Every once in a while I feel like a human geyser. A geyser is defined as a spring that spews hot water and steam at intervals, usually due to building pressure below the surface. It is pronounced “guy-zur” although reading this some might prefer geezer.
One thing that got my water hot occurred on Remembrance Day when I heard a commentator at a service refer to soldiers, sailors and airpersons.
Oh, Lord, political correctness gone nuts.
While on the subject, is defining someone as an actress somehow demeaning a fine actor who happens to be female?
Fishermen have disappeared behind the label of fisher, so female fishers won’t be offended.
My dictionary defines a fisher as an American carnivorous mammal with dark brown fur. If I was a fisherman I might not object about part of the description but I would take exception to the dark brown fur bit.
Last November I first heard the term Black Friday to describe the day after American Thanksgiving.
In actuality it’s just an excuse to hold country-wide sales, similar to our Boxing Day. But wouldn’t you know it? I then heard the term Cyber Monday to pump on-line buying.
This was followed by Super Tuesday.
I’m waiting for Thrombosis Thursday.
What happened to the media hype about recession, family debt, maxed out credit cards? Is all that just a myth or are some people so much like lemmings they just follow the leader into bankruptcy?
I was intrigued by the Occupy Wall Street people protesting the inequities of our financial systems and the rapacious greed of so many corporations and CEOs.
Good on them for standing up to power and influence in the name of the little guy.
Unfortunately, the movement in Vancouver was hijacked by homeless people, some genuine but many just drifters and professional agitators.
I pity the genuine homeless but regret the loss of focus that blunted the whole Occupy movement here.
A lesson to be learned by this is that all successful movements must have a leader as spokesman (spokesperson?) to focus the group’s aims and maintain some semblance of discipline. A chorus of disparate voices all pushing their own agenda is sure to collapse in chaos.
As I write this I’m fascinated by the tussle between the various would-be candidates to represent the Republican party in the 2012 presidential election.
It’s unbelievable that a nation of 313 million people could only muster such a motley collection of egomaniacal misfits to contest the most important post in the country.
Despite decades of mismanagement the United States is still the strongest military and economic power in the world and the thought that any of the buffoons currently seeking the highest office chills my blood.
Perhaps by the time you read this they will have disappeared in a gale of derisive laughter.
We all get riled over people lying to us, but I reserve my most virulent ire for sheer hypocrisy and those people who spout one line and practice another.
In this case I’m referring to the National Hockey League, which goes on and on about condemning hits to the head while steadfastly ignoring the fact that nothing scrambles the brain more than a well directed bare knuckle punch to the head of an opposing player.
What hypocrisy.
They rationalize this by saying the fans like it, it sells seats.
At one time people attended dog fights and bull baiting but these were eventually outlawed as barbaric.
It seems wearing skates and calling it sport makes it all OK.
Not in my book.
Harvey Dorval is a regular News columnist.