Subject: What Brits Do Better
Re: “Politics: Voters-Wanted Posters”
From: Joan
Date: Wed Jun 6 9:37 p.m. PT
Let’s have more negative ads here! The Brits, despite all stereotypes to the contrary, are far less stuffy and self-involved than we Americans. The Thatcher wig ad is not only funny but manages to say a great deal with one pic and a few words. [I] would not mind some humor and cleverness in our campaigns. But why call them “dirty”? Every time I hear complaints about “negative” political ads, I know that I am going to get less info.
[Find this post here.]
Subject: Keeping Everybody Happy
Re: “Hey, Wait a Minute: Two’s Company; Three’s a Marriage”
From: First Wife
Date: Tue Jun 5 7:54 a.m. PT
My husband and I would gladly marry a dear friend who fits beautifully into our lives and those of our children. She stimulates me intellectually, is talented, funny, and generous, provides love and understanding to all, gives one or the other of us a break from midnight murmurings of children in dream, and would be as good a wife as I could wish. But … I must grant that polygamy, as practiced most commonly, is not a matter of three (or more) people marrying, but of one person having multiple spouses. Such a model makes little or no sense.
[Find this post here.]
Subject: Cutting Crime Figures
Re: “The Week/The Spin: Ounce of Prevention”
From: A.G. Android
Date: Fri Jun 1 12:36 p.m. PT
The real scandal is that it is illegal for 19-year-olds, who are old enough to marry, sign contracts, enlist in (or be drafted into) the military, and otherwise be adults, to buy a drink. An even bigger scandal is that in most states this is the case because the Reagan administration, despite its devotion to “new federalism,” supported legislation forcing states to raise their drinking ages or lose highway funds. That stupid law should be repealed, eliminating, at a stroke, millions of “underage drinkers.”
[Find this post here.]
Subject: A Sad Loss for the Fray
Re: “Chatterbox: Great Moments in Credentialism”
From: Arthur Stock
Date: Mon Jun 4 7:06 a.m. PT
The death of … King Dipendra is a sad day on the Fray. In Nepal, he was a crown prince, then a king, possibly a God, and maybe a murderer. To Chatterbox and on the Fray, he was the perfect punchline, and in that capacity shall be sorely missed. His story had it all: an exotic locale; royalty; a constituency sufficiently removed from the internet that few if any with a personal stake in the matter at hand would be hurt by anything anyone says. Best of all, since no one knows whether the Nepalese government is of the left or the right, the traditional Fray factions are unsure whether to be offended or amused by the jokes.
[Find this post here.]
Fray Notes:
It’s internal affairs week at the Fray: Posters are still debating what they should be called—”Fraysters” is looking good. This poster thinks we should charge to make posts. A.R. Coe wants the Fray to be much stricter: no more anonymity. But the big debate of the week was on how to get a gold star: Ender started the thread here and has had a massive 70+ replies—a record for a post that wasn’t featured in the magazine. There was astonishing news from Thrasymachus, who revealed that “A gold star next to your name in a virtual chat room is—trust me!—of no discernible assistance in [securing sexual partners].” Michael Murray made the best comment: “He can have half my star— that would be pretty cool. Ayn Rand and Satan I’m sure would agree.” The Fray team finally weighed in here and here.
“The Book Club” on censorship produced a great Fray: Read the Notes at the end of the article, then check out some checks and stars.
Frayster of the week was Michael Murray: As well as his usual quota of star comments on events of the day, and the post mentioned above, he entertained us on his addiction to coffee here. But Joann Prinzivalli comes a close second: “Today’s Papers” arrived late one day, and she was so disappointed that she wrote her own version.
And now a small Fray Quiz: What is Helen Rowe talking about? “Only the clothes dryer I got in 1960 (four babies in diapers) has made more difference in my life.” Find out what the second best invention was here.
