This Keith Henderson hagiography omits a few relevant points of contention.

Earlier this week, the Collected Works of Tom May's senior hagiographer considered the tenure of Keith Henderson as Floyd County Prosecutor. But first, noting that a "hard" g is preferred, but a "soft" g is allowable, Shane's Excellent New Words explains the meaning of hagiography (from March 9, 2016).

1. the writing of the lives of the saints
2. biography of the saints
3. any biography that idealizes or idolizes its subject

Read it for yourself.

MOSSWORDS: Henderson 'still passionate about justice', by Dale Moss

NEW ALBANY — Keith Henderson scanned headlines a few weeks ago. One stuck out.

David Camm's lawsuit against the state had been dismissed.

Swell news for Henderson, of course. As Floyd County's prosecutor, he represented Indiana in pursuing justice for the murders of Camm's wife and two children in 2000. After two murder convictions — one won by Henderson — and 13 years in prison, Camm was found not guilty in a third trial ...

Moss proceeds with the hagiography, and all that can be said about this mellifluous act of selective memory is that he's paid to produce hagiography because hagiography is what Bill Hanson's regime wants to spoon-feed its readers. No offense to Moss, so merely allow me to suggest there's a subtle but noticeable bias in the opening extract.

Granted, it's a fool's errand to speak dispassionately and rationally about the Camm murders. Extreme passions on all sides will remain inflamed for the rest of our lives, and probably the lives of generations to follow. Yet, as this pertains to Henderson as prosecutor, my personal view is unaltered.

If we "the people," operating with Henderson riding point (and before him, Faith), couldn't prosecute David Camm legally according to the accepted rules of engagement, then we screwed up. The task was to prosecute him legally, or let him go. Our prosecutors erred not once, but twice.

That's damning, when you stop to think about it, and Moss blithely waves away these concerns in his eagerness to pay tribute. I'm not entirely convinced, and back in August of 2016, one of the prosecutor's fellow Republicans wasn't, either.

It's worth revisiting his words, because even in the unlikely instance that the Camm affair was Henderson's only linked series of mistakes (tactics, book deals, expenses slush) in 16 years, they're mighty big ones -- and hagiography shouldn't blind us to this fact.

OAKLEY: Prosecutor ethics violation finding should serve as a wake-up call, by Matt Oakley (guest columnist at CNHI Court Avenue)

The Indiana Supreme Court hearing officer recently issued his report in the pending disciplinary action against Floyd County Prosecutor Keith Henderson. After a lengthy trial on the matter, the hearing officer found that Mr. Henderson had a personal interest (the book deal) while he was still representing the State, a conflict of interest and an ethical violation. A separate complaint also alleged Mr. Henderson made “material statements that were false, dishonest, and Fraudulent” when he submitted invoices for his personal attorney to defend him from ethics charges from this private book deal.

The findings of the report are not just an indictment against our prosecutor but also an indictment of the process of spending taxpayer money in Floyd County. It is often easier to ignore embarrassing problems like this rather than to address the situation, but burying our heads in the sand won’t fix the problem ...

... Next, when inappropriate claims get paid even under the rights process, we should try and rectify the situation immediately. Although it should have happened in 2012, I will ask for a vote to request Mr. Henderson to pay back the $27,539 Floyd County paid to his private attorney for his ethics investigation. The Ethics Commission also alleged that Mr. Henderson’s ethical violations resulted in a delay in three years of the prosecution of David Camm and more than $225,000 in excess costs and expenses to Floyd County. Inaction is not an option unless we want to repeat this unfortunate scenario.

SHANE'S EXCELLENT NEW WORDS: Hagiography.

Welcome to another installment of SHANE'S EXCELLENT NEW WORDS, a regular Wednesday feature at NA Confidential.

But why new words? Why not the old, familiar, comforting words?

It's because a healthy vocabulary isn't about trying to show rental property owners you're smarter than them. To the contrary, it's about selecting the right word and using it correctly, whatever one's pay grade or station in life.

Even municipal corporate attorneys are eligible for this enlightening expansion of personal horizons, and really, for those of us watching as the mayor ingloriously fails in his first-ever effort to influence a political outcome through his innate powers of syntax-mangling persuasion, all we really have is time on our hands -- moments enough for us to learn something.

This week, we examine a noun often deployed here: Hagiography, as previously defined here:

Hagiography, Gahan-style: "We blacktopped a lot of the alleys this year."

But reinforcement is a good thing, don't you think? The British Dictionary definition strikes me as more complete, so we'll use it.

hagiography

/ˌhæɡɪˈɒɡrəfɪ/

noun (pl) -phies

1. the writing of the lives of the saints
2. biography of the saints
3. any biography that idealizes or idolizes its subject

Derived Forms
hagiographic (ˌhæɡɪəˈɡræfɪk), hagiographical, adjective

The American pronunciation is slightly more clear.

hagiography
[hag-ee-og-ruh-fee, hey-jee-]

I prefer sticking with the hard "g" sound, although as you can see, the soft variant is allowable.

The origin of hagiography

1805-15; hagio- + -graphy

Word Origin and History for hagiography

"Writing of saints' lives," 1821, from Greek hagios "holy" (see hagiology ) + -graphy. Related: Hagiographic (1819); hagiographical (1580s); hagiographer (1650s).

