volume 14 • number 9 september 2005 s connecticut mensa ...scm66.org/nl/mensa echron...

If you or someone you know would like to be a speaker at our monthly dinner, please contactJim Mizera at 203-522-1959 or [email protected]. The dinner is held the third Saturday ofthe month.

ARCHIVED COPIES OF THE CHRONICLEgoing back to 2000 are available on the Internet at http://www.solarandthermal.com/mensa. You candownload the latest e-mail version of the Chronicle there, as well as previous issues. All issues are inread-only Adobe Acrobat format so there is no chance of viruses accompanying the files.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

2 Schedule of Southern ConnecticuMensa Events Schedule of Connecticut and Western Mass Mensa Events Happy Hours & Get Together’s

6 Book Review: The Dilbert Principle: A Cubicle's-Eye View of Bosses, Meetings, Management Fads & Other Workplace Afflictions

7 August Dinner: Wine and the Good Life8 Good Wine Cheap9 From The Vice Chairman10 Kick Irrational Comics11 Commentary12 Puzzles & Answers13 Noted and Quoted14 Ruminations19 Poetry Corner20 Chapter Notes

Member AdvertisementsChange of Address Form

21 List of Officers

Southern CT Mensa is lookingfor an Activities Coordinator. If you would like to fill this position, please contact Presi-dent Rick D’Amico at [email protected]

Volume 14 • Number 9 September 2005

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SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT MENSA CHRONICLE

Volume 14 • Number 9 September 2005

SCHEDULE OF CHAPTER EVENTS FOR SEPTEMBER

Thursday, September 1, 8:00 pmMensa, Music & MochaMeet us at SoNo Caffeine coffeehouse in Nor-walk (http://www.sonocaffeine.com), to catchTroika. I'm not specifically acquainted with thisgroup, but since they are being billed as"acoustic funk," and I'll be in the area, I thoughtthis would be fun to catch. We've not been dis-appointed at Caffeine's. To RSVP or for addition-al information contact Bruce Granville at (cell#)203-947-0897 or [email protected]. (And lookfor the little yellow smiley man to locate ourtable.)

Friday, September 9, 7:00. Southern CT and Western MA Joint DinnerMonthly dinner at the Old Sorrento Restaurant,Newtown Road, DANBURY, CT. Interested Men-sans should contact Ward Mazzucco at (203) 744-1929, ext. 25, [email protected], or Rev. BillLoring at (203) 794-1389, [email protected].

Friday, September 9, 9:00 pm September at the Silvermine - Stage IThe "Silvermine" Tavern IS what its name sug-gests - a veritable treasure trove of consummateregional musicianship! Silvermine's lineup eachmonth is nonstop, there is simply not enoughtime to catch the wealth of performers, but thismonth we're going to attempt at least twice. Socome on and join your fellow Mensans at the Sil-vermine (http://www.silverminetavern.com/) inNorwalk to witness The Harvie S Band (Harvie Son bass, Daniel Kelly on Piano, Scott Robert Avi-don on Sax, William Bausch on Drums). Themusic Harvie S creates and performs combinesmodern and traditional elements of Jazz withAfro-Cuban, funk, Brazilian and world music. Hisunique sound embraces a body of cadencedforms with the melodic and harmonic sophistica-tion of jazz and the extraordinary rhythmic in-

tensity of Latin music. (http://www.harvies.com)To RSVP or for additional information contactBruce Granville at (cell#) 203-947-0897 [email protected]. (And look for the little yel-low smiley man to locate our table.)

Saturday, September 17, 7:00. Monthly DinnerEd Weinberg of Greater New York Mensa willspeak on “The Linux Operating System for yourHome Computer.” Ed will give a demo on in-stalling Linux on your computer. Before the pres-entation, we will enjoy dinner in our private din-ing room at the Stony Hill Inn, 46 Stony Hill Road(right off Exit 8 on Rte. 84), Bethel, CT 06801,(203-743-5533). Dress is casual. Contact JimMizera, [email protected], 203-522-1959, forinformation and reservations. Please try toMAKE RESERVATIONS by FRIDAY, September 16so we can assure that the restaurant can provideseating in the main area for everyone.If youmake reservations and can't attend, PLEASE calland cancel. Directions from New Haven or Bridgeport: Take Route25 into Newtown, where it becomes Route 6 West.OR take I-84 and get off at Exit 9 (Route 25 Brook-field). At the end of the ramp take a left if eastboundor a right if westbound. At the first light take a righton to Route 6 West. The hotel is located 2 miles onthe right, not far over the Bethel line. From Stam-ford/Norwalk: Take Route 7 to I-84 and follow the above directions, turning right after exiting I-84.

Friday, September 23, 9:00 pm September at the Silvermine - Stage IIJoin us again this month at the Silvermine Tavern(http://www.silverminetavern.com/) in Norwalk tobehold The Harold Zinno Quintet with 'Nicole'(Harold on trumpet, Bill Cofrancis on saxophone,John Mobilio on bass, Jack Varanelli on drums,and Doug Schlink on piano, plus the inimitableNicole on vocals). This group always swings!The combination of great instrumentals and thevocal expertise of Nicole make for an upbeat and

MENSA CHRONICLE

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If you wish to comment on articles or submit material, please write or e-mail Jim Mizera atPMB #181, 7365 Main St., Stratford, CT. 06614-1300, [email protected]. E-mail submis-sions are preferred. Please include your name, address, and e-mail address or telephonenumber. Anonymous material will be rejected, although names will be withheld on request.Items will be returned if accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Currently, thedeadline for postal submissions is the 15th of the month preceding publication, and the20th of the month for e-mail submissions.

enjoyable evening of jazz standards! To RSVP orfor additional information contact BruceGranville at (cell#) 203-947-0897 [email protected]. (And look for the little yel-low smiley man to locate our table.)

Sunday, September 25, 10 amMensa Goes to the MoviesJoin us at the Avon Theatre Film Center, 272 Bed-ford Street, Stamford, CT on Sunday September25th at 10:00 am for a free screening of OUT OFTHE FOG (1941) with GOING BYE-BYE (1934).This is a part of the Avon’s FREE 16MM CLASSICFILM SERIES, hosted by noted local film historianand lecturer Lou Sabini. The event is free, witha suggested donation of $5. September’s themeis gangster films, “with the coming of sound inthe late 1920s, a new genre called the gangsterfilm became popular. This anti-hero was in directcontrast to the usual romantic lead of the latesilent era.” Out of the Fog is based on IrwinShaw’s play ”The Gentle People” and Going Bye-bye is prime (and unavailable elsewhere!) Laureland Hardy. Come revel in the nostalgic clickety-clack of a 16 mm projector - although you’ll haveto imagine swirls of tobacco smoke wafting upthrough that beam of light flickering over yourshoulder for the full effect! Coffee, victuals, etc.afterward at a local diner, coffee shop or restau-rant (by consensus.) Avon box office 203-967-3660 during showtimes, http://avontheatre.comor contact Catherine Musor at 203-856-6316 [email protected] (please include MENSA in thesubject line) for further information. Coffee/vict-uals, etc. afterward at a local diner, coffee shopor restaurant (by consensus.) The exact screen-ing time has yet to be announced, either checkhttp://avontheatre.com or contact CatherineMusor at 203-856-6316 or [email protected](please include MENSA in the subject line) forfurther information.

Tuesday, September 27, 8 pm Mensa, Mocha, and MusicMeet us at SoNo Caffeine coffeehouse in Nor-walk (http://www.sonocaffeine.com), for thesmooth strumming of Steve Roane. A Wiltonresident, Steve has composed over 100 works on9 albums. He has recorded or performed withmany artists including sir Roland Hanna, EdieBert, Diane Schurr, Richard Shindell, Helen Con-nel, Tal Farlow, Jack Wilkins, and Frank Stozier.Besides touring throughout the United Statesand Japan, Stephen has appeared at CarnegieHall, The Bottom Line, Alice Tully Hall, The KoolJazz Festival, The Sunnyside Jazz Festival, TheLenox Lounge, and The Levitt Pavillion. Stephenis presently teaching at The Music Conservatoryof Westchester, The Cider Mill Music Conservato-ry, The Briarcliff Music & Arts, and Pace Universi-ty. To RSVP or for additional information contactBruce Granville at (cell#) 203-947-0897 [email protected]. (And look for the little yel-low smiley man to locate our table.)

