 |
|||
|
Yesterday, the RP joined his friend — and Louisville’s most popular radio host — Terry Meiners on Terry’s afternoon drivetime program (WHAS 700 AM) to discuss his impossible journey through the World Series of Poker. Click here to listen to their funny and fascinating conversation
I said, yes. And I really do think you can divide the two major political parties into a patriarchal and matriarchal divide in how they approach problems and appeal to voters. Republicans are, as described above, the party more inclined to have a convention speaker accuse the competition of being “Girly men.” It’s crude, dated, and ham handed but also fills a need we all have for a strong sure father-figure. Ronald Reagan mastered this role in a way that Schwarzenegger only caricatured. By contrast, we Democrats are viewed as the more nurturing, compassionate, and patient party who “feels your pain” as Bill Clinton famously said. A banal statement that became famous because it so well symbolized a key difference between Clinton and his opponent; Democrats from Republicans. A conservative will tell you to quit whining and fix a personal problem yourself. A liberal will go on a long walk with you to help you talk through it. Both approaches have their excesses and extremes. But both parties, in my opinion, do have this primitive distinction between them at their core. Of course, the gender characterizations I make are outmoded and crude. But then again, that’s a very liberal thing to say.
Parents, like patriots, sacrifice. At our best we are role models for exemplary behavior in our children. But the other 100% of the time we are more of a mixed bag of admirable and unadmirable behavior. And the path to model parenting isn’t always obvious. Last night I was with my wife and kids discussing some recent parental disappointments (mine mostly, of course), and I had a brilliant save. “Ok. You all know how much we love you and try to do what we think is best, right? Well, a while back it became clear to your mom and me that we were raising you kids in ” too perfect and healthy a home environment” and it was hindering your development. You weren’t as resilient or adaptable or manipulative as other kids your age–and that had to change. So, your mother and I decided to create a slightly more dysfunctional home environment to balance your overall psychological development. And, happily for you two, it seems to be working. But it has been an incredible sacrifice on your mom and me. So, in the future when you feel your mom and me come up short as parents and aren’t doing our best, you now know why. We are doing it for your own good. Hey, it got a laugh from the kids. And seemed fitting for the 4th of July. In addition to celebrating our national sovereignty today, we should Declaring Independence from perfect parenting, too.
Just went to truck stop to fill up. I notice when I’m inside a truck stop I try to act a little more manly. I stand up taller, scowl a little, and try to look like I know how to chew tobacco and operate a two way radio. And never, ever buy a bottled Starbucks latte. And I even believe I may fool some people. But today I walked into restroom and caught a glimpse of myself wearing a pressed button-down shirt, khaki slacks and dress shoes with tassels. I’m not sure I’m really fooling anyone after all. I can either try harder to fit in or just accept I never will and just be myself. And buy the Starbucks latte. Bobby Jindal uncovers secret liberal plot to mandate tofu. Who leaked it??? [ABC News]
(A hypothetical situation) If you are one of those people who believe Klout is just another vanity website and waste of time like Facebook and Twitter, think again. And please listen to how I had to learn the hard way the true value of these websites. One night last week I was walking alone through a dark isolated parking lot worrying I could get mugged. I clenched my fists as my fight-flight syndrome kicked in. My pulse spiked, pupils dilated and my mind raced thinking of potential weapons I could use. I first thought of my car keys…and then, in a flash of brilliance, I had my answer, if mugged, I would immediately shout out to my assailant: “You picked the wrong guy, pal! You will really want to rethink mugging me after hearing what I have to tell you. I have a high Klout score. That’s right. Do you know what that means? Probably not. So let me tell you. Klout is a metric that measures Facebook and Twitter usage. That means I know a lot of people on Facebook and I Tweet quite frequently. Yes, Tweet! That means I will tell on you and you will get caught through modern social media tools. And if that isn’t enough to make you quake in your boots, I’m also pretty active on LinkenIn.” At this point I plan to eerily and ominously glare at my assailant, eyes squinted, and make the sounds “Tweet. Tweet. Tweet.” (Like the guy in the movie Warriors when he says “Warriors, come out and plaaaayyyy”) And then I am going to add, “And by the way, my female colleague is leaving the office right after me. And btw she has a pretty low Klout score.” And then raise my eyebrow as if to say, “That’s something for you to think about.” In my scenario, my assailant lets me go and waits for my colleague. And Klout, Facebook and Twitter, helped save me from getting mugged. At least in this made-up hypothetical situation that ends happily ever after for everyone. Except my female colleague who I spend the next year making this up to. Maybe now you’ll think twice before you criticize these websites again….Word. From The Huffington Post:
In other BREAKING NEWS: The RP is Jewish, RP Jeff Smith is short, RP Michael Steele is African-American. RP Krystal Ball is a brunette, and RP John Y. Brown, III has curly hair.
Just drank two cups of Cuban coffees on vacation and find myself thinking “I wonder whatever happened to Babar the Elephant?” Really. Stone cold sober.
For 26 years now I have not felt compelled to act on any random thoughts about Babar the Elephant or any other imaginary animals. If you are enjoying all of the anti-Aaron Sorkin backlash upon the premiere of his new HBO series “Newsroom” (I find the show to be pretty good), you’ll love this video compilation of Sorkin’s tendency to use the same lines in different productions, over and over and over again (h/t JTA’s Six Degrees, No Bacon):
When I was 7 my Uncle Lorn told me that it bad for my neck and back to sleep with a pillow. 41 years later I still refuse to sleep with a pillow. When I was 8 years old a friend of the family told me he liked to eat peanuts whole –shell and all. I wanted to impress him. 40 years later I still eat peanuts with the shell. So, I did at least two things today because a 7 year old and an 8 year old decided it was a good idea at the time. And I’ve never taken the time to question either–from the perspective of an informed adult. Which leads to the next (and scarier) question: What else did I do this week bc my 7 or 10 or 12 year old self made a lifelong decision for me many years ago? |
| ||
| Copyright © 2026 The Recovering Politician - All Rights Reserved | |||
