First Amendment does not banish decency !

What I fear about this sacrilegious art controversy in New York is that it will hurt public funding of the arts . I understand that art-even great art - is often irreverent and downright subversive. And freedom is the breath of life for it.

The Brooklyn Museum of Art should not be deprived of $7 million in funding for a PR gaff - insulting the " image " of the Queen of Heaven, the Virgin Mary .

We are living in decadent times, I agree. Why did Mary, the mother of Christ, inspire such great art for centuries ... and now THIS - a truly obscene work of art.

Is Satan more than an imaginary presence in this world? Even hardened skeptics must sometime wonder.

Can't common sense settle this matter - without a victory for censorship or a triumph for Satanic disrespect ?

We do not outlaw pornography - just assign it a sleazy corner in the big city. You cannot by pure accident find yourself watching " Deep Throat " upstairs at the Expo.

And don't forget your sunglasses !

I admire Patrick Buchanan's guts !

Judge a man by his enemies ? The American Communist Party thinks presidential candidate, Patrick Buchanan , is a neo- Nazi. But if anyone deserves the prize for anti-Americanism , it is their very own leader, Gus Hall - who long ago should have registered as an agent of a foreign power.

Today the American Communist Party clearly believes more in the politics of RACE than it does in the old fashioned CLASS politics.

It has nothing to say to the millions of white blue collar workers - who might not approve of affirmative action programs- except that they are hopeless reactionaries condemned to the junkyard of History.

For a whole generation now the stock in trade of the Left has been angry blacks, sullen hispanics, the rabid Third World Crowd.

Indeed the Left has a vested interest in the very social evils which obsess it: RACISM, SEXISM, HOMOPHOBIA.

The decadent Left does not see Bill Gates's billion dollar scholarship largesse - POOR WHITES NEED NOT APPLY - as a mockery of the American ideal of fairness, as downright un-American. I hope feisty Pat Buchanan sees an issue - and an opportunity- here. It could take him all the way to the White House !

And Buchanan is no more of a Nazi than good old Joe Kennedy, the grandfather of Congressman Patrick Kennedy of Rhode Island.

Not the sorry plight of the Jews , but Pearl Harbor, finally made this country hysterically pro-war by late 1941.

I like politicians with an edge , even when the phony Lovers of Everybody denounce them as " hate mongers ".

Like greed, a little hate might be a good thing. It is a driving force in life - makes us all the more human.


Recall the movie " Wall Street " where the villain, Gordon Getko declares : " greed is good !" In the Reagan era those words -to many - sounded downright liberating.

Now I won't even suggest that " hate is good !". But often enough hate is liberating.

Love and hate are the salt and pepper of life. (then again Lenin said of Stalin: " From this cook we will only get peppery dishes !" )

Brooks Pharmacy in the cheating game?

"Behind every great fortune there is a crime!" they say.

Behind the wealth of the Brooks Pharmacies here there may be thousands of petty crimes. My experience convinces me that the Brooks are crooks.

Last night I caught them cheating me big time. When I showed the receipt to manager ( " This is the price on the bottle...and this the price on the receipt ... you going to cheat everybody else too ? " ) - she was pissed at ME. How is that for class ?

How many of their customers would catch these " errors " - which ALWAYS favor the company ? But I was alert last night. I brought a half a dozen items to the check out counter estimating the cost to be no more than $15.00 . But instead it was more than $20.00 !

I spotted the rip off item right away. It promised to give me "a more positive mood ". But all I wanted was my money back !

"A more positive mood " can wait. I prefer to nasty and pissed off at companies like Brooks Pharmacy. ( to be nasty )

Harold Nicholson - property vs. people

In our materialistic society, property values routinely undermine purely human values - and common decency. A sickly 59 year old Warwick man -living on $568
in SSI payments ( monthly ) - is SENT TO JAIL for not painting his house - there goes the neighborhood ! - after being warned by the inspector.

OK the law must not be mocked. But too often the judge if not the majestic LAW - is an ass !

Did any of those oh so friendly Warwick neighbors give a thought to HELPING Harold Nicholson of Abbott Avenue ? Or did they just follow the precept : " Drop a dime on thy neighbor! "

God forbid that property values in the neighborhood decline by .01 percent.

I note that this very sick man must pay car insurance every month. The city of Warwick should make it possible for more of its residents to dispense with their cars, especially people like Harold Nicholson, the sick and the elderly.

