Sophophobia

1995, July 24th: mary.elizabeth, sci.med.aids (Google group): From the Editor, 8:00am Washington insiders should note that the new Presidential Advisory Council is the Administration’s second effort to form an advisory group. When one of the Administration’s staffers reviewed the original list of committee nominees, the President was informed that two of the nominees had already died and one was close to death. When I discussed the original nominations with the staffer who ultimately decided to protect the White House from this gaffe, I recommended that he let the deceased nominees go through to illustrate the Executive Office’s lack of sensibility of and sensitivity to the reality of the AIDS pandemic. If my advice would have been taken, President Clinton could have excused himself on the basis of his sophophobia.

2001, December 11th: Robert Knowles, ok.general (Google group): BumbleFrank Goes on Bended Knee, 10:36pm Yeah, I’ve learned to downplay the “edgykashun” angle here. Especially since the vast majority of mine was obtained outside Oklahoma, where I might have been exposed to dangerous outside ideas. Fortunately, my experience in ‛Bama taught me to recognize the symptoms of sophophobia, so I have learned to adapt and only reveal my “credentials” to those similarly endowed. So, show me yours and I’ll show you mine.

“Justin, you don’t wanna mess with her,” the girl warned, “not only is she smart, she got 3 brothers who’ll kick the shit outa you once they get out the penitentiary. You’d better concentrate on your own case of sophophobia, Justin, and stop worryin whether Halle Jackson’s got a fear of sexual intercourse.”

A little-known fact is that one of the fastest growing phobias in modern America is ballistophobia — fear of bullets. Especially when they are fired directly at you! That fear is right up there with sophophobia — fear of learning. Today, a considerable number of school-age kids suffer terribly from this phobia.