Playing The Trump Card

Does anyone really think that The Donald has a chance in the presidential race? I gotta give the guy kudos though. He's got balls...He's for sure blunt, rough and no nonsense. The crap that comes out of his mouth is unbelievable but he says it like he thinks he sees it. And that's really the problem here-it's Donald's world and we just live in it according to him. Don't get me wrong-I like Trump. I think he's a likable character-and that's exactly what he is-a character.

But this time the stakes are high. Probably the highest he's ever had to endure and I'm not sure the world is ready for Donald to be in charge of us all. His recent comments about Mexico have illustrated that running the country is all together different than running a company. Like he can't just fire Greece-as much as he'd like to-and you certainly can't run a campaign that's based on bashing Mexico and a building a wall. You just can't fire Russia and the Middle East, that's not the way it works but I'm not sure Mr. Trump understands that.

What he will understand is the fallout of his thoughtless outbursts. NBC, Univision and now Macy's are all cutting ties with Trump. Do you think he's kicking himself for putting his foot in his mouth? I think not. I imagine Donald Trump loves being in the press regardless of whether it's for good or bad. A consummate showman, he probably believes he coined the phrase, "There is no such thing as bad publicity". But this isn't his boardroom anymore. This is a global boardroom and Trump doesn't get to make the rules. I doubt he would survive in an environment that he can't control completely.

I get why he's running though.

Trump thinks the world is based on "The Art of The Deal", and since he wrote the book, quite literally, his ego must lead him to conclude that he could be the Commander in Chief of the US simply because he never met a deal he couldn't manipulate to his advantage. At 69, Trump probably believes it's now or never and why not him? He's got the money, resources and time to make a run at it but that's about all it's going to be. A run-and at the rate he's going at today it's going to be over before it even started.

Yes Mr. Trump, this is the country of opportunity and if you want to run for President you have the freedom to do so! What you can't do is shoot your mouth off and make derogatory public statements about others without pissing off a nation. This time you aren't dealing with the likes of a Rosie O'Donnell that you can publicly shame and bully. It's not like you can tweet at Putin that he's a fat loser without becoming the biggest loser yourself.

This ain't no reality show, it's reality.

Papa Bear

There's something profouldly primal about a man who defends his daughter's honor. It's also quite admirable.

Former Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling took to social media yesterday to rant/campaign against some cyber bullies who, in my opinion, really deserved it. It all started when Schilling posted on his twitter page a heartfelt congrats to his daughter, who had just been accepted to college where she will pitch for their softball team.

 Innocent enough, right? In fact, I personally know about a million dads who proudly post to social media their children's accomplishments. What happened next set off an incredible series of events.

A group of idiots-for lack of a better term-decided it would be smart to post incredibly vile and threatening sexual things about Curt's daughter. Did I stress enough that the responses were incredibly vile, threatening and offensive? They made extremely poor judgements-like referencing Curt's "bloody sock" legacy and then referred to his daughters menstrual cycle and worse. 

Schilling explained that he expected some college boy responses to be like-"can't wait to party with her" and even "can't wait to date her." In his own words this is what happened:  

"In between a fight with Kevin Millar, congratulating Juan Pierre on a wonderful career (just hated facing him) and praying Josh Hamilton gets right, I started to see this sort of tweet.

And tweets with the word rape, bloody underwear and pretty much every other vulgar and defiling word you could likely fathom began to follow.

Now let me emphasize again. I was a jock my whole life. I played sports my whole life. Baseball since I was 5 until I retired at 41. I know clubhouses. I lived in a dorm. I get it. Guys will be guys. Guys will say dumb crap, often. But I can’t ever remember, drunk, in a clubhouse, with best friends, with anyone, ever speaking like this to someone…"

The gang mentality with these complete idiots continued throughout the day and Schilling took it upon himself to terminate the behavior. He posted his thoughts to his blog 38pitches and "outed" the two biggest offenders. 

“The Sports Guru”? Ya he’s a DJ named Adam Nagel (DJ is a bit strong since he’s on the air for 1 hour a week) on Brookdale Student Radio at Brookdale Community College. How do you think that place feels about this stud representing their school? You don’t think this isn’t going to be a nice compilation that will show up every single time this idiot is googled the rest of his life? What happens when a potential woman he’s after googles and reads this?

The other clown? He’s VP of the Theta Xi fraternity at Montclair State University. I gotta believe if Theta Xi is cool with a VP of one of their chapters acting like this I’d prefer to have no one I know in it.”

The repercussions have been sharp and swift. 

