Month: February 2024

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Nepo kids, a perfect term by the way, are the children of famous people who, supposedly of their own accord, also obtain a modicum of success in some famous person profession. There is some, not totally unwarranted, suspicion that these kids had a leg up in their climb to success. Well, the Huffington Post recently highlighted the struggles that many of these Nepo kids had when they matured. Many were financially abandoned by their parents and forced to get jobs. You heard that right jobs. Think about it. Just remember to have a hanky near you as the stories of their travails are heart rendering. Just in case you missed the link here it is again — Nepo kids. (Hint, please read the link)

I found myself laughing over this pathetic attempt to make these people stories even remotely like a real person’s struggle. The first story shows how really difficult these kids have it. Dakota Johnson had to ask her mother for money instead of her father after he cut her off financially. That was her big problem. I mean it sounds like Hell, I know. I am not sure how the poor thing survived.

Then there is the story of Jamie Lee Curtis. She was cut out of her father’s will which was pretty shabby if you were a 18 year old girl but she was 52 years old when her father died. I think she had plenty of time to milk her parent’s fame and fortune in her rise to the top. Tori Spelling also had will problems. Her take was only $800,000. What an insult, if I would have been her I wouldn’t even have bothered to collect it.

Then they talk about Prince Harry and this is when I started laughing uncontrollably. They are trying to say that that idiot’s climb to corporate power and a luxury home in one of the poshest, if not the poshest, towns in Southern California is the result of his talent and not that his father is the King of England. I mean isn’t the whole structure of the monarchy based in nepotism? I mean if anyone deserves to be called a Nepo kid, Prince Harry is the definition.

But Kourtney Kardashian gives away the game when she said her Dad told her he would help her find a job. Well, yes, there it is — the leg up. You got a break that a normal person wouldn’t get. Their stories are clearly different to the struggles of less connected and wealthy people. Their complaints are incomprehensible to me.

This points to a bigger problem which is a blindness to what is actually happening to the rest of the world who aren’t as fortunate. It is disheartening and more than a little disingenuous. Some of these people might be genuinely talented and deserve their success. OK. But the world is full of talented people. Most of them don’t have the connections these people have and it matters.

I don’t blame them for using these advantages. I would have used them too if I were in their position. But, a little humility about your good fortune would help. To be helped by your parents is not a terrible thing. People do understand it and most people accept that people will use these connections to get ahead. Just say yeah I did have leg up and put your fucking struggles into perspective before opening your mouth.

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I try to ignore the Trump family as much as humanly possible but they just are too difficult to ignore. They are always out there doing something, saying things and making people crazy. Sometimes you just have to break down and comment on what they are doing, knowing full well that they love every moment of attention they are getting. Good or bad, attention is attention and, for some reason, the Trump family love getting it and I apologize now for giving it to them. Forgive me but I must comment about something Trumpish.

The Trump men love to appraise women’s looks and then give their usually unflattering appraisal particularly if the woman is a political opponent (see Donald Trumps thoughts on Rosie O’Donnell and Carly Fiorina if you need some examples). Trump’s namesake Donald jr. got into the act recently with his unkind comparison of Michelle Obama to a football linebacker.

Oddly, he comments that this is a joke which was a lame way of trying to protect himself from criticism that he knew would be heading his way. He was joking. Ha ha. Right. Got it. Though I have to wonder would if his wife or sister would think it was funny to be compared to a linebacker? If he is just being funny that is. I am sure they would get the joke, right? They know his sense of humor best after all.

It’s the type of joke you would expect from a 12 year old boy trying to impress his friends by making fun of the smartest girl in the class. It is mean-spirited joke. The interesting thing for me, is that it was more important for Donald jr. to amuse his juvenile friends than to be a decent human being. He relishes in the hurtful nature of the joke.

You would think that the son of man who is running for president would understand this and not post this type of joke on social media. Of course, he is free to post whatever he damn well pleases, that he can’t discern what is appropriate and inappropriate is the problem. In Donald jr.’s mind, it is perfectly OK to publicly demean a woman’s looks.

That neither Trump seems worried about that is concerning.

