European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 25, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse Words wit getting the details right with verbiage and adage James j. Kilpatrick the writer s Art Ood writers constantly hone their five senses. By concentrating intently upon the world around them they help their readers see a landscape hear a Roll of Thunder smell an open fire touch a dog s Back taste a bitter drink. Cultivating the five familiar senses is important but writers need something More. They need a sixth sense a sense Fiat i May have fouled up on this one. Was it Robert Taft or William Howard Taft who ran against Wilson and Roosevelt is it sports waiter two words or sportswriter one word ? have i mixed up million and billion or promoted rep. Lee Hamilton to sen. Lee Hamilton a hopeful writer. That was How he signed him self hopeful writer recently sent me letters he had written to a Western newspaper the letters were intended to be used As columns on the opposite editorial Page. One piece had to do with the crime Bill another dealt with incidents of violence at Abor Tion clinics a third article just generally jumped on president Clinton. As letters they were acceptable. They were Ama Villiam Howard Taft left not son Robert right ran against Wilson and Roosevelt. Turish. Nothing wrong with that. But hopeful writer aspired to become a professional. He wanted constructive criticism. Ordinarily the pressures of time compel me to decline such teaching opportunities but the fellow seemed desperately Earnest. I read his stuff and a sixth sense i suggested. Cultivate a suspicion that vagary May not mean Cloudy or a hopeful writer had used Agenda in the sense of a ruse a hoax or a Fli Flam. But that is not what Agenda Means. He should have looked it up. That is Why Noah Webster gave us dictionaries. God is in the details Flaubert is said to have said. The architect Mies Van Der Rohe made the aphorism famous perfection that is to say lies in patient attention to the Little things. Big tilings ordinarily will take care of themselves. Hopeful writer wrote of presidential programs that had been Side i in should have looked it up. Sidetracked is one word not two. In spoke of a Back Woods Medicine Man but Backwoods has no Hyphen. He mentioned a last ditch Effort but last ditch does take a Hyphen. Three times he capitalized the president three times he spelled it the my Young Friend i assume he is Young twice Miv placed an some members of the mouse he wrote Only oppose the ban on Semi automatic he meant that the members oppose Only the ban on weapons. The president he avowed Only has one Way to restore Confidence in his and he meant that the president has Only one Way to restore Confidence. Then hopeful writer trod on my toes. Mow such a feat would be accomplished he wrote remains to be a arg the gentleman never should have sent his copy to me. There is not a More profoundly fatuous phrase in the English language than it remains to be seen.". It not Content with this insult to my sensibilities hopeful writer spoke of an old adages sir Are inherently old. Is there any such thing As a new adage no. Let us not be redundant hopeful writer had serious problems with the punctuation Pup positive phrases. He opened a quo tation and forgot to close it. He failed to catch a your where he needed a you he said that or. John d. Britton was slain in Melbourne. It s or. John b. Britton and he was slain in Pensacola. Details details god is in the details in in Arti Cle expressing opinions it is perfectly permissible to condemn the killing of or. Britton or to defend the act but whether we Are condemning or defending let us get the commas in their proper places. Busy editors will demand a great Deal More. They will not put up for Long with anything less. Universal press Syndicate s Man of conviction Tony Kornheiser ear dad i know you worry about my living in Washington ., because of All the stories you see on to about the Vio Lence Here and the crazy people and Crooks who come into town i mean besides the ones who Are elected to Congress. Dad the image you have of everyday life Here is grossly exaggerated. It s not nearly As wild and dangerous Here As you think. The other week for example was largely uneventful. These Are the Only things i can recall Hap pening. 1. Marion Barry won his party s nomination for mayor. You remember Marion Don t you he was the mayor of Washington for 12 years and then he in went away for a while. 2. Police determined that a car crash on 1-95 occurred because the occupants of the car including the Driver had been inhaling laughing Gas. 3. A Man who was convicted of shooting his son in the buttocks with a Rifle in a dispute Over a missing $20 Bill was sentenced to spend four weekends in jail. The lenient sentence reflected the fact that the son was at the time shooting at the father with Anak-47. ". 4. Of yes. And a Man got drunk and crashed a plane into the White House. Hardly anyone was Home though except some Cia spooks working late into the night on a secret plan to invade Haiti. But the Media blow these minor stories out of pro portion. It s perfectly Safe Here unless you re walk ing by the White House and a plane is attempting an emergency Landing in the Lincoln bathroom. Anyway i m bothered by folks calling our City a laughingstock because Barry won. Look this is a democracy. The people spoke god bless pm. I regard any criticism of Voters to be a criticism of America itself and of the american political pro Cess a process that gave us Thomas Jefferson. Franklin Delano Roosevelt and that other Guy whats name Rutherford b. Cleveland. It would take a pretty callous individual to poke fun at Mari on Barry. The Man is an experienced politician. He has put in his time. Urn let me rephrase that. He is Rock solid. No wait. I just think we ought to give the Guy a crack at the Job. I have been Reading All the dire hand wringing by people who say this is terrible news for our City and i have to say people Are overreacting. I urge every one to continue to have Confidence in the future of the District of Columbia and invest heavily and generously in District real estate buying houses Willy Nilly Fine houses such As mine a handsomely appointed four bedroom three Bath residence convenient to shopping which is quite newly on the Market at an attractive and affordable Price some might say a steal. Who knows maybe some Good will come of this. The last time people fled a City like this it turned into miss Saigon i m a sportswriter i be seen great athletes have trouble with drugs and then come Back and perform like All stars. I believe in second chances. I believe in redemption. I Hope Marion has turned his life around. I would not be surprised to find that in two years his Wisdom and compassion and unquestionable leadership abilities had ushered in a new Renais Sance for Washington people of All races and backgrounds work together to create a National prototype for Urban Harmony and achievement. I also would not be surprised to find that in two years he was arrested for running a crap game in the base ment of Blair House. This Guy is unpredictable this Guy is exciting As i have said before i should not be called mayor. I think he should be the City s pledge master. You ask How could a convicted crack cocaine user win the incumbent Sharon Pratt Kelly is the ishtar of politics. Out of 250,000 eligible voters she got Only 18,000 votes. And this was a primary peo ple in her own party the Yutz who crashed the plane into the White House probably would have gotten More votes than Sharon Pratt Kelly. I found it hard to believe and vaguely disturbing that the plane came in undetected. But then the government explained Why and made me feel much bet Ter. It turns out that the plane was on the radar screen but at 2 . Nobody s watching the radar at National Airport a splendid then you re up there going 450 Miles an hour in a sardine can and these Guys can t be bothered to look at the radar screen. What Are they watching Debbie docs Dull us on the spice Channel maybe the president should look into this but i guess Clinton has More stuff on his mind. Like Haiti. I read where they had voodoo priests trained to put curses on invaders like May our world series be cancelled and May you Hac to watch interviews with Ken i hear they have a nifty one working m w. Marion wins in november. Syndicate september 25, 1994 sunday Page 19
