Taft

BooksAndArticles

Some time ago, I followed the controversy sparked by the Dutch translation of the poem *The Hill We Climb*, written by Amanda Gorman, likely at the request of Joe Biden.  

A patriotic poem with Whitmanesque tones, it also includes references to the Bible. The Dutch publisher Meulenhoff assigned the translation to Marieke Lucas Rijneveld, a highly talented young writer. However, journalist Janice Deul, who, like Amanda Gorman (the poem’s author), is African American, protested (before the translation was even published), questioning why a white person should translate a Black poet. According to Deul, Gorman was raised by a single mother and faced many difficulties in her childhood, which inevitably shaped her identity and creativity—something a white translator could never fully understand.  

The controversy spread widely, but I’d like to focus on the response of André Markowicz, a self-described "secular Jew" of Russian origin, and undoubtedly, in my view, one of the most brilliant translators of our time. I recall his translations of Dostoevsky’s complete works, for which he argued that previous translations were flawed. According to Markowicz, Dostoevsky despised elegance, especially the French kind. Dostoevsky, he claimed, wrote insistently, disregarding syntax and frequent repetitions. Markowicz preserved this very aspect, and his work has been highly praised by experts.  

In his *Tribune* article, Markowicz appears somewhat tense. He remarks that Janice Deul’s arguments remind him of a Russian critic’s comment that his Dostoevsky translations were questionable because he was not Orthodox. The underlying argument was that a Jew, even if Russian, could never grasp the "Russian soul."  

He asserts that dividing translation rights based on skin color is the absolute antithesis of what translation represents.  

"No one has the right to tell me whom I can or cannot translate. On the contrary, everyone has the right to judge my work—if they have the competence to do so. The real question is whether, through my work, my voice, and my craft, I have succeeded in conveying the voice of another without reducing it to the nature of my own voice."  

He also harshly criticizes the Dutch publisher for withdrawing the translation and issuing an apology to conform to contemporary identity-based demands.  

Finally, I observe the heated debates and criticisms on social media, which, unfortunately, often take on racist overtones. But I’d like to highlight one particularly striking comment:  

"So, what now? Do you have to be a gay, asthmatic Jew to have the right to translate Proust?"

Who has the right to translate?

Politics_And_Law

Europe, meaning the EU, is arming itself. They say this is being done to fill the gap that a potential U.S. withdrawal might leave.

But there’s another perspective. Economists at Goldman Sachs predict that higher defense spending could increase the EU’s GDP by 0.5% over the next two years.

What’s going on?

What’s going on with EU?

Photography

Some insane lights tonight

denlillaapan

Waw! All this is just natural phenomenon!? It’s amazing. 🙃

ideasfromtheedge

There are certain discoveries that have irreversibly shaped modern and contemporary human society, creating new visions of humanity and society—sometimes with fortunate consequences, other times with unfortunate ones.

The first is the discovery of the thinking "I" by Descartes, followed by Kant, German idealism, and French existentialism—excluding Heideggerian existentialism.

The second is the discovery of homo oeconomicus by Marx, where philosophy and knowledge in general lose their abstract nature and take on a transformative role in society. Philosophy becomes action.

The third discovery is the Freudian unconscious. After this, neither art, literature, nor anthropology could ever avoid engaging with it on any page or in any line.

The fourth discovery is the general theory of relativity by Einstein, which, along with quantum physics, brought a radical shift in hypotheses about the origin of the universe—and beyond. It also redefined humanity’s place in the cosmos.

Any thoughts? 

Discoveries that shaped the society we live in

Don’t be sad, you have me!

Yes, it seemed like a possible answer, but I sensed a subtle discord, a feeling that something more complex was at play. It seemed that these were just a part of the problem she had. I don't know. 

As I was drinking my morning coffee in one of my favourite cafés, with my laptop open to continue translating the book I had started a long time ago — a translation that was progressing very slowly — I overheard a conversation between two elderly people. At first, I thought they were a married couple, but then I realized they were just friends (or maybe something more than friends!?).

The short dialogue I managed to hear went like this:

- My husband has passed away, - said the old lady. - My children have left me alone. Why did God punish me so hard?
- He hasn’t punished you, no. Don’t be sad, you have me.
- But how can I not be sad, my dear? I’m just human.
- God is great. Don’t be sad.
- But I’m human, my dear.
- It’s not your fault. This is life! You cannot do anything about it.
- What a damned life.
- There’s nothing you can do. That’s just how it is.
- But I have no one, my dear. What kind of life is this?
- Don’t you get along with your daughters?
- No, I don’t. Don’t I have the right not to?
- You do, but there’s nothing you can do. It’s not your fault.
- I must be tiring you. Have you finished your coffee?
- Forget the coffee. I just want to sit here with you and take away some of your sadness.
- Thank you.
- God is great! God is great! I don’t know what He can do! I don’t know what to say to you, I don’t know what answer to give because I’m afraid I might say something wrong. I am here for you. You know what I am to you. What am I to you?
- A friend.
- Now you ask me what you are to me.
- What am I to you? – asked the old lady.
- You are my love! - replied the old man, and he reached out his hand and wiped away a tear that had rolled down her cheek

At some point, the old lady turned her head and noticed that I was sitting nearby, just a table away. She lowered her voice. Probably, she was afraid that I might overhear their conversation. I saw her being a bit embarrassed about the fact that I could have heard their conversations. They continued their conversation in hushed tones. The poor lady had tears in her eyes the entire time.

I couldn’t understand what had happened to her or why she was so deeply sad. I never found out why she felt that "God had punished her so harshly." However, the gentleman remained by her side, never taking his eyes off her for a moment.