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF EVENTS FOR OCTOBER

Saturday, October 1, 8:00 Theater Event: Mayhem at Midnighta live recreation of vintage radio dramas basedon Edgar Allen Poe’s work, will be performed atthe Black Box Theatre in Fairfield University’sQuick Center, 200 Barlow Road, Fairfield, CT.Complete with music, commercials, and livesound effects. Tickets are $15. General seating.Contact Jim Mizera at (203) 522-1959,[email protected], for info or reservations.

Friday, October 14, 7:00. Southern Connecticut and Connecticut/WesternMassachusetts Joint Dinner.See above listing for details.

Saturday, October 15, 7:00. Monthly Dinner.See above listing for details.

Saturday, October 29, 8:00 Theater Event: Black Coffeeby Agatha Christie will play at the WeathertoneStudio Theater, Darien Town Hall, 2 Renshaw Rd.,Darien, CT. In this little known 1934 mystery,

Volume 14 • Number 9 MENSA CHRONICLE September 2005

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ARCHIVED COPIES OF THE CHRONICLE going backa year are available on the Internet at www.solarand

thermal.com/mensa. You can download the latest e-mailversion of the Chronicle there, as well as previous is-

sues. All issues are in read-only Adobe Acrobat formatso there is no chance of viruses accompanying the files.

physicist Sir Claude Amory comes up with a for-mula for an atom bomb. But Sir Claude is poi-soned in his coffee and Hercule Poirot is called into solve the case. Tickets are $20. Contact JimMizera at (203) 522-1959, [email protected],for info or reservations.

CONNECTICUT AND WESTERN MASSACHUSETTSMENSA CHAPTER UPCOMING EVENTSThis is not a complete listing WE - Weekly Event,ME - Monthly Event, YE - Yearly Event CT & W.Mass Calendar Editor Gisela Rodriguez, (860)872-3106,email: [email protected].

For event listings in the Media, leave a messagefor me by the 10th of the previous month at(860) 872-3106 or email [email protected] Subject:Calendar. There’s also the [CWM-Announce] up-coming events reminder email list, which I sendout *approximately* weekly. Subscribe and un-subscribe options are located at http://lists.us.mensa.org/mailman/listinfo/cwm-announce foryour convenience. And any Mensan who wantsto notify their fellow Ms about any late-breakingevent s/he wants to share with our delightfulchapter, please email me ASAP with the detailsand I’ll get it out to the list. You may also checkthe website www.cwm.us.mensa.org for our cal-endar updates.

Mensans on the Radio: C&WM Mensan Janine Bujalski is on the airwavesevery 1st & 3rd Friday 6-10 a.m. on 89.5FM,WPKN in Bridgeport, CT. There is a limited inter-net broadcast - about 25 can listen simultaneous-ly at www.wpkn.org . From 6-9 AM there's jazz,blues & music from Brazil and from 9-10 AM themusic is from Louisiana, mostly Cajun & zydeco.

Vice LocSec Will Mackey is hosting Fridayevening Classics from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m.weekly on 91.3 FM, WWUH, in West Hartford.The name of the program is "What You Will"and its focus is chamber music.

For event listings in the Media, leave a mes-sage for me by the 10th of the previous monthat (860) 872-3106 or email [email protected] Sub-ject: Calendar There's also the [CWM-Announce]upcoming events reminder email list, which Isend out *approximately* weekly. Subscribe andunsubscribe options are located at http://lists.us.mensa.org/mailman/listinfo/cwm-announce foryour convenience. And any Mensan who wants

to notify their fellow Ms about any late-breakingevent s/he wants to share with our delightfulchapter, please email me ASAP with the detailsand I'll get it out to the list. You may also checkthe website www.cwm.us.mensa.org for ourcalemdar updates.

SEPTEMBER 1, 8, 15, 22, 29 Thursdays 7:00 pmScrabble (WE) at Emmanuel Synagogue, 160 Mo-hegan Drive, West Hartford. Ellen Leonard, (860)667-1966 (Please call first to make sure this ishappening today).

2 Friday 5:30 pmHappy Hour in Wallingford (ME, 1st Fridays) AnnPolanski (contact her at 203-269-4565 [email protected] ) hosts us upstairs atGeorge's II Restaurant, 950 Yale Avenue, Walling-ford, CT 06492 Phone: 203-269-1059 Directions:Exit 66 off Wilbur Cross Parkway. Turn left(south) onto Rte 5. Take first left that's not ahighway entrance onto Yale Avenue. George's IIis in the Yale Plaza on the right.

2 Friday 8:00 pmConcert in Manchester CTArtists are The Rhythm Collaborative, playing atthe Center for Progressive Therapies, 192 Hart-ford Road (across from Cheney Hall). $10/ admis-sion per person. Normally held from 8-11 PM inthe pool area. In inclement weather it will beheld in the barn. Contact Bob [email protected] or 860-646-5976.

4 Sunday 12 NoonThe Alderman’s Annual Labor Day Weekend Picnic at Andover Lake39 Lakeside Dr. Andover CT Our Annual Picnic isnow eighteen, old enough to vote. So vote forthe party of your choice by coming to the choiceparty. All of you who have been here beforeknow how much fun it is; the rest of you are in-vited to find out for yourself. We will not cookout this year again so bring a dish to share. Call860 742 5265 for menu coordination or other di-rections. Bring bathing suits, lawn chairs, boats(no motors), and lawn games, if you wish.Directions from Hartford: Follow I-84 East to I-


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384 East. At the end of 384 take the right fork(Route 6) toward Willimantic. After about 5.2miles take a right onto route 316 at the trafficlight. After about 3/4 mile take a left ontoSchool Rd. This changes name to be Lakeside Dr.with no turns. # 39 is on the left about 1 1/4miles from the turn onto School Rd.

9 Friday 8:00 pmConcert in Manchester CTArtists are The Expansion Project, playing at theCenter for Progressive Therapies, 192 HartfordRoad (across from Cheney Hall). $10/ admissionper person. Normally held from 8-11 PM in thepool area. In inclement weather it will be heldin the barn. Contact Bob Leo: [email protected] 860-646-5976.

13 Tuesday 7:00 pmBoard Games Night (ME, 2nd Tuesday) at the home of GenevieveGoff in Fair Haven Heights. RSVPs and [email protected] or 203-467-3337. BYOBand a small munchie to share, and perhaps a fa-vorite board game. Hope to see you!16 Friday 6pm - 8pm or soDiner Dinner (ME, 3rd Friday) at Olympia Diner,Rte 5, Newington, just north of the Berlin townline and North East Utilities. Menu ranges fromtoasted cheese sandwich to steak and fish din-ners. Basic bar menu available, no happy hourprices, but the food is good and very reasonable.Please contact Nicole Michaud at (860) 434-7329or email [email protected], Subject: Diner Dinner.

23 Friday 5:00 pmHappy Hour (ME, 4th Friday) Colonial Tymes,2389 Dixwell Ave, Hamden. Located about 1/2mile north of Exit 60, Wilbur Cross Parkway. Weare now reserving the middle tables on the leftas you walk in the bar. Dinner is a possibility ifenough people are interested. Come on downand join us this month, we'd love to see ya. Gailand Don Trowbridge will be away at her son’swedding, but come anyway, the rest of the gangwill be here.

28 Wednesday 12 noonMiddlebury Lunch (ME, last Wednesday) at Mag-gie McFly's in Middlebury, visible on the rightfrom Rte. 63 just south of the Rte 63 and Rte 64intersection. This intersection is at the end of along ramp at Exit 17 on Rte 84 west. From thisexit, turn left at the 63/64 intersection. If youuse Exit 17 on Rte. 84 east (heading toward Hart-ford), turn left off the exit ramp and see MaggieMcFly's on your left. Contact Richard Fogg at860-274-2370 for more info.

LOOKING AHEADOctober 7-9, Fri. - Sun.C&WM Mensautumn RG is coming! Registernow, if you haven‚t already. Includes Fridayevening chow, sit down buffet lunch, sit downbuffet dinner, refreshments, and speakers.Registration is $75 beforehand, $85 at the door.Mail check payable to C&WM Mensa to:Ed Sisson, C& WM Mensa RG Registrar, 25 Boul-der Circle, Glastonbury, CT 06033-4101.

