[Vision2020] Molly Ivins Tribute

[Tom Hansen]

>From "Creators: A Syndicate of Talent" at www.Creators.com -

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Molly Ivins Tribute

MOLLY IVINS BEGAN WRITING HER SYNDICATED COLUMN FOR CREATORS SYNDICATE IN
1992. ANTHONY ZURCHER IS A CREATORS SYNDICATE EDITOR BASED IN AUSTIN, TEXAS,
AND HE HAS BEEN MOLLY'S EDITOR AND FRIEND FOR MANY YEARS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR
ATTENTION. -- CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC. 

MOLLY IVINS TRIBUTE
BY ANTHONY ZURCHER

Goodbye, Molly I. 

Molly Ivins is gone, and her words will never grace these pages again -- for
this, we will mourn. But Molly wasn't the type of woman who would want us to
grieve. More likely, she'd say something like, "Hang in there, keep fightin'
for freedom, raise more hell, and don't forget to laugh, too."

If there was one thing Molly wanted us to understand, it's that the world of
politics is absurd. Since we can't cry, we might as well laugh. And in case
we ever forgot, Molly would remind us, several times a week, in her own
unique style.

Shortly after becoming editor of Molly Ivins' syndicated column, I learned
one of my most important jobs was to tell her newspaper clients that, yes,
Molly meant to write it that way. We called her linguistic peculiarities
"Molly-isms." Administration officials were "Bushies," government was in
fact spelled "guvment," business was "bidness." And if someone was "madder
than a peach orchard boar," well, he was quite mad indeed. 

Of course, having grown up in Texas, all of this made sense to me. But to
newspaper editors in Seattle, Chicago, Detroit and beyond -- Yankee land, as
Molly would say -- her folksy language could be a mystery. "That's just
Molly being Molly," I would explain and leave it at that.

But there was more to Molly Ivins than insightful political commentary
packaged in an aw-shucks Southern charm. In the coming days, much will be
made of Molly's contributions to the liberal cause, how important she was as
an authentic female voice on opinion pages across the country, her
passionate and eloquent defense of the poorest and the weakest among us
against the corruption of the most powerful, and the joy she took in
celebrating the uniqueness of American culture -- and all of this is true.
But more than that, Molly Ivins was a woman who loved and cared deeply for
the world around her. And her warm and generous spirit was apparent in all
her words and deeds.

Molly's work was truly her passion. 
She would regularly turn down lucrative speaking engagements to give
rally-the-troops speeches at liberalism's loneliest outposts. And when she
did rub elbows with the highfalutin' well-to-do, the encounter would
invariably end up as comedic grist in future columns.

For a woman who made a profession of offering her opinion to others, Molly
was remarkably humble. She was known for hosting unforgettable parties at
her Austin home, which would feature rollicking political discussions, and
impromptu poetry recitals and satirical songs. At one such event, I noticed
her dining table was littered with various awards and distinguished speaker
plaques, put to use as trivets for steaming plates of tamales, chili and
fajita meat. When I called this to her attention, Molly matter-of-factly
replied, "Well, what else am I going to do with 'em?"

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of Molly's life is the love she
engendered from her legions of fans. If Molly missed a column for any
reason, her newspapers would hear about it the next day. As word of Molly's
illness spread, the letters, cards, e-mails and gifts poured in.

Even as Molly fought her last battle with cancer, she continued to make
public appearances. When she was too weak to write, she dictated her final
two columns. Although her body was failing, she still had so much to say.
Last fall, before an audience at the University of Texas, her voice began as
barely a whisper. But as she went on, she drew strength from the
standing-room-only crowd until, at the end of the hour, she was forcefully
imploring the students to get involved and make a difference. As Molly once
wrote, "Politics is not a picture on a wall or a television sitcom that you
can decide you don't much care for."

For me, Molly's greatest words of wisdom came with three children's books
she gave my son when he was born. In her inimitable way, she captured the
spirit of each in one-sentence inscriptions. In "Alice in Wonderland," she
offered, "Here's to six impossible things before breakfast." For "The Wind
in the Willows," it was, "May you have Toad's zest for life." And in "The
Little Prince," she wrote, "May your heart always see clearly."

Like the Little Prince, Molly Ivins has left us for a journey of her own.
But while she was here, her heart never failed to see clear and true -- and
for that, we can all be grateful.

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Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen
Moscow, Idaho

"One kind that makes us chuckle about our foibles and our shared humanity --
like what Garrison Keillor does. The other kind holds people up to public
contempt and ridicule -- that's what I do. Satire is traditionally the
weapon of the powerless against the powerful. I only aim at the powerful.
When satire is aimed at the powerless, it is not only cruel -- it's vulgar."

- Molly Ivins