Bob Levey (Barbara Tyroler)

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Levey Live: Speaking Freely
Washington Post Columnist
Friday, Feb. 21, 2003; 1 p.m. ET

"Levey Live: Speaking Freely," hosted by Washington Post columnist Bob Levey, appears every Friday. 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.

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: Howdy, huddled masses yearning to breathe free, and welcome to "Levey Live: Speaking Freely," the show that proves each week just how versatile a keyboard can be. You may bang anything thereupon during the next 60 minutes--rants, raves, rebuttals, roasts, replies to recent Levey columns, whatever your little tick-tock desires. I have a hunch that snow and Metro might receive top billing this week, but any other subject is fair game. Without further ado.....

DC Quick Tipping Question: Bob:

I know about tipping if food is delivered, but what about food you call in and then go pick up? Does one still have to tip?

Bob Levey: I never have and never would. If anyone should be tipped, it's you, for doing the schlepp.

Alexandria, Va.: You read plenty in The Post about complaints about the handling of the snow emergency, but The Post itself can't claim any laurels. I got no paper on Monday or Tuesday. OK, fair enough, it was too tough to deliver them on those days. But why don't you have a policy of delivering the copies for those days on the next day that regular delivery is possible? You did publish a paper on those days, didn't you?

(The same thing happened during the 1996 storm. And if it makes you feel any better, the TIMES didn't do any better on either occasion.)

Bob Levey: At our house, the Monday paper arrived on Tuesday morning, wrapped inside its more-recent cousin. If that didn't happen to you on Tuesday--or if you didn't get M, T and W on Wednesday--call the cheeses in our circulation department and start insisting.

Arlington, Va.: I understand problems due to snow fall when the snow is still falling and for some time there after. However, on Wednesday morning we were more than a day and a half removed from the snow and Metro could not get up to full capacity (where Philly, New York and Boston were fully up and running despite the storm ending later in those cities). I had to allow five trains to pass before I could board at Courthouse this morning. I find this unacceptable, especially when I am paying a rush hour fare for such bad service. I was tempted to ride out and then ride back so that I could get on the train. Is there a way to fix the problem -- run extra trains to the underground stations only, store more train underground when heavy snow is predicted? It is enough to make me take a cab.

Bob Levey: In her story this morning, Lyndsey Layton says the problem was basically caused by the Disney show at MCI Center. They couldn't store cars underground because they decided they needed to keep running trains on Sunday night. The reasoning: If you took Metro downtown, you will expect to take it back home. I can certainly sympathize with this decision, as horrible as it looks at mid-day Friday.

Washington, D.C.: To the woman who refused, when asked point-blank on a _very_ crowded Blue Line evening rush hour train, to remove her bag from the seat so someone else could sit down -- I hope someone, someday, acts as selfishly to you when you need some small act of kindness. That was _rude_.

Bob Levey: You mean no one removed the bag FOR her? If Bob Levey, Avenging Angel, had been there, that damn sure would have happened, and fast.

Arlington, Va.: Snow Parking:

I spent two and a half hours digging out my spot on my street. The house across the street always has visitors/boyfriends/girlfriends that spend the night. Was it wrong for me to put a sign up in the space saying the space is for my house?

Bob Levey: Wrong, illegal, immoral and probably fattening. No one "owns" a public space. However, any of those boyfriends etc. who have any passing familiarity with the golden rule would realize that someone did a lot of digging, and should be given the benefits of all that sweat.

Middle America: Bob,
Here's the situation: I am a person of mature years who wants to continue her education. I am a high school graduate who did not go to college; nor do I want to go now. What I do want is to become more educated in the sense of a liberal education, not as training for a job. My knowledge of history is pitiful so I think I'd like to start there.

So, I ask you for advice on how to begin.

Thanks.

Bob Levey: You are a perfect candidate for community colleges, which have stolen my heart as the greatest (and most useful) thing going in higher education.
The faculty at many cc's are PhDs. The students are eager to learn. The schools have exciting atmospheres. And the fees are about one-tenth what you'd find at an ivy-draped four-year school.

Shirlington, Va.: Arrrgghhh! Metro! My bus driver drove be me yesterday morning without stopping, and then this morning decided not to show up at all (another bus came 40 mins later). Tony Williams wants us to take public transportation into D.C., but Metro makes it impossible for us to rely on it. What's a suburban girl to do?

