Letters: Keillor’s Cup Runneth Over—With Bile
Keillor's Cup Runneth Over -- With Bile
Editor, Times-Dispatch: Garrison Keillor's Op/Ed column, "Even GOP Deserves Good Care," is another of his witty, cynical rants.
The big guy with the nice baritone has lost all sense of reality. He is consumed by his hate and contempt for those whose political and social opinions differ from his own.
What a shame to see such a talent descend into a swamp of anger, confusion, and hypocrisy.
One thing we agree on: All citizens should be cared for. I hope Keillor gets the care he needs. When the time comes to lower him into his final resting place, don't be surprised to see the coffin lid yield to a shaking fist and a last gasp for the crucifixion of George Bush and the GOP -- albeit, served by good care.
Rives Hardy.
Callao.
Anniversary Should Highlight Great Man
Editor, Times-Dispatch: I was thrilled to read Brian Shaw's Commentary column, "Remembering George C. Marshall." Having grown up in a VMI family, my sisters and I (we are all under 25), represent a small number of young people who have heard of the great soldier and statesman.
The Marshall Plan is arguably the most successful and positive piece of U.S. foreign policy and is only briefly mentioned, at best, in high school history classes. I hope the 50th anniversary of Marshall's death will revive his presence in school curricula and that future generations will have the opportunity to learn about such an upstanding American hero.
Anna Moncure.
Richmond.
Best Managed, Low-Tax? Ha!
Editor, Times-Dispatch: Virginia officials love to claim ours is a low-tax state and boast that it is recognized as the best-managed state in the country. Both these assertions lack veracity.
Databank USA collected data on state individual income taxes for fiscal 2007. Virginia's per-capita state income tax of $1,334 was exceeded by that of only six states -- California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, and Oregon. Taxpayers in 43 other states paid less in state income taxes than Virginia taxpayers.
Now for being the best-managed state: It seems that every few months Virginia has to make millions in budget adjustments and cannot meet some of its core obligations. The state cannot meet its infrastructure needs, can't afford to keep open some rest areas, and is considering closing prisons and mental-health facilities.
The best-managed, low-tax state? Let's be realistic. The facts speak for themselves.
Alan Roth.
Midlothian.
When Picking Names, Use Right Strategy
Editor, Times-Dispatch: There's no better validation for my profession than the Richmond baseball team naming debacle. I'm a naming consultant. It's my job to help clients name their companies, divisions, or products.
I suggest that my clients follow these rules to increase their likelihood for success:
(1) Know what you want in a name and convey it clearly. Establish parameters for the creative process before you begin.
(2) Do legal and linguistic due diligence on favored names. This precludes not only trademark issues but negative word meanings and cultural associations as well.
(3) Do not share finalist names with anyone other than key decision makers until they've been vetted for legal and linguistic issues.
(4) Be sure the final name appeals to your target audience and conveys the right things to them. Controversy garners attention, but not always in a good way.
We are a dignified city that knows how to have fun. Our baseball team name could have conveyed both of those things. Had the team owners asked me for help, I would have done it in exchange for season tickets and a baseball cap for my daughter.
Don't get me wrong -- I'm thrilled the team is coming. Take me out to the ballgame and I'll cheer for my home team. But the Richmond Flying Squirrels? Oh, my.
The last squirrel I saw "flying" ended up roadkill.
Elizabeth Thalhimer Smartt.
Richmond.
Five Suggestions To Win This Vote
Editor, Times-Dispatch: Many folks are tightening their belts as we battle the only real recession most of us have ever experienced. Our elected officials, on the other hand, many of whom are directly responsible for the irresponsible spending creating this mess, continue to have unimaginable privileges and perks. Its time to tighten their belts.
- First, an across-the-board 30 percent pay cut for all congressmen and -women and their staffs. Stop all congressional pay at the end of any fiscal year if all budget bills are not complete and prohibit retroactive payments.
- Second, rescind Public Law 101-194, the Government Ethics Reform Act of 1989, where annual cost of living and congressional pay raises are enacted automatically without congressional voting. All future raises must be subject to a specific bill and require a recorded vote and two-thirds majority to pass. Enforce Title 2, Section 39 of the U.S. Code (no work, no pay) that permits deductions for dates absent from their duties.
- Third, eliminate all congressional medical perks. Members can purchase their own medical insurance and participate in Medicare when eligible.
- Fourth, revise the Federal Employee Retirement System and cap total benefits. "Congressional pension benefits are 2-3 times more generous than what a similarly salaried executive could expect to receive upon retiring from the private sector" (NTU.org).
- Fifth, require all members participating in junkets to submit a post-junket report, specifying objectives, detailed itinerary, detailed expenses, and results obtained. Post-junket reports to be posted on the Internet within five days.
Any elected official who supports these measures will have my vote.
Doug Blaha.
Hayes.
