"I think that's what scares the Democrats the most, is that in a general election, were I to run, there's gonna be a lot of independents and even some Democrats who say, 'You know what? We are tired of war. We're worried that Hillary Clinton will get us involved in another Middle Eastern war, because she's so gung-ho."
-- Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), on the possibility of Hillary Clinton running for President. Actually, what scares the Democrats the most is the concept that someone like Rand Paul could become President of the United States. And so they would do most anything to see that that didn't happen. I don't tend to follow what Rand Paul generally says all that well. He so often twists his positions around on themselves, and they regularly come blowing out of unexpected orifices. But in the realm of Rand Paul Comments, incomprehensible as this thinking can be, this rates among his most head-scratching. Which is saying a lot. I just don't know what on earth he was thinking or trying to gain by saying this. It's not that he was so wildly off-based in his description of Hillary Clinton. While he's exaggerating her positions, the truth is that I do think that she's more conservative than liberal when it comes to her positions on national defense. And it's a reason some Democrats don't support her for the nomination. But they know this about her already. And have for a long time. And not supporting someone for the nomination is a different kind of fish from support in the general election. So, again, I'm just not quite sure what Rand Paul was possibly thinking or trying to gain by saying this. Mind you, what Mr. Paul leaves unsaid in his comment is that while a Democrat who is more conservative on war could lose some Independent and "even some" Democratic votes, such a candidate who is positioned as very tough on national defense is also far more likely to pick up even far more Independent votes and a lot of Republican ones. So, you'd think the very last thing a Republican would want to do is paint any Democrat as playing to the GOP's own strength. After all, you know that Hillary Clinton will be strong on social issues and on immigration, concerns that are so critical to Democrats, and a candidate like Rand Paul is achingly weak there, him being on the record, for instance, as not saying that he is not a strong supporter of the Voting Rights Act. So, the one issue that Republicans can ever have the upper hand on Democrats is by painting them (as they so often do) as lily-livered appeasers on national defense. And yet here is Rand Paul handing Hillary Clinton that on a silver platter. In fact, going further, the biggest issue that Republican (wrongly) think they have on Ms. Clinton is relentlessly attacking her eternally over her supposed-involvement in the failure in Benghazi. That's a near-impossible case to make now when with the other other hand you're painting her as this defender of American in war. So, Mr. Paul is pulling the rug from under the one card Republicans believe they have. And the only other remote issue that Republicans could have on Hillary Clinton is her being a woman -- which for some means that she's too soft and tender and touch-feely and weepy emotional. And here is Rand Paul telling voters to be wary of Hillary Clinton because...she's too tough and militaristic. The only thing I can even possibly see that he thinks he's doing is trying a bit of preventative offense, campaigning against Hillary Clinton early by tarnishing her badly in the eyes of Democrats so that they won't nominate her to run for President. Against him. The problem with that is the one thing any Democrat could hope for is to be criticized by Rand Paul. Or Ted Cruz. Or Mario Rubio. The front line triumvirate of Republicans who most Democrats consider the leading heirs of the Lunatic Fringe. The specifics of what Rand Paul is saying here are empty words to Democrats -- the political equivalent of adults in the Peanuts animated specials, with just the sound of a horn going "whank-whank-whaaaaank." All that Democrats would hear is that Rand Paul was criticizing one of their own Democrats trying to get their own nomination. How dare he?!! And all that Republicans and right-leaning Independents would hear is that Hillary Clinton will "bring it on" and take it to those terrorists in the Middle East. And in the end, what he has mainly done is allow Hillary Clinton to explain that the last thing she needs is Rand Paul whining about how much she'll come to the defense of America. Because one thing you know she'll always do is go to the defense of America. Which is what she did when she was in the White House as First Lady. And when she was in the United States Senate. And when she was Secretary of State, While Rand Paul is fine leaving America defenseless, she will always be on the front line defending Our Nation, as she always has been. And yes, she has supported war when Our Nation was attacked, and she has spent her career working diplomatically for peace. And Rand Paul -- honestly, she doesn't know what Rand Paul has ever stood for. Other than weakening our national defense. Is Hillary Clinton more conservative when it comes to supporting military involvement than some Democrats prefer? Yes, absolutely. And that is the biggest nightmare for Republicans is she is nominated. What scares Democrats the most is that Rand Paul will stop saying junk like this.