Bob Levey: Understand that this is a once-a-decade mess we're in, and we're just going to have to grin and bear it. Also understand that the bus may have whooshed past you because it was full.
On the other hand, many is the time I've seen a bus whoosh past me because the driver THOUGHT it was full. But I could see that the clods and cloddettes had simply failed to move to the back of the bus. There was still tons of room behind midships.

Washington, D.C.: Someone asked last week whether Yao Ming was a genetic mishap due to his "strange facial features." Actually, his father is roughly 6-10 and his mother is roughly 6-3, so his height is in his genes.

Bob Levey: Now that that's straight..... Thanks

Washington, D.C.: Hi Bob: According to the federal government, "If Blockbuster can be open, so can we." Hello! Blockbuster being open does not put nearly 200,000 commuters out onto snowy icy roads during rush hour! Wednesday was too soon to throw everyone back onto the roads. I firmly believe snow removal efforts in heavy-snow situations like this would be greatly enhanced if Uncle would just use a little common sense. That said, there is no reason why schools should be closed today. Metro area school systems -- are you listening? Please have mercy on us parents who have to work. This is cruel and unusual!

Bob Levey: Sorry, but schools exist to edcuate kids, not to make life convenient for parents.
Any time there's a mess like this snowstorm, there is going to be a considerable chunk of inconvenience. Any parent knows that the toughest thing about assuming that role is giving up complete control of your schedule. When your kid cries in the middle of the night, do you call it cruel and unusual? No. It's just part of the drill. So please be of good (or at least better) cheer. The crocuses are not far off. Count on it.

Alexandria, Va.: What's the deal with the snowplow effort? Most of the secondary roads I travel are at most 3/4 clear, which reduces the travel lanes from two to one.

Bob Levey: Part of the problem is the sheer volume of snow. Part of the problem is parked cars, around which it's very tough for a plow to maneuver. But the biggest problem is that there's no place to push any snow that a plow might now collect. What are you going to do with it all? Stack it in the middle of an intersection? On Mrs. McGillicuddy's lawn?

Washington, D.C.: Hey, Bob, I know the rich folks in Arlington are just so much more important than the rest of us, but I'd like to know when we ordinary folks can expect to see SmarTrip-accepting buses? (Which, by the way, we were promised would happen by first the middle of last year, then December of last year, as I recall -- I've yet to see one...)
Lurking Metroids? Any news?

Bob Levey: Metroids?
Metroids?
They may be out manning snowplows, or defrosting a few subway cars with Zippo lighters.
Metroids?

Rockville, Md.: I am looking for an entry level political job. I want to do some networking to help my search. What events would you suggest I attend to meet people? (I'm a Democrat.)

Bob Levey: Grasp Visa card firmly between thumb and forefinger and ehad for Bullfeathers, the bar on Capitol Hill where the great and near-great congregate after work.

Silver Spring, Md.: Bob,

If the television news team wants to be viewed as more than tabloid entertainment then they need to do things to be informative like telling the public BEFORE the storm the dangers of sitting in your car with the tail pipe covered. With this much snow and many people in the area not use to snow. Instead we got the same old same old, with people standing near area snow operations with salt and sand trucks in the background. Saying stay off the roads lets us do our jobs, blah, blah, blah. To save money the networks can run tapes from prior snow storms it is all exactly the same. No real informative value added.

Bob Levey: You'll never hear me say (or type) a kind word about local TV during a storm such as this one. All of their advice is banal or fleabitten. All of their coverage is alarmist and exaggerated. Even the B-roll footage is one cliche after another.
This is so, so sad, not just because we viewers in the DC area are smart, and capable of assimilating much more, but because it doesn't accomplish what the TV suits hope to accomplish.
If I watch a batch of stupid, cliche-d coverage on, say, WJLA, why would I sudenly become fiercely loyal to WJLA? If anything, I'll just go to the National Weather Service site on the Web and be done with it.

Springfield, Va.: Bob:

Do you know the official rule on parking in a snow situation such as this? In our neighborhood, there are some cars who are parking on the OUTSIDE of the snow mound. This means that they are essentially parking in the middle of the clear lane of traffic. I am sure their argument is "this is as close to the curb as we can get..." but its more than a nuisanace. Its an accident waiting to happen simply bc they refuse to dig to the curb....ARGHHH!

