a frame of reference observation

[protohistorian]

It has historically been true that the resolution of naturally occurring phenomena, that evolutions in understandings has lead to breakthroughs in "true" understanding. Sunrise is an excellent example of this. When the western cultural frame of reference was the earth as the center of the universe, the saying "sunrise" made sense, the earth was not moving, rather the sun rose. We now understand that the universe is not centered on our pathetically small and insignificant existence, and the phenomena formerly known as sunrise is in fact a function of the earths rotation.

How is this pertinent? Ask yourself how the observed phenomena of dawn would appear if the sun actually moved, the answer is it would look the same. Yet, it is clearly not the same thing.

The paradigm of changing frame of reference allowing a more correct understanding works best for non human phenomena. We have many branches of study, all across the world, still dedicated to understanding human behavior.We do not have all the answers.

Couple this with the fact that situational information always diminish with time in historical studies and you have a couple of very severe limitations that make any modern solution highly speculative, and any emotional defense of how clever you were to "solve" this mystery truly ridiculous and laughable. This is not because people are not clever, by definition they are, It is merely a limitation of the activity the human is involved in. Saying you solved this mystery, in my book, is like saying you talked to your long dead grandma last night. Dave

[lynn cates]

Copernicus

Hello Dave. Is it fair to say, then, that we are due for a Copernican revolution in Ripper studies?

Sounds good to me.

Cheers.
LC

[Rubyretro]

nothing to do with it really but ..

"They all Laughed...." (Gershwin)

or...we are all just ants on the face of the earth, but some of those other ants are more interesting ants than others...

a surrealist reply...to an existentialist post

[protohistorian]

Hello Dave. Is it fair to say, then, that we are due for a Copernican revolution in Ripper studies?

Sounds good to me.

Cheers.
LC

Hello Lynn, It may be happening now. Questioning the c-5 grouping is a start. We know all they had to go on was wound morphology and victim location, that hardly seems like a solid set of criteria. Dave

[protohistorian]

nothing to do with it really but ..

"They all Laughed...." (Gershwin)

or...we are all just ants on the face of the earth, but some of those other ants are more interesting ants than others...

a surrealist reply...to an existentialist post

Hello Ruby, yes, and we know there is at least one queen fire ant around here somewhere!

[c.d.]

As humans, we naturally tend to ask questions in our desire to get a little more information. Just one more piece of the puzzle. I remember an episode of The Three Stooges where Moe got trapped under a mattress. He was finally able to free himself but not without some difficulty. Larry asked him "how was it Moe, pretty heavy?" Moe responded by slapping Larry's face. There is a lesson here for all who thirst for knowledge. Sometimes there is a price to be paid.

c.d.

[protohistorian]

As humans, we naturally tend to ask questions in our desire to get a little more information. Just one more piece of the puzzle. I remember an episode of The Three Stooges where Moe got trapped under a mattress. He was finally able to free himself but not without some difficulty. Larry asked him "how was it Moe, pretty heavy?" Moe responded by slapping Larry's face. There is a lesson here for all who thirst for knowledge. Sometimes there is a price to be paid.

c.d.

Very well said! Dave

[lynn cates]

connotations

Hello Dave. Splendid. It cannot be too soon to suit me.

Now, if we could just downplay the sexual connotations--especially in the last 3 cases. (But then, there would go the book sales and cinema receipts.)

Cheers.
LC

[Ally]

I remember an episode of The Three Stooges where Moe got trapped under a mattress. He was finally able to free himself but not without some difficulty. Larry asked him "how was it Moe, pretty heavy?" Moe responded by slapping Larry's face. There is a lesson here for all who thirst for knowledge. Sometimes there is a price to be paid.

c.d.

Inviting Ripperologists to gain insight via the wisdom of the Three Stooges is quite possibly THE most apt philosophizing I have ever seen.

[Phil Carter]

Flat Earth

Hello Lynn,

He who dares wins.... But then there are the flat Earth brigade who will forever fear falling off the edge with progressive thinking.... and constitutionally losing their deposits. A shame for some when discovering a "brave new world", but better than a having to live in a "rotten borough" and the eternity of one-sided social history, non?

best wishes

Phil

[protohistorian]

the earth is not flat?

Son of a biatch 9 years of college down the drain! Dave

[lynn cates]

etc

Hello Dave. Ironically, those who contend for a spherical earth are wrong, for they discover (as I did to my chagrin) that it is an oblate spheroid--flattened roughly 30 miles at the poles.

Phil, a rotten borough is the same as a pocket borough, right? Well, don't forget that the pocket borough and Parliament lie between being a lad and becoming ruler of the Queen's Navee.

Cheers.
LC

[Scott Nelson]

Inviting Ripperologists to gain insight via the wisdom of the Three Stooges is quite possibly THE most apt philosophizing I have ever seen.

I'm pretty confident the Ripper looked like Curly, but acted like Moe.

[protohistorian]

I'm pretty confident the Ripper looked like Curly, but acted like Moe.

See and I always thought he looked like Shemp but acted like Moe!

[Phil Carter]

Phil, a rotten borough is the same as a pocket borough, right? Well, don't forget that the pocket borough and Parliament lie between being a lad and becoming ruler of the Queen's Navee.

Cheers.
LC

Hello Lynn,

Thankfully, one pocket swallow no longer makes a drenched summer...

best wishes

Phil