October 15 Saturday 3:00 pmBook Discussion: Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Randin Vernon, CT. Amazon.com sez: “AtlasShrugged is the astounding story of a man whosaid that he would stop the motor of the world--and did. Tremendous in scope, breathtaking inits suspense, Atlas Shrugged stretches the bound-aries further than any book you have ever read.It is a mystery, not about the murder of a man'sbody, but about the murder--and rebirth--ofman's spirit. *Atlas Shrugged is the "secondmost influential book for Americans today" afterthe Bible, according to a joint survey conductedby the Library of Congress and the Book of theMonth Club.” What does this book have to sayabout the nature of creativity, intelligence, andsocial responsibility? How do these ideas relateto how our country operates, now and in thepast? Let’s get into it and see what we find. It’swidely available from libraries and in paperback.Originally published in 1957. Please call BobSmith 860-872-3106 or [email protected] directions or info.


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MID-HUDSON MENSA EVENT

Fri. - Sun., Sept. 9 - 11. Mid Hudson Mensa’s Annual Regional Gathering,AUTUMN IN NEW YORKwill be held in Woodstock, NY. Eat your waythru the Catskills at our summer camp style RG.Hikes, campfires, games, food topics and achocolate orgy. Price includes six meals. Segre-

gated bunkhouses. Alcohol not permitted onsite, not recommended for children under 12.$140 until 8/31, $150 after. SUNY Field Campus atthe Ashokan Reservoir, SR included. Checkspayable to Mid-Hudson Mensa-RG. SRP 9/9/2005cutoff date. Contact Bill Zigo, 194 RooseveletRd., Hyde Park, NY 12538, (845) 229-8746.


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BOOK REVIEW by Rick D'Amico

The Dilbert Principle: A Cubicle's-Eye View ofBosses, Meetings, Management Fads & OtherWorkplace Afflictions by Scott Adams

A number of years ago, the place where I work in-stituted a Total Quality Management program. Aswe went through the training, Dilbert became ourunofficial mascot.

Scott Adams is the cartoonist who writes the Dil-bert comic strip. His corporate experience consistsof nine year spent working with a telephone com-pany. However, many of the anecdotes and exam-ples in the book come from stories submitted tohim from other people in the corporate world.The book is generously filled with Dilbert comicstrips to augment the points made by the text.

Adams has an interesting view on technology. Heblames our technological problems on the inven-tion of the printing press. The printing press en-abled very intelligent people to disseminate theproducts of their thoughts to people “withouthaving to pass it on genetically.” Thus, we live ina technological society that was provided by a fewoutstanding individuals. As a result, technologybecame widespread in society before intelligencedid. Of course, this is all tongue-in-cheek. (Maybe???)

One of the more amusing chapters in the book isentitled “GREAT LIES OF MANAGEMENT.” Someof them include gems such as “We don’t shoot the

messenger,” and “Employees are our most impor-tant asset.” Naturally, Adams gives all sorts of ex-amples to show why they are lies.

In “MACHIAVELLIAN METHODS,” Adams gives ad-vice on how to further your career, often at theexpense of fellow employees and managers. Thisincludes things such as providing false informa-tion, shading the truth, withholding information,and a primer on form over substance.

“ENGINEERS, SCIENTISTS, PROGRAMMERS ANDOTHER ODD PEOPLE” is a chapter where Adamsdescribes the people who work in a technical envi-ronment. He compares his learning the habits andcustoms of these people to the way that JaneGoodall learned about great apes, “but withoutthe hassle of grooming.”

The author covers many other topics with thesame droll touch. In his last chapter, Adams pres-ents a new company model, based on what hefeels will prevent the many pitfalls he has de-scribed.

I found this book to be not just amusing, but hi-larious. I can safely say that anyone who hasworked in either corporations or government canprobably relate to at least some of the situationsthat Adams satirizes. I recommend it to anyonewho is seeking a laugh; however, I must warn thereader that in some instances they might find thehumor hitting very close to home.

THE AUGUST DINNER

Wine and the Good Life

John Grover has been keeping Mensans up todate about wines for several years with his col-umn Good Wine Cheap, which appears in theChronicle and other Mensa newsletters. In Au-gust, Connecticut Mensans got to meet himwhen he spoke at the monthly dinner and heturned out be even more informative and enter-taining in person than he is in print. John sharedhis expertise with us as he presided over a winetasting and gave a stimulating short course inwine appreciation.

As the title of John’s column suggests, one of hismain goals is finding inexpensive (under $10 abottle) wines for his readers. He lamented that,because of the falling dollar, this has been get-ting more difficult lately. But he still manages tocome up with reasonably priced wines by scour-ing brands from all over the world. The prolifera-tion of wineries helps. Back in the 1970s, Johnreminisced, France, California, and Italy dominat-ed the wine market. Now, as those who readGood Wine Cheap know, the picture is different.South America, South Africa, Spain, Portugal,Australia, New Zealand, and states such as Ore-gon, Washington, Idaho, and Virginia all havethriving vintners. New York State alone has 211vineyards, with Long Island becoming known forits Merlot. Even Connecticut has 13 vineyards,comprising a wine trail for tourists (www.ctwines.com). All together, there are a bewildering vari-ety of brands to choose from for even the mostknowledgeable wine lovers.

How do we find good wines amidst the diverseofferings? Although John believes that there isno such thing as a bad wine, he stated that thereare definite differences in quality and earmarksof excellence. Mass producers of wine don‚t cutoff much of the vine, so they get many grapesthat have a lot of water but not much flavor orsugar. In contrast, quality producers cut off 2/3 ormore of the grapes, taking only the best ones.Some producers, like many of those in Australia,try to make up for the lack of flavor by addingoak chips, but this can overwhelm the taste.

Mr. Grover emphasized that it’s chemistry that

makes the taste. Acidity is particularly important.It is the acidity that gives white wines their dry(i.e., not sweet) finish, and what makes wines ingeneral crisp and fresh. If the wine is lackingacidity, it will be flat and sour. Red wines, on theother hand, get much of their taste from tan-nins, which come from the stems and skins of thegrape. Tannins give a woody taste, like thatfrom a seed.

Our speaker noted several other factors that af-fect taste. First of all, there is, the type of grape.There are hundreds of varieties of grapes, eachwith its own special taste - floral, citrus, or spicy,for example. Secondly, the land and its soil andnutrients play a major part. The rocky and sandysoil of Long Island makes the roots of vines godeeper. Vines with deep roots, perhaps 40 feet,give wines an earthy taste. Of course, anotherkey is the weather, which affects the growingseason and conditions. It’s important to know atwhat times of the year it is hot and cold or wetand dry.

Aroma is also important. Smell influences tastemore than people realize because our sense ofsmell is more acute than our sense of taste. Dif-ferent grapes have distinct scents. The term“bouquet” is reserved for the more floral scentssuch as violet or cedar.

There are also factors that wine growers havemore choice in. How ripe a wine is at picking af-fects the smell and the taste. So does the blend-ing of grapes. Most wines are combinations ofdifferent grapes, with each contributing to thebalance. A vintner tries to combine grapes withdifferent aromas, acidity, and juiciness to get thebest balance.

The highlight of the evening was the wine tast-ing. Before starting, however, John gave someinsights into how to taste. He recommended the“4S” technique - hold the glass by the stem, swirlit, sniff it, and sip it. Swirling mixes the winewith the air more fully, releasing more of thearoma. Sniffing a wine enhances the flavor, mak-ing us more aware of the subtleties. You cansense the fruit or floral flavor that you will expe-rience, be it berry, apple, spices such as pepper,cinnamon, vanilla, and tea or other aromas suchas cedar, oak, and herbs. Finally, sipping lets dif-


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ferent parts of the tongue sense the variousqualities in a wine more carefully. The middle ofthe tongue, for instance, tastes the tannin, whilethe sides of the tongue pick up the acidity. Thetip of the tongue notices sweetness. You reallyneed to sip a wine to savor all these characteristics.

John brought along half-a-dozen wines that heshared with the group, analyzed the differencesbetween them, and solicited our opinions. Wesampled different varieties of white and redwines, taking time to rinse our palates in be-tween. Some of the selections came from right inour backyard (Hopkins Vineyard, New Preston,CT), and some from across the globe (NewZealand and South Africa). The flavors and char-acteristics ran the gamut - creamy, earthy, fruity,sweet, neutral, full-bodied, and even chocolate-like. Different favorites emerged but there wassomething for every taste.

