Your RDA of Irony

My RDA of Self-Sacrifice

If I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country.” E.M. Forster

Forster had it easy. Tonight, in the name of friendship, I am going to watch “Lou Dobbs.” I normally would avoid his show because I never had an inordinate fear of Gabriel García Márquez, Jose Ferrer or King Juan Carlos mowing my grass–and thus dispossessing the millions of Episcopalian Harvard graduates who were vying to be my lawn service.

However, tonight at least, Mr. Dobbs will be changing the subject of his tantrum. Dobbs is vehement (as if he had any other adjective) in his opposition to the Federal bailout of Wall Street. To discuss this fulmination, Dobbs has invited on his show a friend of mine who–for lack of self-respect and social skills–is a professor of economics.

So, in the masochistic name of friendship, I will watch Loud Dobbs tonight. But I would feel less shame if the good professor were appearing on Maury Povich and being subjected to 600 paternity tests.

  1. Mike Field says:

    Well as long as you are going to have to suffer, why not be a spoiler and let us know your friend’s likely take on the matter (since I have am unwilling to join you in your agony). Is he a U Chicago type who signed the petition against the bailout? Or is he going to get screamed at? And by the way, I would probably be voting against it myself, were I in Congress, but for different reasons, no doubt, than Lou.
    Mike

  2. Mike:

    Congratulations, you are the big winner on “Name That Stereotype.” Yes, the good professor is opposed to the bailout. Do you actually think that Loud Dobbs would permit an opposing view?

  3. Jason says:

    I was thinking about the lawn issue, and was wondering how Lou felt about employing animals to keep the grass trimmed. You know, sheep, goats….but would he be able to hire Scandinavians to clean the dung?

  4. Mary Ann Jung says:

    Goodness, if only Congress would listen to NPR callers, we’d have this thing whipped in a trice. A man did the math and reasoned that if you’d bought $1000 of AIG stock last year it’d be worth $2.15 today, along with other such examples. However, if you’d bought $1000 worth of beer and turned the bottles in for recycling, you’d have $230 instead. Much sounder investment…

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