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Levey Live: Speaking Freely
Washington Post Columnist
Friday, August 3, 2001; 1 p.m. EDT
"Levey Live: Speaking Freely," hosted by Washington Post columnist Bob Levey, appears every Friday at 1 p.m. EDT.
It is a live, open-agenda discussion offering washingtonpost.com users around the world the opportunity to ask questions and discuss topics of their
choice with Bob.
Fearless Bob takes your questions about virtually everything, from sports and politics (there's a difference?) to world events, Metro area traffic and
issues raised in Bob's columns.
The transcript follows.
Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control
over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.
Bob Levey: Good afternoon, amigos and ami-guettes. This seems to be the summer of Mobile Levey Live: Speaking Freely. Last week, I joined you from Indiana. Today, I'm live and in color from beautiful Juneau, Alaska, where the fog is hanging heavy over the mountains, where the salmon are delicious and where they're still serving breakfast!
Anyway, a bit of unfinished business.....
I was in Indiana with my son's soccer team, which was competing in the national championships run by the U.S. Youth Soccer Association.
AND THEY WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My guy, a national champion!
He's here, with his mother and me, trying to decompress by looking at whales. But he's still thinking of that last game on Sunday, I can tell you. And why not? Very exciting.
Anyway, questions about that victory are in order. Ditto questions about Alaska. Ditto anything else.
Let's get rippin', as they say in Alaska......
Falls Church, Va.:
Hey Bob, can guys and ladies be just friends? My best friend is a really great lady I've known for at least a decade. Over the past few years we've become a lot closer. I'm really atracted to her but don't want to screw up our friendship. I don't know if she has the same feelings I do. Any advice on how to proceed? Thanks
Bob Levey: And you doubting Thomases and Thomasinas thought that only Hax could handle a question like this?
In vintage Hackian.....
TALK TO HER!
It can never hurt you, in the long or the short run, to lay it all out and to discuss it. What you're doing instead is to play the age old game of Hopesmanship, spirnkled with Maybemanship and Bluffmanship. How does that get you the answers you seek?
Yes, of course, it will be hard to take if she says, "I like you just as a friend." But at least you will both have it up on the table where you can both see it.
Also, once you levey with each other, it's just possible that friendship might lead to more-ship. I've often seen it happen. Levey's Law: A relationship always develops at its own pace. If fireworks are meant to be, they'll be. If not....
Indianapolis, Ind.:
Bob-- What were your thoughts upon departing lovely Indiana? You mentioned that you were in a news-warp...something that took me by surprise when I arrived here after 20+ years in Washington. Heck, I thought CSPAN was LOCAL stuff until I arrived here!! Hope you enjoyed our fair state, and stayed away from the seafood!
Bob Levey: I enjoyed it very much, especially since my son brought home the gold medal. But I do have to say that I felt very disconnected from D.C. and the pounding news pace I'm used to. That's no knock on the local papers, which weren't bad at all (although they were unimaginatively edited, like so many American papers). It's just to say that there's only one D.C.
No offense to you or to anyone in Indiana, but why would anyone EVER order seafood there? I didn't notice any oceans nearby.
In fact, we went to a very snazzy place one night. "Maryland crab cakes" were on the menu. The waiter started to explain how they're made. We cut him off in mid-bread crumb. "We KNOW," we said (not too obnoxiously, I hope).
The point is, how fresh do you think those cakes could have been?
wiredog:
Bob, posting early 'cause it's too nice outside to be inside.
I don't know if you've heard of the SirCam computer virus. It's the one that mails random files from your hard drive to every email address it can find.
Somewhere there's a 15 year old girl whose diary got emailed. A diary that has fairly graphic descriptions of what she and her boyfriend do to each other. What do I do now? Tell her I got her diary? Track down her parents and tell them? (What if it got mailed to her saintly gray haired grandfather?) Delete the file and forget about it?
Finally, why does a 15 year old, who I don't know, have the address of a 36 year old programmer?