One idiot was a New York Yankees employee who has since been fired, and the other a college DJ who was immediately suspended from the college pending a disciplinary hearing. Both organizations affiliated with the perpetrators immediately distancing themselves from them citing a "zero tolerance policy". 

I have to ask, what the hell were they thinking? 

I'm not sure where these two came from but I can't understand how they thought their behavior was OK in any forum let alone a public one. Schilling himself warned in his post that "the real world will hold you accountable for your actions" and I for one am so VERY glad that Schilling did just that. 

Thru Rose Colored Glasses

It has come to my attention recently, or should I say every day for the past 6 months, that I cannot see a GARD DARN thing. It's awful, really to loose your eyesight, and I have a new found appreciation for eye sight, eye doctors, glasses, readers and everything having to do with seeing the world in front of me more clearly. I used to brag about my eyesight...

In my younger days I never needed an-eye sight-thing! Today I'm at the mercy of my specs. At first it was kinda fun. Things started to get a bit blurry so I would pick up a pair of "cheaters" in 1.0 strength and fool around with the fun "fashion accessory" aspect of actually wearing glasses. Soon enough, I needed something a bit stronger. 1.25 was my number for a couple of years. But now?? I am a steady 1.75 and now I've taken to wearing my prescription glasses all day. The longer I wear them the more I need them. What's next for me? 

The dreaded old lady glasses lanyard??

Oh the FASHION HORROR! 

The doctor tells me I am farsighted, with is funny because I can far away just fine. I can't read a thing in front of my face. Not a fricken thing. Seriously, my kids try to hide any text messages or postings that they do on their cell phones when they are near me and I have to laugh. I told them that there is no need to fret. There is no way in HELL I can see what they are doing because I CANT SEE!

The one on the right is how I need to see my text messages.

I guess I shouldn't really complain. I don't need my glasses to drive or to watch TV (unless I am on a Jet Blue flight watching a Real Housewives Marathon on Bravo-which I've recently discovered is much clearer with my prescription specs) I can see an Eagle pooping at the top of a tree miles away but damn if I can see the lady bug that landed on my knee clearly. This has also become a social media problem. While leisurely scanning my FB, Instagram or Twitter accounts, I may see something I want to post a comment on. Lo and behold, 75% of my comments made without my glasses contain spelling errors or a typo. This is unacceptable to the journalist inside me, yet it happens more than I would like. I liken it to commenting on social media while under the influence of alcohol.   

I think it may be time for contacts? Really? But I don't need them for far away, so they may not be an option. And forget Lasik surgery. That's for people who can't see my friend the Eagle up in the tree. I feel like I'm running out of options. Am I really going to be a slave to my glasses from here on out? 

If that's the case and I have to wear glasses for the rest of my life, I'm making sure I'm seeing everything through rose colored lenses. 

Little Lord Fauntleroy

Its been a royally crappy week bloggers, so I am ready for the weekend. 

This time it's Frack and believe me when I say that boy is pushing every button! Nothing I can't handle, but I forgot about this stage. I often wonder how the hell I made it through Frick?  Here's some humor to kick off the weekend and pray for me bloggers!  I need all the patience and grace I can get.

One night a teenage girl brought her new boyfriend home to meet her parents, and they were appalled by his appearance: leather jacket, motorcycle boots, tattoos and pierced nose.

Later, the parents pulled their daughter aside and confessed their concern. "Dear," said the mother diplomatically, "he doesn't seem very nice."

"Oh please, Mom," replied the daughter, "if he wasn't nice, why would he be doing 500 hours of community service?"

http://www.basicjokes.com/djoke.php?id=1120

A Cautionary Tale

So My Guy and I went to a fabulous fundraiser last night, located in the town next to ours. We had a great time, and despite the heat and high humidity, the party was a success. The foundation that the evening benefited is an organization that inspires kids and we really believe in the great work that they are doing.  So after we ate some fantastic food, drank some wine and listened and laughed at the entertainment and events of the evening (I won a pair of Hudson jeans in a raffle! So excited) My Guy and I began the short drive home.

We were driving down the darkened suburban windy roads, chatting about our fantastic evening, when our headlights revealed a car in the middle of the road, horizontally, the front end smashed into a pole with full front and side airbags deployed. The dark color of the car and the moonlight of the night were almost the perfect backdrop for the bright white airbags that outlined the driver of the car who was leaning on the driver side door with her head down.

My Guy immediately pulled over and got out as I reached for my cell phone to call 911. While I was explaining to the dispatcher the location of the accident, I could see the driver was standing, dazed and confused talking to my husband. She kept saying, "I have to go now. I need to find my cell phone and get home. I just want to go home." My Guy assured her that the blood streaming form her nose and forehead were not, "fine" as she kept repeating, and he said she could not drive her car in it's condition anyway. He asked her to please sit down and wait till the paramedics arrived.

