Hvad betyder det her?

Nej det betyder at han har taget afstand fra både socialisme og kommunisme fordi han finder dem tåbelige og at han interesserer sig for logiske paradokser

Udsagnet handler om William James Sidis (1898-1944)
Se artiklen om ham i engelsk Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_James_Sidis
Og en NOGET besynderlig (maskin?)oversættelse af samme i dansk wiki: http://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_James_Sidis

Sydeuropæerens citat udgør de to sidste punkter i en 19-punkts karakteristik af Sidis, som findes flere steder på nettet, men som sandsynligvis alle steder er hentet fra (anmeldelser af) biografien:

The prodigy : a biography of William James Sidis, the world's greatest child prodigy / Amy Wallace. - London : Macmillan, 1986. - x,297 s.,[10]p. of plates : ill., ports.

I Doug Renselle's anmeldelse af denne bog står:

Here is a partial list of William James Sidis' idiosyncratic and acultural behaviors:

1. Utter disregard of sports and physical activities — learned from his father.
2. Utter disregard of things monetary — learned from his father.
3. Utter disregard for academia, academicians, academic bureaucracy and their 'titles.'
4. Collected street car transfers. Knew most details of most routes in USA.
5. Rabid atheist by age six. (His father, Boris, was too, but intensely studied great religious works.)
6. His only fear was dogs.
7. Learned to hate mathematics in grammar school; later at 7.5 years he started a life long love of math.
8. Avid interest in politics.
9. Dressed in Russian peasant clothes as a minor.
10. On hearing a Bible read aloud, declared he didn't believe in that and didn't want to hear it.
11. In school, only worked problems to which he didn't know answers.
12. After 3 months in high school, parents withdrew him; teachers were relieved.
13. Thinking was his chosen refuge from media antagonists.
14. Essence of Billy Sidis: On page 106, of The Prodigy, Amy Wallace quotes Billy on his view of the perfect life, "I want to live the perfect life. The only way to live the perfect life is to live it in seclusion. I have always hated crowds." These sentences, in your reviewer's opinion, are an excellent micro-biography of mankind's finest known intellect.
15. Celibate: Vowed never to marry. (One of his 154 rules for life.) "Women do not appeal to me." See Pirsig's comments on this below — Pirsig on Sidis' celibacy
16. Considered traditional classrooms, 'stifling.'
17. Billy was a pacifist, anti-war, conscientious objector. (See our research link at top of page.)
18. He was a reformed communist/socialist — eventually found both intellectually disgusting.
19. Paradoxes were his logical specialty.
Kilde: http://www.quantonics.com/The_Prodigy_Review.html

I sandhed en spøjs fætter!

Sidis flirtede tidligt i livet med socialismen. Da han læste matematik ved The Rice Institute (privat-universitet i Houston, Texas, startet 1912), var han aktiv "trying to organize a branch of the American Socialist Party" og var nær kommet i spjældet, da han som 21-årig ledede en 1. maj-demonstration, der løb af sporet. Han slap med en bøde på 5000 US$, som hans forældre måtte betale :) Kilde: http://hiqnews.megafoundation.org/William_Sidis.htm

Så når der i karakteristikkens punkt 18 står: "He was a reformed communist/socialist" betyder det, at han var en frafalden eller protestantisk kommunist/socialist. Reformert bruges her på samme måde, som når man taler om reformerte=protestantiske trossamfund.
Siden (eventually) fandt han både socialismen og kommunismen intellektuelt afskyelige.

At Sidis var vild med logiske paradokser er blot et punkt i en opremsning, og skal næppe forstås i sammenhængen med hans engagement inden for The Amenrican Socialist Party - og senere afsmag herfor :) Oplysningen om hans forkærlighed for logiske paradokser skal snarere forstås i lyset af hans matematiske interesser.

Dette turde være en anskueliggørelse af, at kildehenvisninger er vigtige, og at sætninger sjældent kan forstås retvisende, når de citeres "out of context.

Derfor, ikke bare til Sydeuropæeren men til alle jer, der beder om hjælp til oversættelser: Husk ALTID-ALTID:
* oplys kontext!
* angiv kilde!
Nok for nu :)
Ms Nielsen

Men han var vel socialist hele livet igennem - eller hvad?

han var næppe socialist fordi han var begavet.....men fordi det var en ny isme som unge tilsluttede sig i intelektuelle kredse på det tidspunkt.

Om han forblev socialist ved jeg ikke men både han og hans far døde tidligt af et eller andet i hjernen ( blodprop ?)

Men hvorfor er det så vigtigt ?