Bob Levey: Delete it right away. If you believe in privacy, that's the only fair and honest thing you can do.
I suspect the 36-year-old is a parent, no?
Alexandria, Va.:
I have to say that one of the most annoying things riding the D.C. Metro is the fact that Americans have such a problem with "getting a little closer" to create that extra space for more riders. I only wish that everyone who complains about there being no room on a train could be transported to Moscow's system, where even the platforms can feel like a can of sardines. What's the deal with Americans?
-- A Fellow, Though Traveled, American
Bob Levey: We are raised on deodorant ads, so we think that there's no such thing as body odor, and a right guaranateed by the Constitution to have all the space we want. Better come to Alaska with the Leveys if you want that.
Rockville, Md.:
HI Bob,
I have a sofa set to dispose of and it is too heavy for me to do it alone. I had read in your columns once that for some money one agency will pick it up for me. If you can help me with any info that will be great. Thanks a lot.
Bob Levey: SHAMELESS COMMERCIAL ALERT!!!!!!!!!!
Levey's List (which has been in business for more than 10 years now) will accept all such donations. We place them on a list and give that list to needy and deserving people in the Washington area. We have moved many hundreds of sofa sets, refrigerators, cars, large items of all sorts this way. Just dial 202-334-7662 and leave all the information on the tape recording. The next sound you hear will be someone calling to arrange pickup. Please remember that the whole point of this is to give items away. If you're hoping to get paid, Levey's List ain't for you.
Arlington, Va.:
Bob, since you've been away from D.C. for a bit, how are the local papers where you were/are playing up the Condit story and the President's relationship to Congress?
Bob Levey: There's nary a word in either the Anchorage or Juneau papers this morning about Condit/Chandra. Quelle relief! I hopped on washingtonpost.com this morning, just before I began this chat, to see what's up in River City. I read the Post's story about Chandra's body not being at Fort Lee, Va. Is this what we're reduced to on a sunny August day? Knocking down stupid Internet rumors? Why in the world did anyone ever take that rumor seriously? Why did The Washington Post devote 15 inches to this story? Only the latest proof that the Web isn't all its cracked up to be, and that we are the most gullible people on the planet.
Vienna, Va.:
Bob....better check your map. True, Indiana doesn't border on any oceans, but Lake Michigan forms a good part of its northern border. And unlike years ago when the lake was a cesspool, today you may actually be able to EAT what comes out of it.
Bob Levey: Fair point. But Indianapolis (where we were) is still a day's drive from Lake Michigan by buckboard
Fairfax, Va:
I am so tired of going to giant to pick up my groceries in the pick up section and seeing cars parked there. Why don't they tell them to move?
Bob Levey: Why don't the cops tell them? If I read you right, this is not only the pickup lane. It's the fire lane. Very, very bad idea to park there
Tucson, Ariz.:
What is the current status of the woman employed by The Washington Post who disappeared many months ago? Was she ever found? If not, is the police department still investigating?
Bob Levey: She was never found. Her family is trying to have her declared dead. The police are still investigating. Very sad and troubling.
Silver Spring, Md.:
Bob, I envy your trip. Enjoy. Too bad it's not a true complete vacation. Anyway, what have you heard about the change in DC parking regulations for the handicapped? Starting 8/20, out of state handicap plates must pay at meters. This is going to be a shock for visitors from around the US. I know there have been abuses but I wonder if this is the way to go.
Bob Levey: Hadn't heard about this. I'll get into it when I return.
Thanks for the kind words about envying us the trip. If you've never been to Alaska, you MUST get here. We've been here only since last night, and I'm already totally in love.
Washington, D.C.:
Bob -- so, have you read/heard about the new GAO report on Metro -- 60 percent more complaints/problems since 1995. Wow that's a big increase. You've been riding Metro pretty consistently during the past five years, do you see the deline outlined in this report or is the whole thing overblown?