John closed with helpful recommendations onhow wines should be stored and served. In gen-eral, white wines don’t wear well - after twoyears they start to decline. So no matter how

good your cellar is, aging won’t help with these.White wines should not be served too cold, andred wines should not be served too warm. If youwant the best taste, you must find the best tem-perature.

Everyone in the audience, novice and connois-seur alike, enjoyed the evening. Several Mensansattended the Bethel dinner for the first time andwe hope to see more new people at upcomingdinners. Next month is sure to be another goodpresentation as longtime Mensan Ed Weinbergwill be telling us about the Linux operating sys-tem and how we can install it on home comput-ers. Check the activities calendar for details onthis and other Mensa events, and then makeplans to join in the Mensa social and artisticgatherings in our area.

John Grover’s column Good Wine Cheap (andgood food to go with it) appears in every issueof the e-mail version of the Chronicle. You canfind out more about the Connecticut wine trailby visiting (www.ctwines.com).


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GOOD WINE CHEAP(and good food to go with it)By John Grover

This month we go far a field to find wine that isboth good and cheap. With rising gas prices andthe general inflation that Washington, D.C. claimsis not really happening, it is getting increasinglydifficult to find acceptable inexpensive wine. Myold limit of $10 a bottle is being strongly chal-lenged. But Argentina, Spain, Chile and EasternEurope all hold forth the hope of decent wine at areasonable price. This month’s recipe continuesour crusade to contend with all those pesky veg-etables that show up this time of year.

The wine this month is from Eastern Europe. Imust say that much of the wine that has been im-ported to the U.S. from this region in the past hasnot been worthy of recommendation. BUT, withthis wine, au contraire. It is a 2003 Aligote‚ grapefrom a producer called Corten located in theCahul region of Moldava near the Black Sea. Thissimple light dry wine has a nose and taste thatclearly emote spice and flowers. It is a perfectwine for those late summer and fall eveningswhile contemplating the end of the day on the

back porch. This wine should retail for between$6 and $8 a bottle.

ZUCCHINI WITH ROSEMARY

Ingredients: 2 small or 1 medium zucchini sliced2 tbsp of olive oil1 clove of garlic minced or crushed2 or 3 sprigs of fresh Rosemarysalt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

Add the olive oil to a non-stick pan. Add the zuc-chini, garlic and the Rosemary that has beenstripped from the sprig and sauté for 5 to 10 min-utes (until it just starts to go limp). Add salt andpepper.

I hope that you will contact me with your com-ments and favorite wines at [email protected]. Iwill be happy to share them with the broaderMensa group.

John Grover is a member of Mensa of Northeast-ern New York. He lives with his wife Sharon in theHudson Valley of New York.

FROM THE VICE CHAIRMarghretta McBean

July brought lots of good news and a bit of sad-ness to our region. Beginning with the positive:the Annual Gathering (AG) in New Orleans wasgreat, even though it was sandwiched betweentwo hurricanes, Cindy and Dennis. Althoughsome chose to leave early, Dennis did not hit TheBig Easy as earlier predicted, but flights were de-layed or in some cases cancelled on departureday Sunday.

I have appointed an Assistant Regional ViceChairwoman, Claire Natola (New Hampshire &Maine Mensa, NH&MM). Her appointment wasapproved at the AMC (American Mensa Commit-tee - Mensa's board of directors) business meet-ing held during the AG. A Mensan for less thanthree years, she has already shown signs of lead-ership, determination, and most importantly, awillingness to take initiative. As a resident in thenorthern part of Region 1, she will be a valuablepresence. I believe it is imperative that membersof her generation be mentored and groomed forMensa's future.

The Granite State also contributed another AMCmember, that of Development Officer. I waspleased to second the motion to appoint JohnSheehan, Ph.D. who is currently the Public Rela-tions officer for NH&MM. Dr. Sheehan will beworking to make the Mensa "brand" one ofwhich we can all be proud, and hopefully en-courage more folks to become members.

The Region 1 plaudits were many at the AwardsLuncheon:• The American Mensa Awards Committee

recognised Joe Zanca (NH&MM) for his out-standing service at the national level with aDistinguished Service Award including lifemembership.

• The ABBIE Proctor of the Year Committee be-stowed a Regional Honourable Mention forthe second time to Clotilde Cepeda, formerProctor Coordinator of Greater New YorkMensa (GNYM). Through her kindness, cour-tesy and superior organisational skills, Clotyhas demonstrated how important a goodproctor is to the recruitment and retention ofnew members.

• CultureQuest® XVI had teams of Mensans

from the U.S. and Canada who matched wits,with the top twenty groups winning moneyfor their local group. A tip o' the hat toMisha's Vineyard Players, under the leadershipof Greg Draves (GNYM) who placed 9th over-all.

• The Publications Recognition Program (PRP)presented Angela Tremain (Mid-HudsonMensa) its Best Newsletter (Small Group)Award for her editorship of the Mid-Mensan.Angela's winning of the Recognition Awardlast year seemed to have inspired her to seteven higher standards, which did not go un-noticed.

• A Mensa Recognition Award was presented toClaire Natola, the editor of NH&MM's Mo-mentum. This was Claire's first volunteer "op-portunity" and in less than two years underher editorship, the fruits of her labours havebeen recognised nationally.

I am pleased to report that Mary Jo Kelleher(Mensa of the Southern Tier) has generouslyagreed to volunteer once again as Region 1'sScholarship Chair. Mary Jo will be coordinatingwith local groups' scholarship committees to for-ward their selections that merit regional and/ornational evaluation.

It is with deep sadness that I note the deaths ofFrederic "Fred" Carlin (GNYM) and Stuart "Stu"Lucas (Northern New Jersey Mensa). Fred's pas-sion was Mensa, as anyone who was a recipientof his emails or telephone calls can attest. Stu'sverbal wit was unsurpassed. Both men will bemissed.

It has been said that where people eat garlic,happiness abounds. The garlic specialties of theProvence region of France are renown, and aïoli(eye-oh-LEE) is the most famous. Aïoli is thename of a dish and also the sauce that accompa-nies it. The sauce contains twelve (or more)cloves of garlic. The dish consists of an assort-ment of poached salt cod (bacalao), quarteredtomatoes, steamed vegetables (e.g. zucchini,cauliflower, carrots, artichokes, chick peas:served hot or room temperature) and hard-boiled eggs. Purists serve snails as well. I am nota purist.

Recipe on next page


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AÏOLI12* (or more: I use an entire head) cloves garlic,

peeled and finely minced4 egg yolks1 Tbl. boiling water1/2 Tbl. salt (or to taste)Ground white pepper to taste1 1/4 cups peanut oil*1 cup olive oil1 Tbl. (approx.) lemon juice

*For a milder taste, use less garlic and/or veg-etable oil (e.g. safflower)

1. Place garlic in large bowl and add egg yolks.Beat with whisk or electric mixer.

2. Add water, salt and pepper rapidly.3. Add peanut oil, drop by drop, until more than

half has been added. (Mixture will be thick.)4. Continue to beat mixture as the rest of the

peanut oil and all of the olive oil are addedby pouring in a thin stream. (If you havesomeone to do the pouring, so much the bet-ter.)

5. Beat in the lemon juice.


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KICK IRRATIONAL Brian Lord is a cartoonist and member of Middle Tennessee Mensa (Nashville area). His cartoon Kick Ir-rational is read weekly by people in 192 cities, 46 states and 9 countries via the Internet. You can see

the Kick Irrational comics page at www.kickirrational.com


11

COMMENTARY by Gerard Brooker

As the president continues to urge Americans to“stay the course,” and “complete the mission,”the powerful images of 9/11 that he constantlyevokes kept running through my mind like somany frames of reference that I want to sharewith him to justify our presence in Iraq.

Yet, when I hear on the evening news the con-stant refrain, “Meanwhile, in Baghdad, two U.S.soldiers died in a roadside bombing,” I still cannotaccept his justification for the invasion that hastaken the lives of over 1800 American soldiersand 2000 Iraqi security personnel, as well as about10,000 of their civilians. In the past two monthsalone, there has been an average of over two sui-cide attacks per day, killing 150 U.S. soldiers.

Bush continues to link Iraq and Saddam Husseinwith weapons of mass destruction and with thepresence of a pre-9/11 terrorist movement there.Yet every investigation, by the U.N. as well as ourown committee probes, shows no evidence ofthese linkages.

