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OPINIONOPINION

Mountain View News Saturday, August 9, 2025

MOUNTAIN 
VIEWS

NEWS

PUBLISHER/ EDITOR

Susan Henderson

PASADENA CITY 
EDITOR

Dean Lee 

SALES

Patricia Colonello

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John Aveny 

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Peter Lamendola

CONTRIBUTORS

Lori A. Harris

Michele Kidd

Stuart Tolchin 

Harvey Hyde

Audrey Swanson

Meghan Malooley

Mary Lou Caldwell

Kevin McGuire

Chris Leclerc

Dinah Chong Watkins

Howard Hays

Paul Carpenter

Kim Clymer-Kelley

Christopher Nyerges

Peter Dills 

Rich Johnson

Rev. James Snyder

Katie Hopkins

Deanne Davis

Despina Arouzman

Jeff Brown

Marc Garlett

Keely Toten

Dan Golden

Rebecca Wright

Hail Hamilton

Joan Schmidt

LaQuetta Shamblee

STUART TOLCHIN

PUT THE LIGHTS ON

RICH JOHNSON

 

RAPIER WIT


WHY BE GOOD


Thank you in advance for reading my column. This week’s contribution 
is a peek at rapier wit: Never mean spirited but rather, clever 
wordplay designed to entertain and engage. And with the goal 
of equipping you with clever conversation starters. May it be said 
that with a quick quip and a touch of rapier wit, he (she) turned an 
awkward situation into a hilarious moment.

I give special thanks to the inspiration of Bill and Kit for contributing “rapier wit” 
to our language. Bill, you know professionally as William Shakespeare, and Kit’s 
birth certificate calls him Christopher Marlowe. Both noted 16thCentury British 
playwrights.

Speaking of masters of the English language, George Bernard Shaw and Winston 
Churchill engaged in what is my favorite rhetorical joust using the English language. 
Shaw, before the opening of his new play “Pygmalion” in 1913, sent Churchill a telegram 
that read:

“Reserving two tickets for you for my premiere. Come and bring a friend…if you 
have one.” Churchill quickly responded with a telegram of his own to Shaw:

“Impossible to be present for first performance. Will attend the second…if there 
is one.”

Winston Churchill is the author of many unforgettable examples of a rapier wit. 
At a posh dinner party hosted by Lady Astor, a drunk Churchill started pontificating 
on and on. Finally, having heard enough Lady Astor blurted out, “Winston, if 
you were my husband, I’d put poison in your coffee.” To which Churchill replied, 
“Nancy, if you were my wife, I’d drink it.”

In 1931, Mohandas Gandhi was named Time Magazine’s ”Man of the Year”. Arriving 
in England a British reporter yelled out to Gandhi, “What do your think 
of Western civilization?” In his heavy Indian accent, Gandhi answered: “I think it 
would be a good idea.”

On Groucho Marx’s 71st birthday in 1961 he received a cable from good friend 
Irving Berlin. The birthday greeting said: “The world would not be in such a snarl 
had Marx been Groucho instead of Karl.”

One of my favorite people on the planet is Dolly Parton. Dolly is classy, intelligent 
and funny. Her homespun brilliance comes through in her quotes.

“Our house had running water, if you were willing to run and get it.”

“I often say I don’t lose my temper, but sometimes I have to use my temper.”

“I believe that without God I’m nobody, but with God I can do anything.”

“Don’t get so busy making a living, that you forget to make a life.”

“I know some of the best Dolly Parton jokes. I made them up myself”

“Storms make trees take deeper roots.”

“Find out who you are. And do it on purpose.”

“You’ll never do a whole lot unless you’re brave enough to try.”

“I’m not offended by all of the dumb blonde jokes because I know I’m not 
dumb…and I also know that I’m not blonde.”

Rich here. Thank you, Dolly, and others for your quotes. I admire Dolly for being 
so wonderfully centered and genuine. Tremendous talent, enduring faith, love for 
God, and character that shines through. And she plays the guitar.

In closing, as many of you may know, I am also a person of faith. My faith is a big 
part of my life. I walk the walk daily (sometimes I stumble) hoping to be genuine 
and if lucky, funny. Possibly this confession of my faith is meant to impact one person 
out there. If that’s you, consider trying this. When you go to bed tonight, lights 
out and you’re staring at the ceiling, ask the Lord to reveal Himself to you in some 
meaningful way. However He chooses to do so, the ball is now in His court. Let’s 
see what happens. 

In any event, have a great week.

I think for a lot of people the answer to that question is that God 
wants us to be good. That answer doesn’t do it for me. For one 
thing I am a lifelong atheist and for another I believe that even for 
true believers they must know in their heart that that God of theirs 
probably wants a lot of things they know about but choose to ignore. 
Things like not overeating for example or other more basic 
things like being honest and truthful and caring for others. How 
do I know or pretend to know what believers in God believe? 

I think most people strive to be the kind of person that they admire themselves. Maybe 
I’m wrong? Perhaps most people in order to have any opinion about themselves 
require that other people have such an opinion. Maybe that explains why other people 
are so concerned about the opinion of others even though they generally discount 
the overall worth of those others.

