Gail Collins, "My State’s Prettier Than Yours": What About Jill Abramson's Back?

Lydia, oh Lydia, that encyclopedia
Lydia, the queen of tattoo
On her back is the Battle of Waterloo
Beside it the Wreck of the Hesperus, too
And proudly above waves the red, white and blue
You can learn a lot from Lydia

- From "Lydia, The Tattooed Lady," sung by Groucho Marx in "At the Circus" (1939)

In a New York Times op-ed entitled "My State’s Prettier Than Yours" (http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/15/opinion/collins-my-states-prettier-than-yours.html?ref=opinion&_r=0), Gail Collins begins:

"Our topic for today is state tourism slogans. Perhaps that’s not what you had in mind. Perhaps you are from North Dakota ('Legendary') or North Carolina ('Beauty Amplified') and are already so self-satisfied you see no reason to worry about the subject at all."

Forgive me for being blunt, but who gives a rat's ass?

You feel the need to be cute, Gail? How about poking a little fun at the dismissal of Jill (the Tatooed Lady) Abramson as executive editor of The Times? Or is your own financially challenged newspaper off limits?

Will Abramson now seek to remove "the 'T' from the paper's logo tattooed on her back" (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/14/jill-abramson-dean-baquet-new-york-times_n_5325138.html)?

Oh, the suspense!

You will recall that Abramson is "famous" for having told us, "In my house growing up, The Times substituted for religion" (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/06/03/jill-abramsons-religion-slam-ny-times-substituted-for-religion-in-her-family.html). Unfortunately for Jill, she has now been tossed out of her alternative Garden of Eden. A bitter bite of apple to swallow, eh?

Not to worry, Jill! I've got your back!