February 6, 2009

Where did that come from?

By Bill Highlander
Editor

Our politicians (I refrain from calling them leaders, because none of them are doing very much of that) are faced with the task of fixing a bad economy and their paucity of action is making the problems worse each day. Party politics seem to be more important than decisive policy. More people out of work, more homes being foreclosed, schools facing layoffs and cuts in programs, etcetera. The country is going through the worse economy in recent memory; states and cities have budget shortfalls in millions and billions of dollars.

Here are a few idioms they should heed:

Cut to the chase. In action films, the exciting parts are always cars racing after another, slamming into sidewalk stands and keeping the bad guy from fleeing. So to get from the more mundane lead-ins and plot twists, the critical thing is to get straight to the action.

Fish or cut bait. A judge in 1853, exasperated with the delay of a lawyer in moving the case along, said the attorney should do something productively or stop trying. The Congress has dilly-dallied in stimulating the economy and the California legislature has delayed too long in passing a state budget.

Step up to the plate. In baseball, the batter takes a stance at home plate, prepared to hit the ball. But the phrase has greater meaning. It implies that one is ready to take action, to be responsible and accountable for getting the job done. We need those we elected to serve the public good to step up the plate, do what needs to be done and get things going again.