So, let me ask the question. Is it very important to be concerned with how you are 
seen by to people? Certainly, there are practical advantages to being respected or 
well-liked or admired. Other people probably will take you more seriously, perhaps 
recommend you for, or even offer you, jobs. If you are highly thought of, others may 
listen more closely to your positions about things and then act in a way that in your 
opinion is more beneficial. 

It’s been so long for me that I have forgotten about the importance of securing a mate, 
or any sexual connection with another person. Some things you just can't do by 
yourself. I always wanted to be a part of a family. I don’t think anyone told me that 
this was important, but I always wanted to be a father and have a loving spouse and 
be involved with people who cared about me. As almost all of you must know this 
need is not easily met. Strangely, the only long-term successful relationships I know 
of involve people who knew each other from the time they were in high School and 
had very little experience with other sexual connections.

Alas, this was not true for me. I had several short-term relationships prior to a marriage 
that lasted less than five years and then a period of over twenty years when I 
had several connections and short-term relationships prior to being lucky enough to 
meet my present wife a little over thirty years ago. I really was lucky that for some 
reason my wife and I hit it off right from the beginning; but my point is that I did little 
to attempt to impress her and cause her to think I was anything else but what I am.

My wife likes to recount the story, that for all I know is factual ( I don’t remember 
much these days) that when she first came to my house the couch was upside down 
in the living room and there were papers and books in complete disorder throughout 
the place. She has been spending the last thirty years (happily I hope) attempting to 
organize and straighten things out for me. In fact, she will proofread this attempt at 
an article and transfer it from the computer to my iPhone so that I can email it to the 
editor of this paper and thirty or so friends independent of the article’s publication. I 
still cannot manage this seemingly simple technological task. This goes back to my 
original point about being good. One should be good. I believe, just for the sake of 
goodness. It is the best way to be. One should notice who one is and not condemn 
oneself for not being someone else.” I yam what I yam” says Popeye and that is the 
simple truth. I do not think it is wrong to try to improve or to set goals for oneself 
provided that these goals are your own and not intended to influence the way other 
people see you.

This is what I meant by being good. Doing the best you can and what is best for 
yourself and for those you love without trying to impress or fool or compete with 
anyone else. Sure, I would like it if any of you imaginary readers approved or gained 
something from this article. But it is not your approval I seek and probably given my 
articles weaknesses that is undoubtedly a good thing. I just try to do my best and 
hope that is enough!

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OUR PASSIVITY by Marcielle Brandler

Yesterday, while speaking 
to a male low-information 
friend about 
the current state of the 
country he gave his take 
on it and said, "It will 
work itself out."

I was aghast saying, "It 
will not work itself out. 
That's like saying that 
slavery will work itself 
out or that women's 
rights will work itself 
out."

So today, I just spoke to 
a Czech girlfriend in Prague on Face Time, 

and she said, "That passive comment comes from someone who 
is watching from a safe distance and not from where the action is. 
Your friend does not see all the struggle and hard work people have 
endured to accomplish things. He comes from the passive side and 
not the active side."

I agree with my friend in Prague. I remember that in 2011, I was 
empathizing with the Palestinians' plight of genocide. My boyfriend 
said, "Well, they can't get along." 

I was horrified. The Israelis have been maligning and killing Palestinians 
in order to raze their ancestral homes and steal their lands. 
I believe that was a common attitude at the time.

Again, this person was not politically active. He voted and read 
the news, but believed the hype that the Palestinians were equal 
in power to the Israelis who say that anyone who criticizes their 
behavior wants Israel to disappear and that critics are anti-Semites. 

What about the Palestinian Semites and the Palestinian Christians? 

The arguments above bring up a larger point- that we must be active 
in our own ways in order to see change. We cannot wait for it 
to "work itself out," because it won't. We must be the change. What 
can people do?

- Call or email your senator.

- Join a group like Swing Left, Progressive Democrats of America,

 your local League of Women (and men) Voters, 

- Many of these groups have phone banking, postcarding, and 

 informational in-person and zoom meetings. They have parties

 like Oktober Fests, Ice Cream Socials, Silent Auctions, and more.

You will have fun, learn, and make great, high-quality friends.

You will be the solution and feel more powerful. 

You will meet your senators, mayors, and other people in a social 
environment.

I highly recommend taking action, which can change you from

passive to an active person who contributes to your community.

Sierra Madre resident, Professor Marcielle Brandler is the author of 
five books, an award-winning poet, film and tv producer and host. 
Featured in Who’s Who in the World for several years. Her articles 
and poems have appeared in journals since 1976. Her poems have 
been translated into Czech, French, Arabic, and Span-ish, and published 
internationally.

