"On Man, on Nature, and on Human Life, Musing in solitude ~

"On Man, on Nature, and on Human Life,

Musing in solitude, I oft perceive

Fair trains of imagery before me rise,

Accompanied by feelings of delight

Pure, or with no unpleasing sadness mixed;

And I am conscious of affecting thoughts

And dear remembrances, whose presence soothes

Or elevates the Mind, intent to weigh

The good and evil of our mortal state."

The Recluse. William Wordsworth (1770 - 1850) Britain's Poet Laureate 1843 - 1850. (Photo: taken Nov. 1, 2010 lw)

~ HAPPY HALLOWE'EN

HELPLESS ~ Christie Blatchford

Christine Blatchford Book Signing today, Sat., October 30, 2:00 p.m.

at The Regional News, 345 Argyle St. (Hwy. #6)Caledonia.

One of the most heroic books I have read. HELPLESS, Christine Blatchford's Caledonia's Nightmare of Fear and Anarchy, and how the Law Failed All of Us.*

"This book is not about Aboriginal land claims. What HELPLESS is about is the failure of government to govern and to protect all its citizens equally" ~ Christie Blatchford.

You will recognize the names. The courageous individuals who stood tall when three levels of government and the OPP virtually abandoned the people of Caledonia ~ the late Ontario Superior Court Judge David Marshall, Mayor Marie Trainer, Gary McHale, MPP Toby Barrett ~ to name a few ~ and the brave area residents who stood firmly on the front-line.

Christine, thank you for writing the book.

*Doubleday Canada, 2010. Christie Blatchford writes for the Toronto Globe and Mail and can be heard regularly on CFRB.

For larger image, click on photo.

The subject of plagiarism came up recently in the bookshop.
According to American comic-book writer Peter David, one is often inspired by another writer's work.
"One can take a concept or an idea... and twist it around and transpose it and make it into your own. This takes work.
"It is also possible to take the aforementioned concept or idea or bit of business and put it in its entirety in your story. It's possible to do this unintentionally. This is called "happenstance."
And if you realize it while there's still time to do something about it, then either you excise it or else acknowledge the source. This is called "honesty."
"However, if you do it deliberately, hoping to pull a fast one, that's called "plagiarism," from the Latin root meaning "kidnapper." To put it mildly, it's frowned upon. To put it unmildly, it's actionable in a court of law."

Peter David, But I Digress, krause publications, 1994.

"Where do writers get ideas?
"They don't get ideas. Ideas come to them.
They come from the newspapers or books or T.V. shows. They come from movies, or friends. They come from happenstances that they witness or hear about second hand.
If I'm making it sound like ideas are a dime a dozen, well ---- they are. Probably less. It is so darned easy to get ideas, if you just set your mind properly."

Peter David (b. 1956) American Comic-book writer, But I Digress , krause publications, 1994.

(For larger image, dbl.click on photo.) Tomorrow: Plagiarism.

Smile for Today:
"The beaver is a good national symbol for Canada.
He's so busy chewing he can't see what's going on."

~ Howard Cable (b. 1920) Canadian orchestra conductor
Quotable Canada, A National Treasury, Running Press.

Smile for Today:

"A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for."
~ John A. Shedd *

"Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly."
~ Robert F. Kennedy

* Reference may be J. G. Shedd for whom the John G. Shedd Aquarium in Chicago is named after.
Source: Treasury of Wit & Wisdom, The Reader's Digest Assoc. (For larger image, dbl. click on photo.)