Samuel Johnson's birthday

Today is Samuel Johnson's birthday, an English 'man of letters' from the Eighteenth Century who probably would be completely unknown if not for a Scottish sycophant named James Boswell who followed him around like a panting puppy and attempted to write down everything he said. Johnson, who lived in London at a time when London was probably one of the most important cities in the world, was sarcastic and unimpressed by most things he encountered, short of the royal family, who, at the time, were German usurpers to the English throne who enjoyed the perks of royalty and failed to adequately fulfill the responsibilities thereof. I think Johnson would have committed suicide if he had access to information about how the world had evolved since he was alive. He clearly wouldn't have liked modern culture or the democratization of the world or the present state of the royalty.

On the other hand, he might just have ignored the bumbling royals and retreated into the internet to spew his bile and opinions on everything he encountered. In that case, he quite possibly might have been drowned out by the cacophony of voices one hears on the internet. Including mine.

Can you tell that I don't like Samuel Johnson? I suppose that it is the height of irony that his memory so depends on the writing ability of a brown-nosing Scotsman.