From a reader. Will someone please tell me if this is for real? Not that

anything surprises me any more in this particular zone. “From TheHill.com:

The 2003 hurricane season is here, and that means a whole new list of names

such as Larry, Sam and Wanda ready to make tropical-storm history. Although

Spanish and French names are included in this year’s lineup, among them Juan

and Claudette, which struck Texas last week, popular African American names,

like Keisha, Jamal and Deshawn, are nowhere to be found. Some black

lawmakers don’t seem to mind, but Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas) does.

“All racial groups should be represented,” said Lee. Hurricane names have

been too lily white for Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Texas). She says all

ethnic groups should be represented. The World Meteorological Organization

began naming tropical storms after women in 1953. That made sense to

scientists at the time who thought women and storms were both unpredictable.

After feminist groups protested, men’s names were added in 1979. The

National Weather Service says hurricane names are derived from languages

spoken in areas that border the Atlantic Ocean, where such storms occur.

Yet that doesn’t explain why Gaston, Ernesto and Cindy were chosen and

Antwon, Destiny and Latonya were passed over. Lee said she hoped in the

future the weather establishment ‘would try to be inclusive of African

American names.’ That could take a while. The current roster of hurricane

names isn’t due to be updated until 2007.” Pshaw. We snooker fans are

still waiting for a storm to be named after the immortal Hurricane Higgins.