It's Time to Face the Music

I can hardly bring myself to blog about Donald Trump, as you may have noticed.  I agree with practically everything Kevin Williamson wrote about him last week:

He is unfit for any office, morally and intellectually.  

A man who could suggest, simply because it is convenient, that his opponent’s father had something to do with the assassination of President Kennedy is unfit for any position of public responsibility.  

His long litany of lies — which include fabrications about everything from his wealth to self-funding his campaign — is disqualifying.  

His low character is disqualifying.  

His personal history is disqualifying.  

His complete, utter, total, and lifelong lack of honor is disqualifying.  

The fact that he is going to have to take time out of the convention to appear in court to hear a pretty convincing fraud case against him is disqualifying.

There's more.

Truth is, there are quite a lot of things about Hillary Clinton that should disqualify her as well, but they don't.

I loathe Trump.  He's boorish and crude.  He's as far from the Ronald Reagan archetype as any candidate can be.

That being said, he is going to be the Republican nominee and any attempt to derail that through a third-party run or a brokered convention will be doomed to failure and will only ensure to elect Hillary, in my opinion.

Despite George Will's conviction that Trump can't possibly win, and Josh Gelernter's third-party scenarios, I think that at this point, Republicans must unify behind Trump. Certainly nobody wants to, but reality bites.

All the talk about Mitt Romney coming in to save the day is simply garbage. He ran and didn't win, he didn't want to run this time, and he's not going to save you now. And he's the only one with a ghost of a shot.

If America wanted a successful businessman to save the day, we should have elected Romney when we had the chance, but we didn't, and we aren't going to do it now.

I had dinner with friends recently who tried to make the case that as offensive and boorish as Trump is, as president Trump will likely surround himself with people smart enough to do the job that Trump himself can't do.  Trump may be ignorant of the responsibilities of presidential office, but maybe they're right.  Maybe he'll appoint the right people.  It's the only hope we've got.

We are in for a long, miserable campaign and God only knows what after that.  I long for the days when we had class and grace in the White House but those are so far behind us now I don't think we can redeem ourselves.

Perhaps I will unplug from the internet for a few more months...

Loose Thoughts

Time to build an ark.

It looks like we're going to need an ark.  I was going to fertilize my lawn this weekend but I think I'll hold off on that as it appears it would all just wash away.  I love the rain but I'm feeling the need to batten down the hatches and hunker down.

The Cammie Book: As I noted yesterday, blogging has been light here lately.  I'm five months away from deadline on the Cammie book and that's consuming all of my mental and physical energy right now.  I'm heading back to Natchitoches over Spring Break to nail down a few details my publisher has asked for and I'm looking forward to that, actually.  I have loved the research aspect of this project -- it's truly been a labor of love.  However, we are not quite done yet, so ...wish me luck, please.  And if you feel so inclined, don't be shy about hitting the tip jar over in the sidebar.  Research takes money: gas, photocopies, lunch, postage, ink....help a girl out if you can.

The Louisiana Primary: Well, Cruz almost pulled off Louisiana, didn't he.  I expected Trump to win it and I maintain my position strongly OUT of the Trump camp.  I've been told that people like him because he is bombastic and will say things nobody else will say; they like him because he has his own money and nobody can buy him.  My personal opinion is that he is a buffoon, a clown, and a reality TV candidate who has offered no real substantive solutions to anything other than "build a wall."  Obviously we have no perfect candidate. But Trump is farther from perfect than most.

On a side note, I'm wondering how far in advance the ballots are printed?  Mike Huckabee dropped out the first week of February, but he received 645 votes. Jeb Bush received over 2000 votes.  Outside of early voting when your candidate may actually still be in the race, why would a person vote for someone who isn't even running?

Glenn Beck is predicting a brokered convention:

They are working on a brokered convention. Any sane leader of the party sees this is a two person race and asks the others to get out to bring us together. They are looking at a war on the floor! It could spill out further.. As I was listening to them and saw the loyalty oaths the party is along people take and the loyalty oath Trump made people take I couldn't stand it.

We are in real trouble, I'm afraid.

Political Clown Parade predicts Marco Rubio's presidential dream is over and I'm inclined to agree.

Stitch Fix:  I'm still getting Stitch Fix boxes - three so far.  I didn't blog the last one because I had to

Photo from Stitch Fix.

get two things altered: I got some flared jeans I requested and some white jeans, both too long.  It was okay because I had requested them no matter the length and they do fit perfectly otherwise.  All three of my boxes have been 5/5's - I've kept all five items in each box.  I'm requesting this green and white jacket in my next Fix -- I love this!