Bob Levey: I don't doubt for a second that the complaints are legitimate. But they're mostly tie-able to overcrowding, I imagine. The biggest mistake Metro has ever made has been not to prepare for its own success. How in the world can we STILL be waiting for enough cars to arrive from Italy? Solve that one (which we will start doing in a few weeks, at last), and you won't hear as many people beefing about body odor, doors shutting in your face, people leaning on the poles, etc.
Rockville, Md.:
WHY is there still such a disparity regarding weight and how it relates to the genders? Let me explain: The football player that just died, he weighed over 300 lbs., and he's called an ATHLETE and has an opportunity to be one. If a woman weighed over 300 lbs., she'd be a social pariah! Sorry, but he was FAT and as a fellow overweight person (and woman), I resent that my active lifestyle (swimming, biking and hiking) does not appoint me the same title of ATHLETE!
Bob Levey: No one can play in the NFL and be fat. This man was extremely large. But if he'd been fat, he'd never have been drafted.
As Wilbon wrote, the real issue here was macho in training camps. Even on my high school football team, it was considered Wimpsville to rest or to take a drink of water. This guy had been raised on that mentality since he was a child. What do you think would have happened if he had asked the coaches for a little breaky-poo because he was feeling hot? They'd have insulted him up one side and down the other.
Oddly, his death will make it harder for that macho reflex to crop up. To that extent, he didn't die in vain. But don't ever make the mistake of thinking that 330 pounds automatically means you've been junking on Krackels. This guy was large, but he was also very mobile and very dextrous--the very definition of an athlete.
Alexandria, Va.:
Do you think we'll ever find out what happened to Chandra Levy? How long until the story dies out? I heard an interesting viewpoint on a talking head show recently from a former federal prosecutor. She said that whenever you see so many coincidences in a case, they are rarely coicidences and are often very relavant to the case. (ie: Condit's wife in town when Chandra disappears, Condit not being able to revealing all of his activities the day Chandra disappeared, etc.). What do you think?
Bob Levey: I doubt that she'll ever be located. I doubt that Condit will ever be charged with a crime. I give the story until Labor Day to run its course. Already, it is running on the rims. There hasn't been a seriously newsy development in at least three weeks.
Tara in Rockville, Md.:
Why was the goal for Send a Kid to Camp so high, when you were saying 1,000 kids, at about $450 each, would be funded--that's $450,000. I'm not asking in a negative way, but just curious because your goal was $675,000, so the numbers don't match up. What's the explanation for the difference?
Bob Levey: Huge back debts and maintenance, mostly. Also, any surplus is used to fund winter camp, at the same location. Also again, any surplus is used first to send additional kids to camp. We had expected to send 950 this summer. Thanks to all the bucks we raised, that number will end being more than 1,100.
Fairfax City, Va:
regarding the Chandra Levy case-
Do you think the Condits marriage is going to be in trouble after all the facts about his extra- marital behavior is now being written up in every paper? How could he lead such a secret life?
Bob Levey: If I were Mrs. Condit, I'd have split with the guy in a heartbeat. But we live in very odd times. I'd have bet you every cent I owned that Hillary would dump Bill like a dead fish the second he was out of the Whiter House, if not sooner. Good thing I didn't make that bet......
How could he lead such a secret life? Because he could. His wife was 3,000 miles away. I guarantee you it's going on with other married people who are in those same circumstances.
Virginia:
How the weather in Alaska? And if it is midnight, is there still light over there?
Bob Levey: It's in the upper 50s this morning. It may get all the way up to the mid 60s. Ask me how sad that makes me.
I took a look outside at midnight last night, and IT WAS DARK!!!!! the nerve of them. I want my money back!
Alexandria, Va:
Hi Bob,
I really admire your writing and I find your column very interesting. I just found out I will be teaching Creative Writing in middle school this fall. Any advice for me or for my students?
Bob Levey: Invite me to talk to them (and you). I'll be delighted. Nothing I like better than hooking kids on the their own creativity, and on expressing it on paper (OK, on a screen will do).
