After I，<br > the Deluge<br > hen I was a lad 1 did not serve a term as office boy to an<br >Wattorney s firm. It was one of a number of omissions. I did，<br >however， work for a while as a file clerk in a credit agency. Since<br >I was sixteen years old at the time and had been graduated from<br >high school， I knew a great deal and had opinions oll a variety of<br >subjects that 1 thought anyone else in the office would consider<br >it a privilege to hear. I also thought Ibat I discerned flaws in tile<br >way tile office was run. One fine day I was advised to keep a civil<br >tongue in my head. That meant "Be respectful to your elders，" or<br >less gently interpreted， "Shut up? Although I did not know the<br >word at the time (nobody did)， 1 priorflized my interests， even<br >as Jimmy Carter many years later suggested that the Democrats<br >prioritize their platform. Having a job was more highly priofitiTed<br >than not having a job. Shut up I did.<br > I now take a civil tongue to mean much more than that. Mere<br > politeness is part of it， though the temptation to place mere before<br > 3<br >