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The two parties seem intent on nominating incredibly unpopular people as their candidates for president. For the Trump Republicans, this is at least understandable. They want revenge and there is some passion there to get it. The Democrats, on the other hand, just can’t be bothered to come up with someone better than Biden. It’s too dangerous. Let’s stick with a known winner. Don’t rock the boat, everything is fine. Shut up and get in line seems to be the campaign slogan.

It’s not even that I dislike Biden. I don’t. I just don’t think he is the leader for this particular moment and, to say, we don’t have anything better is depressing. In this whole vast country of 330 million plus people, we can’t come up with an alternate to Joe Biden? If this is true, then the Democrats are in deep trouble. If all you got is Joe Biden, then well, the future is rather bleak.

And, I really hate to have to say this, because it should be obvious but, for some reason, no one seems to care, Biden is polling badly against Trump. Let’s think about this for a moment. Between two very unpopular candidates, Biden is getting out polled by Donald Trump. Millions of people, forced with a terrible choice between two candidates they don’t like, are choosing Trump. Trump the insurrectionist, the serial liar, the hawker of tennis shoes, the butt of comedians jokes for all the stupid things he says, this man is out polling Joe Biden.

If Biden was polling better against Trump, I would say right Joe is the answer. But he isn’t. Then I think, who am I to argue with the experts who gave us President Hillary Clinton. They have a proven record of success, maybe they are seeing something that I just can’t see. I should just relax, leave it to the experts. They know what they are doing. Right?

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I am about to confess something horrible about myself. I am warning you in case you want to opt out of further reading. I totally understand. Nobody likes to hear people’s confessions. Oh you think it will be fun at first, hearing people’s deepest darkest secrets but I am pretty sure it turns in to repetitive stories about self abuse on lonely Saturday nights and deliberately not ringing up an item at the self check out at the grocery store. So, believe me I understand. 

Any way my confession. Bob and I are looking into pre-paying our funerals because, well, I am told it is the right thing to do. I agree in principle but I am finding myself really reluctant to commit. It isn’t fear about talking about death either which would be a legitimate reason for avoiding the purchase. I, in fact, researched the costs with three different companies and talked in more depth with one woman. 

No, it isn’t fear. It is greed. Every time I think about paying for my funeral I think why I am paying for this? Shouldn’t my heirs? I mean I am giving them money, the least they can do is pay for my funeral. I would much rather they take it out of their cut from my will than for me to give up the money now when I can be buying expensive cocktails at overpriced restaurants.

Furthermore, what do I care about disposing of my body. I mean. Shit. I am dead. Do I have to do everything? Do what ever you want with my body but really why should I spend the precious time I have left figuring that out. Fuck it. All I can say is – if you can have some fun with my dead body, have at it as nothing would please me more than knowing that my body came in handy for a few practical jokes. Otherwise, who cares and why should I be the one to do something about it? What are they going do about if I don’t, I will be dead. 

I can’t get the proper motivation to do anything about it. I know this sounds terrible. The reoccurring explanation for pre-planning is do you want your loved ones, who are in mourning, to figure this all out during this really sad, possibly traumatic, moment in their life and, again, I am sorry to say, yeah why not. I mean their day has already been ruined with my death. Why should I ruin my day too by paying for it. Besides, planning my funeral might give them an opportunity to take their minds off the large empty void my absence will cause in their lives and focus on something really important — getting me in the ground so they can go out and spend whatever is left of my 401K. And, since I am already making confessions and this make me even a worse person, I am genuinely planning to have no money left when I leave this mortal coil. So I will be sticking my heirs with the full funeral costs out of their pocket book. Sorry heirs.

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My nickname among my friends in high school was Space King which was due to the likely experience of finding me high anytime you encountered me. I am surprised that I even graduated given the minimal amount of time I put into my studies. My parents were confused too as my fairly poor grades did not reflect all the time I put in at the public library. I think it was their sly way of letting me know they knew what was really going on. I really think my mother was deliberately trying to annoy when she asked me return her library books because that meant I had to actually go to the library.

