Fwd: a little philosophy joke.

[Mark Kohut]

https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sidney_Morgenbesser
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Thomas Eckhardt <thomas.eckhardt at uni-bonn.de>
Date: Tue, Mar 15, 2016 at 7:07 AM
Subject: Re: a little philosophy joke.
To: Mark Kohut <mark.kohut at gmail.com>, Douglas Holm <dkholm at mac.com>
Cc: Danny Weltman <danny.weltman at gmail.com>, pynchon -l <pynchon-l at waste.org
>


'Generations of philosophers and linguists have heard the story of the
Columbia lecture in the 1950s in which the eminent Oxford philosopher J.L.
Austin explained how many languages employ the double negative to denote a
positive ("he is not unlike his sister"), but that no language employs a
double positive to make a negative. Morgenbesser, sitting in the audience,
waved his arm dismissively, and retorted: "Yeah, yeah."'

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/professor-sidney-morgenbesser-550224.html

But my favourite Morgenbesser anecdote is this:

"He is said to have been approached on the New York subway by a cop who
insisted he put out his cigarette, saying: 'If I let you do it, I'd have to
let everyone do it.'

Morgenbesser replied: 'Who do you think you are - Kant?' and was promptly
arrested for using obscene language to a police officer."

http://www.theguardian.com/film/2004/sep/12/features.philipfrench

Thanks to whoever forwarded this a few months ago.
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