Ward on Words

Way back in 1976, the Bicentennial year of our nation, when we celebrated 200 years of American independence, Ronald Reagan introduced a very popular character into the national lexicon. The Welfare Queen. Reagan was one of the best raconteurs on the American political stage, perhaps rivaled only by Lincoln. When he spun his tale of fraud and waste, Reagan described "a woman in Chicago. She has 80 names, 30 addresses, 12 Social Security cards and is collecting veterans' benefits on four nonexisting deceased husbands.... Her tax-free cash income alone is over $150,000."* People were outraged! Outraged that one woman could do such harm to the system. According a February 14, 1976 NY Times article, Reagan's story was a bit of a stretch. The Queen in question was prosecuted by the Cook County State's Attorney's office for defrauding the system of about $8,000. But never mind. Reagan continued on for years with this story of destructive fraud, paintin...

We packed up the van and headed down to Springfield, Illinois to spend time with family over the Thanksgiving weekend.  My in-laws have a wonderful home that our children simply love to visit.  What makes a home?  The people who live in it, of course.  And certainly, the physical structure of a house is important.  Walls, roof, flooring, when put together in the right way, create a structure that provides shelter from the elements. For me, my home is my anchor.  It is the place where my life is lived, the place where my children are raised.  It is the place we, as a family, learn to love – and live – with each other.  When in Springfield last week, we drove by a home that has lost its mooring. It is called the Maisenbacher house - and it has recently become a homeless home.  By that, I mean the structure has been uprooted and now sits squarely in the middle of Jackson Street in downtown Springfield. Check it out: Through the illus...