0553 - EternalMoment

Readers, shift yourselves into philosophical mood, lotus position not required. Ready? Then consider the words of Friedrich Schiller: “What one refuses in a minute, no eternity will return”. This deep thought is appropriate to any number of highly significant non-events. For example we give you first Colin Powell, much esteemed, experienced, knowledgeable. He has missed, irretrievably, his high place in history. He could have quit when Bush invaded Iraq (we promise not to carry on too much this week about the Iraq Botch). He didn't, and instead showed cartoons to the Security Council. Scratch one potential Great Man. And then, this week, there is Clinton again.

There isn't much use at this point bemoaning the foolish pre-adolescent Clinton behavior, but just think of the harm he did. He elected the present Bush, for one thing. Since Clinton's fiscal policies were so popular, and would have been continued, his self-indulgence ballooned the Federal deficit. And then, there is the Big Botch (sorry), which would simply NOT have occurred under an intelligent (though self-indulgent) Presidency. OK for you, Bill, you failed, and we will wait for your book to be out in paperback. And by the way, we are seeing reports that Tony Blair is also paying for his eternal mistake of saying yes instead of no. Teen-age girls, take notice.

And speaking of girls, have you noticed the bare foot, or barefoot, epidemic on TV? Ever since the appearance of Janet Jackson's boob on TV, an event that shook the very foundations of civilization, the U.S. FCC has been on a war against dirty words on radio as well as nudity on TV [nudity on Radio is OK, we guess]. This same FCC approves single-corporation controls of TV, Radio, and Newspapers everywhere. Such a major threat to public debate is as nothing compared to a fragment of nudity. By the bye, the Chairman of the FCC is Colin Powell's son. Hmm.

Where were we? Oh yes, bare foot (or barefoot). Well, we note that the commercials are tending to show many barefooted young female feet, apparently hinting at hanky-panky to come if you Swiffer™ your floors or bag your trash properly. Note the ingenuity of advertisers in substituting one hint of nudity for another. Can sex be here to stay?

Moving along briskly, in reporting on the OO's recent historic air trip to Los Angeles and back, via the despicable San Juan Airport, we got so mad at the SJU non-food we forgot to report on a great travel aid, the noise-cancelling headphone set. These are wonderful, and block most engine noise, even letting you hear the movie dialogue. Unfortunately, the movie was a doggie named “Starsky and Hutch 2" or some such, so we didn't listen, but if you wanted to hear the dialogue, you could have done so, thus eating holes into your brain like a wedge of Swiss cheese.

For those Readers who are so busy with U.S. or British politics they have ignored Anguilla, there are stirrings of an election to come here. Since the British are in charge of foreign affairs, we have no anti-war vote, but our sensitive ear (it's the right one) detects a hint of economic policy debates to come. The British are saying, ominously, that Anguilla is in good fiscal shape and needs no more injections of aid. This might mean need for taxes here, but Anguillians hate them (no AXA income, estate, sales or corporate taxes) so where's the revenue to be found? Please help! Send money, or at least a few tons of asphalt for road surface. Bless you.

Next time: Hostility [OO #554]

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