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The other day, I was watching television when an ad for The Hair Club came on. It was, of course, extolling their incredible service of having a head of hair where before there was none, and it would only cost you many hundreds of dollars. I just had to laugh at the ad, because I recently experienced a far more remarkable and overwhelmingly cheaper alternative. Actually, "alternative" doesn't do it justice. Modern miracle is better. My dad is 93 years old. As long as I've known him, as long as I can remember him, he's been bald. Here he is a few years ago, when he was a sprightly 90. You don't get a great shot of the top of his head, but you get the idea just fine. Take out a magnifying glass, if you wish. Call in Sherlock Holmes. Look as closely as you can, and you won't spot a sprig of hair on the top. You'll see a wonderful fellow -- just no hair. Earlier this year, I went back to Chicago for a visit, I'd only just arrived, and we'd been talking for about three minutes when suddenly I stopped. I didn't say anything for a few seconds because I felt sort of foolish about what I was thinking. But...well, I had to ask. "Wait, I'm sorry," I finally said. "I know this is really strange, but -- dad...are you growing hair???" His wonderful caregiver Elisabeth was there, along with her equally wonderful husband Emmanuel. A big laugh broke out across their faces, and Elisabeth shouted, "I know!" That's what I told Doctor. I noticed it a few weeks ago, but he didn't believe me." So, he does have hair there, I said. I'm not imagine things. Yes, said Emmanuel, that's what we said. It surely wasn't a lot. Some wisps blowing in the wind, but after a lifetime of nothing, the empty Sahara Desert stretching as far as the eye can see, a few wild flowers springing up is still utterly remarkable. We laughed about it and tried to come up with our theories, and it was certainly fun to see, and absolutely bizarre to imagine. But it got even more bizarre. Eventually I went back to Los Angeles, and then last minute you may recall that I returned to Chicago. I'd only just arrived, I went over to where my dad was sitting and we began talking. Suddenly...I stopped. Again. And again, I was hesitant to say anything because this now was really loony, but -- "Excuse me, but is your hair still growing in...thicker???" And again Elisabeth burst out happy for the support. "That's what I keep telling him!!" she laughed. "I don't know. I guess," my dad said. "That's what they say." It's almost like you're now getting to the point where you have to comb it, I replied. "That's what I tell him!" Elisabeth laughed again. "See, Doctor." "You're going to have to go to the barber and get a trim pretty soon," I said. Apparently so, he replied. And then added, "I don't think I'm growing any hair. I just think my head is shrinking." To be clear, it isn't really that lush. But.from nothing to this, it is absolutely "lush" by comparison. It's now something that he has to -- if not brush -- at least smooth over so that he doesn't look natty. And that's just now. Who know how much more there will in the next few months, and beyond. This isn't a great picture. It was the day I wrote about here when we had to go to the Emergency Room for some tests. I was leaving the next morning and had planned to take some photos that night, but I knew our seven hours there made that unlikely. So, I snapped a few quickly. Again, this is hardly lush, but there is absolutely, no question, a notable swatch of hair there now, where once there was nada. As I said, we've come up with our theories, but really no answers. The only thing that makes sense is that it's some combination of the wide-variety of medications he takes every day. What in the world that combination is, we don't have a clue. If we did...man, we could bottle it and make a fortune.
But if anyone needed proof that you can grow hair after a lifetime of not, there you have it. And when I see The Hair Club offering their services for many hundreds of dollars when you can get it for absolutely FREE (thank you, Medicare...), I know that an alternative is there, just waiting. Life begins at 93. Or at least hair does... So, you'll recall the other day I mentioned that I'd been searching YouTube for a particular video of Scrubs, a series I loved. And while searching, I came across the marriage proposal video done on the set. What you may not recall is that the fellow doing the proposing mentions that they'd had their first kiss at the party for the show's 100th episode. It was the ending of that 100th episode that I'd bee searching YouTube for! So, I might as well post it. It requires a little background. And know that it won't be nearly as impactful as if you'd seen the whole episode, which was really clever and wonderful and emotional. The episode was an homage to The Wizard of Oz, called "My Way Home." In it, resident doctor J.D. (played by Zach Braff) is on a day off but called to he hospital, much against his wishes. But he gets involved in a range of stories that keep him from being able to leave and get back home. As the episodes nears its end, we get the resolution of three of the main storylines -- Turk has avoiding telling the parents of a patient in a coma that their only real choice is to pull the plug, because he wants a heart to perform the hospital's first transplant. But in a very moving scene he finally faces the family about the medical reality that's really their only option, saying goodbye to their child, and understands that he doesn't need someone else's heart. Dr. Elliot has been impressing her class of interns by seeming to be an expert on endocrinology, when in fact she's been hiding crib notes all around the hospital so she can answer questions. A lecture is coming up however where that won't be possible, and she's completely freaked-out, but is at last convinced to rely on her brains and cram to remind herself of all the information she really and proudly does know. And prospective mother Carla, a nurse, is terrified about becoming a parent when she's put in charge of taking care of the little son of one of the doctor's for the day and can't handle it and so find every excuse to avoid all responsibility-- until she ultimately gets the courage to face not only the child with her, but the joyful prospect of her own. It's also worth noting that throughout the series, Dr. Cox continually insults the wimpy J.D. with girl's names. (You may recall in that proposal video