Bob Levey: No law covers this in so many words. But I'd say that anyone who, in effect, parks in the middle of a thoroughfare is risking a fat ticket. Cops please copy.

Arlington, Va.: Bob, you are so right about community colleges. They serve a great purpose by allowing those not sure about college a chance to "test the waters," allowing those who left a chance to come back, and giving people who are interested in a formal class a chance to check it out. Europeans are fascinated with the system (along with the Land-Grant College system) and are trying models of their own.

Bob Levey: My good and old pal, Robert Parilla, former president of Montgomery College, had a great way of expressing this.
Bob said that MC existed to give "a first chance, a second chance and a last chance."

Chevy Chase, Md.: Bob,

Were you able to travel in your search for the latest and greatest intern or were you stuck in town?

Bob Levey: Man, oh, man, what a story have I got!
I was scheduled to fly to Chicago on Monday to begin my odyssey--Chicago, then South Bend on Tuesday, then Ann Arbor on Wednesday, then Providence yesterday. So it's Saturday at about 1 p.m., and Jane the Perpetual Trophy Wife says, "Hey, dummy, have you heard the weather forecast?"
"Glmmmphh, bmmmph, forecats are junk," said Bob the Perpetual Idiot.
Jane prevailed on me to listen to traffic and weather on the 8s.
Two hours later, I was aboard the Amtrak Capitol Limited for Chicago. Itv turned out to be the last conveyance of any kind to escape the big storm.
Nineteen hours later, I was on deck in South Bend, unshaven, a little zonked from sleepelessness, but OK. I had to kill a day and a half there, but I kept my schedule.
By the way, if you've always been tempted to try a sleeping car, my best advice is: be 4-feet-3. I'm not. It was, um, a little snug. Also, I had forgotten that Amtraks blow their whistles at every grade crossing. We motored through Ohio and Indiana from midnight to 6 a.m., and they're both as flat as a tortilla. Ergo, grade crossings everywhere. Ergo, no sleep.
But, hey, it was an adventure. And I interviewed some GREAT young people.

Washington, D.C.: Bob, I just wanted to say thank you for your advice on reporting the Metrobus driver who drove his/her bus down the wrong lane of traffic and then took a left turn on a red light during rush hour on Wednesday. I received a message from Metro today saying that they were going to take care of the situation. I truly hope they do.

n ironic side note that I forgot to mention -- the bus had a sign on the back that said, "This bus does not turn on red lights."

I'm still wishing I had my camera...

Thanks again!

Bob Levey: You should alays collect the essential info--bus number, route number, time of day, place of sin--and report it all to Metro. Honest and truly, they WILL investigate and they WILL discipline these creeps.

Washington, D.C.: Did you hear about a few knuckleheads in Woodbridge, Va., who were literally beating up plow truck drivers? Talk about biting the hand that feeds you ...

These drivers deserve better!

Bob Levey: According to a story I read last night in the Boston Herald, a plow driver in that fair city was threatened by some drunk with a gun. Nice, huh?

Clifton, Va.: My brother and sister on volunteer firefighters and my brother in law is paid professional firefighter. None of us can figure out how Blues Alley remains open and passes a fire inspection. The club doesn't meet current standards or even the standards that were in place 15 years ago. We either figure it was grandfathered in or somebody is paying big bucks to the inspectors. Scary.

Many other clubs in D.C. are worse.

Bob Levey: I suspect that BA and all such joints will get a very close look, in light of today's (and yesterday's) headlines.

Dupont Circle, Washington, D.C.: Enough with the excuses from Metro. Couldn't they have just as easily told MCI Center on Sunday morning that they would be shutting down service? Everyone knew how bad it would be by then.

Face it: Metro handled this storm extremely poorly.

Bob Levey: To do what you suggest, Metro would have had to get into the lobbying business. It isn't up to a public transit agency to tell an entertainment company how to conduct its affairs. Public transit means transit that's available to the public. No question that Metro's decision to run a full schedule on Sunday night looks awful now--maybe even criminal. But can't you see why that was the only possible reasonable decision? Also, what if the forecast had been wrong? Believe me, it happens.

Oh PUH-leeze!!: Kwitcher bitchin about the snow down there. We got over two feet up here (Kennebunkport, Maine)!! And yes, that's a lot even for us!

Bob Levey: We're too tired from shoveling to bitch much longer, Kennebunkport.