She screamed at me, "NO, don't call the police. They are going to be SO mad at me," she said. "I need to go and find my friends." And with that, she began to cry. I almost felt bad for her. Like I had ratted her out or something, because we all knew that once she got some medical attention she was going to be in a bit of trouble.There was no doubt she had been drinking. As My Guy escorted us to a safe side of the road, I told her how lucky she was that she walked away with a few bumps and scrapes, but the poor thing kept repeating, "I just want to go home. Can I go home? Please don't call the cops."

She then walked over to the passenger side of the car, which was most definitely a point of impact judging by the huge dent in the rear door, and scurried around looking for her cell phone, which she found . She called her friend. She then handed the phone to My Guy and asked him to speak to her friend. It was then that the paramedics, fire truck and police arrived. They walked over to the driver, clearly the one in need because the white shirt she was wearing was bloodstained. The police asked us our names, and we explained that we were driving home and came upon this scene. The police officer, wrote our names down and told us we were free to leave, which we did, but I couldn't help but feel terrible for this stranger, who was scared and now alone with the paramedics.

I never even asked her name.

It really happened so fast, and she was so frightened that the "cops are going to be SO mad at me", that I felt like I had to almost agree with her. She was lucky, but was she? Had we not found her in the middle of the road, who knows what would have happened? My call to 911 was immediate. I wasn't even out of my car before I had placed the call and I think it was the right thing to do, so why do I feel like I did something wrong?

Even My Guy said on the ride home, maybe we should have driven her to the hospital ourselves, but we both know that was coming from a place of compassion. Maybe even because we have all been there, although we shouldn't be. I guess the real lesson for all of us is simple. It doesn't even need to be said at this point. It's really just a cautionary tale.

The Critical Thinker

Frack had another academic A-HA moment at our kitchen table yesterday, and I love it when that happens. See, I got an email on Wednesday from one of Frack's teachers that-let's just say-didn't make me want to shout up and down the street with pride. Having said that, Frack took it like a man and paid his penance. Yesterday was a gorgeous day and since Frack was home, I told him that I needed two solid hours of homework from him after he was done helping out around the house.

Frack was pissed. He was moaning and groaning and I think he might have even punched a wall on his way upstairs to retrieve his backpack. (oh no you didnnnt!!) When he came down stairs, we spread everything out on the kitchen table and I decided to help him study for a Biology test he had today. There was a hell of a lot of huffing and sighing, eye rolling, and 'tude flowing from the young man at the table, so I confronted him.Frack expressed his belief that Biology was "stupid" and you guessed it, "unnecessary for his future."

"I'm never going to use this in real life, mom." he complained. "It's a colossal waste of my time."

Probably, I think we've all thought this exact same thought when we might have been Frack's age. I'll guess I even said those exact same words to my beleaguered parents at some point in my adolescence. But the Gods of Academia must have been smiling down on me at that very moment because I unleashed this sage-like monologue about how academics is really about teaching critical thinking strategies. Since Frack will not be pursuing a career in medicine or science, (so he says) Biology, I opined, is a specific means to an end to train his mind to approach a subject, any subject, using critical thinking techniques.

I was brilliant and I was eloquent. I don't know what came over me. I used my own experience with politics. While I don't really claim to jump up and down when Bill O'Reilly is on TV, (My Liberal Guy watches political news programs often) I told Frack that I listen, because it's my responsibility to make informed decisions about what happen to our country. Frack was uncharacteristically riveted. It was just one of those teaching moments with my children that made me grateful for the opportunities that I received as a kid and took advantage of. After I was done imparting my wisdom, I left the house to do some errands. I told Frack I would return later and quiz him on his "Cell Transport and Cell Structure" studies.

When I came back, some 4 hours later, there was a different kid sitting at the kitchen counter. He was brilliant and eloquent. He was explaining methods of cellular transport to me like he was a Rhodes Scholar applying for a Biology grant, and he was DELIGHTING in his own knowledge. After Frack aced everything we had dinner and sat to relax. My Guy later showed us a pro-Obama YouTube video touting his achievements during his time in office. Frack, in his newly minted sponge-like desire for information, loved it. He started asking questions about politics, political parties and political ideologies. Never one to discuss politics in mixed company, I gently reminded Frack that what he had just seen was produced and released by our President, a President who is running for re-election in this election year.