In Warwick you can not catch a bus to the capital city of Providence after the early evening hours. This is a ridiculous RIPTA bus schedule.

Would it not be better for Nicholson to be able to get around on a $35 monthly RIPTA bus pass ?

Would it not be better for THOUSANDS of Rhode Islanders? Then they can afford to paint their houses.

Of course it escaped the attention of our legal system - of Judge Joel Gerstenblatt! - that the poor and sickly Harold Nicholson might be DEPRESSED. A major symptom of mental depression is lack of volition, an inability to get things done.

Where would we all be - if we depended on the KINDNESS OF STRANGERS ?

Editorial right about the Rev. Sharp -tongue !

Racial unity with the Rev. Al Sharpton? How about class harmony with Karl Marx ?

This sentence in your Sunday Journal editorial ( Sept.26 ) should be in bold words : "NO ONE HAS DONE MORE TO ACCELERATE RACIAL TENSIONS ... or PROMOTE OUTRAGEOUS RACIAL UNTRUTHS IN NEW YORK THAN THE REV. AL SHARPTON "

As a matter of fact the so called Left in this country has abandoned the politics of generic CLASS for the less civilized and demagogic politics of RACE & GENDER & SEXUAL ORIENTATION .

Check out the leftist publications like "The Militant" and "The People's Weekly World ". See how completely they are oriented toward the rabid politics of race and sex. In my opinion this has ruined the Left as a respectable - and formidable - political influence in our still democratic society.


The politically correct crowd has nothing to teach this nation about the fine points of democracy.

One way to improve racial relations in this country is to stop babbling about it every minute of the day.

The fundamental realities of life -as Freud said - are WORK and LOVE - not race and sex . Nobody will ever love you for your race, sex, or sexual orientation . They might love you if you are a useful member of society and obey the law .

What is lovable about egocentric agendas ?

How Russia can be saved

Does it take a profound historian to see the similarities between the chaotic, desperate Russia today and the nightmarish Germany of the 1920s ?

The great Russian spirit will not sink into pitiful, abject nothingness. Great world powers do not just fade away. They will first unleash all the powers of hell, of the damned.

Clearly the vast majority of Russian people will not accept any more misery for the sake of a very undemocratic - and lawless-capitalism.

Horror of horrors, Russia - in order to save itself - will have to repete the 1917 experience. All the country's wealth and means of production must be ceased from the present robber barons by a ruthless, unapologetic " totalitarian " government.

All this, not in the spirit of the now ludicrous " Communist Manifesto " - but simply for national salvation.

Gradually - year by year - the new system, a benign fascism, can transform itself into a meritocracy. The talented but honest managers will be permitted to become fettered capitalists; the skilled workers will get more pay than the unskilled; the industrious will be better off than the lazy ( as they are everywhere !) .

Almost every rich thug in present day Russia must have been connected to old corrupt Stalinist bureaucracy. In other words they were once - irony of ironies - GOOD COMMUNISTS !

Let the old gang tremble !

Ban smoking at Bus Stops !

I wish they would ban smoking at big city bus stops. Just as if I were in a public building , I am confined -for up to a half hour! - in the " toxic " area of the smokers.

And what PIGS they are, these smokers. What a mess they make of our city - the butt bums !

Headline : " Suit seeks billions from tobacco industry ". The butt bums also never gave a damm about anybody either. I have nothing but contempt for the sick and dying nicotine addicts who now want big bucks from the tobacco industry.


Like alcohol addiction, nicotine addiction is really just a character disorder. You can quit if you want to. You simply must value something else in life more - like good health, a sound mind in a sound body.

I never expected the tobacco industry to educate me about their product. In high school- in the dear 1950s - I read a " Reader's Digest "article : " I am Joe's Lungs ". And I have never smoked . Of course the snobby teachers frowned on the "Reader's Digest". It was a wonderful magazine to read in study hall .

From the mouth of babes! (Steve's daughter Tara's essay shared with "Uncle Ron" and Ronnie Marshall)

Hi Ron & Ronnie,

I'm feeling better today- back to the grind tomorrow. I thought you both would find my daughter Tara's high school essay on "Darwin vs.Creationists" interesting.

-----------------------------------------------
"Mommy, where do people come from?"

