STICKS AND STONES…..AND NAMES CAN HURT YOU!

STICKS AND STONES…..AND NAMES CAN HURT YOU!

(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Dave Umhoefer)

(American History, Julie Hutchins, Frazer Chronicle)

Nicknames can be righteous, interesting, descriptive, a shorter form of a proper name, subtitled for the proper name, a family pet, or derisory name, and finally a nickname can be language unit that describes where a person is from, or what he does in life.

Some of these monikers I’ve never heard of, some that have nicknames hate them, or disregard them, and chose not to acknowledge them…..ever. Some nicknames are outrageous, can be apropos and downright slanderous…..but no matter, it’s almost that glorious season when name calling, barbs and accusations fly around like a snow-storm in January.

For politicians, nicknames can be earned, be a black mark, or refer to an incident that a person would rather forget. Names do matter…..how would you like a first name like Adolph, or a last name like Hitler, for a politician, the race would be over.

Of course you got your Tom the Taxer, Loophole Louie, Diamond Jim, Scooter, or the Old Woof Woof. Of course you’ve got your Tricky Dick, Slick Willie, or the Ozone Man. An initial disrespectful nickname right out of the shoot, in a political race can reap benefits, or…..depending on the nickname, and the constituents involved can actually lay an egg, a political boo boo that can’t be overcome.

A person’s name can tell us volumes about them, whether they are well-known in the community, their reputation, what kind of family they are identified with. Are they formal, do the prefer David, or Dave, are they a regular guy, can they be stereotyped by how they choose to be addressed. Nicknames are much more personal than formal names, so inventing a negative nickname in a political race might be intended to insult or link a candidate to an unsavory incident.

There are political pundits out there who organize a negative campaign using all sorts of tools from unsavory nicknames to accusations that are totally untrue, but like crop-dusting.....the pesticide remains long after the initial act.

There is little oversight, regulations are usually self imposed, and little of the actual issues are ever addressed. Somehow it doesn’t matter; people get caught up in the ebb and flow of what the candidates say, think, or do. With little exception, political campaigns descend into a deep dark pit of almost bickering children…..and we as the voting public continue to allow it.

ALMOST REVERED NICKNAMES

Try some of the following nicknames on for size…..many we’ve never heard of…..but I’ve looked them up, and by golly these presidents actually used them, or allowed them…..however in many cases…..not to the man’s face:

George Washington, (The Sage of Mount Vernon)

James Madison, (little Johnny-his little Majesty)

William Henry Harrison, (Old Granny)

Andrew Jackson, (King Andrew the First)

John Tyler, (His Accidency)

Zachary Taylor, (Old Rough and Ready)

Millard Fillmore, (The Accidental President)

Rutherford B. Hayes, (The Fraudulency, Lemonade Lucy)

Chester A. Arthur, (The Dude President)

Grover Cleveland, (The Elephantine Economist)

Benjamin Harrison, (The Human Iceberg)

Calvin Coolidge, (Silent Cal)

Harry S. Truman, (Haberdasher Harry)

Dwight D. Eisenhower, (Duckpin)

Richard M. Nixon, (Richard the Chicken-hearted)

Gerald Ford, (Jerry the Accidental President)

George Herbert Walker Bush, (Poppy)

William Clinton, (Slick Willie)

George Walker Bush, (Shrub, Baby Bush)

Barack Hussein Obama, (No Drama Obama)

I ran across hundreds of political nicknames, but I figured presidential monikers, with mid-terms coming up could kick off the campaign season a bit early. All of the above named presidents really seemed to earn their nicknames. Some of the names I had to look up cause I’d never heard of them.

Like Duckpin, a small bowling pin displayed on the lapel, or Gerald Ford, (the accidental President) was meant to point out what a klutz he was, falling down Air Force One’s ramp, or hitting a fellow golfer with a golf ball.

I’m surprised that none of the presidents weren’t call slim; there were however several who were referred to as little denoting their shortness of height. There were also several rotund presidents who were called Elephantine or Big Bill.

It’s going to be that glorious season when the pundits come out of the woodwork, newspapers endorse their selected candidates…..and the mud really starts flying. I wonder which of the candidates will fall flat on their faces over some sort of scandal…..I can only hope for a sex scandal.

It’s also the time when wanna-be journalists and cub reporters like myself grind out blog after blog, always hoping for that exclusive that’ll land a big time contract for free-lance reporting…..or better yet, a book deal. Now I could really dig something like that.

HAVE A NICE DAY!