Saturday, August 22, 2015

TRUMPERY

A saying, atributed to Lincoln, is that "you cannot fool all of the people, all of the time" which is, however, contrasted to P.T. Barnum's dictum that "there's a sucker born every minute".  There is something, in a large segment of the population, which makes being fooled, pleasurable.  There is a very old word, in the English lanuage, "trumpery" signifying "attractive articles of little or no value" which indicates that the trait has been around a long time.  Look it up.

1 comment:

  1. And, it appears to be making quite a comeback! Or actually, more of a comb-over curmudgeon ... or is that just "grasping at straw - polls"? The GOP is combing over the results, trying to come up with a "reality" sequel hit to Bush; they're aiming too high.

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