Tip over and *capsize*...nice try Judy! Ha, ha, actually I guess the congressman has been suffering with Hepatitis C for some time...
--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <jst...@...> wrote: > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "BillyG" <wgm4u@> wrote: > > > > Watch and this and BE afraid, be VERY afraid, these folks are > > making life and death decisions for us: > > > > http://digg.com/search?sort=newest&fltdigg=o50&s=site%3Ayoutube.com > > > > or, > > http://digg.com/world_news/Congressman_thinks_Guam_will_tip_over_and_capsize > > I watched the video, and my instant reaction was that he > meant it metaphorically. He went on to make a number of > comments about the environmental problems that would be > created by putting that many additional people on such a > small island. It appeared obvious to me that this was > what he was referring to. "Tip" is a verb often used > metaphorically with regard to the point at which an > environment begins to deteriorate irretrievably > (including in the context of global warming). > > Then I went and looked him up on the Web. His Wikipedia > page mentions the incident and quotes his spokesman: > > "I wasn't suggesting that the island of Guam would literally > tip over." "I was using a metaphor to say that with the > addition of 8,000 Marines and their dependents an > additional 80,000 people during peak construction to the port > on the tiny island with a population of 180,000 could be a > tipping point which would adversely affect the island's > fragile ecosystem and over burden its already overstressed > infrastructure. > > "Having traveled to Guam last year, I saw firsthand how this > beautiful but vulnerable island is already overburdened, > and I was simply voicing my concerns that the addition of > that many people could tip the delicate balance and do harm > to Guam." > > Wikipedia introduces the quote by saying, "In what may > have been an attempt at damage control..." > > Well, of course it was an attempt at damage control, but > only of the damage created by the intentional > misunderstanding of his remark promoted by people of ill > will. > > There's no reason to think it wasn't exactly what he had > in mind at the time. The admiral he was questioning seems > to have taken it that way, chuckling at the jocular > metaphor. He didn't seem surprised or embarrassed by it > (as he most likely would have been had he taken it as > having been meant literally) and went on to address the > congressman's concerns about overpopulation of the island. > > FWIW, Johnson is a practicing Buddhist, one of only two in > Congress. The example of certain people on FFL to the > contrary, I'm not sure you can be a total nitwit and also > be a practicing Buddhist. >