The scene left an indelible impression on me, one that has stayed in my mind for a long time! At that moment, I had an overwhelming urge to get up and hug them both. But I didn’t do that. I simply continued watching them in silence, with my eyes filled with tears.

food_and_drinks

Why Is the American Diet So Deadly?

![](https://m.stacker.news/80701)

Sculpture by the Danish artist JENS GALSCHIOT.

An obese, lazy, and parasitic justice oppressing emaciated, battered, and desperate people.

No image has ever managed to depict the global judicial system so faithfully. 

Global judicial system

>In recent years, dozens of studies have linked ultra-processed fare to health problems such as high blood pressure and heart attacks, and also to some problems that one might not expect: cancer, anxiety, dementia, early death. One analysis found that women who ate the most ultra-processed food were fifty per cent more likely to become depressed than those who ate the least; another found that men who consumed more had substantially higher rates of colon cancer. (Most of these studies controlled for confounding factors such as income, physical activity, and other medical conditions.)

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/01/13/why-is-the-american-diet-so-deadly?fbclid=IwY2xjawI1TdNleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHUt3oLIMB05qjW_ww3IZ4Car5Vl-FzSnPmigrbeh4KezmMe6Kx5iUi4dYw_aem_e3NaM-osEipq_-kqjPmEdw



There came a time when, after many years, I finally managed to respect my own "No's."  

Having been a guilt-ridden, polite, and "good child" from infancy, I would instinctively give in to others' requests. Complaints would make me melt and surrender.  

Then came an age when my psyche, suffocating under countless "yeses," hit the red zone and got seriously angry with me.  

A long-overdue rebellion began with the smallest things. No, I won’t force myself to finish a book I have started if I don't like it! If I don’t like it, I’ll give it up to 60 pages. If it doesn’t grab me, I’ll leave it. No, I won’t be a prisoner to incoming phone calls. After years of therapy, I’ve exhausted myself listening, absorbing other people’s anxiety. I get overwhelmed easily. 

No, I won’t run to invitations just to avoid upsetting someone by declining. I can’t even spend too much time with friends because my battered musculoskeletal system protests, and I’m in pain. I don’t go out at night for dinners and gatherings. I don’t attend funerals because mourning certain people hurts too much, and I want to grieve alone, without an audience. 

I still deeply love the friends I’ve loved, I think of them often, I wish them well, I write to them, but I can’t spend hours with them like I used to. I know some are upset with me for this, but if their love isn’t also my freedom, I don’t want it. I was excessively social, but I’ve finally grown tired.  

People change their daily lives with time, with problems, with new events. Let’s focus on the essence of our relationships, dear friends—the core! If someone tries to guilt me with complaints, I get angry. Guilt used to drive my life, and I paid the price.  

We grow older, and no, age is not just a number.

The Freedom of saying No

In the latest U.S. presidential elections, as expected, Trump won by a landslide. His victory was acknowledged even by the Democratic candidate, Kamala, the very next day. Trump openly declared his goals: to restore the greatness and authority of the U.S., which had hit its lowest levels during the Obama and Biden presidencies. Under Biden, the world was on the brink of WWIII.

In the Trump-Kamala duel, I never even considered rooting for Kamala; however, I must say that no politician, no matter who, makes me go crazy for them. Not even Trump. Simply put, between the two candidates, Trump was the better choice for me. I hoped his election would have a positive impact on the world and my country.

Many anti-Trumpists haven’t stopped spewing venom against him; according to them, everything he says and does is wrong. They disagree with Trump’s stance on Zelensky, Ukraine, and Russia. In reality, the Russia-Ukraine conflict began much earlier, not in February 2022: the Azov Battalion’s crimes against the Russian-speaking population in Donetsk, the referendum where those regions voted to join Russia, etc. That conflict was further provoked by the Biden administration and Europe, and it escalated when they pushed for Ukraine to join NATO—an act that was practically a declaration of war against Russia and the beginning of WWIII. The result: one and a half million dead Ukrainians and Russians, Ukraine in ruins, war industry tycoons got richer, and American and European taxpayers paid, as they say, over 350 billion euros—out of which roughly 100 billion are unaccounted for. Where did they go? Into the pockets of U.S. officials or Zelensky? Sooner or later, this issue will be unraveled.

Oh, did you hear the latest news? Apparently, Trump is a secret Russian agent, recruited by the KGB in 1987 under the codename Krasnov.

I have nothing more to say. Fairy tales… See you around.

Is Trump a secret Russian agent?

Steak of the day!

Shugard

I don't like all meets, but I'm not a vegetarian. I love eating fish. 

Not religious at all. Just don't like it. Weird, right?

It looks nice. 

Probably, I’m the only one here that doesn’t eat steak or meat in general. 🤦🏼‍♂️ But I love eggs. 

AskSN

Should sex work should be legal?

Aardvark

>you could easily argue that anyone has the right to sell their own body regardless.

I don't want anyone to sell their body. But I'm in favor of freedom of choice. If someone wants to sell it, then let them sell it in a legal way. However, I'll never buy it. 

mostly_harmless

AI in 2030

elvismercury

>The thing I vibe with is that this might be the last decade in which humans have a lot of meaningful control over how civilization goes, so do something beautiful. Do something beautiful that you actually believe in, do the beautiful thing, make your life into a work of art.

This is so sad, but it is true. 

If you were to eat only one fruit for the rest of your life, what would it be?

02879c7d869

Zap delta notifications?

It’s the effect of being away from SN for several months. You forget the rules. 😁😁