Reader Reactions
johncarter-I for one would be happy if Mr. Kellior were to avoid the topic of politics from here on out.
Lord knows we get enough political punditry from all sides. Mr. Kellior has the talent to transport us all to a better place with his wonderful prose. I never expected to find a bitter stranger under Mr. Kelliors byline.
My first foray into politics was stuffing envelopes for JFK and hanging around Bill Buckley’s haunts. I loved them both. But politics was every bit as corrupt and politicians every bit as disappointing as they are today. We found that JFK’s father had bought the presidency for him.
I could list a comparable number of Democrats to your Republican rogues gallery. But that would be futile. A tit for tat of political sins never proves anything. Other then that the politicans are opretty much all the same under the suits and ties and shiny shoes.
And that absolutely includes the Chicago cabal currently in the White House.
And I am glad that you have decided to speak out. It is important to voice ones greviances and concerns. I believe that is what the people at the tea parties are doing. Fox does cater to the right wing. No less than MSNBC and CNN and NBC and CBS and ABC cater to the right.
As a country we need diverse opinions and input from all sides. Even the lunatic fringes on the right and left help to illustrate that we need sane debate. One of the most dangerous situations always occurs when either side ends up only speaking to the choir.
Bill Buckley remains the only politician who never disappointed me.
That is why I ended up a political zebra.
This is America. There is room for all
to speak their mind. If some must shout. So be it.
“Out bedyond rightdoing and wrongdoing there is a field. I’ll meet you there.“
Mr. Blaha, your five points are the crux of the problem in Washington DC. Many of these folks are so well entrenched and out of touch with reality I think Washington should be renamed Disneyworld II and Congress should be called Fantasyland. I saw an interview with a congresswoman from FL this AM. When asked to identify two successful well run government programs she chose Medicare and Social Security. The interviewer pointed out that as they both are on the brink of insolvency he would argue they are not good examples of a well run program. The congresswoman refuted the insolvency claim but did admit they will need some changes to stay on track. We need to select some qualified replacements ASAP.
Greta, I agree that Mr. Keillor should probably have left his personal political leanings in the closet, especially if he would like to have maintained his fan base. The problem is that in the last 15 years, the political climate has become so poisoned that it’s been hard to remain silent if you follow politics, which he obviously does. For Democrats, the opposing view’s volume has gotten so loud that it’s been hard to ignore it. People use to be able to agree to disagree and remain cordial.
After the contract with America, we got Newt (still hard to take even though he’s calmed down a little), Tom Delay (who was absolutely insufferable as Republican Majority Leader and perhaps the most corrupt one to ever hold the title and should now be in Prison instead of Dancing With The Stars), Karl Rove (still insufferable), and Dick Chenney, who still feels the need to shout his jaded/misguided/tragic opinions for all to hear). I would say GWB but he was never really in charge and always, unfortunately deferred to Chenney’s judgment.
For folks who love their country and disagreed with the direction it went under Republican rule, enough became enough. And now that the Democrats are in control we have the Tea Parties (inspired and coordinated by FOX News), FOX, right wing radio, right leaning gun enthusiasts, and their accusations of communist, fascist, socialist, racist, non-citizen, Muslim radical being hurled at a very conscientious, smart, and capable president, the Democrats who were still wearing gloves have taken them off.
Obama has only been doing what an astute student of history would do in his situation (like FDR). The Republicans hated FDR at the time but he knew, as does Obama that the Federal Government has to step into the free markets sometimes to help it stay afloat during extreme recessions/depressions. For this both FDR and now Obama have been/is now being crucified.
Greta, you’d be surprised by how many of your heroes, co-workers, and friends are Democrats. They keep their mouths shut most of the time for fear of confrontations with friends/admirers like you. Some of us live privately and some live and breathe in the public eye like humorist and entertainers.
We have many Republican friends and family whom we love dearly. We all love America and vote according to what our vision of a more perfect union is. Lately, in light of the current situation in our country, I’ve been more forthcoming with my political leanings and I’ve probably strained some of those friendships. I regret that. But I would regret it more if I continued to keep my mouth shut. Perhaps this is how Garrison Keillor feels.
I used to be a huge fan of Garrison Keillor.
His essays and articles were beautifully written and he had a very wry and pragmatic outlook on life.
I do not know what occurred in his life in the past few years that turned him into the bitter, cynical, angry man he appears to be today.
Every once in a great while he will write an essay that has no political language and I remember with a great sense of loss how talented and connected to his reading audience he used to be.
It reminds me of what happened to one of my favorite humorists, George Carlin.
Carlin was always a great social critic and observor of human nature. But somewhere in his later years it became impossible to enjoy his commentary. At least for me. I mean he distrusted everybody and hated everything. Even his most clever language couldn’t make his commentary palatable. He did come back in his last years, still stinging and insightful but not hate filled and bitter.
Perhaps the same will happen for Keillor.
I hope so. He is missed.
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