The false Levy tip:
I agree with the false tip about Chandra Levy - why did it get so much play? And how did the media find out about it? It's not routine for the police to distribute all of their tips. Why this one, especially before checking it out a bit?
And Fox 5 interrupted programming all afternoon that day to tell us about it. I'm sorry. I just don't care to hear about Chandra Levy 24 hours a day, and interrupting programming is uncalled for.
Fox 5 is really starting to bug me - they're like a tabloid on TV, sometimes!
Bob Levey: Fox 5 is the video equivalent of the supermarket tabloids. If you take them seriously, you also have to believe that Michael Landon really did talk to the ghost of Sinatra in heaven last week. Or maybe it was hell. Sorry. The guy checked out my veggies too quickly for me to be sure.
I don't know how the media found about the Fort Lee rumor because I was sitting on planes all day yesterday. But I suspect it was leaked by various investigators. Just about every other development in the case has been.
Washington, D.C.:
So what's your favorite memory of Alaska so far? Have you seen any moose or interesting wild life yet? Are you planning to see the salmon run?
Bob Levey: No moose yet. No wildlife yet (although I'm told that black bear roam the streets of Juneau--only seen SUVs with Texas plates so far).
We head to Glacier Bay National Park tomorrow for five days. That's the place where wildlife are everywhere.
SHAMELESS COMMERCIAL II!!!!!!!!
This coming Tuesday, Aug. 7, "Levey Live" will be brought to you directly from park headquarters. Our guests will be the chief park ranger and the chief park naturalist. Get those questions about moose ready....
SW DC:
On guy-girl friendships, I am a married man who has two women I have been friends with for over 25 years - never any romantic relationships - and my wife became friends with my womend friends, too.
Bob Levey: See, sports fans? It can be done
Heavenly on Capitol Hill:
Love the T-shirt articles over the past two days. I was especially happy to see the Hood College shirt on the list!
c/o '99 Hood College
Bob Levey: Thanks very much. If you're real nice to me, I'll show you all the shirts that I couldn't publish.
Actually, I don't have to. You can see every one of them in the boardwalk shops at the beach. Am I getting old, or is it way, way over the edge to see some of these messages displayed right out there, for all (including six-year-olds) to see?
Oakton, Va.:
Bob, how can you "guarantee" us that others in Congress who are separated from the spouses by vast distances are carrying on affairs today as well? You just told us that you would have "guaranteed" us that Hillary would have dumped Bill the second he was out of the White house. (I would have predicted that too). One false statement is enough....let's not make a second one.
Bob Levey: I didn't mean a guarantee underwritten by Metropolitan Life. I meant a guarantee based on 34 years of living around these people, and their "flexible morals."
Laurel, Md.:
Don't know if you follow baseball up there in Alaska, but now it's August and the Cubs are STILL in 1st place. And they acquired Fred McGriff to put some more muscle in their lineup. They've had their problems this week, but if they're still in 1st place by September 1, then will you say they have a chance?
Bob Levey: You'll love this.
The top headline in the Anchorage sports section this morning says:
CAN THE CUBS HOLD ON?
Even up here in the frozen north, they are biting their lower lips.
By the way, what was with that proposal to build a higher grandstand in left and center field at Wrigley so they can shoehorn more paying customers into the place? If they block the views from those apartment buildings (which the additional stands would do), there's gonna be a RIOT.
The Other Crab Lover:
Make sure that you try some Alaskan snow crab legs while you're in Alaska, Bob! I don't understand what this area's fettish is with those messy little crabs that they serve around here. I LOVE the huge mounds of succulent white meat that you get from the large Alaskan variety.
Bob Levey: On my list for sure. Thanks
Springfield, Va.:
Bob,
Are you on a cruise in Alaska or on a land tour? We are thinking of visiting there next summer and trying to decide which way we want to go.
