Since this is a blog and not a cocktail party with polite company I can talk about things like religion and politics and since it is my blog I can talk about my religion and my politics if I choose to exercise my right to do so. And tonight just so happens to be one of those very rare nights where I will exercise said right.
Just so you know in advance this is a fairly long-winded blog, but hey, I never claimed to be Hemingway.
I recently received an e-mail concerning how I chose the name of my blog. The writer of the e-mail was convinced I was a Jimmy Buffet fan and she was probably thinking at some point I was going to extoll the virtues of listening to parrothead music. For those of you who don’t know, Jimmy Buffet has a song named Fins. The song lyrics say, “you got fins to the left, fins to the right, and you’re the only bait in town.” Poor, silly girl. I only listen to Buffet in very small doses and I’m usually drunk at an outdoor summer party when I do.
So naturally the question is if the name is not derived from the song then where does it come from? Well, as told in the book of Genesis having the right to name something is a fairly serious matter. One of the first duties Adam was given was to name all of the animals on Earth. This was considered a big deal since it essentially gave Adam legal title to all of the animals on Earth. Reputable theologians do not describe this passage of Genesis in this manner, but keep in mind, most reputable theologians don’t know how to party worth a damn and that’s why you always come back to me. I realize I still haven’t answered the question of the origin of the name of the blog, but I think it’s important for you to realize the naming of something is a fairly serious matter and since it is a fairly serious matter you should realize I would not name my blog after something as inane as a Jimmy Buffet song.
The name is actually derived from my very misunderstood political views. You see I live in a fairly conservative, middle-class, southern suburb. In this setting, I am usually considered to be a raving liberal lunatic (Finns To the Left). However, if you were to relocate me to the Kennedy compound for more than fifteen minutes they would consider me to be a conservative neo-fascist (Finns To the Right). Since I figured half of whatever I wrote would be misinterpreted I decided the name was apt, and hey, if I can get regular e-mails from female parrotheads then so much the better.
As far as my political views, the truth of the matter is I’m just a middle-of-the-road pragmatist who is trying to get by while leaving this world in a little bit better shape for his kids than he found it. I’m not an ideologue although I like using the word. I also like to use the word meritocracy although I don’t believe we live in one — so take that “no social skill Bill”! Just so you know I dislike all politicians. I think they’re all a bunch of liars and I think half of them are crooks (usually thieves). Keep in mind, I spent my formative years in Louisiana and I now live just outside of Memphis, TN so I can cite example after example. And now you know why I won’t be spending much time on here discussing politics. I’ve already shared most my thoughts on the topic in this paragraph.
And, oh yeah, the name could also derived from the Buffet song — just in case he wants to give me some kind of recognition or in case I get drunk at some party this summer.
Late.
Finns To the Left, Finns To the Right 