So you’ve just explained the whole sex thing to your four-year-old as
diplomatically as possible, resolving not to give them any of the birds
and bees crap you were force fed as an impressionable toddler. Now she
wants to know how the human race evolved (damn kids are so smart these
days.) Do you go with ‘Adam and Eve’ or ‘Darwin's Theory of Evolution’? Good question. I’m going to answer that for you.....

Chances are that both will sound like a fairy tale to a small child.
"One upon a time, there were two people, Adam and Eve, and Adam ate the
forbidden fruit. See honey, he’s selfish, just like your father." Or
the alternative.... "Honey I know I told you our ancient ancestors were
apes, but you can stop calling the gorilla at the zoo Great-Grandpa
Freddy, people are starting to stare." Its hard to explain the
Evolution Theory to a child when they have already heard of Adam and Eve
at church. However, like many people, they will probably be willing to
believe both. That’s a problem for me; when thinking about that stuff
too much I start to turn a little atheist, and I would rather not. The
concept of spirituality is appealing; in a world full of chaos its a
good crutch to have (in moderation.) Exploring both the scientific and
spiritual approaches to evolution can be beneficial in trying to make
sense of it all.

First off, Darwin wasn’t the first person to theorize evolution. As
early as 1744, Jean Baptiste Lamarck developed the theory of inherited
acquired traits. He adhered to his belief that a change in the
environment causes the physical needs of organisms living in the
environment to mutate. For example, an unneeded organ would shrink and
finally disappear over time. He also believed that they would develop
new organs when needed. This is the 1st law in his book Philosophy
Zoologique. Originally, Darwin tried to refute Lamarck’s 2nd law, in
which he states that changes are heritable, but later he admitted they
were significant in evolution.

Which brings us to Darwin. His ingenious theory means nothing without
evidence, and there is a significant amount of it. Is there any
evidence of the Biblical theory? No, not really. Is the Shroud of Turin
authentic, historical evidence? My father, who recently saw it when he
went to Italy said that it "left me feeling cold", while in the
self-portrait of Leonardo DaVinci he "saw the divine." No doubt the
shroud did belong to someone, but Jesus? I think not. The negative
image of the face etched in blood-- a miracle? No, science. There is,
in fact, a scientific explanation for essentially everything-- science
is the only true "miracle" I have seen thus far.

Darwin's theory which consists largely of the survival of the fittest is
fascinating to study. If an animal is not equipped to live in its
environment, it dies off and leaves behind various states of its
mutations. The dinosaurs are gone, but we have a smaller more efficient
model- the lizard, kimono dragons, etc.
Its like everything in life.

Think of your first computer. The big clunky black and white piece of
junk that could barely do spell check. Now think of the computer you
have now. Slim, sleek, Macintosh laptop- plays CD’s, goes online and
connects you to a vast pool of information. Between your old black and
white Mac and your new color portable laptop, there were several other
models. The clunky box didn’t become the laptop overnight. In between,
there was a primitive color model with a CD-ROM that hooked up
separately and new programs that are now taken for granted like Adobe
Photoshop.

When you look at the evolutionary tree, you see dinosaurs, lizards, and
the various states in between. Computers— same thing.
(Oh yeah, except computers are smarter, ha. ha.)


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

( Tara, I am very proud of you - your ability to think straight and then express in writing what you think. This idea of evolution is one of the great ideas you will encounter in life. I would like to send you some essays of the late popular science writer Isaac Asimov on the Evolution Vs. Creationism controversy.

I made a reference to the creationists in a letter to the Providence Journal which was published Monday. ( " A Strange Place for the Reverend Ahlburn " ) .

Note: Lamarck was mistaken in thinking that " acquired characteristics " can be inherited.

LEARN all you can with your young mind. Adults get stupid and stale with Marriage & Family responsibilities - not ALL of them of course. Your parents are the exception.

A good thing that " Don Rogers " is now just your aloof dear Grandpa. " What holds the world up ? What hold its up ? ", he asks in a drunken Sunday afternoon babble.

Why Atlas - of course !

Take care, honey.

Uncle Ron

Muzzled on the Projo Web Site ?

I have posted very many messages at " Your Two Cents " - a service of the Providence Journal Web Site. Not being an obsessive type, I comment freely on many issues - often from a liberal point of view. The newspaper is -within the usual limits - a friend of free speech, a friend of THE TRUTH .

Yesterday I wanted to put my two cents in on the Bill Gates Billion dollar scholarship fund - which I consider invidious as it excludes poor white kids, now a forgotten minority.