Bob Levey: We cruise to Glacier Bay tomorrow, and then we go on day cruises from there. Trying to travel by land up here is very difficult, because sometimes, when you want to visit a certain place, there's no road! Also, don't think you can just buzz up here on an Interstate highway. There aren't any that connect Alaska to the Lesser 48 (I've already learned that that's what Alaskans call them!).
Burke, Va.:
Bob,
What is the local opinion up there on oil drilling in ANWR?
Bob Levey: Thanks so much for asking.
It makes me INSANE.
SHAMELESS COMMERCIAL III!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Please listen to my commentary on WTOP Radio at 7:51 a.m. this coming Tuesday morning. I plan to discuss this, with all the venom I can muster. Who in the world wants to destroy this place so a few more SUVs can have a little more gas?
Farragut Spring:
Bob, I'd just like to comment on the chatter who asked about Korey Stringer and gender and weight. Sure, he may have been 335 pounds, but (a) he used to weigh 385 and (b) he had an incredibly low body fat percentage, I believe something like 3.9%, and there aren't very many 300+ pound people who can say that.
Bob Levey: Exactly my point. He had an athlete's metabolism, even if he weighed as much as two and a half adults.
Adding more seats in Wrigley Field:
Yes, people would get upset, and then life will go on. The same thing was said about adding lights, and that still happened.
Bob Levey: Sure, you can easily argue that the Cubs have the right to make more money, and to stop allowing apartment rooftop viewers to see games for free. But this is a 100-year-old tradition. If the Cubs had wanted to think just about $$$$, they could have abandoned Wrigley in the 1970s (and believe me, they thought about it) and built one of those sterile palaces in the burbs. If they've made a commitment to Wrigleyville, they ought to make a commitment to the traditions of Wrigleyville.
Not Fat?:
Bob: you don't think Nate Newton, Gilbert Brown, and William "The Refrigerator" Perry weren't fat during their peak playing years?
You need to do some research. These men may be strong but they are by any reasonable assessment, FAT.
How many tackles do you think Tony Siragusa makes during a game? His job is to take up space and be immovable. And he does it well.
Bob Levey: Sorry, but they are mostly large, and only slightly fat. If Siragusa were an immobile blob, he couldn't take the punishment (not to mention the chief requirement of his job, which is to MOVE, not just to sit there).
Indianapolis, Ind.:
Glad you liked our sleepy little town. Hopefully you found Sakura, or some equivalent. You're right on the money about the lack of good seafood here, but we have outstanding Indian, Japanese, and Greek food for some reason.
As for the unimaginative paper, thank the fine folks at Gannett for that one.
Bob Levey: Chain ownership produces chain results. I thank heavens every day that I work for a family newspaper
Somewhere, USA:
Hey Bob,
About ANWR, Why is it that people fail to see how an America that can be more self sufficient in terms of energy is a better America. Why do people feel that we should rely on other nations to provide our energy?
Bob Levey: Self-sufficiency is easily attained if we think about (and practice) conservation. Somehow, the Bushies never seem to mention that (or they mention it only grudgingly, after every editorial page in the country roasts them for their SUV mentality).
Since no one else will say it, I will:
WOOOOO-HOOOOO for your son!
Was it the most fantastically exciting thing you've ever experienced? (Outside the two kids being born, that is.)
Awesome for all of you. I mean it.
Bob Levey: It was AMAZING.
I can't stop thinking about it.
More than one million 14-year-old boys played organized soccer in the U.S. this year, and 16 boys from Montgomery County and D.C. are the champs. My guy is one of them.
Thanks so much for your kind words. I'll be sure to tell Allie.
SHAMELESS COMMERCIAL IV:
Be sure to check out my column for Aug. 7 (left in the editor's e-basket before I climbed on the first of yesterday's silver birds). It's all about Allie, his victory, and his 15th birthday (which happens on Wednesday--we will toast him with salmon!).
