Multa de genere humano nescimus, id enim scimus quod scire volumus. Tam placet nobis parvum de natura humana noscere! Succurrite! Vitiosissimus hic circulus est.

Addendum I (August 9, 2015)

My third haiku in Latin took quite some time to take its final shape. To be precise, it took no less than three iterations, each of which went by electronic mail to Zvonimir Milanović, known to all as Zvonko. Professor of Latin at the University of Pula, and a famous translator from Latin in Croatia, now he lives in Divjaki within view of Motovun. My attempts had one-hundred and sixty characters, including spaces, while his corrections did not. But he approved of the haiku in its final form, and rejoiced in its passionate call for help, which I added at some point. In short, the third haiku in Latin is a product of close collaboration with Zvonko, who introduced a few crucial twists and turns into my original attempt by rephrasing some of its clauses. At any rate, the human species now faces a loud and clear challenge to face itself squarely. There is no way forward for the species without unadulterated knowledge of itself. Quantum sufficit.

Addendum II (October 18, 2016)

More often than not, I feel indifferent toward the fate of the human species. Too stupid by half, it is up shit creek, which is exactly what it deserves after so many millennia of utter shenanigans. One way or another, nothing can be done about it, anyhow. So, why spill more ink on this pitiful subject? On occasion, though, I still feel a little something for my fellow humans. Call it compassion. Whenever feelings of this ilk overcome me, I return to the main requirement of the species’ lasting survival: knowledge of itself. And no fooling around as hitherto. The most vicious of circles brought forward by this haiku crosses my mind in such moments of weakness, rare as they happen to be. It is written in Latin precisely because I do not believe that more than a few fellow humans could understand what I am talking about. Just like me, they would not wish to spill more ink on the subject. Which only goes to show that my compassion is not fervent enough to make any difference whatsoever. Succurrite, succurrite!