he refers to J.D. as "Sharon.") But the name he most often uses throughout the series is -- Dorothy. And so here, then, is the final scene, with the resolution to all the stories. At the top of the building is lawyer Ted with his recurring a capella singing group. And it's worth noting that Zach Braff (in ruby red shoes throughout) directed the episode -- with this lovely, and intricately-timed last sequence.. If an apple a day keeps the doctor a way, someone I think the show Outnumbered on "Fox News" is going to be stocking up on bushels of apples. A couple weeks ago, Dr. Keith Ablow, a medical spokesman on "Fox News" appeared during a segment of the show Outnumbered with four female hosts who were discussing Michelle Obama's promoting of nutrition and healthy eating, and how it's not a good thing for the government to mandate that we all eat things like kale and cabbage. Not that the government actually does that, of course, but...okay, you can probably see that this is not going to end well. And it doesn't, but not for the reason you likely think. At one point, the good doctor chimed in. "And how well can she be eating?," he asked. "She’s…she’s, she needs to drop a few." The reaction was not wildly supportive, but it also didn't take him to task. It was more that they were shocked he would say such a thing. But being of "Fox News," they really couldn't come leaping to the First Lady's defense. Not that most of them particularly wanted to, for all I could tell. If you wanted to, after all, you really could. No, honest, you could. While the image on camera was video footage, we could hear an audible intake of breath from one of the hosts, and the sound of the others saying -- "Ohhhh.." "You did not…." "Really???" "Oh, my goodness, are we on a 7-second delay?" The doctor fellow came back to follow-up on his point, "Now wait a minute, that’s all kale and cabbage? I don’t buy it." Never mind, of course, that eating healthy food doesn't inherently mean that a person will lose weight. If you eat too much of anything and don't get enough exercise, you won't lose weight. But Dr. Ablow, as a doctor and medical spokesman or "expert," shouldn't be expected to know that. But never mind, that's not the point. The point here is that the female hosts did show some surprise at his remarks, but no one chastised him for it. As I noted, their surprise may just have been that he had said this out loud about the First Lady of the United States. But after their collection of "Oh No You Din'ts", they let it pass and move on. Which brings us to the larger point. Last Thursday, dear Dr. Ablow returned to the program, and -- no, don't worry, it wasn't to apologize. But instead, like a good Conservative today who's said something really stupid and rude, he doubled down. But, no, not about Mrs. Obama, but -- as has been seen, that he has no filter in his head -- against the four female hosts surrounded him. Remember, the program is called Outnumbered. "Should each of us lose five pounds?", he asked. "Probably." Let's pause a moment so that you can take a guess on how that went down amongst the five, svelte TV personalities. We'll give you a visual aid to help you on your decision. To help further, Dr. Ablow is the clueless guy in the middle. Among the immediate responses were --
"Oh hell no!" "I wish you were drinking because that might explain this crazy behavior!" "Maybe in future appearances you think about what you're going to say before you say it." So...how close did you come? I'm guessing that most of the men here who are married or have ever had a girlfriend and been asked the question, "Do these jeans make me look fat?", got the answer above correct. I'm also guessing that most of the women here who have ever asked that question, "Do these jeans make me look fat?" -- or who have ever had a picture taken of themselves; or have ever dieted; or have ever gotten dressed up, had their hair done and gone out in public -- or gone to buy clothes, got the answer correct. I'm also guessing that most men who aren't married or had a girlfriend, and women who have breathed got the answer correct about how five stylishly-groomed female hosts on live TV reacted. Not that they reacted the same way when Dr. Ablow said the same thing about Michelle Obama, mind you. Not that we'd ever expect that they would. The ultimate point here is not whether Michelle Obama should lose a couple of pounds. Or whether the "Fox News" hosts should. Or whether Dr. Ablow should have said what he did or not. The point is -- oh, you know. This is "Fox News," where "Fair and Balanced" is their hallmark. And where goring others is so much more fun than when it's done to you is the reality. Where hypocrisy reins, and sometimes it is so blatant in an obvious and objective way that you only can thank Dr. Ablow for being as petty as he is. A few pounds, really?? The only thing I really wished had happened is that when Dr. Ablow asked whether each of the women there should lose five pounds, one of the hosts would have turned to the camera and said -- "Here at Fox, we report -- you decide." The contest this week is Mary Elfner from Richmond, VA. Let's just say that if you can't get the hidden tune, one of the least-hidden that I think Bruce Adolphe has done, though it fits the composer's music well, you should give up playing now. I think there are a bunch of composers it could fit, though even host Fred Child was having a challenging time. I at least got the country of the composer right -- which doesn't qualify as "winning," but we'll take what we can gets...
By the way, this doesn't give much away, since I think the time period of his work should be clear (despite Ms. Elfner's first guess...) but the composer was given an honorary doctorate from Northwestern when I was there, late in his life, and even showed up to receive it. So, I've always had a warm spot in my heart for him -- even if I didn't guess him... Jimmy Kimmel has a recurring segment on his show that I love. It's called "Mean Tweets." They cull some of the nastiest tweets that people have posted about celebrities, and then have the celebrities themselves read them. What I particularly enjoy is how good-natured the performers are about trashing themselves, sometimes pretty brutally. Here's one of them -- |
AuthorRobert J. Elisberg is a political commentator, screenwriter, novelist, tech writer and also some other things that I just tend to keep forgetting. Feedspot Badge of Honor
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