Romney to Address His Mormonism

Romney to Address His Mormonism

It is unfortunate that we seem to need a religious speech from the Mormon as we did from the Catholic long ago.

And, because the evangelicals have injected faith into our politics and government, Mr. Romney can't give the reassurance of a firewall between the church and the state. President Bush's reliance on "a higher authority" for invading Iraq did not help either.

Some polls have shown that, of a number of candidates with different ethnicity or religious affiliations, an atheist would have the least chance of being elected president. I don't recall whether a Muslim was included in the list.

I wonder about a Christian Scientist. How about a believer in Scientology? Or maybe that becomes a kook factor.



TRUTHINESS

The Times reported this week that the Bush administration has scaled back its goals for political progress. Its newest low bar: Iraq’s dysfunctional government manages to pass a budget and approves legislation to allow former Baath Party members to rejoin the government.

Ever since Stephen Colbert invented the word and concept of “truthiness”, its use and the use of derivative words have become widespread. Its interpretation and application varies. It can mean closely approaching the truth, or it can mean the truth as decided by the user, somewhat similar to the claims of the Bush administration that it creates its own reality.

In a New York Times article about fashionable watches that don’t tell time, one being just a blank space on a fancy watchband, the trend was called a move to “watchiness”.

Other actual or suggested derivative uses are “uniqueiness”, “smartiness” and “global warminess”

Now that President Bush has downgraded the objectives in Iraq, seeking only a state of accommodation, we might apply the term “successiness”