Providence without industry. The thrift of power.
(also: power)
(also: The Devil's Dictionary)

(also: toxic)

A playboy who knows were all the naughty girls live.

(216 – ) Iranian founder of Manichaeism, a gnostic religion which for a time was a rival to Christianity.
(also: 100 most influential people in the world)
(also: mani quotes)

(n.) a human emissary of divine, spiritual beings of inerrant moral guidance, who communes with them by wearing funny clothes and doing strange chants

“Without music, life would be a mistake.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche
(also: Nietzsche)

Dedicated to some religious purpose; having a divine character; inspiring solemn thoughts or emotions; as, the Dalai Lama of Thibet; the Moogum of M'bwango; the temple of Apes in Ceylon; the Cow in India; the Crocodile, the Cat and the Onion of ancient Egypt; the Mufti of Moosh; the hair of the dog that bit Noah, etc.

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All things are either sacred or profane.
The former to ecclesiasts bring gain;
The latter to the devil appertain.
—Dumbo Omohundro

(also: The Devil's Dictionary)

Feeling that you can't force.
You can only stalk and hope for the best.

(n.) a mammal too stuck-up to slum it on the ground with the rest of us, the nocturnal bat takes to the air on wings made from the leathern webbing betwixt their long creepy fingers, using its unearthly shrieking to track prey

contrary to popular legend, bats do not drink the blood of human beings (or at least do not leave witnesses)

n. An American sovereign in his probationary state.



(also: The Devil's Dictionary)

so undeniably true that you cannot possibly take the risk that you might accidentally show it false

(v.) involving groups of up to thousands at a time, spreading like wildfire across Europe. the dancing could continue on for hours, days, and apparently even months. people would collapse from exhaustion and injuries (often fatal). adults and children alike.
this mass phenomena abruptly stopped after the 17th century.

One of the most well-known major outbreaks took place in Aachen, Germany in 1374, just several decades after the Black Death swept across Europe. Another particularly notable outbreak occurred in Strasbourg, Alsace in 1518.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dancing_mania
https://www.ancient-origins.net/unexplained-phenomena/mysterious-case-medieval-dance-mania-001838

(also: ecstatic dance)
(also: whirling dervishes)

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(also: West Virginia)
(also: Wisconsin)
(also: Wyoming)

attila (b. probably circa 406 AD) was a king of the huns and also ruled over a number of tribes in central asia and eastern europe between 434 and 453. he spent a lot of his time in office beating up the roman empire, which heaved a giant collective sigh of relief when he finally passed away on his wedding night. after that the huge kingdom he built basically dissolved into infighting.

sort of a western prototype for genghis khan.

according to a german opera-writer he is also the brother of brunnhilde, valkyrie and apparent queen of iceland, though he doesn't do much in the story besides marry Kriemheld (who wants revenge for the death of her husband siegfried, who was killed because he had a love triangle going with brunnhilde because he'd helped his friend woo her and yadda yadda yadda, there's a magic treasure involved or something)

What's normal anyways?
(also: life)
(also: the universe)
(also: humans)

a person who uses their great wealth to purchase virtuousness, which is contractually obligated to be mentioned titularly in any articles about scandals or atrocities.

(n.) something one gives up in order to appease a temperamental deity or wife

(v.) to make something into a sacrifice by sacrificing it. ya dig?

adj. Addicted to rhetoric.
(also: rhetoric)
(also: the devil's dictionary)

a weapon utilized for a brief time in the 19th century which proves that something primarily intended to be cool usually winds up being very stupid indeed

named for les apaches, a hardened street gang which terrorized paris in la belle époque, this weapon consisted of a cheaply made pepperbox pistol with a brass knuckleduster in place of a proper grip, and a low-grade knife blade protruding from the barrel like a bayonet

naturally, the gun bit was about as accurate as a coked-up economist and the knife bit had only marginally more shear strength than play-doh, so in effect les apaches were famous for more or less ruining a perfectly functional set of brass knuckles.

falling into the misconception that you've found your significant other and want to spend the rest of your life with them, aka (also: marriage)