I said that future educational opportunities would be decided by DNA - not SAT . How would they decide who is black enough or red enough or latino enough to qualify for Bill Gates's mischievous largesse, I wondered .


I said that the silence of the press on the right-mindedness of this billion dollar scholarship was deafening.

Well, guess what ? My post did not last one hour on " Your Two Cents". It mysteriously disappeared before anybody had a chance to comment on it.


Although it was titled " The New Niggers " ( quotation marks included ), it was no more racist than Mark Twain's Huck Finn. Indeed it was an argument against racism - the preferential treatment of vociferous minorities.


I noted that Al Gore said that the next ten years would be the " decade of the Latino ".


My post was removed by a person at the Projo with an Hispanic name ( Panciera ? ) .


Personal arrogance here or orders from Bill Gates ? I will send a copy of my post to anybody interested in judging for himself its malevolence . I must ask if the N- word is to be banned in every context in which it appears .


"The new niggers" is what poor white kids are now calling themselves. Blacks are still free to say the most vile things about us white trash .


And they applauded - with the black power salute - when that murderous maniac, O.J. Simpson, was freed.

In my post I said : " Let's see who speaks for justice now " .

Please put me in my place, dear editors .

Gates of Hell scholarship

How quick the Free Press is to react to an obvious mockery of fairness - the Bill Gates Billion scholarship fund - no white kids need apply.

Suppose a group of extremely wealthy gentlemen announced the establishment of a billion dollar White People Only Scholarship Fund. And suppose the standard of "whiteness" would be that already established by the former Third Reich.

The reaction would be immediate and angry. This group would be perceived -and rightly so - as enemies of racial harmony.


My friend Bill - a college teacher - says that so far the silence on the Gates scholarship fund is deafening.


Perhaps only the American Nazi Party will be heard on this issue. Al Gore has already told us that the next ten years will be the decade of the Latino .


The Balkanizing of America !

Bill Gates's scholarship question

My friend Don 's granddaughter is a very bright 19 year old girl. She might indeed be interested in the Bill Gates Billion scholarship. Her mother is a blond blued eyed white girl. Her father looks like Sammy Davis Jr. Does she qualify for the money ?

Does her half- Hispanic and half -white classmate qualify ? Have Asian kids been left out of Gates's largesse ?

My grandmother's mother, they say, had some American Indian blood in her. Would someone with this background be eligible -at least for a textbook grant ?

Perhaps it might be necessary to let DNA - not BATS - decide who will go to college.

Not since O.J. Simpson was freed - with one juror giving the black power salute - has the RACE problem in America been so odious!

Let's see who speaks for justice now .

I can forgive anybody who makes me laugh. What is politics in the U.S.A  nowadays but high stakes entertainment ? And sickening pandering to endless list of VICTIMS ? Gore -alas- is boring me to death already. And one HONEST conservative is worth more than hundred "compassionate" ones. Pat for president? How about a simple minded but honest communist ?

In a letter to the editor today ( Sept 18 ) Alex Hofstetter likens Hillary to that " true face of evil" - Angela Lansbury in her villain role in "The Manchurian Candidate " - a movie with a Korean War" brainwashing " plot .

I just saw the outstanding movie, " Primary Colors ", starring John Travolta as Bill Clinton ( who else ? ) . The actress who plays his wife -more so than Lansbury - perhaps is the real Hillary .

After the revelations of " Primary Colors " , I would still vote for bad boy Bill Clinton. With the condition that Ken Starr be appointed Attorney General !

Bill Gates's scholarship invidious?

Despite his billions, Bill Gates is too " new rich ", too nerdy, too original , too independently brilliant to be associated with some sinister, entrenched American "ruling class " ( THEY probably meet once a year now in some tasteless, luxury hotel to plan - in vain - who our next president should be. )

In today's news I read that he and his wife, Melinda, will donate $1 billion for minority scholarships - a very generous gift to be sure. NOBODY with academic talent should be deprived of a quality college education.

Good news for bright black kids, hispanic kids, and American Indian kids . But another " forgotten minority " has been left out of the Rainbow coalition - poor white kids!

Are they the "new niggers"?

Tragedy -The Lord can't lose !

Another sickeningly familiar headline this morning: " 8 die in Texas church shooting ". The story tells us nothing about the monster who - of course! - killed himself.