I have almost ten people who have signed up for Stitch Fix through my referral number, none of whom have ordered a box yet.  If they all ordered a box then I'd have a $200 credit!  Order a box for crying out loud!  It only costs you $20 and that applies to the total shipped to you if you decide to keep anything in the box.  If you hate it all, returning it could not be easier -- they include a prepaid mailer bag; just dump the clothes into the bag and drop in a mailbox.

Spring Projects:  We have ripped up the carpet in the living and dining rooms and have a guy coming to give an estimate on refinishing our hardwood floors. I'm also going to get estimates on good quality laminate.  I will always have dogs and dogs and carpet do not go together.  In fact, after pulling up this carpet, I can tell you that I will never have carpet again!  Can't wait to get the rest of it out of here.  If you know someone good who either does refinishing or installs laminate, let me know.  If you have experience with either or recommendations of one over the other, let me know.

In other projects we have trimmed five crepe myrtle trees, refreshed the mulch under the magnolia tree, pulled the pine straw out of the azalea beds and put down new mulch, and started weeding the back beds.  There is still a lot to do outside but I don't have Spring Break for three more weeks (and it'll probably rain and be cold that entire week, as is my luck.)

I'm going to head out and get some work done outside before the coming deluge and then spend the afternoon with Cammie.  My procrastinating must come to an end.

Loose Thoughts

A few loose thoughts:

1.  Be sure to check out my continuing Monday posts on DaTechGuy blog each week.  They go up a little after noon each Monday.  This week my post reflects on the upcoming administration of John Bel Edwards.  Color me skeptical.

2.  Why is Donald Trump still leading in the polls?  Seriously.  I'm not being derogatory about Trump supporters, but I swear I spoke to one guy a week ago who said he likes Trump "because you just never know what he will say!"  It's like reality tv!  SMDH.

Okay, so Rubio and Cruz are trending up and that's good.  Steve will never be on board with Rubio but I can be.  My history with Rubio is very well documented, all the way back to May 2009 on this and multiple other blogs. I'm predicting the nominee will be Rubio (yes, I KNOW conservatives hate his immigration stance; trust me.  The Legal Insurrection readers have flayed me over this).

And by the way, The New Yorker has an interesting profile of Rubio, here.

3.  I think Ben Carson is a very kind, gentle man; he won't be president.

4.  I really, really miss the sane, rational, intelligent voice of Bride of Rove.  Perhaps she will come back in 2016?  *Hoping*

5.  There are some great local activities going on this week:  the annual Candlelight Christmas Service will be this Friday, December 4, at the Brown Chapel on the Centenary campus.  We went last year and it's just beautiful.  I've been looking forward to it all year.  Saturday, December 5 will be the Pioneer Christmas Parade and Trade Days in Grand Cane.  It begins early but is always a good time.

6.  Gertrude Stein once said “It takes a heap of loafing to write a book.”  The revisions to my Cammie book are sitting here, ready to go, but I haven't done them.  In part, I hate to get back in there and mess up what I've done, but I know that in the end it will be better.  In another part, my deadline is August 1.  That's a long way away and I work better under pressure.  So, I'm setting myself a February 1 deadline.  There's a reason behind that date that I don't want to get into right now, but suffice to say that my goal is to have the manuscript ready to go by February 1.  

While I do have a contract with LSU Press, the manuscript still has to get by their panel of expert readers, so I have to get my act together.  Right now I am doing some additional research and reading to round out a couple of thin spots in my manuscript.  I had no idea what a long process this is; but, it will be a better book for it all!

7.  What a screwed-up-dirty dog-cluster-monkey-mess this LSU story has been this week.  The only person that needs to go ANYWHERE is Joe Alleva.  What an inept ass.  Both Miles and the players deserve better than what they got from Alleva this past week.

8.  Have you tried this?  It is heaven.  I can only find it at Sam's Club -- during the holidays.  Stock up.

9.  I am SO ready for baseball season at Centenary to begin.  This is the fastest three months of the year for me.

Have a good week.  I'm back to work this week after Thanksgiving break and we are heading into EOC testing.  We are ready.  Then we get to kill Macbeth.  Awesome!  Then Christmas break!

Leave a comment.  I miss your voices.

What is the Appeal of Donald Trump?

I've got a post coming up at DaTechGuy on Monday afternoon about Donald Trump in which I recount parts of a conversation we had last night with friends about Trump's candidacy. Like a lot of other voters, apparently, my friend is all in for Trump and really likes what Trump says.

You can read about that over there, but I'm going to put in my two cents about Trump here.

