Saving the Lowercase "g"
Hahn, Kate
THE LAST PAGE Hello, America. I am the lowercase “g.” After the holidays, I am usually a happy sort. Congress returns from vacation, and my humble, seventh-place self is thrust back into the...
...We have lost so much...
...Spread the message...
...Or, I used to...
...They are trying to pull something...
...Certainly, some Americans do let me tumble—in regional accents, heated business negotiations, army tanks...
...And who are these g-dropping “folks” our elected representatives assume will fall for their charade...
...But that does not make them as backward as the apostrophe that has replaced me...
...I bask...
...tomorrow, they rescue a nation sinking faster than alphabet noodles to the bottom of a soup bowl...
...If this continues, twenty years from now our Afghan War veterans will return to a country that ‘Lets freedom rin‘ and refers to our first president as ”Washin‘on...
...And it has spread...
...I am collateral damage in a political climate where those in charge suddenly fear any association with privilege...
...It began in the 2008 presidential race, when, in debates and stump speeches, candidates began to assert they were “thinkin’,” “talkin‘,” and “hopin.‘” At first I could not believe they were dropping me...
...And they never had today’s calculated political motivations behind them...
...Can we pull together to keep from losing the lowercase “g...
...And you...
...Politicians of all stripes are dropping me for a reason beyond simple weariness...
...So I call on you, America: make a national New Year’s resolution to save the lowercase “g...
...Today, they complete a word...
...Congress returns from vacation, and my humble, seventh-place self is thrust back into the spotlight by the reintroduction into the national debate of words such as “gun” and “gay...
...Not just for me, but as a symbol of hope for this great country...
...Or, “somethin...
...Because politicians are trying to drop you, too...
...By dropping me from the ends of words, politicians hope to seem more like regular people, or “folks,” as they are called now...
...Let politicians know you are paying attention...
...So with the New Year, I must face the truth...
...Lest you think your favorite politician is immune, please note that this is equal opportunity dropping from liberals and conservatives, latte drinkers and elk eaters, alcoholics and philanderers...
...I am still there at the beginnings of words, but not at the ends...
...I explained it away as fatigue due to a contentious battle for votes, but after the ballots were counted, it continued...
...And on this slippery slope—or “greasy grade”— how long can I last...
...Let politicians know: enunciation is not elitism...
...Something that could destroy me...
...Display a “g” sign in your front yard...
...The most dangerous outcome of all this is that politicians stop finishing anything at all...
...KATE HAHN...
...Me, of “gun” and “gay...
...Here’s hoping...
...So why should you, America, a country tired from war or waiting in line at the health clinic, care...
...Send politicians e-mails displaying rows of the “g...
...Or stop our nation’s economic decline...
...and I, not by choice, have come to denote something for which I never stood: elitism...
...It is a promise to get things done...
...Make sure it is lowercase, so there is no confusing it with sentimental boosterism for our former president...
...Politicians are not “folks,” but a small class of power elite...
...THE LAST PAGE Hello, America...
...Now I wonder if my somewhat self-centered attitude about the substance of congressional conversation blinded me to what was to come...
...If they think that all they have to do to get you to stop noticing what they are doing is change their speech patterns and pretend to be “you,” they look down on you considerably...
...Wear a “g” lapel pin...
...If they cannot complete a word, how can they end an eight-year conflict that is now simply shifting to another desert...
Vol. 57 • January 2010 • No. 1
