dictum

President Calvin Coolidge’s 1925 dictum—“the chief business of the American people is business”—had become a mantra.

If Sagan’s dictum were true, we would need extraordinary evidence to prove we exist.

And it included dicta — a nonbinding observation that can be cited as a “persuasive authority” in future litigation — that planted the seeds for preclearance’s demise.

And judging by the crowds of tourists I encountered there last month, quite a few Americans have taken that dictum to heart.

This basic dictum also aligns with the post-World War II American story.