However, the president continues to attempt tohold the American people hostage to the originaldeception. He persists in depicting the images ofcar bombing carnage in Iraq as happening here ifwe pulled our troops out of Iraq. It is a scare tac-tic of the worst sort, as are his inferences that ifwe do not support the war that we do not sup-port our troops.

A most disappointing part of his recent commentsis that they lack new ideas. The repetitiveness iswearing thin. If there is anything new it comesfrom military spokespeople who have begun to

highlight the number of insurgents killed by ourtroops, an echo of the Vietnam approach, thebody count.

Simply put, there is no coherent plan to resolveour occupation of Iraq. The strategy now seemsto be to kill as many of the insurgent terrorists aspossible and the problems will go away. It is a tac-tic born more out of the president‚s reflexivestubbornness and lack of imagination in dealingwith others than it is from a planned and evolv-ing commitment to bring democracy to the Mid-East.

The present administration seems as incapable ofcommunicating among themselves as they arewith other nations. Vice-president Cheney saysone day that the insurgency is coming to an end,then Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld says the nextday that it might take twelve years.

Iraq is the wrong war. The right one is inAfghanistan where we have under-deployed ourforces, and not extended enough efforts to eradi-cate the haven of the real 9/11 terrorists.

Unfortunately for us as a people, while the Bushgovernment is floundering about in its own rhet-oric, we are absorbing the human cost of the war.It is too soon to demand a pullout, yet too late todeny our mistake. Our 2004 national deficit was660 billion dollars, while the 2005 deficit is pro-jected at 760 billion. We are deep in debt toJapan, and increasingly vulnerable to the billionsof dollars of loans given to us by China.

Meanwhile, there are still 40 million Americanswithout health insurance. One wonders how farthe recent 40 billion dollars allocated to Iraqwould go towards remedying this failure.

THE READING EDGE - WHAT’S YOUR READING SPEED?

Do you know what your reading speed is? There is an online test that can give you a quick estimate.The Reading Edge, a Wallingford, CT company, has a test at their website www.the-reading-edge.com. Thetests take only a minute and calculate your reading speed instantly. For a more comprehensive test, the com-pany a free demo that you can download that will test not only your speed but also your comprehension. Thesoftware can be set for different grade levels to test children as well as adults.

The company reports that the average person reads at a speed of between 200-300 words a minute butthat people who enjoy reading can read more than 400 words per minute, and that some people can evenread well at more than 800 words a minute.

The Reading Edge also offers books, tapes, tele-classes, and personal lessons to help people read fasterand more efficiently. For more information, visit their website at www.the-reading-edge.com or contact themat [email protected]

Our National Guard and reservists are exhausted,and our government seems to lack the skillsneeded in a complex world to interact withNATO and other allies. The pre-emptive andunilateral use of force in Iraq has squandered thegoodwill of many nations, and even now wecontinue to bear their ill will.

The key question that must be answered soon isabout a viable solution to the withdrawal ofour men and women before any more die in awar founded on deception, a war that hasbrought carnage and not peace, and more flamethan water.

We are entering the second year of the transferof power. Yet, the Iraqis do not seem capableof handling it. Shiite leaders are attempting toexclude Sunnis from a partnership in drafting aconstitution, while at the same time toleratingarmed Kurdish militias. Perhaps our solution is asimple one: get out before the inevitable civilwar occurs in Iraq.

At the beginning of this debacle we were toldthat our armed forces would be received as sav-iors by the Iraqis and that their oil would pay forthe occupation. Neither of these predictions isany truer than the reasons we were given forgoing there.

We are told that progress is being made, yetthere is a shortage of water and electricity inBaghdad. The majority of American people arebeginning to see that we are sinking into a terri-ble bog.

Sometimes, it is the good fortune for govern-ments when people do not think. It is an equal-ly good fortune for the people when they do.We are realizing more and more that we havebeen deceived. We know that our interests arenot being served.

We know that, in the long run, this is a nationof, by, and for the people, and NOT of, by, andfor the administration.


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PUZZLES & QUESTIONS(Answers may be in next month’s Chronicle.)

1. What does the word “fulsome” mean?

2, What are some similarities and differences be-tween Connecticut and New York?

3. What percentage of high school varsity ath-letes in the three major sports (baseball, foot-

ball, and basketball) go on to play varsitysports in college? What percentage of varsitycollegiate athletes go on to play professional-ly for at least three years?

4. What is the difference between a fad and atrend?

5. What is the only country with a single-coloredflag?

ANSWERS TO LAST MONTH'S PUZZLES:

1. About how many times a day does the humanheart beat?

A: The average human heart beats about 70times a minute or about 100,000 times a day.A well-conditioned heart may beat only 40times a minute or approximately 58,000 timesa day.

2. Seven people meet and they each shakehands with each other once. How many hand-shakes take place?

A: The first person shakes hands with 6 people,the second with 5 different people, the thirdperson with 4 different people, and so on. Sothere are 6 + 5 + 4 + 3 + 2 + 1 = 21 hand-shakes.

5. What percentage of American homeownershave completely paid off their mortgages?

A: About 25%.

NOTED AND QUOTED

It's not what you are, it's what you don't becomethat hurts. - Oscar Levant, (1906 -1972), U.S. composer

It is not suffering as such that is most deeplyfeared but suffering that degrades.- Susan Sontag, (1933 -2004), U.S. critic, novelist

If you are thinking about getting even withsomeone, why don‚t you begin with the peoplewho have been kind to you. - Anonymous

There are days when it takes all you've got justto keep up with the losers.- Robert Orben, (1927 - ), U.S. humorist

Go on failing. Go on. Only next time, try to failbetter. - Samuel Beckett, (1906 -1989), Irish playwright,novelist, Nobel laureate Literature

We create our buildings and then they create us.Likewise, we construct our circle of friends andour communities and then they construct us.- Frank Lloyd Wright, (1869 -1959)

I would rather be able to appreciate things I cannot have than to have things I am not able toappreciate. - Elbert Hubbard, (1856 -1915), U.S. editor,author, and moralist

Lonely people talking to each other can makeeach other lonelier.- Lillian Hellman, (1905 -1984), American playwright

We all know that working out reduces stress, butit's equally true that stressing out reduces work.- Dr. Mardy Grothe

Traffic signals in New York are just rough guide-lines. - David Letterman, (1947 - )

Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart peopleinto thinking they can't lose. - Bill Gates, (1955 - )

Beauty is the promise of happiness.- Stendhal, (1783 -1842)

Fear is that little darkroom where negatives aredeveloped. - Michael Pritchard

Man can climb to the highest summits, but hecannot dwell there long.-George Bernard Shaw, (1856 -1950)

In Hollywood, an equitable divorce settlementmeans each party getting 50% of the publicity.- Lauren Bacall, (1924 - )

You are free and that is why you are lost.- Franz Kafka, (1883 -1924)

Fashion is what you adopt when you don't knowwho you are.- Quentin Crisp, (1908 - ), English writer and personality

We are made kind by being kind. - Eric Hoffer,(1902 - 1983), The Passionate State of Mind, 1956

Most people would rather defend to the deathyour right to say it than listen to it. - Robert Brault

We give advice by the bucket but take it by thegrain. - William Auger

When I want to read a novel, I write one- Benjamin Disraeli, (1804 -1881)

No culture can live if it attempts to be exclusive- Mahatma Gandhi, (1869 -1948)

Temptation is an irresistible force at work on amovable body.- H.L. Mencken, (1880 -1956)


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Chronicle is THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT MENSA #066 The subscription rate for members is $3.50 and is included as part of yearly dues Othersmay subscribe at a rate of $10.00 per year (Monthly)

The views expressed in this publication are the view of the individual submitting itemsfor publication, and DO NOT represent the opinions of American Mensa, Ltd., the Chap-ter Executive Committee or the Editor unless so stated in the article Unless otherwisenoted, material is not copyrighted and may be used in other publications; please let usknow by sending two copies to the Editor (one copy for the Editor, one copy for the Au-thor).