For the Later in Life Learner: Go For It! If there isn't a community college nearby in Middle America, most colleges, universities and even community centers offer "Community Enrichment" or "Adult Learning" courses of all subjects that are even less expensive than signing up for regular classes (because they aren't "for credit"). I have learned to play guitar, read the classics, and learned all about the Great Depression. All with the same great teachers and fellow students you mentioned. It's never too late to learn!

Bob Levey: A good take to supplement mine. Thanks much

Laurel, Md.: By the way, how come most TV reporters doing weather on-the-spots don't have the sense to WEAR A HAT?!?!?!?!

When I was a kid, we were taught that was the most important part of keeping warm.

Bob Levey: This is the most ludicrous shot on TV (among many contenders). Whenever I see the poor Weather Sap standing hatless (and occasionally coatless) in the (choose at least one) rain, snow, wind, I want to scream:
"DIDN'T YOUR MOTHER EVER TELL YOU TO COME INSIDE WHEN THE WEATHER IS BAD?"

Potomac, Md.: Bob,

I hope this question isn't too personal, but do most of the big name reporters at TWP have agents? Just curious. You know, for book publishing, TV appearances, personal appearances and the like.

Bob Levey: Yes in general, although many biggies do some of this themselves. Most of it is a matter of time management, not nose-in-the-air elitism.
If I tried to sell my own book, for example, I'd never have a second left to write a column. Also, agents often think of things that we lesser mortals miss.
For example, for TV and radio contracts, retirement benefits. For example, with speaking gigs, language that protects the agent and the speaker from a lawsuit if the gig is cancelled because of a natural disaster.

Arlington, Va.: Why is it that cities in the Northland can handle large snows like this on a regular basis but we can't handle it once every 10 years? Do they just have more equipment or do they have methods and systems in place that do a better, more efficient job at dealing with the problem?

Bob Levey: More equipment, more experience, fewer assumptions by the great unwashed that everything will snap back to normal within 3.4 seconds.

Washington, D.C., Gridlock -- Revenue Generator: Regarding downtown DC gridlock -- why aren't there cops directing traffic or issuing tickets to people who pull into the intersection when there is no room for them to move forward.

DON'T BLOCK THE BOX. Yeesh.

Bob Levey: Sure seems easy to me. Thanks

Washington, D.C.: SO, considering that one event (Disney) is responsible for paralyzing the entire metro system for practically a full week, why didn't metro, local government, etc... urge MCI/Disney to cancel it? Or, tell them we're shutting down Metro, so you'd be wise to postpone?

Bob Levey: You might think that our wondrous D.C. government might have thought of that.

LA: Being over 7' with shorter parents does not automatically make you a victim
of gigantism, as WILT CHAMBERLAIN's dad was
5'8", and Wilt was in perfect proportion.
P.S. There 25,000 gals to back up that
statement

Bob Levey: Cute! Thanks.
Speaking of which.......
Isn't it true that, to have had sex with 25,000 women, Wilt would have had to have been "busy" for an average of six hours a day? I had a friend once who claimed to have done the long division.

Falls Church, Va.: Hey, no matter what anyone says about this year's snow removal, I want to say a big Thank You to all the thousands of state, county, city, and private contractors that have been working their tushies off so that I can drive my car safely and function somewhat normally.

And another thank you for the good manners shown by the motorists I was stuck in traffic with this week. I have never seen such patience and courtesy (and oddly enough, use of turn signals).

Bob Levey: Hear, hear!
Thanks, FC.
And megadittoes.

Potomac, Md.: Bob:

Hello. You recently talked about cliches and over-used, horrible, sometimes-inaccurate phrases. Can we please mention one of the most incorrectly -- used words in the media today? It's the use of the word "virtually," or "virtual." Just yesterday, Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2003, there were three inaccurate uses of the word in the media. During another recent week, there were 15 inaccurate uses -- three of them in The Washington Post. The word "virtually" or "virtual" does NOT mean "almost" or "nearly," two words that writers should substitute as soon as "virtually" or "virtual" enters their heads, because usually, that's what the writer means to say. Virtual, according to Webster's New World Dictionary, means "being so in effect or essence, although not in actual fact or name." Thus, the best use of the word is when people refer to the video games that use what is called "virtual reality." That is because you see something as real, but it's not really real. That's the true meaning of the word! But the ways in which writers use the word today do not conform to this definition. Most writers use it to mean "almost" or "nearly," as noted, which is wrong. And here's a test: give yourself just one week, and you'll see the misuse of "virtual" pop up in The Post or other media sources. That's all it takes -- one week. Thanks for clearing this up.

