>>>>>I remember a case a few years ago where a UT member refused to try my code, because it was to simple. In his mind the problem was so complicated that it couldn't be done with just a few lines of code! He kept on trying other more complex solutions provided by other people, but never seemed to solve his problem.
>>>>
>>>>Exactly - "there are none so blind as those who will not see"
>>>
>>>One is reminded of Dr. Johnson - "You should never attempt to teach a pig to sing. It accomplishes nothing and it annoys the pig."
>>
>>Another good one in the pig aphorisms department is "Never wrestle with a pig. You'll get muddy and the pig might enjoy it." The origin of that one is debated, with Mark Twain often mentioned. (I read recently that a high percentage of the things attributed to Twain are things he never said at all).
>
>Once more anecdote in the porcine category : that old charmer Lyndon Johnson used to talk about "The Pig F*cker offense" - you call your opponent a pig f*cker and make him deny it. <g>

I actually had that one in mind and was less bold about saying it ;-)

If you have been following Robert Caro's magisterial biography of LBJ, volume 4 of a planned 5 volume series came out this spring. We are starting to get into Gibbon territory there. The project has already taken more years and volumes than were originally planned. Caro is no longer a young man and it may be a race to the wire. His writing remains as young as ever, though, and I think he will see it through.

The New Yorker ran a lengthy excerpt about the events of 11/22/63 which bring home that day minute by minute. A striking photo from that morning accompanies the article. JFK, with his defining vigor and full head of hair, leads the group and LBJ can be seen quickly removing the top hat that made him look old in comparison. A Secret Service agent pressing LBJ to the floor of the trailing limo, literally placing his body in the way of a bullet, as the procession tears out of Dealey Plaza. The vigil at Parkland Memorial. LBJ and others sequestered in a room at the hospital, awaiting word. The debate over when and where the oath of office will be administered. Jackie Kennedy being reluctantly coerced into a position next to LBJ during the administration of the oath, still wearing her bloodstained pink outfit.. I thought that day was as chronicled as any day could ever get but Caro teases out some unchronicled details. It's details like that which give a biography propulsion.

This is a VERY long photo exhibit; well worth the viewing time IMO.

http://kennedy-photos.blogspot.com/