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RUMINATIONS

AN IMPOSSIBLE PHILOSOPHYby Arachne

PHILOSOPHERS talk of a philosophy of art, an-cient and modern. But this is unnecessary. Art isalways art, or never art, as the case may be;whether it is art in the days of Pheidias and Praxi-tiles, of Rafael, or of Turner, or whether it is notart as in the days of its degeneration in Greeceand Italy. The outward expression of course,changes, but it changes through individual andnational aptitudes, not from Chronology. That in-dispensable and indescribable thing which is ofthe essence of art, is the same in all times andcountries; for art is ever young, there is no old, nonew, and here is its essential difference from sci-ence. In its essence, art is neither ancient or mod-ern, because it is incapable of progress, it is theexpression of an illimitable idea. We find beforethe Christian Era more beautiful sculpture thanafter it. "Ah!" Victor Hugo says in his "WilliamShakespeare," "You call yourself Dante, well! Butthat one calls himself Homer. The beauty of artconsists in not being susceptible of improvement.A “chef d'oeuvre” exists once and for ever. Thefirst Poet who arrives, arrives at the summit. FromPheidias to Rembrandt there is no onward move-ment. A Savant may out-lustre a Savant, a Poetnever throws a Poet into the shade. Hippocrates isoutrun, Archimides, Paracelsus, Copernicus,Galileo, Newton, La Place, Pindar not; Pheidiasnot. Pascal, the Savant, is out-run, Pascal, theWriter, not. There is movement in art, but notprogress. The Frescoes of the Sistine Chapel areabsolutely nothing to the Metopes of theParthenon. Retrace your steps as much as you likefrom the Palace of Versailles to the Castle of Hei-delberg. From the Castle of Heidelberg to theNotre Dame of Paris. From the Notre Dame to theAlhambra. From the Alhambra to St. Sophia. FromSt. Sophia to the Coliseum. From the Coliseum tothe Propyleans. You may recede with ages, you donot recede in art. The Pyramids and the Iliadstand on a fore plan. Masterpieces have the samelevel - the Absolute. Once the Absolute isreached, all is reached." And Schopenhauer says,"Only true works of art have eternal youth andenduring power like nature and life themselves.For they belong to no age, but to humanity - theycannot grow old, but appear to us ever fresh andnew, down to the latest ages." Let us disclaimthen any such word as Modern in relation to art,

particularly in relation to a philosophy which hasto do with the principle and essence of art. Is aPhilosophy of Art possible? There must be somewho will think it is impossible. Have we a philoso-phy that explains such an apparently simple thingas how one knows anything - or of simple con-sciousness? Every philosopher that has attemptedto explain consciousness or how we know, takesrefuge in assumptions. At any Philosophical Soci-ety, if you ask for the explanation of simple Con-sciousness, the avalanche of answers, each differ-ing from the other, will bewilder you. We knowthe outward appearance of an object, of whichwe say that we know it, but what is it “in itself”?Of that we are as much in the dark as we are ofthe mind that knows. We say, each of us - I know,but in philosophy we are not clear whether thereis a thing that knows. We know we are conscious,but we know nothing but that bare fact. We donot know how an object swims into our con-sciousness. We do not know in the scientificmeaning of knowledge, how we come to knowany object. Our abysmal ignorance is this, that, ofthe thing known, and of that which knows, andof the process of knowing, we know nothing.Who can tell us how the movement of matter inthe brain causes what we call thought. Is it acause, or merely a concurrence? When we canknow this much, then art may have a philosophyin which we can all agree. But, what signs arethere of even the beginnings of agreement? Cer-tainly art is not known as we know a science -perhaps we do not wish it ever to be so. And theprocess of art is as indescribable as the process ofknowing. The advance we have made in philoso-phy seems to be this, that whereas one philoso-pher after another according to his temperamenthas thought he knew and has supplied us withhypotheses, and with successive clues to the mys-tery of Being, and with many systems of thought,we know now that none of them were adequateto supply even initial steps, and so, for the mostpart, we fall back on the knowledge that comesto us from living, from being, from knowing ap-pearances, from action, and from feeling; on thatposition in short which Schopenhauer thought sodespicable in a human being, “i.e.,” Refuge in thecommon sense attitude, and practically the givingup of philosophy. The outcome of all the brainwork on philosophy, since the time of the Greeks,is that despair has entered into our minds of everachieving any knowledge of the “Real,” beneathand beyond Phenomena, of a knowledge which

“commands” assent. Can even a Hegel write aconvincing Philosophy of Art - which implies aphilosophy of complex knowing and feeling; thefeeling or emotion, or sensation, which vibratesin music and colour and poetry. Could Hegelhimself answer this objection: that poetry eludesall tests - that that which you can thoroughly ex-plain in any way is not poetry, as Swinburne hassaid? It is the inexplicable, then, which lies at theessence of art and it is this, which if there is tobe a Philosophy of Art must be its object. The In-explicable must be the object for the thinkerwith his orderly sequences, his logical search forcauses and results. It is not that artistic feeling istoo subtle as a subject; it is that we cannot gethold of it at all. It is where? Here, in our emo-tion, our feeling, our imagination; it flies from usand it comes again.

We do not ask for a philosophy of artistic “cre-ations” (whatever they may be, in music, paint-ing, or poetry), for a Philosophy of Art must be aphilosophy of the artistic “faculty” that creates,and that admires and understands and is ab-sorbed in the creations. Philosophy of Art is thephilosophy of the creative - receptive qualities.We feel these qualities, but we are not able toexplain them, we cannot even help another tofeel them. The capacity comes from within. Inourselves is a nameless response to Beauty. Allart is an expression of the artist thrown out to-wards a reproduction of some intuitive Ideawithin, and what artist has ever satisfied his in-ward aspiration? Why tell us that harmonies ofart may be traced down to the simplest lines,and, that at the root, lies an aim of edification?Simplify the lines, as we will, let the basis of edi-fication lie at the root of all beauty, still the ini-tial question remains unanswered. Why do cer-tain lines in a poem, curves of beauty in a statue,colour in a picture, produce in us the feelings ofbeauty and delight? Why does edification, if it issuch, produce in me, the sense of a namelessbeauty?

There is that in us which we call the sense orIdea of beauty, and we recognise it in works ofart. What causes it in us? It is a sentiment, but itis more than a sentiment. It is indissolubly con-nected with expression, but it is more than ex-pression. It raises all kinds of associations, but itis more than associations. It thrills the nerves, itstimulates the intellect, but it is more than a

thrill, and other than the intellect; it is treat-ment, but who can give laws for it? The answerwhich explained the sense of beauty that we feelin works of art would go straight to the revela-tion of the essence of beauty. All that aestheticteachers tell us is, that certain lines and coloursand arrangements are harmonious, and thephilosopher fails in telling us why they are har-monious. Does Hegel? Even if we are told thereis an Idea in us which is also an Idea in Nature,and, therefore, we can understand the Idea, be-cause We are It, does that throw light on whatthe Idea really is? We are the human side of na-ture, and have the same human difficulty as be-fore in interpreting the Idea. Yet there is onephilosopher, as many readers must have felt,who has brought us nearer to the interpretationof the artistic attitude, than any other, and this isSchopenhauer on what we may call his mysticalside in his book of "Will and Idea." Perhaps mostphilosophers have erred in too rigid an exclusionof feeling and imagination. It is impossible tohelp feeling that his philosophy is largely mould-ed and created by his feeling for art - and by hisoriental mysticism. He can be curiously prosaic atthe same time, and this is another proof of theinfinite complexity of the mind: - he can beinartistic and unpoetic so that he almost staggersus, as in his unillumining remarks on LandscapeArt. Vegetation, according to Schopenhauer'stheory, is on a lower grade of Will Objectifica-tion or Manifestation, than men and animals are,and landscape painting is, therefore, altogetheron a different plane. Through his theories heloses the power of seeing that art is concernedwith treatment, with conception and expression,that beauty depends not on the object, but onthe treatment of the object.

But if we turn to his mystical theory of the Un-conscious, we do get a beautiful description ofthe absorption, that is, of the essence of theartistic nature. He shows how the artist loses hisown personality in the object of contemplation,so completely that he identifies himself mentallywith it. Schopenhauer describes the artistic mindwhen it is affected by the beautiful and the sub-lime. By losing all sense of individuality and per-sonality the artist is so possessed by his object ofthought and vision that he is absorbed in it andfeels the Idea, which it represents. This theoryput into ordinary language, is that the artist hasin him the sense of a great Idea, such as Beauty,


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and in his power of vision into objects of beautyhe lives in the sense of Beauty, which they repre-sent. They represent to him the Idea of Beauty it-self. He lives in the Idea, is isolated in it, ab-sorbed in it, and by the privilege of genius cankeep the sense of the inner world of beauty andcan produce beautiful works of art.