Bob Levey: Really good point. Thanks for making it. You're a virtual genius!

Somewhere, USA: Bob-

Any advice for an extremely stressed-out grad student who will NEVER get all this work done by the time it's due, who is dealing with a brilliant but extremely rude and pompous professor and another instructor who just moved up the deadline for a research paper by a whole week?

Help!

Bob Levey: Mint tea.
Or Jose Cuervo.
Works for me.

Washington, D.C.: Not to get all Pollyanna about the plight of
our Metro system this week, but I've been
taking the bus all week to avoid the
Metrorail tangles. I've found that the bus is
actually really convenient, pretty reliable
and means my husband doesn't have to
get up early to drive me to the closest
Metro station. I'd encourage people who
are fed up with the trains to try the bus.

Bob Levey: Hosannas from R. Levey, the biggest fan of Metrobus in the cosmos.
Since I've been on the road all week, I haven't ridden either the train or the bus since the skies started opening up. But in past storms, I've headed for the bus first--and I haven't regretted it.

Rockville, Md.: I have a follow-up question to the one regarding where to go to network. So I go to Bullfeathers... then what?

Bob Levey: IF YOU'RE A WOMAN: Sidle up to any clean-cut guy in a blue blazer and a striped, slightly too-loud tie, and sit down. He'll be a Republican. Drop the names Hastert and Frist. Make notes.
IF YOU'RE A MAN: Sidle up to any clean-cut woman in a dressed-for-success pastel suit with a ruffled collar and sit down. Drop the names Gephardt and Lieberman. If she smiles, she's a Democrat. If she frowns, well, it means she's either a Republican or you forgot your after-shave.

Charlotte, N.C.: May I add to the love-fest for community colleges? My husband is a PhD, an award-winning composer, and conductor of an award-winning opera company, and he teaches at a community college. His students transfer to four-year programs so successfully that they frequently test out of junior-level theory courses. Classes are small, the faculty aren't side-lined by publish-or-perish pressures, and their credentials, given the difficulty in finding tenure-track positions at universities, are top-notch. (He's a Northwestern alum and, from your Chicago roots, you know what kind of music education that provides.)

Bob Levey: Amen and a half, Charlotte. I've said often to my pals at Montgomery College here that it's in some ways a good thing that too few people know about them. Otherwise, their enrollment would triple, and gridlock would arrive.

Rockville, Md.: Oh how I wish I had had Bob Levey, avenging angel, in my condo parking lot Wednesday evening. I spent the better part of Monday digging out my car, and helping neighbors dig out theirs. It was a nice community effort. Another person in our complex posted notes on all the buildings asking everyone to please park in a space they had dug out themselves, and for the most part, people were considerate and complied. But it only takes one jerk to cause problems. When my husband went out to run an errand that evening, a opportunistic parking space stealer promptly moved into the space we dug out. I asked him, nicely mind you, to please park elsewhere, but he refused. I found myself indignant and ended up calling him a not very nice name, and when he realized people were looking, he did move, but in the end, I felt bad and a bit embarrassed to have publicly insulted him. How else should I have handled it?

Bob Levey: You managed it just right, especially in light of the result, and in light of the fact that no one got punched. If you'd called a cop, you migth have had to wait for an hour for him (or her) to show up. And then the cop would only have recited the legalities I mentioned earlier--that no one owns a public space (or a space in a condo lot that isn't reserved). No cop would have lobbied for you with the clod, or run interference.

How 'bout?: ...Jose Cuervo in the mint tea? The best of both worlds!

Bob Levey: Now THERE's a thought! Thanks

For the Grad Student: Write the research paper while on the second fifth of Cuervo.

Bob Levey: Now there's another! Thanks

Northern Virginia: do you think that this whole Get Ready campaign and stage 27 alert levels is a strange government move to spur consumer spending on an extra 3 days of food, saran wrap and scotch tape?

Bob Levey: I can only assume that Cheney has a silent position in duct tape stock.

