I often look forward to reading Columbian editor Lou Brancaccio’s Saturday column, Press Talk. It gives me a chance to see how he thinks on pertinent issues that have impact on our community and occasionally the country.
We have a proposed tax increase being discussed to bring a Class A ball team to town, still fighting over the Columbia River Crossing, Loot Rail, another tax increase for C-Tran, a lawsuit filed to overturn an initiative passed by a wide margin of voters, 3 city council seats up for grabs and of course, the ongoing brouhaha back in Washington D.C. over how fast each political party wishes to increase our national debt to bring the country to collapse.
I eagerly looked forward to getting Lou’s take on what he felt was the burning issue of the week as although I often disagree with Lou and have never actually met him face to face, have shared cordial and friendly email exchanges. I respect Lou.
I was disappointed to turn on my computer this morning and signing into the Columbian webpage, did not see Lou’s new column.
After doing my daily check outs, attending a great barbecue at Martin Hash’s with several other bloggers covering the political spectrum, came home and saw Lou still didn’t put his column online.
Feeling dejected, I broke down, scrapped together a dollar out of my Social Security check that wasn’t supposed to be sent out until the debt ceiling crisis was settled and with total disregard for the environment, started my Dakota and drove almost a mile to Fred Meyers to buy a paper.
Admittedly, I had other purchases to make too, so the trip wasn’t a total waste of my time and justified the teaspoonful of expensive gas to get there and make it back.
Opening the paper, there it was, right on the front page of the Clark County section, Lou’s column today, “Be gentle on my Ears… Please!”
Unable to connect such a title to the issues we have been reading about and with bated breath, I began reading the column.
After reading how he almost stiffed an Evergreen High grad of $8 at the Vancouver Farmers Market, but the flood of realization that he really is a nice guy drove him to go make good on his delizioso wood-fired anchovy (anchovies, Lou? We need to talk) pizza, Lou got down to business, the burning issue of the week.
It seems Lou was one of us in wondering why Mayor Tim Leavitt did such a rapid flip-flop on his opposition to tolls for CRC and asked him about it in email, receiving the standard politicians pandering non-answer, just like we all receive from him, our Senators and Representative in D.C.
Unbeknownst to Lou, until very recently, Leavitt sought the advice of his former campaign manager Temple Lentz on answering, who tongue in cheek I presume, advised Leavitt to reply, “Dear Lou, Go **** Yourself.
I recall using the term “****” a time or two myself and prior to the Army using it might result in a few bars of soap being shoved down my throat, 5 pounds of flesh being taken off my hiney and a line forming outside the house as neighbors lined up to take their share of flesh off of me.
But, that was decades ago. Times change. I even recall on my first trip home from Vietnam, now being desensitized by hearing “****” from everybody in every use imaginable, sat across the table from my Mom at breakfast and without thinking or realizing I was back in the land of niceties’, asked my Mom, “Please pass the ****ing ketchup”
Fortunately by then, being a hardened Veteran just home from the battlefields of Vietnam and that I now stood a few inches higher than my Mom or the realization that she had probably used it herself, the moment slid by quickly, if not rather sheepishly.
Although using **** in emails still isn’t considered high society, it has gained more frequent use and acceptability, even to the point of “Panati’s Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things” giving it a sentence or two.
Even with the increased usage of “****” by so many and society being desensitized to it somewhat, I’m sure Ms. Lentz feels a twinge of remorse in giving such advice.
But for Lou, who seems to consider such ill-given advice almost 2 years ago more of a burning issue than spiraling debt, high unemployment, potential tax increases or a citizenry growing increasingly angry about being ignored, I can only say be glad she only said “****.”
I have no doubt that my words posted on this blog towards Jim Moeller, Jaime Herrera, Marine Corporal David W. Hedrick and several others has gained me several “&^#%$,” “&$@%,” “$&%^#*%#” and the most dreaded of all, “&$^%#@!%#*&^$%@” more than once.
Had you served a little time in Army Barracks, Lou, you’d know it is much easier when told “Go **** yourself,” to give the more proper response of, “Oh yeah? Go **** yourself, you “&^#%$,” “&$@%,” “$&%^#*%#” piece of “&$^%#@!%#*&^$%@.”
Lou, I thought you said you were from Chicago?
Clark County Conservative 