People frequently think that funny people are smart people.
In fact, I personally used my sense of humor to launch my career. A group of lawyers assumed I was a quick study as well as a quick wit and promoted me.
I’m been a fan of comedians who not only ARE smarter than the rest of us (Stewart, Colbert, Oliver) but don’t get all sanctimonious about the fact.
So I’m not a big fan of Bill Maher as a general rule. But with this piece of “New Rules” he nailed it.
I knew giving everybody a trophy would come back and bite us in the ass.
It’s not often that I feel disillusioned the way I do tonight.
And I’m sure it’s no coincidence that I switched the TV from coverage of Donald Trump’s cancelled Chicago rally to this:
Then I opened up my computer, where I found a petition:
Sign on to TELL DONALD TRUMP NOT TO PREACH HATE!
Yup. That’ll work. That petition — that’ll stop The Donald.
Donald Trump, the Aryan Candidate. The man who is inciting mob violence. The man who knows exactly what he is doing when he talks about protesters. He is intentionally inciting violence.
And the Republican Party is going to nominate him for President.
Tomorrow morning, I will leave for work not completely accessorized. Not being much of a fashionista, that’s not normally a problem. But tomorrow I will stop to make sure I have the perfect accessory:
It’s Super Tuesday, and Virginia is in with the in crowd of mostly southern states holding their primaries.
Strangely, here in Virginia, it doesn’t feel much like there is an election coming up. TV ads are not constant, and while we’ve been getting a lot of campaign calls, there aren’t any more annoying calls than usual.
Most unusual is the almost complete lack of political signs. For the past 8 years, there have been far more political signs than voters around here. The absence of them, without any sort of ordinance prohibiting them, makes me think that everyone around me is secretly supporting Donald Dfrump.*
Anyway, I’m sure you’re dying to know: I’m voting for Hillary.
Philosophically, I’m really in Bernie’s camp. I’d love government-sponsored healthcare. I’d love to make college free. I would love to erase income inequality.
But I’m a pragmatist.
Even if Bernie could get elected (and I don’t agree with pundits that claim he can’t), well, I spent 10 years watching the sausage mill that is our government. And I simply don’t think Bernie can do it.
Hillary Clinton has my vote because I think she will be a good president. Because she’s smart and capable. Because she knows the system inside, outside and upside and downside.
Is she perfect? Is she my dream candidate? Nope. I was for Obama in 2008 (actually, I wanted him to be my candidate beginning in 2004).
I am not blind to the problems with her. I would rather a flawed candidate than one who is promising more than he can deliver.
And I think that Hillary can beat Trump or whichever GOP candidate is vomited out of a brokered convention.
So early tomorrow, I will cast my vote and get my sticker.
ElectionsMatter.Makeyourvoiceheard.
* If you haven’t seen John Oliver’s show on Donald Trump, get yourself some popcorn:
FiftyFourandAHalf 