Silver Spring, Md.: Someone was using a seat for her bag on Metro this week? I have some suggestions for handling the situation:
1. Sit on the bag
2. Announce in a loud voice, "Attention everyone. There is a very selfish woman on this car who thinks her bag should take up a seat -- what do you all think?"
3. Move the bag anyway.

Bob Levey: Trouble with 1) You might start a fistfight, or you might end up in court, because this selfish fool might claim that you sat on her precious collection of peonies and squashed them.
Trouble with 2) None.
Trouble with 3) None again, especially when preceeded by 2.

Cuervo & Tea:: No, no...Canadian Club or Crown Royal with the tea, along with a bit of sugar. Works great if you have a cold too!

Bob Levey: And here I thought I was kidding. We're obviously hearing from the deep pain reservoirs of many, many former grad students!

Spell Checker, Rockville, Md.: One of my pet peeves with the Post is the substitution of "careering" for "careening" -- in hundreds of instances since I've been paying attention.

It happens all the time -- is this a spell-checker program running amok or what?

If you don't believe me, have someone do an automated check of the archives, searching for careering.

Thanks, I feel better already...!

Bob Levey: Better go Webstering.
Careering is correct.

Bethesda, Md.: Just thought you might be interested to know that I spent 16 hours over the course of Sunday and Monday ferrying everyone from nurses to kidney dialysis patients back and forth from Suburban Hospital in my GMC Yukon. Funny, no one seemed to mind that I got 16 MPG when the snow was two feet high and it was literally life and death. Thought you might want to know.

Bob Levey: Much obliged, both for your wonderful service and your biting irony. Of course, you would have done just as well (and just as much) in any front-wheel-drive station wagon.

Washington, D.C.: I missed last week's discussion but I feel the need to comment on your restaurant tipping column. Did anyone ever consider that perhaps the service at the place overall is bad and that it's not an epidemic of cheap customers? If there's bad management at the place, it could be a continuous cycle of hiring bad staff. If that's the case, then the customers are getting charged for poor service. (And many would think that if the tip is included on the bill, they have to pay that amount.)
I'd be interested in knowing if that particular restaurant has a lot of regular customers. If they don't, then I'd think it was a sign that the service overall is poor.

Bob Levey: Good point(s), although poor service often begins in the kitchen. It's not the handiwork of a server who has suddenly decided to sit down and do a crossword puzzle while you pine for your dinner.

Back to the Duct Tape Issue: Do you think Tom Ridge has a room in his house duct taped and plastic wrapped?

Bob Levey: I think his house must be strung with Christmas lights that flicker to life every three seconds with the same message: DON'T PANIC.

Washington, D.C.: Hey Bob,
Are you related to the Jane Leavey who wrote the Sandy Kofaux biography?

Bob Levey: How could I be? She's L-E-A-V-Y? I'm L-E-V-E-Y.
By the way, my wife is also Jane Levey--pronounced the same as "Koufax Jane," even though they're not spelled the same. When The Other Jane published her screamingly funny novel about baseball about 12 years ago, my Jane suddenly started getting a lot of strange looks. Seems as if there were some pretty horny sex passages in Leavy's book. My Jane was getting looks that seems to be say, "Jane, uh, um, we never KNEW!"

Grad Student: I know you thought you were kidding Bob, but I wouldn't have made it through without Jack Daniels and cartons of Marlboro Lights. Thankfully, those nasty habits are behind me now.

Bob Levey: So is the dissertation, which may have restored your mental health in the same way that setting aside booze and cigs restored your other kind of health.

Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C.: Now Bob, did you just say that all women working on the hill wear pastel suits with ruffled collars? There are some well dressed women on the hill.

Bob Levey: Yes, there certainly are. But the young women all seem to dress right out of Ann Taylor showroom.

Cry Me a River!: Waaaah, a person stole my husband's parking space! Cars are parked on my suburban street! I can't drive hence I can't be normal! Waaaah waaaah, crybaby LOOSERS!

Bob Levey: I'd cry with you if you learned to spell "losers."

Formerly of Hershey, Pa.: As a former Pennsylvanian, I have to say that I like Tom Ridge (even if he does look like Mac from the movie Mac and Me). I don't think enough credit is given to the guy who was once governor of lovely Pennsylvania and is now in charge of such a monstrous undertaking. Don't get me wrong, this whole code red, code green, code purple with yellow spots (that's when the real trouble happens) is a bit out there... I just think he has a tough job to do and is doing okay so far.

