http://tspwiki.com/index.php?title=1716
Here are some one liners...
Christian Teaching is Forbidden in China -- Europeans are becoming interested in Confucianism so the Pope makes it clear that Confucianism and Buddhism will not be tolerated. Intolerance is not to be tolerated in China so the Chinese ban Christian teaching.
Getting Good Government from a Self-Indulgent Rich Man -- With the King of France dead, the long knives are out. The new King is a kid and the new Regent must save France, in order to save his own worthless backside. And he does it... for a while.
'Capability' Brown is Born -- One of the greatest garden designers of all time is born.
Christian Teaching is Forbidden in China
Christianity has been tolerated in China until now. It all began when the European Jesuits expressed some admiration for Chinese Confucius philosophy. This has opened up the Jesuits to criticism in Europe. The Pope decided to put a stop to this toleration of pagan philosophy by sending the Monsignor of Tournon to China to whip the Chinese Christians into shape. Confucianism and Buddhism are to be utterly rejected by Christians. This confrontational attitude has resulted in the number of conversions to Christianity to drop like a stone, probably because most converts still have a mother and father who maintain their Buddhism and/or Confucianism. The Christians have become so irritating that the Chinese Emperor has banned all Christian teaching. [1] [2]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
When a disagreement breaks down to "My way or the highway," a fellow often finds himself on the highway thumbing for a ride. Christianity was at the peak of its popularity in China. Several Manchu princes were Christians, but Lamaism (Tibetan Buddhism) was on the rise and a few years after banning Christianity, the Emperor turned his palace into a Lamaist Temple. The Jesuits admired the scientific advances of the Chinese and they attributed these advances to an entirely different way of thinking as if the Chinese came from a different planet. I think the Pope purposefully made the Chinese angry in order to create a barrier between these two very different cultures. What is important to note is that when it came to a turning point, it was a battle of ideas instead of a physical battle. Obviously the Catholics were worried so they put up a firewall but this was a change in how religion reacted to a competing philosophy. [3]
When a disagreement breaks down to "My way or the highway," a fellow often finds himself on the highway thumbing for a ride. Christianity was at the peak of its popularity in China. Several Manchu princes were Christians, but Lamaism (Tibetan Buddhism) was on the rise and a few years after banning Christianity, the Emperor turned his palace into a Lamaist Temple. The Jesuits admired the scientific advances of the Chinese and they attributed these advances to an entirely different way of thinking as if the Chinese came from a different planet. I think the Pope purposefully made the Chinese angry in order to create a barrier between these two very different cultures. What is important to note is that when it came to a turning point, it was a battle of ideas instead of a physical battle. Obviously the Catholics were worried so they put up a firewall but this was a change in how religion reacted to a competing philosophy. [3]
Getting Good Government from a Self-Indulgent Rich Man
France has suffered from terrible government corruption. With the death of King Louis the 14th, it is on the verge of financial collapse. The new King is less than 7 years old, all his close relatives are dead and the long knives are out. The man who can save it all is Philippe the 2nd, Duke of Orleans. He is not a particularly nice man. In fact, he is a self-indulgent, drunken prick (excuse my French), but when he sees his cushy life about to go down the drain along with France, he promises to bring back financial stability and good government. The Parliament names him Regent and he goes on a cost-cutting rampage. He discharges most of the military and grants them 6 years of tax-free living. Taxes in general are REDUCED. Thousands upon thousands of useless government bureaucrats are summarily shown the door. Military contractors are brought before a special court called the Chamber of Justice. Since putting everyone in prison would result in no one left to guard the prison, the Court offers leniency for those who confess and a percentage of the money recovered if they will rat out their fellow contractors. (There is no honor amongst thieves.) The Regent also puts John Law, the Scottish economist, in charge of the economy. He believes that money is not wealth but instead, it represents trade. He establishes the Banque générale and uses government funds for the majority of its deposits. (It will become the Bank of France under Napoleon.) France's economy gets an immediate boost... otherwise known as a bubble. In a few years that bubble will burst but for now, it is the Roaring 20s... in 1716. [4] [5] [6] [7]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
Well... I'm going to make a political statement and as always, my comments are optional. Your chance to turn away is NOW, NOW, NOW. Still here? OK. I'm not a big Trump supporter but neither am I a Trump trasher. What I'm worried about is the recent show of support for Donald Trump by the GOP establishment. I know the establishment GOP thinks that Donald Trump cannot win, so that means the GOP wants to throw the election. I also note that Democrat support for Hillary is unenthusiastic. Do they see something bad on the horizon? Is it a collapsing economy? Is it possible that neither political party wants to take the blame if their candidate becomes President and it all comes apart? Donald Trump says that he could shoot someone in the street and he wouldn't lose any voters. He is exaggerating, but he is not far off. People are afraid just as they were in France in 1716. Those people were willing to place everything in the hands of a man whose only virtues seemed to be that he was reasonably smart and he didn't drink during business hours. They got lucky, for a little while, but then it all came crashing down. [8]
Well... I'm going to make a political statement and as always, my comments are optional. Your chance to turn away is NOW, NOW, NOW. Still here? OK. I'm not a big Trump supporter but neither am I a Trump trasher. What I'm worried about is the recent show of support for Donald Trump by the GOP establishment. I know the establishment GOP thinks that Donald Trump cannot win, so that means the GOP wants to throw the election. I also note that Democrat support for Hillary is unenthusiastic. Do they see something bad on the horizon? Is it a collapsing economy? Is it possible that neither political party wants to take the blame if their candidate becomes President and it all comes apart? Donald Trump says that he could shoot someone in the street and he wouldn't lose any voters. He is exaggerating, but he is not far off. People are afraid just as they were in France in 1716. Those people were willing to place everything in the hands of a man whose only virtues seemed to be that he was reasonably smart and he didn't drink during business hours. They got lucky, for a little while, but then it all came crashing down. [8]
'Capability' Brown is Born
One of the greatest English Gardeners of all time is born to a yeoman farmer and his wife in Northumberland. Lancelot Brown will work the land but also engage in landscape design. He will see land as having "Capabilities", and thus he will forever be known as "Capability" Brown. He will be appreciated for his genius in his own time. Then his type of landscape design will go out of style. It will return in the 20th century and he will be remembered for the genius that he was. [9] [10] [11]
My Take by Alex Shrugged
He was called a landscape architect, but "Capability" Brown was not an architect in the sense that he built enclosures and fences. He made the landscape seem to go on seamlessly, organically, as if it was all one part, even though he was clearly creating separate spaces. Each flowed into the other and it all looked beautiful and naturally ordered (if that is possible). This is in contrast to the gardens in France that are also beautiful, but obviously contrived to impose rigid symmetry upon nature. (Like Disneyland.) Words cannot do justice to the beauty of a garden with "Capabilities." [12] [13]
He was called a landscape architect, but "Capability" Brown was not an architect in the sense that he built enclosures and fences. He made the landscape seem to go on seamlessly, organically, as if it was all one part, even though he was clearly creating separate spaces. Each flowed into the other and it all looked beautiful and naturally ordered (if that is possible). This is in contrast to the gardens in France that are also beautiful, but obviously contrived to impose rigid symmetry upon nature. (Like Disneyland.) Words cannot do justice to the beauty of a garden with "Capabilities." [12] [13]
This Year in Wikipedia
Year 1716, Wikipedia.
No comments:
Post a Comment