I don't think these horrible stories are impossible to understand. The scene of the massacre was a Fort Worth Baptist Church. And in the midst of it something more real than ballyhooed Faith in God (" See You at The Pole ", Santa Clause ... see you in heaven, God. " ) : ordinary human love and heroism - a girl laying on top of her best friend to protect her ... " and she got shot. "

The mental health system in this country STINKS ! Murder-suicides are the act of individuals in a nihilistic rage, individuals who feel that the game of life is all over for them, the cards had been stacked against them, they had been cheated and betrayed by many people who should have cared but did not. For too many of us watching other people drown in the rat race is a spectator sport.

Perhaps " desperation hot-lines " can be established in our bigger cities - to assist and cool off enraged individuals feeling " at the end of the rope ".

How many horrors might have been stopped by a few kind words, sincere attention - and a petty loan ?

I read about people thanking the Lord that THEIR kid was spared. And at the funerals they will thank HIM for taking their kid to Heaven. The Lord can't lose!

But common humanity can still win.

Michael Stanton - hate crime victim?

I used to live in the neighborhood where your investigative reporter, Michael Stanton, was brutally assaulted by local thugs who hang around Sollitto's Liquor Store.

The neighborhood was once -decades ago-" a nice place to live." Now it breeds thugs as well as excrement breeds maggots.

I just passed the area on the Warwick Ave. bus. My friend Paul, also on the bus, speculated that the incident might be "Cianci's Revenge". He is not above this
hoodlum stuff, you know.

But I suspect that it was just a few moments of recreation for bored and drunken denizens of New Puerto Rico or the New Azores. In zoology you call this
antagonism to the passing stranger "territorial protection".

"You messing with ME, man? You messing with me". There might even be an element of racial profiling here. A petty hate crime incident!

Best wishes to Michael Stanton . Let the investigation continue.

For Adults Only!

Check out your " Kidsbeat " section today- page F3 . We learn that at least 1 of every 5 children is obese today.

How to deal with this problem ? "The biggest thing we encourage is self-esteem ", says Lauren Leary . Okay , but nothing original here.

But this is questionable, to be sure : " Kids love MARITAL arts. "I have heard that this is a good way for ADULTS to build self-esteem and lose calories.

Fat kids will not lose weight watching marital arts on TV.

Tell them to walk more . And put a lock on the refrigerator !

Why run Ahlburn on RELIGION page ?

I have just read the sincere -but vapid- letter ( " It's called freedom " -Sept. 12 ) defending the right of the REVEREND

Ahlburn -an excellent and interesting columnist and a good man - to have his views published in your " Religion " section. But I still insist that Mark McKaig was not really demanding censorship. ( the title " Censor Mr. Ahlburn " was the editor's ).

There is a difference between Religion and Philosophy. A difference between FAITH -the common ground of ALL true religions - and philosophy - the love of wisdom, of free inquiry.

It is hypocritical of Ahlburn to call himself REVEREND ? This is fraud against the public. There is a large sophisticated, well-educated class in the United States that is just too socially timid to declare itself " atheist " or even " agnostic ". They fear association with disrespectable political causes - ( Bolshevism ! Anarchy ! ) .

They want the FORM of religion while discarding the SUBSTANCE - a sincere belief in a personal God . Business in America demands at least the appearance of conformity.

Unitarianism is the ideal religion for skeptical East Side chiropractors.

Perhaps yoy can re-title your Religion page : " Life Perspectives ". Or run Ahlburn on your Op-Ed page. Should a socialist have a column on your Business page ? Would you place a horoscope in the Science Section ?

Again I am a FAN of the Reverend Ahlburn and will continue to enjoy his columns.

Lucretius Redux

We learn in elementary school science that centuries ago in ancient Rome the seeds of modern atomic theory were expressed in what would become an immortal poem : "On the Nature of Things " by Lucretius ( - 54 B.C. ) .

But for most of this century it seemed that ultimate realities -like atoms and quarks and mass-energy and chemical bonds ( " the glue of molecular existence " ) - were best conceived as mathematical constructions - highly abstract.

But new imaging techniques are replacing mind-boggling abstraction with REAL images that are almost pure poetry . Headline in this week's New York Times : " Glue of Molecular Existence Finally Unveiled ".