Bob Levey: He is certainly doing OK, and he has absorbed a titanic amount of flack very nicely. He has also obviously understood that a major piece of his job is to absorb that flack, so Bush doesn't have to. Yet Ridge should certainly be guiding the security ship with a much, much sharper sense of public relations. Whenever Leno is hacking on you, you've already lost.

Alexandria, Va.: Bob, I'd like to sound off on a couple of phrases that I feel are overworked and should be put out to pasture for a decade or two. The first is "the fact of the matter is..." which is aways followed by a statement of something other than fact! My second peeve is "in this day and age" which means little or nothing, and is repeated with a frequency that would make a sportscaster blush. Rant over. Thank you and "have a nice day."

Bob Levey: They go right into my "cliches" file, and I'll use them in my follow-up column on The Big C, skedded for early March. Thanks

RE: OPM: What the OPM Director fails to realize is that Blockbuster has a private contractor to clear their parking lot and can get it done a lot sooner. Perhaps the OPM Director should look around once in a while and realize where we're all coming from.

Bob Levey: Well said. Thanks for your good sense.

Cuervo's OK, but...: Nutella on crackers always got me through.

Bob Levey: Why the crackers? I have a friend who mainlines Nutella right out of the JAR!

Annapolis, Md.: Bob, Your column is not available online today. What gives?

Bob Levey: The column is dark this week. It returns Monday. I'm "on vacation" this week. Of course, that didn't keep me from hitting four cities in four days earlier this week, or spending all day here at The Ranch batting out replies to e-mails.
A little object lesson for all the skeptics out there who think that columnizing is akin to cooling one's heel sin a Barca-Lounger.
My e-mail basket had 2,357 messages in it this morning when I opened it up shortly after 7 a.m.

"LOOSERS": Hey, didn't this person submit something last week with the same misspelling? HAHAHAHAHA!! LOOSERS!! Coke is spurting from my nose!!

Bob Levey: I assume it's the same spelling-challenged soul. Never seen "losers" butchered in exactly the same way by two different people.

NW, Washington, D.C.: You don't LIKE Anne Taylor?

Bob Levey: I like women who look like women, not like advertisements for shoulder-stuffing

Forget the Tea and Cuervo: When I was in school, I got through on Pepsi, chocolate chip cookies and Nodoze. I won't mention what else.

Bob Levey: For me, it was coffee. Endless rivers of it. Black. Still is.

Germantown, Md.: Bob --

I truly have sympathy for the difficulties that Metro has been having -- after all, they should be spending their money getting escalators/elevators to work properly before spending millions on storms that seem to come once a decade or so. My beef comes from an article in yesterday's Post, where Metro officials said that no one even thought of eliminating rush hour fares when trains were only running once every half hour. They don't have one marketing person there thinking about how their "customers" (riders) will react?

Bob Levey: Metro has a truly tin ear sometimes. It should have been obvious to the biggies there that this was one of those make-or-break weekends for the system--in the same way that, say, WTOP radio realized that the sniper story was that for them. Someone should have said, "Ya know, gang, we'd better make sure that the system functions PERFECTLY throughout the snow and afterward, because if we don't, we might lose many riders." I fear that's exactly what will now happen.

Alexandria, Va.: For the record, I got my Monday paper on Monday. The delivery guy came around 2 pm via a 4-wheel drive and made sure we all got our news. Kudos to him.

Bob Levey: Such stories are far more common, I'm happy to say, than the reverse. Thanks!

Washington, D.C.: Hey Bob,

BOYCOTT DISNEY!

So, can we now blame the week-long Metro debacle solely on Disney's greed? It seems that Metro wouldn't close early because Disney on Ice wouldn't postpone (when virtually everything else in town did), therefore Metro wasn't able to get its cars out of harms way, etc.

By the way, I assume subway systems in cities like New York, Boston and Chicago have outdoor rail yards? Why to they not have these same problems?

Ah Metro. If it's not the escalators, it's the elevators, defects in new cars, defects in old cars. Where's the accountability?

Bob Levey: NYC, Boston and Chicago have 24-hour systems. We don't. Obviously, if trains run throughout a storm, the lines stay open and the cars keep moving. There've been many debates over the years about expanding the DC system to 24 hours. Maybe this storm, and its aftermath, will finally tell the tale.
Thanks for the chat, gang.

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