THE BELL CURVE -- Joseph N. Bell

When a columnist is skipping the country on a three-week vacation and

needs to leave some work behind, the first place he looks is the clip

file. That’s where I stuff odds and ends with the vague feeling they are

worth following up. And finally they come to this: a few paragraphs in a

compendium of fragments.

Let’s start with the Rev. Robert Schuller, who holds forth at the

Crystal Cathedral. He phoned me a few weeks ago. Well, not exactly. His

recording phoned me, so you couldn’t say it was a two-way conversation.

The call came when I was sweating out some news from my family, and I

almost fell over my dachshund, Coco, rushing to the phone. And there was

the Rev. Bob.

He invited me to attend his church the following Sunday and offered up

a kind of preview of the attractions I’d enjoy. I don’t recall that he

mentioned God by name. Now, I take a pretty dim view of telemarketing. I

spend a good many moments that could be used a lot more productively

conjuring up tortures for the entrepreneurs who pay those voices on the

phone to harass me. In the case of the Rev. Bob, it came in a single

package.

I didn’t hang up, as I usually do, and I’m not sure why, especially

because I put telemarketing very high on my list of sins, which makes it

seem an odd sort of venue for pitching a church. I stayed on long enough

to be told to “bring a friend” when I come to the Crystal Cathedral. So

far, I haven’t decided on anyone, although I’m leaning toward a

psychiatrist friend who claims to be an atheist and clearly needs such

exposure.

* * *

A few weeks ago, a Corona del Mar High School senior named Josh Ludmir

brought off -- against considerable odds -- a Tolerance Day at the school

campus. Eight speakers, ranging from a Anti-Defamation League member to a

Buddhist monk, brought messages aimed at helping their listeners

recognize and eliminate personal prejudices. Workshops the following day

underscored these messages with personal interaction.

This was altogether commendable, and the school deserves credit for

supporting it and Ludmir does for making it happen. I would only like to

add two minor cavils. Tolerance didn’t extend to a gay and lesbian rights

group representative and a former skinhead who were dropped from the cast

of speakers. Maybe that was too much to expect from school authorities,

but it did somewhat muddy up the message.

The other cavil is my problem with the word “tolerance,” which has

become a universal buzz word to define a societal goal to be earnestly

pursued. That’s commendable, too, but I think we could do better. Look up

“tolerance.” Webster defines it as “the disposition to tolerate beliefs,

practices or habits differing from one’s own.” Then look up “tolerate,”

which is defined as “to bear up under, to endure; to allow or permit by

not preventing.” So tolerance is enduring and permitting beliefs that

differ from our own.

I’d like to carry that goal a step further. I tolerate tedious movies,

conversational bores, $10-million outfielders who don’t hit with men on

base and people who try to improve me without being asked. That seems to

fall short of the goal Tolerance Day was shooting for. If I was pressed

for a substitute for tolerance, the best word I can come up with is

respect. I can debate ideas and people I respect -- and draw from them --

a whole lot better than those I just tolerate. Without question, this is

a character flaw on my part, but I think the distinction is worth

considering.

* * *

Finally, we have the canonization of Rep. Christopher Cox (R-Newport

Beach), who a few weeks ago -- when his constituents were struggling with

rolling energy blackouts -- voted against price caps to rein in soaring

energy prices. It’s a matter of great curiosity to me how blithefully and

uncritically he sails through such votes. But the real paradox is the

tender treatment he receives in Newport-Mesa in light of his refusal to

take a substantial position or play an active role in helping to resolve

the most exacerbating and divisive local dispute in many years: the El

Toro airport.

His disappearance on El Toro seems to be OK with the Newport Beach

City Council. Councilman Gary Proctor told the Pilot recently: “We’re not

at a point where it would be appropriate for him to wade in.”

Councilwoman Norma Glover added that she is briefing Cox because “It’s

very important that he know what’s happening.”

If he ever picked up a local newspaper, it would be pretty clear to

him that what’s happening is that we’re getting smashed by the South

County people and their Great Park while Cox dithers on about private

ownership of an airport he doesn’t support. The only criticism I’ve heard

from local officials came from Newport Beach Councilman John Heffernan

who said: “Cox is right in the middle of this issue and district and has

no opinion. When is the last time he has spoken out on it?”

At least Cox has been consistent in avoiding the issue. When a local

delegation went to Washington recently to talk up the airport, Costa Mesa

Councilman Chris Steel -- a member of the group, as well as a constituent

of Cox -- said he was unable to pin down an appointment with Cox to

discuss El Toro’s future. I think this failure to connect had a great

deal more to do with Cox’s political concerns than Steel’s image problems

back home.

So with that thought, I’ll flee the country. My next dispatch will be

from the Normandy beachhead after I get home. My main concern at the

moment is whether to risk my vacation peace of mind by following the

Angels in the international Herald Tribune.

* JOSEPH N. BELL is a resident of Santa Ana Heights. His column

appears Thursdays.