With joy and innocence, his whole soul absorbedin the beautiful forms which he creates, he rep-resents the ideas within him, and he loses thesense of life and consciousness and Will, which,according to Schopenhauer, is to be freed fromconstant demands, and strivings. He is no longerbound to the wheel of desire - he has no person-al interests - no subjectivity.

He is a "pure will-less, time-less subject of knowl-edge" of "pure knowing," which means com-plete absorption. He excites and suggests in oth-ers the knowledge of the Ideas, which, beautifulobjects represent. Thus, through the works ofGenius, others may reach an exalted frame ofmind, for, indeed, if we had not some artistic ca-pacity for seeing and feeling the Ideas whichworks of art represent, we should be incapableof feeling or enjoying them. Perhaps, to makethis abstract thought clearer, it would be well toendeavour to find some examples which will il-lustrate Schopenhauer's meaning. And Shake-speare offers us incomparable examples. In hisgreat tragedies - such as Othello, for instance -we feel the knowledge or Idea of Life, in all itsvaried human manifestations. Life, manifold, di-verse, and abundant - and all felt intuitively fromwithin. Into his creations, Shakespeare pourswide and overflowing knowledge of life; there isnothing narrow or shut in, in his conceptions,but every character is alive in the great sense, il-lustrating no narrow precept or trite morality, nocut and dried scheme of a petty out-look on life,but the great morals of life itself, as varied, as in-tangible and as inexplicable. He represents thissense of varied life as manifested or objectifiedin his creations, “i.e.,” his characters. In “Othel-lo,” for instance, we have suggestions of loveand jealousy that go down to the very depth ofthe heart, through imaginative insight. Andwhat we are brought close to, is the vivid intenselife of feeling that Shakespeare's creations hold,and that we, ourselves, are capable of holding inour own hearts. In this presentation, Shake-speare flashes the sense of life with all its com-

plexities of heart and brain into us. He does notstand, as it were aside, as a commentator on thefaults or weaknesses of his characters, but hewafts us out of our circumscribed lives, out ofour limitation of thought, we know not how,into an atmosphere quivering with passion, andfelt by us all the keener, because we recognisethat the Poet never thought about “us” at all.He excites our sympathies by his own intuitionsinto the clashing ideas, which he represents inthe tragedy of a passionately loving and a jeal-ous nature. We learn truths, not of fact, but oflife, focussed and arranged as an artist arrangesthem, and permeated with that strange sense ofwonder which only Life can give. We feel thesuggestion of an inevitable dim something be-yond, to explain the unexplainable, the tragedyof character, and the tragedy of circumstance.

These make the great crises which break up lives.But the play goes on with all the wild force oflife itself. We feel the Idea of jealousv forming it-self in the noble nature of Othello, and bringingwith it anguish, the bitterer throes of life, thoseintense and hopeless moments when struggleonly makes the coil close tighter round the vic-tim. And after we have felt these, no nature re-mains quite the same as before. There has en-tered into us a power of imaginative sympathywhich Art alone can inspire and only when itmost inwardly reveals Life itself. Of all things,the "Too late" and the "Might have been" arethe most sorrowful, and the divine possibility,cruelly realised too late, gives the sharpest edgeto Othello's mental agony, when the whole truthof Desdemona's life - an "objectification" of loy-alty, love, and purity - is only revealed to him asshe lies there dead before him, killed by his ownhand. All that it means rushes then like a torrenton his soul; when Othello falls on the bed, byDesdemona's body, the remorse and love thatrend him with their talons are beyond evenShakespeare's power of expression.

With groans scarcely uttered, Othello gives theonly outlet possible to the blinding, scathingstorm of passions within him. There is one touch,and only the intuitive artist of humanity and oflife could have known it, and given it - only onetouch of consolation that could be left him, andit comes to Othello as he is dying! "I kiss'd thee,'ere I kill'd thee."


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He fastens on this as a starving man fastens on acrumb of bread.

Why is this so true as to be almost intolerable -and yet so beautiful? The characters have art ne-cessities. Schiller said Art has its categorical Im-peratives - its “must,” and Shakespeare's charac-ters fulfil them. We feel how inevitable is theirfate. They make their own tragedy. The Poetcompresses a Life Tragedy into a few pages ofmanuscript. He, with the great sense and Idea ofHuman Life in him, has to choose what he willportray, and the greater an artist the more un-erring is his selection. Then begins his own ab-sorption in the characters. Conception and ex-pression come to him and come nobly and spon-taneously - and so spontaneous is his touch - socompletely is he absorbed in, and one with hischaracters - that it makes our rush of sympathyas spontaneous as his own.

We feel the Identification of Shakespeare withOthello˜with Iago - with Desdemona He “is”them “all”. “He,” William Shakespeare, is "thewill-less - time-less - subject of knowledge," liv-ing in "pure knowing" and absorbed in the cre-ations that represent his varied and his intuitiveknowledge of the great Idea of Life. And he ex-cites and suggests in us the same absorption inhis creations - that is, if we have the capacity tofeel it.

It is a land of marvel and of mystery when allpersonal interests and all consciousness of indi-vidual temperaments are lost, fall off from us,and nothing remains, nothing exists to us butthe love, the betrayal, the agony, and the strug-gles of the noble nature, that "dies upon a kiss."We are so much part of it, we become so pos-sessed by it, that we do not even know or feelthat we are knowing or feeling. Shakespeare“is” Othello - and so are we, for the time being.Shakespeare had the insight and power of ge-nius, and so could retain and reproduce his visioninto the inner life. We alas! often cannot; whenthe play is over we become again, a link in thechain that binds us to the ordinary world of con-sciousness; the veil of illusion has fallen again be-tween us and real vision, we are again amongthe shadows, with some general impressionsmore or less blurred, but the vivid vision of thePoet which made us feel in the manifestations hecreated, the very Idea of Life itself - has faded

from us, we are no longer in the Ideal worldwhich is the real world.

We will take one other example, not of a play,but of a picture. The Ascending Christ for in-stance at the Pitti Palace, Florence, by Fra Bar-tolomeo.

It is well enough known, with the rapt faces ofthe four evangelists, two on either side, gazingat their Master, with more of love for Him thanof understanding even then, in their expression.And the two lovely little angels beneath, oblivi-ous of everything but the medallion they areholding, as is the way with old Masters. It is theChrist alone that rivets our attention. The majes-tic, noble form, and the sad, grave, beautifuleyes, revealing the Victor over Life and Death, asHe leaves the earth, triumphant indeed, but withthe solitariness of triumph of the Divine Man,Who knows now the awful sorrow of humanity.It is Life human and divine in the Artist's Concep-tion or Idea. How absorbed must he have beenin his representation of this idea since he couldsuggest, and that spontaneously, such problemsof unutterable thoughts in those divine eyes. Thewhole vision of humanity, as it might be in themind of Christ, and as it was felt in the artist's vi-sion, is flashed into our own minds - it is an artis-tic inspiration. Art suggests, it does not explain.A picture focusses into a few inches of space awhole drama of life and thought. We read itthere, we feel it, and with no conscious effort,for this is the gift of Genius.

And our absorption in a work of genius is un-touched even by consideration of technique. Themethods of conveying the impression may benoted afterwards, and we may delight in formand colour, and light and shade. But it is the “re-sult” of all these that the art lover feels so spon-taneously and unconsciously. Learned art criticsand dealers will study the size of ears, the lengthof noses, the breadth of thumbs, the manner ofcurving the little finger in order to make sure ofthe authenticity of the artist. It is more impor-tant to them than the enjoyment of the work ofart itself. The lover of art has a receptive nature,so that he does not concern himself much, withthese considerations, he does not even comparepictures. All “that” may come afterwards, if he isa student, as well as a lover. But, at all events, atfirst, he will find a response simply in his own


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soul to the picture, which represents to him anidea. His own personality and individuality leavehim; unconsciously he is possessed. Instead ofgetting to understand it, and attacking a workof art as if it were a mathematical problem, hediscovers that the picture is possessing him, andthat is what Schopenhauer means. Art has dae-monic power, it takes hold of us wholly, and inproportion to our faculty of receptiveness we un-derstand it more or less fully. Architecture canhold us in this way, sculpture can, a great citycan with its architecture and associations com-bined. Rome “does”. The very essence of theartistic quality hangs round the old walls ofRome. Rome itself can teach us, enter into us,possess us in a way of its own. The great bond ofsimilarity between all the arts is their having this“possessing” power, this revelation of ideas, inwhatever form they are expressed. Rafael in theexquisite outline of the peasant girl's face, sawwithout conscious effort the vision of maternity,as the perfect form of the Madonna della Seggi-ola rose before him. This is idealism - seeing theidea in the object of contemplation. And thespectator, gazing at the picture, also withoutconsciousness of effort, is moved into "a passion-ate tenderness, which he knows not whether hehas given to heavenly beauty or earthly charm";he feels motherhood, and to quote again Mr.Henry James in "The Madonna of the Future,"he is intoxicated with the fragrance of the "ten-derest blossom of maternity that ever bloomedon earth." Critics may question its manner,method and style; but the art lover feels its"graceful humanity," he does not "praise, orqualify, or measure or explain, or account for" -he is one with its loveliness - one with the purityand the truth of the ideal which it represents.

