Safire Watch (continued)

[Bapopik at AOL.COM]

   William Safire plagiarizes the OED once again.
   In this week's "On Language" column, he mentions two quotations in discussing "sidekick."  Both can be found in the OED.  Safire never mentions the OED.
   One quotation from O. Henry ("Billy was my _side-kicker_ in New York") Safire identifies as 1904.  The OED has 1903.  Also, in the OED, the term does not have italics.
   He can't even plagiarize correctly!
   Safire takes another dig at the family Bush (yes, politics in a Language column) by stating that Bush the Elder liked to quote Woody Allen as saying "Ninety percent of success is showing up."  No Bush citations are provided.
   Safire called Woody Allen, who says he said "80%."  Safire doesn't reveal that this "80%" is nothing new.  Even the awful ENCARTA BOOK OF QUOTATIONS (2000) has "Eighty percent of success is showing up."
   Most troubling, of course, is that Safire's assistant came on the list, got a citation from Fred Shapiro, and has used it in this week's column.  His assistant won't even respond to me about joining the ADS for free.
   Again, I ask Elizabeth Phillips to join the ADS for free.  Again, I ask her correct the errors that William Safire made of my work.  She owes it to me and to this organization.
   She used us!
   I demand (as I have for a mere NINE YEARS now) Safire to respond.