I know; it's all Greek to them, isn't it? Here are three sample sentences.

NA Confidential is a refreshing counterweight to massed volumes of Gahan hagiography, as intended by the mayor's Disneyesque subalterns as proof of his unerring political instincts.

Most of the tributes to Peyton Manning are little more than hagiography.

Warren seeks a hagiographer, but a writer with blinders of this magnitude simply cannot be located hereabouts.

Peyton Manning: "That dopey grin that’s sold countless pizzas."

Hagiography? But Manning isn't an old hag -- he's a football player!

Oh, dear.

This looks like a case for SHANE'S EXCELLENT NEW WORDS, coming on Wednesday. In the meantime, I found a fellow cynic. I'm always happy when this happens.

Peyton Manning retires – and ends the world's most exhausting hagiography, by Dave Schilling (The Guardian)

... The Sheriff is gone, but is he really gone? Sundays will still be littered with his adverts for Nationwide, Papa Johns, and surely Budweiser at some point. He’ll pop up on Saturday Night Live once or twice, donning a funny wig or tripping on a banana peel at an inopportune moment. Phil Simms will call a rookie quarterback “a young Peyton” or compare Brock Osweiler’s mediocre game management to his predecessor’s.

Chris Morris canonizes Warren Nash. Somewhere, a dog barks.

Has anyone else noticed that while Morris routinely fawns over humans -- especially males, particularly his elders -- he invariably reacts harshly to differing ideas?

A life spent in the public eye: Warren Nash marks 50 years in politics, by Chris Morris (Hagiography Today, Tomorrow and Forever)

... Four years later, he lost his bid for re-election, beaten in a landslide by Republican Bob Real by 4,501 votes.

Hagiography: In quintessence.

A very nice bar, and not high at all. It's the 3rd and Main in Aurora IN

Merely an observation, and no reflection on disagreements (and agreements) now floated downriver; neither of us appears to be going anywhere, and relations have been good. I'm only trying to recall a local elected official in my memory capable of inspiring sheer, pubescent swooning in the manner that Rep. Clere manages. It is a strange and periodically chilling phenomenon, and we've noted past examples in comments sections and letters to the editor. The following dichotomy is perhaps the clearest instance to date.

First, the newspaper's Chris Morris, hardly a neutral figure in such matters, and perennially prone to fawning in proximity to his elders -- except that Morris is chronologically older than Clere. Still, he manages to keep it somewhat in check.

CHEERS

... To Indiana State Rep. Ed Clere, a Republican, who said his party has become a stumbling block to extending health care for low-income Hoosiers.

States were given the option to expand Medicaid coverage under the Affordable Care Act, and Indiana Gov. Mike Pence and Republican leadership decided not to do so. While most elected officials go along with their party leadership on almost every big issue, Clere stood up and called state Republicans out on this important issue.

It shows that he is standing on his own principles and is doing what he thinks is right, instead of rubber-stamping the Republican talking points.

— Chris Morris, Assistant Editor

Fair enough. The dullard Pence and Indiana's GOP leadership have been a disgrace, and I'd taken note of Rep. Clere's comment, too. I hadn't gotten around to doing anything with it, primarily because I wanted to do some further research first, and time has been elusive lately.

Fast forward a week, and then this:

CHEERS

... to the Cheers by Assistant Editor Chris Morris that appeared in the Nov. 2-3 News and Tribune.

We need more politicians like Ed Clere. As a matter of fact, we need more citizens like Ed Clere. As Chris stated, while most elected officials go along with their party leadership on every big issue, Ed stands on his own principles and says and does what he thinks is right. Ed uses common sense when forming and explaining his principles. What a concept. We should all learn from Ed.

I have known Ed for several years. He has always exhibited the finest qualities. First, Ed is always a gentleman, polite and courteous no matter to whom he is speaking; second, he is always fair and ready to discuss any topic, give his opinion and listen to and consider mine; third, he is always willing to volunteer his time for whatever is needed, whether it be to coach a soccer team or sell ears of corn at Harvest Homecoming; fourth, he is everywhere, whether it be at a state event in Indianapolis, a local fundraiser sponsored by philanthropic groups or at our local farmers market shopping for his family; fifth, he is an excellent role model for our youth.

The bottom line is we need more Ed Cleres in this world. So, thanks Ed, for setting the bar so high. Too bad most of us will never reach that level. I am honored to have you as a friend and will never refer to you as a politician.

— Debbie Webb, New Albany

That's just plain weird, and I'd like to add than many of us set the bar quite high -- but never so high that you can't see over it when occupying your favorite bar stool.

Some things go beyond politics, right?

Hagiography.

hag·i·og·ra·phy
hægiˈɒgrəfi, ˌheɪdʒi-/ [hag-ee-og-ruh-fee, hey-jee-]

–noun, plural -phies.

the writing and critical study of the lives of the saints; hagiology.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Origin:
1805–15; hagio- + -graphy

—Related forms
hag·i·o·graph·ic  /ˌhægiəˈgræfɪk, ˌheɪdʒi-/
[hag-ee-uh-graf-ik, hey-jee-]
hag·i·o·graph·i·cal, adjective