Re: Wrigley Field:
I generally agree with your comment about building grandstands in Wrigley Field blocking views from apartments. But a friend of mine (also a Cubs fan) disagrees. The people who own the buildings make a killing off this. It's almost like having their own skybox. They have a lot of corporate parties, where the cost is almost $100 per rooftop seat. So a lot of people are paying for rooftop views and seeing Cubs games live, and the Cubs see none of that money while the surrounding building owners make a killing. Is that fair?
Bob Levey: Again, I can see the economics from the Cubs' point of view very readily. Maybe a deal with the rooftop party-givers can be cooked? Cubs get a slice of the gate, maybe?
Weight Disparity Reply:
To the person who can't imagine how a 300 pound man could be considered an athlete, while a woman weighing that much is automatically considered a fat pig. As a woman who does martial arts and has gained a considerable amount of muscle mass, I might put forward the idea that the football player had HUGE muscles. Don't they lift weights? AND, muscle is denser and heavier than fat, so two people who look the same might weigh differently because one has a body composed more of muscle, while the other one has a body composed more of fat. Also, I'm sure that female body builders probably weigh a lot more than average, yet they are considered athletes.
Bottom line: it all depends on whether your weight is composed of muscle or fat.
Bob Levey: Very, very well said. Thanks
Fairfax, Va.:
See, Bob, I think the real story (re: Condit/Levy) all along has been that
women disappear in DC. They have been for
years. And never seen again. We don't have
numbers on it because none of the DC precincts talk to each other about it, but
there is a serial killer out there, and
Chandra was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and is victim number. . . whatever.
But we got so side-tracked on hunting down Condit, the real issues never get talked about.
Bob Levey: They're talked about. But they've certainly been concealed by the sex and by Condit's profession.
Traditions of Wrigleyville:
If traditions are so sacred, then the Cubs should keep losing.
Honestly Bob, you're starting to sound like the father in Fiddler on the Roof during the song "Tradition."
Bob Levey: Actually, the Fiddler song I croon in the shower is, "If I Were a Rich Man......"
Take it from me, the Cubs WILL keep on losing.
A friend in the Chicago newspaper world says they've already type-set the headline for the last day of the season, when the Cubs will surely tank in the ninth inning and finish second.
The head will read:
AAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!
Don't ever say that Levey Live doesn't give you tomorrow's news today
Arlington, Va.:
Ah, Bob, as a former Alaskan who was stupid enough to leave for this dismal swamp, I am SOOO jealous.
But, um, it's "Lower 48" not "Lesser 48" (unless we're trying to be really rude). And, while you can't drive to Juneau, there are highways that connect Anchorage and Fairbanks to the rest of the U.S. (via Canada).
Bob Levey: I know it's "Lower 48." But a former Alaskan in D.C. told me before I left that, to those in the know, it's "Lesser." I thought it was very cute.
True about the highways via Canada. Thanks
Fairfax County, Va.:
What do most Post writers think about the recent addition of Kid's Post? Any chance of expanding it? Teachers love it!!
Bob Levey: I haven't encountered a soul at The Post (or anywhere else) who doesn't think it's a welcome addition. As for expanding it, I doubt it very seriously. That would require staff, space, newsprint--and these are not the best of times in the news biz.
Virginia:
Congrats on your son's win. I sound like an old fogey but I can see that society seems to operate on a "mine, mine, mine" mentality be it driving consideration, fuel conversation, etc. It's really depressing because I'm only 42.
I don't live in the WTOP area so what is the opinion of the Alaskans on this? BTW, one representative from Alaska chided a congresswoman from CT saying that she had never been there to Alaska and shouldn't vote on the subject. This came from Slate.com and their commentary was how many trips to space did the Alaskan congressman make and how did he vote?
Bob Levey: I'll know more about the opinion of Alaskans after a few days here. I suspect they'll be split--some worried about the enviroment, some welcoming the jobs that further drilling will surely produce
Fairfax, Va.:
Speaking of your kids, I LOVE the way you celebrate their birthdays by dedicating the day's column to them. I hope they have each kept all those birthdday columns in order. You sound like a great dad!!
