phrases, sayings, idioms and expressions at

The KGB connection

Posted by TheFallen on January 04, 2003

In Reply to: Latine posted by Miri Barak on January 04, 2003

: I'm translating a piece about Gauguin, the painter, and it is said about him "I believe I learnt, during my childhood and in that seminary, to hate hypocrisy, double dealing and sneaking *(semper tres)*, and to distrust anything that ran contrary to my instinct, heart and reason. Gauguin says these words about his school days in a religous school in France.
: *semper tres* it is part of a sentence: Non quam duo, semper tres
: and it means: never go in twos - always in threes.
: this is a rule they had to keep at school. I wanted to know the origin of it, what was really the reason for this rule, to be able to understand the connection to this paragraph.
: and my thanks to everyone who tries to enlighten me.
: Miri

This'll be of no help, but it used to be claimed that in the days of the Cold War, the KGB used to only go arounf in threes - why? One who could read, one who could write, and the last to keep a watchful eye on the intelligentsia.

© 1997 – 2024 Phrases.org.uk. All rights reserved.