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Monday, February 20, 2006 The Unworthy "Now these titans have been folded in among the mediocrities and place-holders and notable exceptions, and it’s all just a day off."    Spot on, James Lileks, spot on. But it is a day off -- well, I suppose for some of you anyway. This dog’s work, however, is never done, and certainly cannot be interrupted to engage the fawning frivolity of President's Day. No sir. Though I must say the occasion does recall a particular pet peeve of mine. Pet peeve -- ha! Sometimes I crack myself up.    You see, it grates on me to no end to hear that the Great One in Alaska, which is Denali, was renamed in the national register of geographic places to Mount McKinley! This inexcusable tragedy is traceable back to 1896 to a certain William A. Dickey who, when he became angered (tsk tsk, poor boy) because his interlocutors went unpersuaded by his "fiscal policy" arguments, retaliated by naming the Great One after a man who supposedly favored his arguments. That man was William McKinley, but this was before he became president (and later assassinated in Buffalo, NY in 1901).    First of all, Dickey was not the first discoverer to see Denali, in fact he wasn't even the first American to see Denali; that momentous event had occurred over a quarter century earlier, before Dickey’s first step in Alaska. Second, McKinley himself had never even stepped foot in Alaska! It only seems right to me that if you’re going to have the tallest f**king mountain on the North American continent named after you, you ought to have at least visited it! Well, understandably, this renaming of the Great One pissed some people off. So in 1977 the Alaska legislature lobbied to have the name in the national register changed back to Denali. This occurred over the objections of some pissant congrescritter, Ralph Regula from Ohio (also McKinley’s home state where he served as Govenor), who stated that (link): "This action would be an insult to the memory of President McKinley and to the people of my district and the nation who are so proud of his heritage."    The people of your district?! Pfft. What do you want to bet Regula never stepped foot in Alaska either?    "Mediocrits" and place-holders indeed. 6:11:08 PM    Comments disabled © Copyright 2008 Rufus. Nonsense, distribute widely and freely! Last update: 7/26/2008; 10:57:11 AM.			Readers Amused       Home About Me Airedale Philosophy How this all got started       FAQ What's an Upright? Upright: noun : a by and large bipedal companion, also referred to as a human being. What's a Cheechako? Cheechako: noun : a person new to Alaska who has come with the intention to live here. Who's Master? Master: pronoun : just the finest upright on the face of the earth, that's who! To read him is to love him. What's Dogdom? Dogdom: noun : Life's venue from a dog's point of view. What's a Sourdough? Sourdough: noun : A long time Alaskan who has an automatic suspicion of cheechakos. What does Outside mean? Outside: noun : A provincial reference to somplace other than Alaska; usually the lower 48. What's Breakup? Breakup: noun : A uniquely Alaskan season between winter and spring when the snow and ice begins to melt for good. Where is SquareBanks? SquareBanks: slang : A self-evident euphemism for a place widely known as Fairbanks, AK. Where can I read the Houston Trip? Houston Trip: vignette : Here What digital camera do you use? Camera: hardware : Canon Powershot A80 (4.0 MP) Who's Mom? Mom: Hottie : Have A Look What's a Squeakamunka? Squeakamunka: noun : your ordinary gray squirrel which can be seen everywhere in our Cleveland neighborhood! « Alaska Blogs »  Stories Fiction Boy Wonder Bat Girl Objects in Mirror Are Larger Than They Appear Used To Be Fish Skin Deep Essay Life Is Good Desert Nostalgia A Voice of Reason Fictional Four Realms of Darkness Poetry Lucky Chain  The Cycling Pages 1999 Canadian Tour 2000 Tour of Alaska "Yooper" : 2001 Tour of WI/Michigan UP 2001 Spine of Italy Tour 2002 Tour of New England 2004 Tour of New Zealand (coming soon!) 2005 Tour Of Nova Scotia Conways Game of Life (needs java plugin) Sometimes Interesting Billy Greg (Hiatus) Virginia Postrel Wendy McElroy Samizdata Atlantic Monthly Reason No Treason Slashdot Derke Lowe Heather Champ (Photo blog) T.C. Boyle Liquid Generation Improved Clinch Exquisite Corpse, A. Codrescu Fred On Everything Assymetrical Information The Daily Ablution (Hibernation) Lileks Frank Kelly (Hiatus) Up In Alaska