Can You Find The Middle?

If you play darts, try hitting that damned little dot in the center of the board. In politics the middle is usually a really broad area of the political spectrum, but finding that area has become increasingly difficult. Why? Well, just a theory here, but the most outrageous statements made by politicians make the top spots on cable television, where they frequently are amplified far beyond their importance to many Americans. The clips are played over and over, debated by "experts" from both parties (or now, even throw in Tea Party "experts"), and commented upon by...ah..."commentators." They are given more play on the Web, as the comments are played on video sites, and written about on websites, often, but not always, dedicated to stirring "the base" of the political parties. Of course, outrageous statements tend to stir the faithful of BOTH parties, simultaneously, as the receivers of the barb get angry, and the ...ah.. "barbers" love the way they got under the skin of their political adversaries (I'm not so sure they are just "political" adversaries anymore, as this stuff has gotten more than just a little nasty).* Television is perfect for what has come to be called "sound bytes." On comes Senator XYZ and delivers a zinging sound byte, which is then broadcast on cable stations. Now comes Senator ABC who is indignant about what Senator XYZ said. The next day, the roles of the two senators may just be reversed.

In the past couple of decades we've seen moderate voters lean more toward the GOP, but that changed a couple of elections ago, and these voters began leaning more toward the Dems. Now they don't seem very comfortable there either, as they are squirming in their seats. The bases of the two parties yell and scream at each other, drawing political junkies to the tube, but I have a feeling that most Americans don't pay all that much attention to this nasty stuff, except to wonder how this stuff benefits anyone, although I'm not naïve, these "headline grabbers" DO move public opinion.

* Okay, "barber" isn't a good word for such a person. If it were, politics might be a little more "Seville." Hey, I think I hear the Lone Ranger coming!

WORD HISTORY:
Dust-This word goes back to Indo European "dheu," which had the notion of "vapor or smoke." Sanskrit, an old Indo European language (and therefore related to English) still used somewhat in India, typically in a religious context, had "dhuma," which meant "smoke." The Old Germanic offshoot was "dunstaz/dunstu" (I found both), which altered the meaning to "particles of meal/grain that blow around like smoke." Over time this became more generalized to any particles that cause people so inclined to buy a can of Fledge... I mean, Pledge (I couldn't read the key because of the...never mind). This in turn gave Old English "dust" (one source notes that it had a long "u" sound in those times). German, a close relative of English, has kept the "n" sound, and "Dunst" means "vapor" (all German nouns are capitalized, thus the capital "D").


The verb means both "to sprinkle with dust" (1590s) and "to rid of dust" (1560s). Sense of "to kill" is U.S. slang first recorded 1938.