Dignity in the face of absurdity brings Camus to mind; suffering for principle is like Thomas More, while consolation in philosophy evokes Boethius and courage from faith, Bonhoeffer. Preternaturally solo contendere, Briggs seems akin to that Star Wars' Solo, called by his creator "a cynical (skeptical?) loner who realizes the importance of... helping for the common good."
Bartlett's seems in order for Dr. Briggs, modified to suit the circumstances and the man.
For biography, I suggest, "We're born alone, like Mowgli; we live alone, like Jeremiah Johnson; we die alone, like Oscar Wilde, unless, unlike Briggs, we go along to get along, then we get academic tenure, government grants and friends we never knew." And Twain's twin aphorisms, "Be good and you will be lonely." and "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."
"If you can't fake the heat, get out of the PhD kitchen" would be the epitaph for our Climate Denier, Briggs.
Very interesting story revealing the complete lack of integrity permeating practically every institution. If the choice is between "truth" or "lucre", most will unhesitatingly circle "lucre" on their test form, it seems. "God or mammon" is how the option is put in a book written a long time ago, forgotten or ignored by most.
Hmmm!
Poignant and impressive.
Dignity in the face of absurdity brings Camus to mind; suffering for principle is like Thomas More, while consolation in philosophy evokes Boethius and courage from faith, Bonhoeffer. Preternaturally solo contendere, Briggs seems akin to that Star Wars' Solo, called by his creator "a cynical (skeptical?) loner who realizes the importance of... helping for the common good."
Bartlett's seems in order for Dr. Briggs, modified to suit the circumstances and the man.
For biography, I suggest, "We're born alone, like Mowgli; we live alone, like Jeremiah Johnson; we die alone, like Oscar Wilde, unless, unlike Briggs, we go along to get along, then we get academic tenure, government grants and friends we never knew." And Twain's twin aphorisms, "Be good and you will be lonely." and "It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."
"If you can't fake the heat, get out of the PhD kitchen" would be the epitaph for our Climate Denier, Briggs.
Very interesting story revealing the complete lack of integrity permeating practically every institution. If the choice is between "truth" or "lucre", most will unhesitatingly circle "lucre" on their test form, it seems. "God or mammon" is how the option is put in a book written a long time ago, forgotten or ignored by most.