What outrage! After all his years in civil service as mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Harry Baals is denied the honor of having a government building named after him:
Harry Baals is the runaway favorite in online voting to name the new building in Fort Wayne, about 120 miles northeast of Indianapolis. But Deputy Mayor Beth Malloy said that probably won't be enough to put the name of the city's longest-tenured mayor on the center.
The issue is pronunciation. The former mayor pronounced his last name "balls." His descendants have since changed it to "bales."
Supporters said it's unfair that the former mayor can't be recognized simply because his name makes some people snicker. But opponents fear that naming the center after Baals would make Fort Wayne the target of late-night television jokes.
Shocking, I know: Link
I think Fort Wayne can use all the publicity it can get (and it'll get about 15 minutes with that whopper of a claim-to-fame...)
Seriously, how thin skinned does a town have to be to worry about one or two cracks from late night comedians?
Of course I don't feel that sorry for the voters in the poll either. I suspect that many were voting for reasons other than Mayor Baals long term of service.
Anyone who thinks this whole kerfuffle is about a beloved mayor is wrong. Not that there was anything wrong with Mayor Baals- it's just that so few people are aware of his legacy! This is about people trying to get a laugh.
Yeah, when these parents named their child in the year 1886, they should have been able to predict the vulgar, clownish sensibilities of the people who would live almost 130 years later.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEyKFkkcHAc