European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 17, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Slick tactics of William Safire it on language Romance with commitment. That a what today a woman  those were the words of Cal Vin Klein introducing a Floral scented fragrance named eternity five years ago. That s when commitment was in a word that has gone front connoting Entrance into a mental institution to its modern meaning of Quot permanent relation ship or perhaps a Mutual understanding to Date steadily at least through new years eve. If you want a word to stand for a Long Range commitment Etc a of cannot be topped. Forever must have been considered but the Diamond people have a lock on that word forever is expensive Klein a commitment to commitment  mid-�?T80s passion for obsession which he defined poetically at the time As Quot passion beyond reason a times and Public moods change and people in the cosmetics fragrance and fashion Industry like to be right out there on the Cusp with the words that River berate with customers. We can observe some key changes in the Public discourse by tracking the latest hot buttons in that Multi Billioni Dollar Industry. In billboard and Magazine advertising for his current line of underwear Klein is using As his male Model a rapper named Marky Mark who wears a distressed expression that seems to reflect his difficulty in adjusting the Zipper on his pants but the theme of much of the cosmetics and fragrance advertising is behind the product line of escape it Speaks of having Quot time to be alone Quot and being  thus we have come from the uninhibited passion of obsession Quot grab her a to the commitment of eternity Quot hold Here to the Freedom of escape Quot let her go and imme outta Here. Chanel on the contrary delivers a consistent in dirtying message the realization of elegant dreams. The advertising slogans play with rhymes Quot every woman alive wants Chanel no. 5�?� and Quot the spell of Chanel and the dream come Tnie theme is updated. A was the Man appeared with the sprinzing of no. 5 in the air a i am informed by a Chanel copywriter Sheila White Quot that was a Mere statement of wish fulfilment. In the new Campaign a share the fantasy invites participation in the  now to the Lingo of skin car a phrase that seems to have replaced makeup suggesting a rend away from painting the face toward preserving it. A was women have become More demanding of performance from their treatment products a White _ says Quot Chanel has become More explicit in the Lan Guage of its claims. The old Way a the  was the headline for an a anti aging product. The new Way a up to 45 percent reduction in the appearance of wrinkles but lightened by the fillip we done to say its a Miracle. You May think otherwise a a that is an example of the rhetorical technique called aporia in which you feign doubt about where to begin or make a statement by saying you will not be Able to make that statement. Skin care copy is pulsating proof that we Are in the. Anti age age. Quot Gray hair lies a charges miss Clairol with the abjuration to Quot keep it healthy looking Young and  in the old Days Clairol stressed naturalness asking a does she. Or does no to she a with its double Lentendre and asserting that Quot Only her Hairdresser knows for  do the words of advertising copy really sell these products you bet they do that a Why they Are so carefully attuned to the shifting Public moods. What comes after escape try la satires recapture or wait for my unforgettable Revlon a favorite adjective commitment 1 see the unisex commitment in a Square bottle with a tiny Golden Ball and Chain around its neck the now York Timestamp of approval for the thin not Here Tony Kornheiser of j m a i there. I was just Licking Elvis Stamps to mail letters to James Dean and Jim Morrison. It s a Good thing the Elvis stamp was t minted to the Kings actual size or wed have to apply it with a steamroller. Personally i m disappointed in this infant Elvis representation. I oppose any representation of Elvis where he s not wearing a glitter Suil. My fondest memory of Elvis a besides our conversation on tuesday when he told me Why he voted for Perot a was seeing him perform on Long Island in 1975. Talk about a chunk a chunk a burning love. Elvis weighed approximately the same As a Pony. He had on a Robins egg Blue glitter suit with about 5,000 mirrors and truck reflectors. When they shone a spotlight on him he looked like an extra wide Road diesel Rig on a delivery to Versailles. Get a Load of that in your rear View Mirror. Elvis would have been 58, huh hard to imagine Elvis at 58 Quot leaving the building in anything smaller than a forklift. If he were still alive there  be an Elvis stamp there d be an Elvis ramp. Did you read where the Pope met with a Bunch of psychiatrists last week in Rome instead of chairs did they have couches and boxes of kleenex do you think they asked him about the Robes and the Satin slippers excuse me pontiff but have you always dressed like Judy Garland moving right along. In what Washington  Delegate to Congress Eleanor Holmes Norton ecstatically called Quot a spectacular historic win a our nation s capital and four other american colonial outposts have finally been Given the right to vote in the House of representatives. Us except if its a very close vote and their votes actually provide the final margin. Then another vote is taken. A real vote without . And the others. This very technical parliamentary political clause is called a  As a tax paying resident of Washington ., i feel like in a living in the grand duchy of Fenwick. I used to have no vote. Now i have a vote that matters except when it matters a and then it does no to matter defenders of this Deal Are saying look its not so bad it almost never happens that a vote is close. Right. Gotcha. Then Why did the congressmen insist on that Deal Why was it an Issue its like making somebody a fireman with the full duties and responsibilities and privileges of a fireman except in the event of an actual fire in which Case he a in charge of the dog a unless the dog gets to go to the fire. While you think about that lets consider Erling Knagge the 29-year-old norwegian lawyer who recently was on his Way to becoming the first Man to reach the South pole alone. Excuse me there was Competition who cares if the first Man to reach the South pole alone is Knagge or Vasco de Penguin left to his own devices a which in norwegian sounds like Quot de vice is very tick Here a a a How does Knagge know he has gotten to the South pole is it lit up like a Chi Chis Knagge set out on his Solo journey on nov. 17 from Berkner Island on the rim of Antarctica. He was out there atone for almost eight weeks. Nobody else came near him. He did not Wash or change his clothes a which May explain Why nobody else came near him. The trip was about 840 Miles on skis and Knagge travelled about 16 Miles a Day. According to his spokesman Hans Christian erlandsen a of sure and in a Erie Stanley Kornheiser a Knagge had a one Way transmitter that allowed him to Send messages like Quot everything Soke and Quot Happy new Elvis last concert in May �?T77 in Rhode Island  i certainly would have sent a message like Quot its 40 below. I m freezing my Apjones off a Given this sketchy information what can we conclude about Knagge 1. He used to count on his fingers and toes 2. He probably has a fairly Loose arrangement with his family. 3. He a one of these incredibly obsessive people like Normie who buys a bag of chips ahoy then uses tweezers to take out the chips because he Onty eats the chips but he a never considered simply buying a bag of chocolate  ask myself Why anyone would walk to the South pole. Because its there hey it s there if you take a bus too. Knagge has said Quot i want to Challenge destiny in my free  if you look at his Calendar it says Fri pick up smelts sat., Sun Challenge destiny Mon. Take deposition from Helga eight weeks skiing the South pole. Do norwegian lawyers Call that Sno Bono Knagge dragged his supplies on a Large sled which started out weighing 275 pounds and was Down to 85 pounds last week. Knagge scarfed Down chocolate meat and Oats and when reporters asked about. Knagge s weight Hans Christian erlandsen reportedly said i done to want to say he a gained weight but when he gets Home to Oslo there wont be a Knagge stamp there la be a Knagge  creators Syndicate 24 a sunday january 17. 1993