE CRIMINAL MIND The criminal always returns to the crime scene and the crime unseen. One is seen, the other not. But the criminal does not separate the two. THE SCREEN Today you can order anything and anyone on a screen; except those who do the screening.

The author has spent many years teaching in universities. His research interests include statistics, finance and philosophy. He is a correspondent and a modern observer. He has written many academic papers and is the author of a play Trial With No Exit, and a book of poetry Poetica.