Friday, February 18, 2005

Speaking of Mr. Redundant... | by Jay

BGS reader Glass sends us this fun anecdote about one of our 'great names.'

You mentioned Frank Gaul. Well, my wife's middle name is Frances in honor of him. He is her great uncle. He was county treasurer in Cleveland for a long time. Here's a great quote from him in an article about another politician.

"Hagan's intellectual, tax-and-spend liberalism didn't sit well with the blue-collar voters whose support he needed to win the office of mayor.

That sentiment was captured in an often-quoted put-down of Hagan by then-Cuyahoga County Treasurer Frank Gaul. Hagan often referred to the French philosopher Albert Camus in his speeches. Camus, an existentialist, believed that life was essentially meaningless unless man infused his daily work with meaning.

'Most people in Cleveland think Camus is the whale at Sea World,' snorted Gaul."