Said a Dr. Spence : " I want to emphasize that these pictures are ... like photographs - true images of real objects . "

Among the shapes revealed by these images: "butterfly wings"! In a philosophical essay the French humanist writer Albert Camus wrote about just this - abstruse scientific explanation being reduced to poetry. (He also spoke of the "benign indifference of the universe )

Many great scientist had an intuition that at bottom Nature must be elegant and beautiful - words also used to describe famous geometric proofs.

Is it not silly to talk about the "End of science "? Can there ever be an end to beauty -or a last poem ?

Even that rather unpoetic dialectic materialist Lenin wrote that the tiny electron was inexhaustible. To be sure, we do live in interesting times. Let us not exhaust HOPE -which keeps the world going.

I recall a poignant image in a famous anti-war movie: a young German soldier in a stinking foxhole reaching out for a beautiful butterfly - before perishing in an explosion.

"To hold infinity in the palm of your hand!" ( William Blake )

Political Pro Charles Bakst hard on Bush?

The projo.com bulletin board notification of new message. See:
http://www.projo.com/twocents/get/ripol/6.html

I just read the M. Charles Bakst column this morning : " Ragged Bush visit- Staying on message and falling off". To be sure, George W. Bush ( more his mother's son ? asks Bakst ) let Rhode Island down, let a Central Falls school down, and thereby let the Hispanic community here down.

Of course 99% of our national politicians would have made a $1000- a -person fundraiser a priority over showing the " human touch " with working class kids. Perhaps presidential candidate Bush's interest in education as an issue is merely
opportunistic. Here, I believe, bad boy Bill Clinton and straight man Al Gore are the real thing.

The compassion of compassionate conservatives is mostly reserved for the rich -who need help getting into heaven on earth. Whenever the greedy class complains about taxes, they respond: " We feel your pain! "

There are third parties out there -even here in Rhode Island - that do focus on the more basic needs of the working poor and the impoverished. They deserve a little more attention.

This is just bus stop gossip, but a political activist I know complained about M. Charles Bakst's propensity to ignore ALL third parties.

Why? I wondered. My friend's explanation was cynical, to be sure : " You have to FEED Charlie, you see. Have food and he will come" .

"You mean he could be bought off with grilled cheese sandwich ? " I asked. Paul smiled impishly.

Canine " ethnic cleansing " - OK

Downtown West Warwick -like the Providence " inner city " - is a dreary enough place without having to worry about vicious pit-bull attacks. I can only approve the West Warwick Town Council's new ordinance : Pit bull owners -often as vicious and ugly as their dear pets - will have to purchase $100,000 in liability insurance.

Here is one example where " class privilege " might be a good thing. Despite the stupid remarks of Dr. Gary Block of the Warwick Animal Hospital ( pitbulls are not violent by nature- they are just " bred to be that way " - Projo , Sept 8 , page C3 ) , the common pitbull - like the ocean dwelling " Jaws " - is a killing machine.

True many dogs are vicious and bite. But they don't possess the pit bull's made in hell jaw - designed by the benevolent Creator to rip your beautiful kid's face off and leave you with a million dollar medical bill.

Let's hope The New Providence passes a similar law on pit bulls. When I see a pit bull owner in Providence with a cellular phone -hanging around a front porch all day - I can make a reasonable guess about the idiot's " profession ".

Save the children - gas the pitbulls !

This is how wars begin !

I am amazed how we humans make the most minimal efforts to understand a different or unpopular point of view. Today in a letter to the editor( Sept 5 ) The REVEREND Thomas Ahlburn is defended against Mark Mckaig 's charge that he is an "ignorant man ( " Censor Mr. Ahlburn " -Aug.31 ) .

I agree philosophically with Ahlburn's views on the traditional idea of God. And I know for a fact that a moral life is possible without mindless religious conformity.

But is it not ludicrous to keep the REVEREND title if you publicly question the reality of God ? Would we not resent a Christian Scientist - with no medical knowledge - calling himself DOCTOR or just another " scientist " ?

Does not the English language make demands on our honesty? Is atheism a religion ? The REVEREND really belongs -UNCENSORED - on the Lifebeat page. And I have the greatest respect for the man's intellect. Title his column " Ahlburn in Hell ".


I cannot agree with the traditionally religious -like Mark McKaig. But I know that they too are neither ignorant nor stupid.

Willfully misunderstanding people - that is how wars begin !

Mozart makes you KINDER ?

"It's too bad kids can't find an hour a day for music" ,says " Dazzle " Gidley , the Providence piano teacher ( Classical Spotlight, Sept. 4 ). And it is too bad that our schools have been cutting back on music education.

