prior probability

Back in 2020 (see here), I wrote: “Why do we still allow the federal government (and many State governments) to tax our physical and mental labor, which is what an “income tax” basically amounts to? Go ahead and tax my capital gains, or my leisure activities, or my property, or my inheritance, or my wholesale or retail purchases, but for goodness’ sake, stop taxing my labor! Simply put, I don’t need a bunch of fancy jargon to obfuscate the self-evident truth that taxing people’s work is regressive and unjust–the moral equivalent of theft or forced labor. At the very least, the first $100,000 of one’s earnings should be tax free. What am I missing here? (PS: If you Google the phrase “abolish the income tax,” some very interesting things will pop up!)”

By Johann Sebastian Bach; more details here, via Wikipedia. Happy Easter Sunday!

Hello again and good tidings. I am concluding my series of Holy Week blog posts on “Holy Saturday“, which is also the last day of Lent and the third day of the Sacred Triduum, i.e. the three high holy days before Easter: Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Eve. You’re welcome!

On Good Friday, the most solemn day of the Christian calendar, Jesus of Nazareth was put on trial for claiming to be the son of God and for other religious crimes (check out this history, via Doug Linder), but did you know that Jesus was tried twice: first under Jewish law (see the Sanhedrin trial of Jesus) and then under Roman law (see Pilate’s Court)? Now you know!

Today, Holy Thursday, we commemorate the Last Supper, the final meal Jesus shared with his disciples in Jerusalem prior to his fateful arrest, his two trials, and his crucifixion. Via Catholic Online: “The cup used by Jesus [at the Last Supper] is known as the Holy Grail. Although it has been rumored to exist throughout history, it is almost certainly lost to time. There is no reason to believe the cup would have been outstanding in any way, and was likely a typical drinking vessel, indistinguishable from many others. Still, many myths continue to revolve around the artifact, and it remains a target for treasure seekers and a subject of entertainment.” More details about the quest for the Holy Grail are available here.

Note: If you are reading this post on your smart phone, I apologize for my website’s new ugly and hideous format. Without warning, WordPress — the platform I have been using since I started blogging in July of 2013 — changed the look of my website without my consent.

Via Wikipedia: “On the Wednesday before his death [Holy Wednesday], Jesus was in Bethany, in the house of Simon the Leper. As he sat at the supper table with his disciples, a woman named Mary anointed Jesus’ head and feet with a costly oil of spikenard.” More details here.

This week is Holy Week (Semana Santa), the most sacred time in the Catholic liturgical year, so my blogging will be lighter than usual until next Tuesday, April 19.

According to u/tywindevillena: The oldest provincial cities of Spain are Huelva, Cádiz, and Jaén: “Cádiz is frequently considered the oldest city in Europe. It was founded by the phoenicians, who named their settlement Gadir, somewhere in the 11th century BC.” Hat tip: u/fulanax.