SCARY HALLOWEEN?

It is not goblins, monsters, or ghosts that scare me this Halloween. It is how easily we have accepted the abuse of language and less than factual information. When elected officials or appointed ones, print and media pundits, or ordinary people twist and turn language to further their opinions that is scary.

Some examples: the press and media are called "candidates" when they are not running for office; we say the economy is recovering when the economy consists of more than stocks, bonds and banks; when a health plan is considered an anathema to our way of life yet it could benefit people; when "Mission Accomplished" is proclaimed when the mission is in doubt; and finally when we say, guns don't kill people, but they do when people use them. That is scary.

All this abuse of language, and less than factual information sets up a mist greater than any real or imagined spider web that keeps clarity and understanding from us. That is more than scary. That is dangerous!

INVASION OF THE LADYBUGS

St. Louis is suddenly invaded by ladybugs, as are many other parts of the country. People are being surrounded by swarms of them. I was startled by one who landed on the window of my apartment 15 floors high.

What to do? There are all kinds of suggestions. Use the vacuum to swept them up. They are harmless. Leave them alone. They are only looking for a warm place to come in out of the cold weather. But if they are squashed they will omit a foul odor and leave a stain. Call an exterminator.

I'm no entomologist, but if one did get in here, I would catch her on my finger, open the window and sing to her, as children do: ladybug, ladybug go on home, your children are home alone or something like that. Both this little verse and my voice ought to do the trick.

GO PHILLIES! CATCH-UP CARDS!

It must be a wild time in Philadelphia. The Phillies are in the World Series! When they win, it's hard to imagine the celebration for this much loved team unless you have witnessed it. If all goes well, and they take the Championship, the Team will be escorted for parts of Broad Street, the City's main thoroughfare that runs North and South from the Navy Yard to the county line.

Fans pack the sidewalk. Streets are closed. The Team rides a flat bed truck amid confetti, thrown kisses, babies held in the air, as the Mummers Band plays "Oh Dem Golden Slippers," and people break the police lines and strut down the street.

I don't know if Philadelphia holds a candle to St. Louis' designation as a sports town, but I do know that if the Cards come into their own, there ought to be a parade. It should run from the Stadium, up Olive until it becomes Lindell Boulevard and come to Forest Park. Oh yes, and everybody ought to learn the Mummer's Strut. All this, from one who is less than a sports authority, but does do a mean Mummer's Strut.

BOOK BATTLE: DAVID AND GOLIATH

The New York Times reports that the American Booksellers Association, which represents independently-owned book stores, is asking the Justice Department to investigate predatory pricing by Amazon, Wal-Mart and Target.

Left Bank Books, independently owned, is close to where I live. I go there to browse, on occasion to buy a gift for someone, or simply to explore new and old titles. When I open the store's front door, the wonderful smell of paper, old leather and glossy new covers greets me as if to say "hello." Browsing is invited and a gorgeous black cat claims ownership to both floors of the store. Posters,notices, book group readings, and customer requests line the Bulletin Board.

There is no espresso counter, but there are shelves and shelves of books. Every once in a while some item that a reader might enjoy is displayed and the sales personnel are helpful and knowledgeable. I was reminded of all this when I read about the battle between the huge book outlets and the little guy. Me? I'm rooting for David!

CORRECTIONS AND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Yesterday, I posted comments about the market going to 10,000. The actor, whose name was posted was wrong as was the name of the song. The actor's name is Robert Preston. The name of the song is "76 Trombones."

My reference to Fred Sherman was made without knowledge of his death last month.

TEN THOUSAND: SNOOKERED AGAIN?

When I lived in Philadelphia,Fred Sherman had a radio show about "the market." He came to my attention because of the distinctive, sing song quality of his voice. He would say often, "The market has no where to go but up." His timing made me think of Burgess Meredith of "78 Trombones" fame. I did not know Sherman, although he and I would meet sometimes at meetings. When I did encounter him, I would make light of his prediction that the market had no where to go but up to 10,000 and higher.

This fascinated me because at the time, I was still under the impression that stocks and bonds were traded and bought because investors wanted to buy into a company's plans for research, development, new production or ideas, and management stability. I was sure people with an understanding of what it takes to maintain and grow sound, fair markets surely would not be snookered into a scheme to simply move paper.

But this weekend, as I heard the news that people on the Exchange were wearing white caps with black 10,000 on them I thought of Sherman. Funny, I thought we had learned our lesson. Yet, here we are, snookered again!