This may explain something of the attitude to-wards art in Schopenhauer's philosophy, thoughto reproduce and exemplify thought is alwaysdifficult, and abstract philosophical thought is es-pecially so. The real comprehension of a philoso-pher's mind depends mainly on how far we are

able to get into the atmosphere of his thought;it depends upon affinity in fact, and this is whyphilosophy must be the study, mainly, of thelonely thinker. Explainers and lecturers necessari-ly intrude their own individualities into their ex-planations, which have to be discounted. Yetwhen discounted, certain individualities do helpus in philosophy, and even in poetry. Some mindsmay be more akin with the philosopher's orpoet's than are our own, and a thought will be-come more vivid and clear to us, and a poemmore lovely, when we understand it or view it,through a mind to which it appeals “directly,”and to us through that other. And now, after en-deavouring to grapple with Schopenhauer's the-ory of art, what does it come to at last? Is itmore than this that the philosopher explains it asunconscious absorption in the manifestation ofan Idea, and that it is a refuge from life and itswoes “We” may have “felt” all that he has de-scribed, and, for a philosopher, Schopenhauerhas a great gift of expression, indeed the love ofart and literature glows on almost every page ofhis book. But his theory is surely scarcely morethan a re-statement of what we “feel,” and ifwe ask whence comes the artistic quality - fromthe heart or the nerves - or the brain; - what isthe philosophical definition of the “compulsion”in art; how does philosophy account for itsstrange compelling, unique, possessing, power -we get no answer at all, it eludes all tests. Weget no explanation of what the strange insight iswhich we find in the man of Genius, or of thefaculty that gives the capacity for absorption andthat excites it in us. The genesis of this wonder-ful faculty remains unknown to us, undefined.Unconsciousness is a necessary ingredient in it,according to Schopenhauer, and this helps us torealise the difficulty of expressing it. Whatthinker will reduce the quality to intellectualsymbols? Until that is done, however, Philosophyof Art must remain a philosophy of the Unde-fined, and the Undefinable!


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POETRY CORNER

Septemberby Helen Hunt Jackson (1830-1885)

THE golden-rod is yellow;The corn is turning brown;The trees in apple orchardsWith fruit are bending down.

The gentian's bluest fringesAre curling in the sun;In dusty pods the milkweedIts hidden silk has spun.

The sedges flaunt their harvest,In every meadow nook;And asters by the brook-sideMake asters in the brook.

From dewy lanes at morningThe grapes' sweet odors rise;At noon the roads all flutterWith yellow butterflies.

By all these lovely tokensSeptember days are here,With summer's best of weather,And autumn's best of cheer.

But none of all this beautyWhich floods the earth and airIs unto me the secretWhich makes September fair.

'T is a thing which I remember;To name it thrills me yet:One day of one SeptemberI never can forget.Which hopes from thee, and thee alone, a cure!


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Indian SummerHamlin Garland, (1860 - 1940)

AT last there cameThe sudden fall of frost, when TimeDreaming through russet September daysSuddenly awoke, and lifting his head, strodeSwiftly forward--made one vast desolating sweepOf his scythe, then, rapt with the gloryThat burned under his feet, fell dreaming again.And the clouds soared and the crickets sangIn the brief heat of noon; the corn,So green, grew sere and dry--And in the mist the ploughman's teamMoved silently, as if in dream--And it was Indian summer on the plain.

AutumnThomas Nashe (1567 - 1601)

AUTUMN hath all the summer's fruitful treasure;Gone is our sport, fled is poor Croydon's* pleasure. Short days, sharp days, long nights come on apace,Ah! who shall hide us from the winter's face?Cold doth increase, the sickness will not cease,And here we lie, God knows, with little ease.From winter, plague, and pestilence, good Lord,

deliver us!

London doth mourn, Lambeth** is quite forlorn; Trades cry, woe worth that ever they were born.The want of term*** is town and city's harm; Close chambers we do want, to keep us warm.Long banished must we live from our friends;This low-built house will bring us to our ends.From winter, plague, and pestilence, good Lord,

deliver us!

*town in Surrey**south London suburb***lack of an end

CHAPTER NOTES

Southern CT Mensa is looking for anActivities Coordinator. If you wouldlike to fill this position, please contactPresident Rick D’Amico at [email protected]

ADVERTISEMENTSAdvertising Rates Short classified adsfree to Mensa members and sub-scribers, $2.00 per month and $20.00per year for others Send copy to theeditor Display ads: Full page, $50; halfpage, $30; quarter page or businesscard, $15 Discounts: 10% for three is-sues, 20% for six issues, 30% for 12 is-sues All ads must be paid in advance,checks payable to Southern Connecti-cut Mensa.

It doesn't take a genius to gener-ate sales - it takes The Voice. TheVoice, a collective of emerging talent,develops fresh and cost-effective ad-vertising, design, web and marketingsolutions for clients of all sizes. TheVoice is a training environment whereapprentices are supervised and men-tored by senior management.Matthew Hallock, creative director, isa Mensa member. Call (203) 334-0718or visit www.TheVoiceTheVoice.com.

Do you have food allergies/sensi-tivities? Don’t Go Nuts, Inc. is a non-profit company whose mission is toeducate people (especially restaurantowners) about people with food aller-gies & sensitivities, focusing on foodthat is not self-prepared. We arelooking for support - either in time ordollars. 203-261-5990,[email protected], www.dont-gonuts.org.


20

Change of AddressPlease allow four weeks for the change inMENSA Bulletin (the National Magazine)delivery, and eight weeks for the Chroni-cle Remember to give your membershipnumber to facilitate this process (Thisnumber appears on your membershipcard and labels affixed to the Chronicleand MENSA Bulletin.)

Member Number:

_______________________________________Name:

_______________________________________Old Address:

_______________________________________New Address:

_______________________________________Telephone Number:

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Please send form to:American Mensa, Ltd.Membership Dept1229 Corporate Dr WestArlington, TX 76006-6103


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BUSINESS OFFICE AMERICAN MENSA, LTD.1229 Corporate Drive WestArlington, TX 76006-6103

Phone: 817-607-0060Fax: 817-649-5232E-mail: [email protected]: www.us.mensa.org

LIST OF SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT MENSA OFFICERS

President Rick D’Amico 203-368-2778 [email protected]

1353 Brooklawn Ave.

Fairfield, CT 06825

Vice-President Jim Mizera 203-522-1959 [email protected]

PMB #181, 7365 Main St.

Stratford, CT 06614-1300

Treasurer Paul Passarelli 203-846-1623 [email protected]

44 Ellen St

Norwalk, CT 06851-2520

Secretary Amy Harold 203-261-6517 [email protected]

110 Bart Rd.

Monroe, CT 06468-1117

Editor Jim Mizera 203-522-1959 [email protected]

PMB #181, 7365 Main St.

Stratford, CT 06614-1300

Publisher Amy Harold 203-261-6517 [email protected]

Web Master Thomas O'Neill 203-336-5254 [email protected]

68 Pierce Ave.

Bridgeport, CT 06604-1607

Ombudsman Gary Oberst 203-853-1810 [email protected]

111 East Ave.

Norwalk, CT 06851-5014

Membership Officer Jim Mizera 203-522-1959 [email protected]

Reg Vice Chairman Marghretta McBean 845-889-4588 [email protected]

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