No One Asked Me But… (July 5, 2017)

By DR. LARRY MOSES

No one asked me but… There is an India proverb that states “Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noon-day sun.”
In 1924, Noel Coward put this proverb to song as follows:

In tropical climes, there are certain times of day
When all the citizens retire to tear their clothes off and perspire.
It’s one of the rules that the greatest fools obey,
Because the sun is much too sultry
And one must avoid its ultry-violet ray.
The natives grieve when the white men leave their huts,
Because they’re obviously, definitely nuts!
Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun,

The Japanese don´t care to, the Chinese wouldn´t dare to,
Hindus and Argentines sleep firmly from twelve to one
But Englishmen detest-a siesta.
In the Philippines, they have lovely screens to protect you from the glare.
In the Malay States, there are hats like plates which the Britishers won’t wear.
At twelve noon, the natives swoon and no further work is done,
But mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun.

The toughest Burmese bandit can never understand it.
In Rangoon, the heat of noon is just what the natives shun,
They put their Scotch or Rye down, and lie down.
In a jungle town where the sun beats down to the rage of man and beast
The English garb of the English sahib merely gets a bit more creased.
In Bangkok at twelve o’clock they foam at the mouth and run,
But mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun.

The smallest Malay rabbit deplores this foolish habit.
In Hong Kong, they strike a gong and fire off a noonday gun,
To reprimand each inmate who’s in late.
In the mangrove swamps where the python romps
there is peace from twelve till two.
Even caribous lie around and snooze, for there’s nothing else to do.
In Bengal to move at all is seldom ever done,
But mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun.

Here are some thoughts that go through the head of an individual who chooses to walk three miles in over 110 degree temperatures. I will not attest to the sanity of these thoughts resulting from “going out in the noon-day sun.”

Thought one: There are approximately 3 million people in the state of Nevada and well over 2 million live in Clark County. We have two Senators: one Republican, Dean Heller and one Democrat, Catherine Cortez Masto. We have four members of House of Representatives: one Republican, Mark Amodei and three Democrats: Dina Titus, Jackie Rosen, and Ruben Kihuen.
While traditional Democrat states went Republican, Nevada did a complete reversal in the 2016 election as both houses went to the Democrat Party.
Republicans were lucky that the governorship was not on the ballot. The Republicans did so little with their majority, one must wonder if the people of Nevada will ever trust them with the government again.
Republican power resides in the rural areas of Nevada and there is little hope that those living outside the influence of the urban sprawl will increase in numbers. This does not bode well for the Republicans in the state. Silly thoughts? Maybe just the effect of the sun.

Thought two: The state owns only fifteen percent of the land that the federal government calls the State of Nevada. Democrat controlled federal government is continually putting more land of the state out of the reach of the residents of Nevada. Some define this as a land grab.
My sun baked mind turns to a more sinister thought. By designating ever-increasing parts of the state as national monuments, habitat for endanger species, etc. under the guise of protection of wonders of nature, the land is made unavailable for growth. This growth might increase Republican influence on state and federal government. I know that this is a stretch but don’t forget the effect of the sun.

Thought three: The revival of the nuclear storage at Yucca Mountain is a “gotcha” shot at the state Democrats, in general, and ex-Senator Harry Reid specifically. Like or dislike Harry he was a very effective, if less than ethical, Senator. He seemed to feel it was acceptable to tell a fib from the Senate floor about Mitt Romney’s taxes if it helped elect a Democrat as president.
He was able to shut down Yucca Mountain. Well, Harry is gone and one must wait and see if the Republicans are astute enough to poke a finger in his good eye by opening the nuclear waste depository in the state of Nevada.
Those who wish to protest based on state sovereignty must understand that the transportation and storage of nuclear waste can be accomplished without touching any land belonging to the State of Nevada.

Thought four: Trying to understand the political power structure within the State of Nevada is a fun mental exercise as one walks through the 110 degrees of a Nevada afternoon. One must wonder how many states there are that a county commissioner has more power and prestige than a state legislator. This is definitely true of Nevada. This is evidenced by the fact that numerous elected members of state government are willing to give up their seats when they have a chance to be a Clark County Commissioner.

Thought five: There is a power struggle playing out within the Clark County School District. The elected members of the Board of Trustees hire a superintendent to run the schools. The only employee the Trustees supervise is the superintendent. One might believe that he would be subordinate to the Board of Trustees.
I believe everyone would agree that Board members should not interfere with the daily operation of the schools. If they are dissatisfied with what is happening in schools, they need to fire the superintendent.
It is the role of the Board to correct the misbehavior of their members. When the superintendent openly disciplines a trustee, it makes the entire Board look weak. It also causes one to wonder how much the superintendent values his job.
With the low graduation rate, poor test scores, the demand for reform, as well as the open conflict between the superintendent and various Trustees, one to begins to wonder how long the superintendent can survive.

When these thoughts run through one’s mind, it might explain why “Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the noon-day sun.”

Thought of the week…On cable TV they have a weather channel – 24 hours of weather. We had something like that where I grew up. We called it a window.
–Dan Spencer