There is a scene in " Mr. Holland's Opus " where Mr. Holland ( Richard Drefus ) makes this point to the bean counting vice-principle who has just cut the music lover's heart out by eliminating the high school music program: While we must all be practical about the bottom line, we must not become insensitive to the very things that make life worth living.

In the rebellious Sixties, one of the most popular movies was the " Sound of Music ". A memorable scene was the Captain telling Maria ( Julie Andrews ) : " You brought music back into my life! ". In his depression, Captain Von Trapp had almost forgotten MUSIC.

Dazzle does not know if listening to Mozart makes you smarter. But there is also such a thing as " emotional intelligence "- which some psychiatrists thinks is even more important to a happy successful life.

Do you think any those killer kids were listening to Mozart before committing mass murder in their schools ? An hour a day listening to classical music would have made them kinder - if not smarter.

The Day JFK died

On its web site today the Projo published my recollection of where I was when JFK died -and other observations of mine on that dark day in November -1963.

Just go to the Rhode Island Century. My letter is about the 6th or 7th in the special feature.

Ron Marshall, I've been following your debates with the right wing kooks. Where is this anyway ? Just who are they ? Again fulminating on nothing . I despise AMATEUR fascists!

Give me the original Adolph Hitler any day . A worthy opponent -at least intellectually . Or at least give me George Lincoln Rockwell .

God save us from Rockwell!

At least they were alive enough to give us A GOOD SHOW !

Where there is LIFE - there will always be A New Beginning.

Arrest Rev. Ahlburn?

"Censor Mr. Ahlburn"? ( letter, Aug. 31 ) I think the real question raised by Mark McKaig is whether the Rev. Thomas E. Ahlburn - whose columns I admire- should be preaching anti-belief under the banner of " Religion ".

It is not true that he is ignorant and believes in nothing, as McKaig asserts. But for Mr. Ahlburn to pass himself off as a clergyman is indeed a bit of effrontery. Should he be arrested for impersonating the TRUE clergy , the representatives of God on earth ?

I myself would appreciate the REVEREND Ahlburn all the more in the Lifebeat section. The religious instinct in ordinary people seeks out the man of FAITH.

In a world going mad -going to HELL - can you blame them for yearning for a positive faith ?

Faith in God is either a gift or a form of lunacy. We can at least respect it -even if we do NOT find ourselves in the pews of the devout.

In a way the Rev. Ahlburn has no more right to preach in the RELIGION section than a Creationist has to lecture in a high school science class.

I concluded a long time ago that his Unitarian Church is little more than a social club - the ideal place on Sunday for successful East Side chiropractors.


His church is as holy a place as the new Providence Mall. Perhaps if we built more cathedrals - as they did in Middle Age Europe -HE will come.

Stephen King wants Brian Smith's license

I'm almost a Stephen King fan ( "Pet Sematary " gave me a real scare ) and I do hope that he can recover completely from his serious injuries.

I would hate to be poor Brian Smith, the driver of a Dodge Caravan, distracted by his dog when he hit the famous horror writer.

Although Smith, 41, was not driving recklessly at the time, King said that the man had an obligation to pay more attention to the road. King does not wish to
sue the jerk, but thinks he should lose his license.

That would be only just - if there is a legal precedent for it in the state of Maine. We cannot bend the law to please big shot celebrities. And there is
nothing in his life to suggest that Stephen King is a vindictive person.

But the mind is its own place, says John Milton, and it can make a hell out of heaven.

Perhaps this very painful experience will be reflected in a future Stephen King horror story.

If King had been killed in the terrible accident, no doubt some other horror writer - after paying his respects - would have found material here for a
weird plot of his own:

What if horror writer Stephen King -killed on a road in front of his house- was buried in the legendary "Pet Sematary "? Sometimes horror writers come back- a little colder and meaner, obsessing on the people who did them wrong.

Did that Dodge Caravan - like "Christine " - have a malevolent will of its own ?

A review of Stephen King's " Christine " reads: " It will keep readers up late and have them looking both ways as they cross the street after dark ."

A careful driver should not let a dumb dog distract him. But what if the dog was "Cujo" ?

Can a " dead " horror writer be a surprise guest on the "Tonight Show"?

And what if he now has a mysterious gift of prophecy: " I see dead people! "

Yes, Stephen, do tell us more about the hellish " Dead Zone".