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SHORT TAKES: October, 2014

WHAT'S IN AN ACRONYM

   You say "toh-mah-to," I say "toh-may-to" ("Let's Call The Whole Thing Off") a show-tune of my callow youth by George and Ira Gershwin.

    Why is it we can't find a common title for the bloodthirsty killers who are imposing the most insane tenants of Muslim Sharia law? Is the acronym to be ISIL (Islamist State in Iraq and "the Levant," a medieval name for portions of the middle-east that once composed a "Caliphate." that is, ruled by a Muslim caliph or king), the acronym preferred by our president, or ISIS in Syria, (Islamist State in Syria) where this latest propensity for public beheadings was reintroduced to a horrified world. I propose, I.S. (Insane Saddists).

    There is no cure for rabies, once the symptoms manifest themselves. The same with the Muslims drawn to this maniacal aberration.

    Once the decimated remnants of this group of murderers are eventually gathered, as were the Nazi overlords at Nuremberg, the same fate should apply.

   While we're at it, one group of journalists have, since their formation, spelled the title for the jihadists once underwritten by the late Osama bin Ladin, "al-Qaeda...while others prefer al-Qaida. Let's have a show hands; one or the other. History will record the decision for 10 or 15 seconds. Sadly, the problem of hate and discontent between people of differing religions and ethnicity will persist for generations. It's that tribal thing, so embedded in our DNA, the genetic material that all homo sapiens share in overwhelming abundance. The problem is that we're all too much alike.

    I'm patting my foot and waiting impatiently for the names of the people who've been fired by Texas Health Education Hospital in Dallas for sending Thomas Duncan, late of Liberia, home, on September 25th. Public relations people at the hospital first said that only a handful of people were exposed to Ebola by their lack of diligence, but now, more than 100 people are being tracked in an ever widening circle of potential victims, some of whom may be unwilling incubators of the potentially fatal virus. Let's pray that doesn't happen.

     I certainly hope that reducing the "mishap" to a "miscommunication," by the hospital's Public Relations Department will serve to prevent panic. Someone asked in an eMail: "What part of "Liberia" did more than one person at THEH not understand?"

    Am I the only living person left who remembers the Polio panic of 1920-1950? We should all pray that those fear-filled decades are never repeated. No one knew what caused it. Quack "cures" proliferated. People avoided crowds. Swimming pools were closed. Some young people were confined to an iron lung that kept them breathing for years, and many died of the disease. I had a friend who like many thousands, wore braces that kept his lower legs rigid for all of his life.

    Only recently do we have still photos and motion pictures of President Roosevelt, that revealed his terrible, lifelong battle with it. Stricken in early adulthood, he surmounted the terrible affliction. By mutual consent, the media, to their great credit, avoided showing it or speaking of it. For many, like this writer, he remains the most heroic figure of this age.

    Tying to figure out who or what to vote for? Hit the TV mute-button (often) between now and November. I recommend you click:  http://soaznewsx.com and browse the site.

     Editor in Chief of Southern Arizona News-Examiner Emil Franzi has the most extensive, easy to understand, and common sense compilation of information available in this election year. I most admire his Independent-Centrist (someone else came up with that perfectly descriptive phrase) viewpoint. The blog is not your usual "Hit-Sheet," that blossoms and dies like my beloved hibiscus. It attracts many to its forum (I am favored with space from time to time), plus it has great cartoons. 

    No wonder. Mr. Franzi has been at the periscope longer than anyone I know in Arizona. He has certainly earned the title of "Government Relations Expert," and his punditry extends beyond the borders of our mutually beloved state.

    Tune in his "Inside Track," termed Tucson's smart and edgy political talk show: Saturdays 1:00-5:00 pm on 1030 AM - KVOI,  or get podcasts from http://insidetrackaz.com I hope you enjoy it as much as I do, even if you don't reside in southern Arizona.

    Which reminds me: There's been talk from time to time about a secession from the northern portion of our State, where Maricopa County (Phoenix) dominates, but nothing has ever come of it. Our politicians are too busy shifting the borders of political and ethnic constituencies around in the hope of thereby  gaining an advantage at the polling booths. We've some districts with shapes that resemble an octopus more so than the classic salamander of yore. This is probably the case in all 50 states.

Phil Richardson, Observer and Storyteller.

Phil's current post can be read at:  http://www.imrightagain.com

If you wish to comment, Phil can be reached at:  

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COMING SOON: A NEW NOVEL - "THE PROSPERITY COAL COMPANY" BY PHILIP RICHARDSON