Sure, Trump is saying the right things (sort of, sometimes) because he's a pandering entertainer. A reality TV star. He might be a businessman, but part of that business is entertainment. He's not a conservative and I personally don't think he's serious about being president. I believe he's in there to get publicity, to agitate, to get attention, and maybe to get the candidates talking about the right issues, although I might be giving him too much credit there.

Victor Davis Hanson nails exactly why Trump is at the top of the polls:

Trump preps little. He has no real agenda. And he makes stuff up as he goes along. For such a New York brawler, he has thin skin, smearing his critics, often in creepy fashion. How can a former Democrat, once a pro-choice, pro-amnesty liberal and a supporter of single-payer health care, remain the godhead of the conservative base for weeks on end?  

The answer is that Trump is a catharsis for 15 percent to 20 percent of the Republican electorate. They apparently like the broken china shop and appreciate the raging bull who runs amok in it. Politicians and the media are seen as corrupt and hypocritical, and the nihilistic Trump is a surrogate way of letting them take some heat for a change.

Trump has reversed himself on nearly every single conservative issue.

I've been stunned at the number of presumably intelligent people who have voiced support for him. When I suggested to my friend last night that perhaps Ted Cruz would be a better candidate, he shut me down and said he'd already made up his mind for Trump.

Well, then.

Even The Washington Post, is befuddled:

Trump has supported universal health care, was once an abortion rights advocate (who has since evolved), has a record of donating to Democrats, and is (was?) friends with the Clintons. Plus, he's said this: "I probably identify more as Democrat," Trump told CNN in 2004. But for reasons we're still analyzing (here and here and here), Trump is the conservative darling of the 2016 presidential race at the moment.

It's also important to realize, I think, that while people like Mark Levin and Rush Limbaugh might support Trump's right to speak out and confront these controversial issues, they may not necessarily support Trump as president.  The distinction is a large one.

And so, it's important for people like my friend last night, and others on the Trump bandwagon, to fully research the issues and the candidates, not just what they are saying today.  My fear is that we have too many voters who won't make the effort and will simply settle for a reality TV presidency.

2012 Looks Grim

I'm so disgusted with the current GOP field of potential challengers for 2012.  This, in turn, makes me totally disgusted with the GOP in general.  More so than usual, I mean.

Where in the hell are the challengers to Obama that can actually get elected!?!  Our front runner right now is Donald Trump?  Seriously?  In what ridiculous world is THAT ever going to happen? 

Newt Gingrich?  Puh-lease.  No fricking way.

Mitt Romney?  A reject from last go-around?  Nope. 

Haley Barbour?  Nobody north of the Mason-Dixon line would vote for him.

Mike Huckabee?  Can you say B-A-G-G-A-G-E?  Can you Google "Maurice Clemmons"?

Even if Sarah Palin throws her hat in there, she can't get elected.  Sorry, folks, but it's true.  She can't.  She has a fired up base, she has a role to play in the party, but candidate isn't it.  It's just not. 

I'm furious at Mike Pence for NOT running because he's one I think could actually get elected.  What's he doing, anyway?  Waiting for the safer bet in 2016?  What's the field going to look like then?  Rubio?  Ryan?  Pence?  We're saving all our good candidates for a year when only one can get elected? 

I know, it's too soon now for Rubio.  It just is.  He has to prove himself.  I'd vote for Ryan right now, though.  And Pence. 

But instead, I've got Donald Trump.

The GOP needs to get their act together and fast.  Obama is already in full campaign mode and somewhere ACORN is organizing something nefarious. 

We can't stand another four years of Obama.  He's ready to "finish the job" and that doesn't bode well for freedom, free enterprise, capitalism, or democracy. 

Disaster

Donald Trump will “probably” run as an independent candidate for U.S. President in 2012 if he does not receive the Republican party’s nomination, he told the Wall Street Journal in a video interview on Monday.

Carrie Prejean is Fired

Carrie Prejean is fired.

"This was a decision based solely on contract violations including Ms. Prejean's unwillingness to make appearances on behalf of the Miss California USA organization," executive director Keith Lewis said in a statement sent to ABCNews.com. "After our press conference in New York we had hoped we would be able to forge a better working relationship. However, since that time it has become abundantly clear that Carrie is unwilling to fulfill her obligations under our contract and work together."

I don't think she'll have a problem finding work.

A Lending Hand

Donald Trump is a class act! This is a KIND thing to do, in my opinion, although there could be some slithery details I don't know about. I've always liked Donald Trump, was never really sure why, and now I guess I know. I grew up watching Ed McMahon on the Johnny Carson show and always liked him, and I guess The Donald does too!

(Photo credit: Everett Fenton Gidley)