{"id":27684,"date":"2025-05-04T17:49:13","date_gmt":"2025-05-04T21:49:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/?p=27684"},"modified":"2025-05-24T14:04:38","modified_gmt":"2025-05-24T18:04:38","slug":"the-f-word","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/capitalcitiesusa.org\/?p=27684","title":{"rendered":"The “F” Word"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Linda Lou Burton posting from Little Rock, Arkansas<\/em>\u00a0\u2013 A friend picked up a little book in an antique shop recently and brought it to me. She thought I\u2019d get a kick out of it, and she was right. Titled \u201cThe Verbalist,\u201d by Alfred Ayers, and published in 1882 by D Appleton & Company of New York, it\u2019s part of a series including proper pronunciation and penmanship as well as \u201cword choice.\u201d It begins with a page of quotes such as \u201cObscurity of expression springs from confusion of ideas.\u201d Heck yeah! If you don\u2019t know what you\u2019re talking about, it\u2019s just babbling, I say.<\/p>\n

Picking out the \u201cright\u201d word \u2013 that is, the word that conveys what you are thinking to another person so they understand what you are thinking \u2013 can be tricky. But some words just smack you clear and strong. For instance, two years ago, when I had a knee replacement and spent some time in rehab, the trainers relentlessly threw this question to us weak-kneed folks trying to get our balance back: \u201cWhat is the F word in Rehab?\u201d they\u2019d shout, smirking at our grimaces. It was sheer teeth-gritting time and we definitely had a word in mind.<\/p>\n

But they\u2019d say “It’s FALL\u201d! And suddenly everything was clear. Darn tootin\u2019 I did NOT want to fall. I wanted to be strong, and great. So I pedaled harder, and squatted and lifted and swung my arms and held my shoulders high.<\/p>\n

Goals and Hopes<\/strong><\/p>\n

Make America Great Again<\/em> is a \u201cword idea\u201d that hits us in the face daily, if you listen to any media sources. And geez, who doesn\u2019t want America to be GREAT? Red, White, and Blue, we all pretty much love America. I\u2019m nuts about it! I\u2019ve traveled all over it, and talked with people in every state, in fact, LIVED in all 50 capital cities. I want everybody to have a fair chance to live the best life they can live. And there is kinda-sorta where things get confusing. What, exactly, needs to happen to assure such an outcome? And what, exactly, is \u201cgreat\u201d? There are about 340 million of us Americans, and I daresay that even within a single household people don\u2019t agree on what they want for dinner.<\/p>\n

So we have to think about the little things, and the big things, and the really, really big things. And if you just happen to be president of a gaggle of 340 million diverse folks, I\u2019m thinking it takes a heap of listening and talking to keep a country running smoothly. It takes a lot of working together. It takes respect.\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The 100-Day Checkup<\/strong><\/p>\n

Our 47th<\/sup> President reached his 100-day mark on April 30. How\u2019s he doing? So far he has signed 143 executive orders, the most of any president in this period, 42 proclamations, and 42 memorandums. Major topics include immigration reform, deportations, applying tariffs on other countries, cutting federal spending, reducing the federal workforce, increasing executive authority, and implementing a non-interventionist foreign policy.<\/p>\n

By April 30 multiple polls gave him an \u201cF.\u201d Failure? Polling on every issue was negative, and approval ratings were in the 40-47% range. CNN, USA Today, Civiqs, Marist, Economist, RealClearPolitics, and more. In response to the negative polls, especially the New York Times, Washington Post, ABC, and Fox News, Donald called them \u201cFake\u201d news, and \u201ccriminals who should be investigated for Fraud.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>On Donald\u2019s own website for spreading the news, WhiteHouse.gov, he chooses these words to describe where our country is after 100 days:<\/p>\n