A robust political debate ensued between My Guy and I and Frack soaked up every bit of it. He got a great education about all sides of the politics of an election and such. And just when I thought that My Guy had the advantage with Frack, Frack looked and me and said,

"Don't worry mom. I can use critical thinking to make my own decisions about partisan politics."

I freakin' love that kid....

Oblivious In The Bloggersphere

So it's turning out to be a Porn kinda week over here at The Daily Dandy, and if you read on you'll get what I mean.

One of us screwed up real bad. I'm talking about Boston based Barstool Sports blogger who got himself into quite a bru-ha-ha over something he posted on Barstoolsports.com. El Presidente, aka David Portnoy, last week posted and commented on pictures of My Tommy's 2 year old son, Benjamin, frolicking naked on the beach while on vacation in Costa Rica with his mom Giselle. The photos were of a naked Baby Ben's "privates" and his comments, considered both controversial and inappropriate, set off a firestorm that went from bad to worse for El Presidente and Barstool Sports.

Portnoy, who at first refused to remove the pictures because of complaints, argued that the pictures were all over the Internet and that he was just posting what was already out there. And that's exactly when his carefully constructed house of cards began to fall. "Babygate" as it has been dubbed, caused the fall out to start almost immediately. Portnoy, a regular contributor to WEEI's Dennis and Callahan radio sports show, was immediately banned from the radio station. WEEI's Vice President of programming, Jason Woolfe tweeted in response to caller's complaints:

“No we will not have portnoy on again. What he did was completely irresponsible. It’s not about whether he was allowed to do it or not. It’s about common decency. And he showed none.”

Then the Massachusetts State Police, under the direction of AG Martha Coakley's office, showed up at the door of his home and requested that he remove the pics from his site. According to Portnoy, he was told that it would be in his best interest to remove the pictures so that the complaints would stop deterring them from getting back to their real police work.

But the biggest blow of all came from none other than The King of All Media, Shock Jock Howard Stern who invited Portnoy to his radio show yesterday morning to discuss "Babygate". In Portnoy's own words,"an ironic twist of fate", Stern told Portnoy he had crossed the line.

"I have three daughters and I gotta tell you, Dave, I would never post a picture of a child and comment on their genitals, and I’m known for outrageous commentary,” Stern said on his syndicated Sirius XM radio show.

Stern also added:

“People said, ‘You must take this down, it’s kiddie porn,’ and I saw the picture and quite frankly, I do think it’s kiddie porn,” he said. “I don’t think you can put up a picture of a 2-year-old nude.”

Portnoy told the Boston Herald that he thought Stern would be in his corner and ridicule the mainstream media for their reaction, but was subjected to the exact opposite. Although he told Stern he was torn over removing the pics and felt like a "sell out", Pornoy still maintains he was within his rights to post the pictures, but admittedly was unprepared to wage this battle.

For me, I think that Portnoy made a common error that of us some bloggers make and that within the confines of our little domain, we rule all. Or so we think.

Do I think that Portnoy is a "kiddie pornographer"? Hell no.
Do I think that a bad joke turned super bad. Hell Yes.
Did Portnoy think something was funny when it really wasn't? Oh yes.

While The Daily Dandy has not the following nor the revenues that Barstool Sports has, the commitment is nonetheless similar. Heck, over here at Candy's Daily Dandy I am the Queen, and what I say goes.

I think that Portnoy's problem's stem from an over-inflated feeling of self importance within the Barstool Sports world. He forgot the golden rule. It's the first rule I learned in graduate school. "Journalists", if that's what we choose to call ourselves, must report responsibly or face the consequences. Period.

What do you think?

The Queen Of Quandary

I am the Queen of Quandary. Somehow, someway, I usually find myself backed into a difficult situation that I have no idea how to get out of. How did I get myself there? I usually try to make every one happy, which by now I should know, never works and usually ends up in a shi* storm.

I entered into that shi* storm today and here I am trying my best to climb out of it. What do you do when you try to fit a square peg into a round hole?? The quandary here, is that I offered a job to someone, who out of loyalty, squeezed me into their busy schedule. Then, just before the job was about to begin, I found someone who had no schedule constraints. Now what do I do???

I know that the original person was actually squeezing me in out of loyalty, and that the other person is perfect for the job and has no schedule conflicts. Here's where I FAIL as a person and an employer. I don't want to rumple any feathers, yet I don't need both people. Somebody has to go, and I feel terrible.

Long story short, I left it up to both players to figure it out, like a coward would do, and now I have a bigger shi* storm than when I started, and too many people to do a one man job. What the HELL is wrong with me? I've now got to fix this problem I created.

SO bloggers, you think you got the answer? What would you do?