European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 20, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Nations stage opens curtain to sex stories miss Mann is Erma Bombeck Universal press Syndicate one of the greatest Spectator sports in America today is sex. It has replaced the super bowl the world series and the indy 500. Our fascination with peeking into the private lives of people we done to know is As compelling As an Accident where Drivers slow Down to gawk. Now we have come to a Complete Stop. Every Day there Are half a dozen talk shows that make us privy to every problem from women who wont make love unless they smell Burnt Popcorn to Auto mechanics who Are turned on by a stuck accelerator. There Are another half dozen Magazine Type shows that lift the most sexual bizarre headlines of the Day and give viewers an in depth rerun. But that Isnit enough to satisfy the insatiable appetites of inquiring minds. Kitty Kelley tells us her version of what happened in Nanty Reagan a bedroom while the president was presi denting. Gerardo Rivera reports on a sexual scoreboard Over his bed and i can Only assume an applause sign. A Day without a Kennedy in the news is like a Florida Day without Sunshine. And still the crowds scream for More. No one cares what Mike Tyson a fighting weight is. They want to read the details of his buttock bouts. Home videos of Julia Roberts and Kiefer Sutherland partying Are bootlegged to a hungry to audience. The popularity of the to show love connection where couples describe in some detail their evenings together is a catalyst for five new copies this fall ranging from kiss and Tell to How s your love life As a National election looms it is inconceivable to imagine How anyone is going to get elected president if he does no to come up with a sizzling sex life. If you re an editor and a candidate has a plan to reduce the deficit and bring jobs to 2,000 people and the other candidate frolics nude in the tidal Basin every Day with a Cupcake from the secretarial Pool which one is going to grab your headline grow up. Forget the Iran Contra affair the Economy the homeless health care environment issues the jobless drugs education abortion and supreme court appointments. George Bush is going to have to come up with something pretty spectacular to get Peoples attention. He s going to have to create a Quot Kennedy tryst with Margaret Tutwiler an Eisenhower Liaison with his Driver or even a simple Carter lust in his heart. Something makes you have More respect for Harry Truman does no to it How did the Man Ever get elected by Judith Martin United feature Syndicate dear miss manners on my lunch hour i find a Distant eatery and Settle Down to my salad and a beloved Book. Inevitably someone from my office will happen by with a hopeful look and the dreaded question a mind if i join you a How does one decline someone a company without appearing to be a horrible person gentle Reader by assuming that the visitor is searching for table space rather than for  up pleasantly from your Book while keeping it open a this detail of stage direction is important a and say pleasantly a not at All a if you won t be offended that in a  dear miss manners my girlfriends and i i am a 24-year-old single female frequent nightclubs and bars on the weekends. We All get our share of attention from men but what bothers me is that Many of my friends brag about the attention they receive. Sometimes they go on and on in detail about what flattering things the men said or How a a hot this or that Guy is for them. If i happen to be absent from a particular Outing ill hear the boasting in full detail the next morning even from women i hardly know. I was always taught that its wrong to flatter yourself. Was i brought up incorrectly gentle Reader miss manners really wishes you Hadnot thrown that last question at her. You really done to want to discuss with her the propriety of bar hopping for the purpose of soliciting admiration from strangers. But if that is indeed your Hobby miss manners does not share your distaste for talking it Over afterwards. If you were brought up for example to believe that proper Young ladies spend their free time playing hockey you would not classify a review of successes As bragging. Dear miss manners when people write to Tell me that they enjoyed being a guest in my Home i always respond by writing to say How much i enjoyed having them. To me its the thoughtful thing to do. However when the shoe is on the other foot its a different Story. When i have been a guest in someone a Home and i write my thanks i never receive any answer. I always wonder if they received my letter. I done to expect to strike up a Long term correspondence just a Quot thank you a enjoyed having  what a wrong with that am i expecting too much is it such a Faux Pas to do the thoughtful thing gentle Reader miss manners does no to do too much business in the above and beyond thank you realm. Most of the time its disgruntled brides or graduates claiming that they done to have two minutes to write to thank people who had the time not to mention the kindness and the Money to think of selecting buying and sending them presents. No there is nothing wrong with writing charming Little notes to House guests. Its an extra Little practice that you have invented and miss manners is Happy to congratulate you on doing it. But Why  you leave it at that accepting miss manners commendation As Well As the satisfaction in which you Are basking there is something wrong in expecting your hosts to adhere to your habit. It is not Standard practice and you have no right to be disgruntled at its absence in  old i s Libra sept. 23-oct. 22 spirited process of rejuvenation is working. Excitement Over Good news is not premature. Scorpio oct. 23-nov, 21 you will appreciate time for contemplation and recharge of psychic batteries. There s no Point hurrying through work or nit picking. Sagittarius nov. 22-dec. 20. Friends and Many acquaintances see new you emerging. Widely read cosmopolitan Outlook makes you appear worldly vivacious. Capricorn dec. 21-Jan. 19 ambition pays off. Major desire dream comes True. Concentrate energies. Aquarius Jan. 20-feb. 1b great Challenge presents itself As you travel important not to Compromise. Negotiate thoroughly. Pisces feb. 19-March 20 you be got your orders and they can propel you with tantalizing Force. Experience Sublime Beauty and pretty people. Your appetite is offbeat. Aries March 21-april 19 gift and unexpected mail both arrive. Scheduled delay requires perseverance. Taurus april 20-May 20 you feel in generous and giving mood. Sense of Vul returns you to mystical Mode. Initial Domestic plan goes Well. Gemini May 21-june 20 you re ready for More responsibility enjoyment of greater Challenge. Cancer june 21-july 22 your comments Are Well received. Budget items Are in order. Now is the time to set priorities. Leo july 23-aug. 22 accent is on improving skills and people Power. You find ample time to relish self. Virgo aug. 23-sept, 22 meticulous examination shows you ample proof of own foresight. You be acquired taste for Nice toys. Coplay news service Page 10 a sunday october 20, 1991