Alchemy: The medieval chemical science, whose great object was the transmutation of baser metals into gold. – Webster’s New International Dictionary of the English Language, 1914 edition
The debate over possible military intervention in Syria has put on display, for all who can see, the perverse alchemy that has been taking place in this country for at least the past 75 years or more. Unlike medieval alchemy, which sought to convert base metals into valuable gold, the modern, perverse