Bob Levey: Well, I'm a diligent Dad, that's for sure. Good? You'd have to ask the kids. But I do believe in staying right in the center of their lives. So far, they seem willing to let me (and Jane the Perpetual Trophy Wife) do that.
Thanks for the kind words about the annual birthday columns. Sure, I've saved them. By the time I'm a great-grandpa, I might even have found time to paste them all in a scrapbook.
Former Alaskan:
Bob, remember, you're in Juneau which is still a bit south and its already August, so it won't be as light as it was in June. Take a trip to Barrow and it'll be light...
Bob Levey: If only I had time. I've already resolved to come back when I can "do" Barrow, the Aleutians, etc.
Bethesda, Md.:
I take it that you would not agree that conservation an unrealistic goal in modern U.S. society. I see Americans who want more for less. They will say that they will conserve but realistically the majority of Americans will not. It is Unfortunate but it is reality. Conservation is an idea that should be implemented but it will take time to acclimate society. ANWR, Not OPEC, will be able to sustain America until then.
Bob Levey: It would take five minutes, if we'd ever get the slightest bit serious about it. Maybe it will take a shock, l;ike another Arab oil embargo. Of course, the second that was over, we jumped right back into conspicuous consumption.
Washington, D.C.:
Bob,
Be careful with the boat tours up there.
Currently there is a 20yr delay in
charting the bays and inlets in Alaska that a
lot of those ships go into. Basically,
they're using 20 yr old charts and the
glaciers may have receeded 2 miles during
that time and they're trying to get as close
to the glaciers as possible. You get the
idea....
I'll be sure to send you some good pictures
of tour boats (packed to the gills) that have
been grounded in the past few years.
Also....try the salmon jerky...it's to die for.
Bob Levey: My son, the comedian, will ask if the salmon jerky is named for me.
Reston, Va.:
Bob,
Your column today & yesterday had T-shirt slogans. Are you still taking them? I have a winner at home, but I can't remember the exact slogan as it is in Latin.
Bob Levey: I take them 24/7/365. My fax: 202-334-5150. My mailing address: Bob Levey, The Washington Post, Washington, D.C., 20071. My e-mail address: leveyb@washpost.com.
Washington, D.C.:
Hey Bob, I'm with you on ANWR! I think Congress should pass a law stipulating that only schoolmarmish columnists who rent trucks to drive cross-country with their sons and write about the experience should be allowed to drive anything bigger than a subcompact! What do you think, o great sage?
Bob Levey: Hey, I never liked the fact that Bessie got only 9 miles a gallon on that trip, either.
Schoolmarmish?
But I don't wear my hair in a bun....
Fairfax, Va.:
Okay you have one of each. Which is easier to raise? A boy or a girl? My son was so EASY until he turned 14! Now I am aging quickly.
Bob Levey: It depends entirely on the kids, his/her interests, his/her seriousness. The hardest part about raising a girl was her bursts of poor self-esteem. Our daughter is such a great kid. But there were plenty of times that she didn't feel that way, despite mountains of evidence to the contrary. I found that exasperating in the extreme. My son is harder in the sense that he is more of a brawler, more of a wild man. But he hasn't driven a car off a cliff yet. In the case of either sex, it begins with the answer I gave a few minutes ago. Get into their lives--not as an unwelcome mole, but as a rooter. Be there. Stay there.
Just got back from Vermont:
Great trip, until you see the sign that says "Moose Crossing: Next 10 Miles." That caused a smile. Although, how do the moose know where to cross. For the record, I didn't see 1 moose.
Bob Levey: I'll try to make up for your poor record
Bob Levey: That'll have to do it, gang. The moose beckon. Chat atcha Tuesday from Glacier Bay, and next Friday from good old D.C., same time, same station.
washingtonpost.com:
Thanks to everyone who joined the
discussion.
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Michael Wilbon discusses sports at 2 p.m. EDT
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