Word: perfective
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...perfect world, perhaps, the government wouldn't wait 30 years and several hundred executions to determine whether an execution method makes sense. But the world of capital punishment has never been that sort of place. This weighty moral issue, expressive of some of our society's deeply held values, involves a lot of winging it. In 1990, for instance, a sponge used in the headpiece of Florida's electric chair wore out. There's no factory or parts catalog for execution devices, so the prison sent a guy to pick up a sponge at the store. Problem was, he bought...
...Such a take-no-prisoners religious politics may be pitch-perfect for the Republican primary, with its heavy tilt toward evangelicals. Eventually, however, Huckabee will have to appeal more broadly to moderates, either down the road in the primary or in a general election. This will be a challenge because, unlike any leading candidate in modern U.S. presidential history, Huckabee has a persona rooted in a history as an ordained minister. This part of Huckabee's narrative lends credibility to his religious politics. But it also puts many - including journalists now paying close attention - on high alert for potential religious...
...Benazir was certainly not a perfect political leader, but she sure was a brave one," Fadiman said. "I think that she knew when she went back this time that there was a real chance she would be assassinated, but she went anyway...
...Gergiev was great, the performance was immaculate, and the acoustic effect of the theatre is truly amazing," says Liu Xuefeng, a music critic and editor of the Chinese edition of Gramophone, the British classical music magazine. But there was a downside to the perfect sound system. "I could hear every word from the stage as well as from my fellow audience members ten seats away from me," says Liu. "Chattering, eating, children crying, camera flashes going off here and there... It was the worst audience I have ever seen!" The four-hour opera had already been shortened to slightly over...
...year-olds [Dec. 10]. But he ignored the generation of the moment - the boomers. We too have our own iconic Christmas movie: National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Clark Griswold personifies all of our ideals to the extreme. Every year we confront the hassles of "exterior illumination," the perfect tree, the extravagant and costly family gifts, the visiting relatives who wish they were somewhere else, the big dinner, the disorganized cleanup afterward and the demolished, sad-looking house we are left with. Yet despite it all, we never fail to say to ourselves, "We did it." When we watch the movie...