To: H. R. Haldeman
From: Bill Safire
July 18, 1969.
_________________________________________________
IN EVENT OF MOON DISASTER:
Fate has ordained that the men who went to the moon to explore in peace will stay on the moon to rest in peace.
These brave men, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin, know that there is no hope for their recovery. But they also know that there is hope for mankind in their sacrifice.
These two men are laying down their lives in mankind's most noble goal: the search for truth and understanding.
They will be mourned by their families and friends; they will be mourned by the nation; they will be mourned by the people of the world; they will be mourned by a Mother Earth that dared send two of her sons into the unknown.
In their exploration, they stirred the people of the world to feel as one; in their sacrifice, they bind more tightly the brotherhood of man.
In ancient days, men looked at the stars and saw their heroes in the constellations. In modern times, we do much the same, but our heroes are epic men of flesh and blood.
Others will follow, and surely find their way home. Man's search will not be denied. But these men were the first, and they will remain the foremost in our hearts.
For every human being who looks up at the moon in the nights to come will know that there is some corner of another world that is forever mankind.
_________________________________________________
PRIOR TO THE PRESIDENT'S STATEMENT:
The President should telephone each of the widows-to-be.
AFTER THE PRESIDENT'S STATEMENT, AT THE POINT WHEN NASA ENDS COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE MEN:
A clergyman should adopt the same procedure as a burial at sea, commending their souls to "the deepest of the deep," concluding with the Lord's Prayer.
Showing posts with label william safire. Show all posts
Showing posts with label william safire. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Safire tidbits ending with a digression
Quote of the day: "It's a damn poor mind, indeed, which can't think of at least two ways to spell a word."—President Andrew Jackson, quoted in the latest William Safire column.
Another Safire tidbit: Joe Pickett, editor of the American Heritage Dictionary, in discussing the difference between adviser and strategist: "People have spiritual advisers and even personal advisers. But note that they don't have spiritual strategists, science strategists or academic strategists. In these situations there is no other side to compete with, no one to outfox." Of course, Catholic priests are spiritual strategists who tell their congregations how best to remain on the path to Heaven and not Hell, and how to outwit that trickster Satan. What's even more clear, though, is that Pickett hasn't attended an academic dept. meeting where opposing sides certainly do exist. Along these same lines, it's clear—and I don't mean this as a slight—that Kent Johnson's as much poetic strategist as he is poet (if not more than). I'm interested in the spray of "I am interested" statements that were erased. I'm interested mostly, perhaps, because I don't grasp the full context of the statements—because I don't typically concern myself too much with what poets are doing to or saying about other poets. I'm interested in the way sincerity and sarcasm seem to intertwine, or, rather, deconstruct each other to create, what else: an interesting read. I'm interested in the way the sublime rubs against the pathetic. I'm interested in how Kent is usually quick to introduce into the argument an awareness of the argument's limited meaning—that the scope's only visible when viewed through the lens of a powerful microscope.
Another Safire tidbit: Joe Pickett, editor of the American Heritage Dictionary, in discussing the difference between adviser and strategist: "People have spiritual advisers and even personal advisers. But note that they don't have spiritual strategists, science strategists or academic strategists. In these situations there is no other side to compete with, no one to outfox." Of course, Catholic priests are spiritual strategists who tell their congregations how best to remain on the path to Heaven and not Hell, and how to outwit that trickster Satan. What's even more clear, though, is that Pickett hasn't attended an academic dept. meeting where opposing sides certainly do exist. Along these same lines, it's clear—and I don't mean this as a slight—that Kent Johnson's as much poetic strategist as he is poet (if not more than). I'm interested in the spray of "I am interested" statements that were erased. I'm interested mostly, perhaps, because I don't grasp the full context of the statements—because I don't typically concern myself too much with what poets are doing to or saying about other poets. I'm interested in the way sincerity and sarcasm seem to intertwine, or, rather, deconstruct each other to create, what else: an interesting read. I'm interested in the way the sublime rubs against the pathetic. I'm interested in how Kent is usually quick to introduce into the argument an awareness of the argument's limited meaning—that the scope's only visible when viewed through the lens of a powerful microscope.
Sunday, August 08, 2004
So Safire
Wrote a letter to William Safire yesterday. Here's part of it, responding to his column on the word so.
This note may be a week late, but the following info has no sell-by date. The ironic use of "so" to refer to something outdated when it's not actually that outdated, was popularized before Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In Heathers (1989), a black comedy and cult favorite which satirizes high school culture, the character Heather Chandler tells Heather McNamara : "Grow up, Heather, bulimia is so '87." I suppose one might argue that this source is a bit obscure. But this was the movie (well, along with the not-so-good Pump Up the Volume) that catapulted the young Christian Slater to his short-lived stardom.
This note may be a week late, but the following info has no sell-by date. The ironic use of "so" to refer to something outdated when it's not actually that outdated, was popularized before Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In Heathers (1989), a black comedy and cult favorite which satirizes high school culture, the character Heather Chandler tells Heather McNamara : "Grow up, Heather, bulimia is so '87." I suppose one might argue that this source is a bit obscure. But this was the movie (well, along with the not-so-good Pump Up the Volume) that catapulted the young Christian Slater to his short-lived stardom.
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