"SPIN... "Let's Twist Again Like We Did Last Summer!"

According to Merriam-Webster's dictionary, the word "spin," used as a noun, has four usages, the fourth being, a: "a usually ingenious twist" and/or b: "a special point of view, emphasis, or interpretation presented for the purpose of influencing opinion," i.e., "Put the most favorable spin on the findings." The best recognized purveyors of this particular definition have been and continue to be, I believe, a toss up between our mass media outlets and the politicians of all stripes who find it in their best interest to turn fact into fiction, following the mantra that we the people are either too stupid, too gullible, or too lazy to care or know the difference. "Why tell the truth when a lie will suffice?"

A good friend of mine from Tennessee sent to my attention a prime example of how a truth, which can be easily verified through a careful check of historical record, can be so twisted and so spun, so as to erase any facsimile to the true facts in evidence. Let's together examine the case of Remus Reid, the great, great uncle of the present majority leader of the U.S. Senate, Harry Reid...

Happy Harry

As told to me by my friend, a professional genealogy researcher in southern California, Judy Wallman, was conducting some personal research into her family heritage and discovered that Harry's great, great uncle, Remus Reid, was hanged unceremoniously for horse stealing and train robbery in Montana in 1889. Both Judy and Senator Reid share this common ancestor. Below is the only known photograph of the infamous Remus, standing on the gallows platform right before he was dispatched to the great horse breeding ranch in the sky.

On the backside of the photograph is printed the following description, "Remus Reid, horse thief , sent to Montana Territorial Prison 1885, escaped 1887, robbed the Montana Flyer six times. Caught by Pinkerton Detectives, convicted and hanged in 1889." Wishing to obtain perhaps some further insight into their common relative's life, Ms. Wallman sent an email to Senator Reid. Below is the reply received from Senator Reid's staff...

"Remus Reid was a famous cowboy in the Montana Territory. His business empire grew to include acquisitions of valuable equestrian assets and intimate dealings with the Montana railroad. Beginning in 1883, he devoted several years of his life to government service, finally taking leave to again resume dealings with the railroad. In 1887, he was a key player in a vital investigation run by the renowned Pinkerton Detective Agency. In 1889, Remus passed away during an important civic function held in his honor when the platform on which he was standing collapsed."

Revisiting Merriam-Webster's definition of spin, "a special point of view, emphasis, or interpretation for the purpose of influencing opinion." Senator Reid most certainly has elevated this definition into an art form, by himself elevating his great, great uncle Remus from scoundrel to saint in one brief paragraph of subterfuge. Perhaps as a personal aside, one can commiserate with those of us who have less than a glowing opinion of Senator Reid and had wished that Harry's descendancy had terminated with the final and abrupt decendancy of his uncle. But, alas, that is not the case and we are saddled, if you will, with the descendant of a horse thief who himself is a latter-day thief who would have you believe that your money is his money, and can spin it so you, yourself, actually come to entertain that pronouncement as fact.

So, the next time one of these talking media heads or wily politicians tells you that the sun rises in the west and sets in the east, you may wish to pause for a moment or two and give that some further deliberation...unless you happen to be of the opinion that horse manure is best consumed with a pinch of sugar and a cup of milk. Spin that!