Her websites are: Marcielle Presents! and English with Marcielle, 
and Happiness Gig. Abe’s Question | Marciel-lepresents09's Blog 
(wpcomstaging.com) 

HOWARD Hays As I See It


“Of course, we believe that everyone should be very, very careful with nuclear 
rhetoric.” – Krem-lin spokesman Dimitry Peskov, responding to President 
Trump’s announcement on repositioning nuclear missile submarines

 

Interviewed by Joe Kernan on CNBC, Trump further demonstrated his 
separation from reali-ty. Discussing the latest numbers from the Bureau 
of Labor Statistics, showing a less-than-expected 73,000 jobs added in 
June (110,000 being forecast) and a downward revision of num-bers from 
April and May, Trump’s response was not to reassess policies but to fire the BLS commissioner 
- claiming the numbers had been “rigged”. 

 

Trump claimed the BLS had skewed numbers in the past to benefit President Biden; waiting 
un-til after the last election for downward revisions. Kernan pointed out those prior revisions 
were in fact made before, not after, that election. Matt Gertz of Media Matters observed, “Impossible 
to tell if Trump is lying, dumb or sundowning.”’

 

Bill Beach, BLS commissioner during Trump’s first term, explained to Politico that the “numbers 
are constructed by hundreds of people.” As for a commissioner changing them, “There’s 
no way for that to happen.” The NY Times commented, "Mr. Trump’s allegations against (former 
BLS commissioner) Erika McEntarfer, the longtime public servant whom he summarily 
fired, have no foundation in reality".

 

Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-MA) said on CNN, “China, Argentina, Greece, these are countries 
that in the last 30 to 40 years did two things: They undermined the soundness of their currency 
by bullying their central bankers (as is happening to Fed Chairman Jerome Powell) and 
two, they lied about their government statistics to the degree that other countries and the 
international monetary system stopped believing their statistics. This is exactly what Donald 
Trump is doing.”

 

In that CNBC interview, Trump said gas prices had fallen to $2.20 a gallon. Bradley Moss 
commented on Bluesky, “The rest of the country is suffering from higher prices on everything, 
and this senile old man is living in a fantasy world in which it’s simply not happening.” Trump 
claimed the trade deal with the European Union provided “$600 billion to invest in anything 
I want.” Steve Peers, professor at Royal Holloway University in London, posted, “Well no, it’s 
a vague, nonbinding, unwritten nonstatement about companies’ future investment plans, not 
cash for him to personally control. But enjoy your weird, demented fantasy, I guess.”

 

Trump explained we’ll make allowances for farmworkers who are immigrants because they 
“do it naturally”. He recalled a conversation with a farmer who told him, “They don’t get a bad 
back, sir, because if they get a bad back, they die.” Trump continued, “I said, that’s interesting, 
isn’t it? . . . in many ways, they’re very, very special people.” Whenever Trump includes 
the word “sir” in an anecdote, it’s a sure sign he’s again separated from reality in that special 
“fantasy world” of his own.

 

Trump said he was enjoying a more than 70% approval rating. The latest figure from Gallup 
is 37% approval. Brian Tyler Cohen commented, “For Trump, it’s not about working to move 
pub-lic opinion. He doesn’t care about reality; he just wants to be told that he’s the best.”

 

Trump rejects the reality of mathematics, as when he remarked last week that as far as drug 
pric-es, we’ll “get them down 1,000%, 600%, 500%, 1,500%”. Presumably, you pick up a $100 
pre-scription at your pharmacy and not only do you get it for free but, with the 1,500% discount, 
you get $1,400 back for taking it off their hands. Trump had made the same remark 
twelve days ear-lier – with apparently nobody daring to tell him he’s nonsensical.

 

Charles Leershen, co-author of Trump’s 1990 book “Survival at the Top”, warns about those 
feel-ing that since “nobody could be as dumb as (Trump) seems, they arrive at the conclusion 
that he is actually smarter than they are.” But the problem could well be that he is in fact that 
dumb - and the danger of having someone that dumb in such a position cannot be overstated.

 

Aside from the routine dumb stuff last week, there was also his threatening Russia to come 
to an agreement on a ceasefire in Ukraine in ten days, or face the threat of “debilitating secondary 
tar-iffs” on its trading partners. Dimitry Medvedev, deputy chair of Russia’s security 
council, warned that “each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war.” Apparently, 
what really got under Trump’s skin was Medvedev’s trolling, “Don’t go down the Sleepy Joe 
road.” 

 

Trump responded that Medvedev was “entering very dangerous territory”, and later “ordered 
two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions”. 

 

Former Naval War College professor Tom Nichols explained in the Atlantic that Trump had 
had “a terrible week: he’s dug a deeper hole for himself on the Jeffrey Epstein issue, the economy 
is headed in the wrong direction, and his approval rating is cratering”. But while “an 
implied threat of nuclear war” can be an “instant” and “convenient” distraction, there’s also 
risking a “nuclear crisis” – and it’s important to appreciate that “Nuclear-missile submarines 
are not toys”.

 

I’m writing this after having just watched on Japanese TV commemorations on the eightieth 
an-niversary of the bombing of Hiroshima – aware of the consequences of having a president 
too dumb and too separated from reality to appreciate the potentially cataclysmic risks in not 
being “very, very careful with nuclear rhetoric”. 


Marcielle at Caltech's Solar Eclipse event 
2017 (Pronouns she/her)


Mountain Views News

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Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com