One More for Media Morons

OK, I know good PR when I see it, and St. Patrick was a champ. The snakes bit: great. Shamrock = Trinity: inspired. Tear-jerking autobiography: splendid.

My own St. David, with his water-drinking, vegetarian monastery as a schtick, didn't have a hope in hell of competing. With the water drinking, it's a wonder he even made it with the Welsh.

But here's a note to broadcast journalists. Suppose you stick to calling it St. Patrick's Day. The native diminutive is Paddy. If you have some legitimate Irish descent, you're entitled to it. If not, you might want to consider that Paddy on the lips of a Yankee Protestant sounds a great deal like nigger, fag, wop or greaser.

In any case, the Welsh-born (cough) saint's nickname was never "Patty."

Imagine if we had a Nor'easter on St. Patty's Day. The mind reels.