Like a samurai strapping on his katana after long exile in a village, James Lileks has whetted his fisking knife and left Amitai Etizoni in more pieces than Saucy Jack left Mary Kelly.

Unlike the Whitechapel horror, this, however, is a thing of terrible beauty.

At this point I almost stopped reading, because anyone who can pack that much boilerplate claptrap into one sentence is destined to end up explaining why things have to be taken away from people. Basic needs: the words of someone who knows how big your house should be. Creature comforts: he knows how many pairs of pants you should own. “Defining the purpose of life as making more dough to purchase more consumer goods” – the earnest snit of a petty puritan who believes you put in long hours so you can afford a Cuisinart kiwi-peeler.

Yep, that’s Hello Kitty as a Red Devil samurai. And, of course, Miaowara Tomokato, eponym of Mark E. Rogers’ genius Samurai Cat books.

Confucius, Œc. Vol.

Don’t ask impertinent questions like that jackass Adept Lu.