Despite fully embracing drug taking, I never wanted to be known as a drug dealer. I avoided crossing this particular line. I might sell a joint or two as a friendly gesture but a joint or two was not a drug dealer. I never got into the habit of buying large quantities of pot so that I could sell the excess. Anyone who sold large quantities pretty quickly slipped into paranoia about who they were selling to. This was a different time and if the cops found even a joint on you, they could send you to prison for a long long time. Good friends could narc you out, particularly if the cops had found any drugs on them. The extra money never seemed worth the trouble to me.

But mostly I was interested in my reputation. I had political ambitions in my youth. If I sold dope, I knew some asshole would remember my ill-spent youth and put the kibosh on my political career. I don’t know why I thought that this would protect my image. I mean people didn’t call me Space King for nothing.

Any way, I kind of reformed when I went to college. I reduce my drug taking to an occasional puff of marijuana and I began to study because I realized that being a pot head was going to limit my options. I was a new man. Unfortunately my reputation preceded me. I was seating in the college library actually studying for an exam when a woman I went to high school with approached me. This was a woman who I barely knew. I don’t think we said two words together the whole four years of high school. I thought it was odd but maybe she thought we attended a small high school and we were at a large university now, maybe she was looking for a friendly face. Boy was I wrong. She pretty quickly explained she had a big test tomorrow and needed some speed and wanted to know if could sell her some.

I was devastated. All that time I sacrificed making extra money was for nothing. Despite everything, I still had a reputation of being a dealer. I tried to be mad at her but I just ended up laughing. She explained that everyone knew I was big dope taker in high school and she just assumed that I would still know how to get them. She told me she would cross me off her list as possible speed suppliers. I was eternally grateful for her consideration but I fear the damage was done. I guess you can take the Space King out of the opium den but you can’t take the opium den out of the Space King. That is also is when I decided my political career was finished. The Democratic Party has never recovered from this loss but I did save them the awkward press conference when I would admit to being Space King.

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Tom Cotton repeatedly asked TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew whether he was Chinese and/or a Chinese Commie. Chew should be complimented for his remarkable restraint when faced with such monumental stupidity and/or rudeness. Mr. Chew told Cotten numerous times that he was from Singapore, not China and not a Communist.

When someone repeatedly asks something, there is a suspicion that the Senator is setting a trap for the person. Giving his prey several chances to admit the truth and when he doesn’t, springing into action with evidence that Chew was both Chinese and a Commie. This did not happen, so all Cotton discovered was that Chew was from Singapore and not a Communist. All facts that were known before Chew sat down for the hearing.  

I first thought what an idiot but, after viewing the video, I realized Cotton was trying to connect Chew and TikTok to China and Communism without having to actually provide any facts that proves his point. Cotton will say he was just asking questions, that he in no way was saying that Chew was a Chinese Communist, he was just verifying whether this was indeed true. So without actually saying that Chew was a Chinese Commie, Cotton gets to paint Chew as a Chinese Communist because why would a US Senator ask about that unless Chew was a Chinese Commie. Cotton’s mission accomplished.

Cotton then highlighted how Chew’s views on Chinese political issues didn’t match Cotton’s which then, especially if the person is Asian, makes that person a potential Chinese Commie even if that person is a Singaporean businessman. Now I am not saying that Chew’s position are particularly brave but remember he is a businessman doing business with China. He needs to be careful how he addresses these issues. I doubt that Chew’s position on these issues are that different from any other Western business person working in China. Indeed, I would expect that Cotton would pursue this line of questioning anytime he had an opportunity to question someone.

So what did we learn from Cotton’s aggressive grilling of Chew — that Chew is not a Chinese Communist and the Chinese government is a dictatorship that Chew won’t criticize in a manner that would make Cotton happy. None of this is exactly new information but thank you Sen Cotton for confirming what we already knew while also subtly undermining Chew’s reputation in the process.

This is sad because there were legitimate questions about China and TikTok. Maybe Cotton’s colleagues addressed them with Chew in their questioning. But, of course, none of that was reported on because the exciting news was Cotton trying to get Chew to admit being a Chinese Commie.

I can’t help but to be reminded of Joe McCarthy badgering his witnesses about being Commies. For most Americans this is a bad look but, unfortunately, for ambitious Republicans it is a way to get seen by the constituencies that matter in the GOP. They want to see people who will take on the Chinese Communists head on so Cotton did everything he needed to show them he is their man and that is all that matters.