Dump the Trump: Tell the Donald "You're fired!"

It's time to play... Dump the Trump! The blog post where you click on this link to sign an online petition to Urge Macy's to Dump Donald Trump.

As many of you know, Macy's department stores sell Donald Trump clothing and fragrances. (What does Birther smell like anyway?) Macy's also prides itself on social responsibility:

There is no shortage of talk about the obligation of public companies to be socially responsible to the people and communities where they do business. At Macy’s, Inc., we hold those same beliefs – along with a belief that actions speak louder than words when it comes to helping tackle some of the toughest problems facing us today.

And the company has a Vendor & Supplier Code of Conduct that clearly states it will not tolerate human trafficking and child labor, though maybe Macy's should extend that statement to include trafficking in lies and childish behavior.

The bigger point: Donald Trump is bad for business -- that is, Macy's business. So unless Macy's wants to increase its appeal to grumpy, old, racist white guys, the company would be wise to tell the Donald to peddle his made-in-China label elsewhere.

And wouldn't it be great if NBC, which airs his show, The Apprentice, told the Donald "You're fired!" too? Of course that will never happen -- unless the show's ratings go lower than Congress's. Indeed, by the time the new All-Star Celebrity Apprentice airs March 3, people may not remember or care about all of the crazy, hateful, outrageous, and borderline treasonous things Donald Trump said and did during the 2012 Presidential Race. And more's the pity.

Christmas ads already? What happened to Thanksgiving?

I realize that "Bah Humbug" could be my middle name, but there is a part of me (the New York Jew who celebrated Christmas for nearly 20 years and sang the Messiah part) that has a soft spot for Christmastime -- the little twinkly lights, the conifers all decked out, peppermint lattes, gingerbread cookies, even (some of) the music (before it is overplayed to death).

But I loathe how what is or was supposed to be a celebration of the birth of Jesus (though he was actually born in June -- the December date was originally the Roman pagan festival of Saturnalia) has become a retail feeding frenzy -- and how each year we see Christmas ads and decorations a little earlier. Indeed, this Target Christmas ad debuted before Halloween!



To answer your question, Target, No, I am not ready.

Coca-Cola, Mercedes-Benz, and Lowe's have also been airing Christmas ads. And those are just the ones I've happened to see.

I realize one little blogger's lament will not stop the pre-Thanksgiving Christmas madness, but I know I would feel a bit better knowing Nordstrom and I weren't the only ones who thought Christmas ads and decorations should wait until after Thanksgiving (i.e., please to be leaving a comment showing your support for celebrating Christmas at Christmastime and not before). And do not get me started about Hanukkah/Chanukah and Kwanzaa.

Thank you.

Puppy love

I love dogs. That is, other people's dogs. When they are cute and well-behaved and I don't have to take care of them. So when our friend, R., showed us these pictures of her dog Monty with their new puppy, Stella, I just melted.

How cute are they? (Just look at those noses!)

Of course, having cats, who, if presented with a new kitten would either a) swiftly swack it the moment it invaded the older cat's space/food bowl/litter box; b) call UPS to have it returned; c) express their displeasure in a variety of ways; d) ignore it; or e) all of the above, I was curious to know if Monty was at all jealous of the adorable new pup. Far from it, replied R. Indeed, Monty loves little Stella. Here is the proof:

How sweet is that?!

Now please excuse me while I go get an insulin shot.

[Thanks to R. and E. for sharing their puppy pics with me!]

The good, the bad, and the ugly

The good news for Democrats -- and a majority of women, blacks/African Americans, Hispanics, other minorities, those who believe that healthcare should be a right not a privilege, that women have the right to decide what's best for them, that you should be able to marry the person you love, regardless of gender, and that government has a responsibility to help people here at home in times of disaster: President Barack Obama was re-elected.

The bad news (or good news for Republicans): The Republicans still have a majority in the House and have enough seats in the Senate to filibuster any bill proposed by their Democratic colleagues.

And the ugly: Thanks to the Republican majority in the House and their ability to filibuster in the Senate, Republicans are going to do their damnedest to make sure no bill that could possibly help the American people and aid economic recovery (and by extension benefit the Democrats) gets passed in the next four years, so they* can disingenuously blame Barack Obama and the Democrats for any economic or other failure -- even, or especially if, they are the ones pushing us off the fiscal cliff. Heckuva job, Boehner.

*Especially Conservative Republican Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, who is Chairman of the House Budget and Ways and Means Committees and will no doubt be running for President in 2016. If you think for a second that Ryan and Speaker John Boehner and the Tea Party Republicans -- the few moderate Republicans are gone -- are going to compromise on or pass ANYTHING that could possibly help the Democrats, take another hit of whatever it is you are smoking -- that is if you live in Colorado and Washington State.

Why I'm voting for Barack Obama

I saw the following declaration on a friend's Facebook page a few week's back, before Super Storm Sandy. It was written by a woman named Julie E., who beautifully expressed why, even though President Barack Obama did not live up to certain expectations and did not fulfill every campaign promise (though find me a single politician who has), many of us will vote for him over Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan. Especially now, in the aftermath of Sandy.

So why am I voting for President Barack Obama? "Because I believe...

"no one has the right to tell another what they can and cannot do with their own body.

"Because I believe everyone should be allowed to marry the person they love – and share the benefits of legal marriage.

"Because I believe health care should be a given.

"Because I believe my God may not be your God – and that’s OK.

"Because I believe it is our duty to stop the poisoning of our air and water and land.

"Because I believe serving in the military should not be dictated by whom one has sex with.

"Because I believe equal work deserves equal pay.

"Because I believe lowering the income tax rate for the wealthiest people and corporations does not benefit the whole.

"Because I believe in stem cell research.

"Because I believe some messes take longer to clean up.

"Because I believe in numbers and facts.

"Because I believe Planned Parenthood [helps women become better parents].

"Because I believe racism still exists and pretending it doesn’t hurts us all.

"Because I believe running the country as a business with the sole goal of making more money is selfish and not beneficial to all its people.

"Because I believe guns DO kill people.

"Because I believe in evolution.

"Because I believe it is our duty as good citizens to lend a helping hand.

"Because I believe the world is large and full of God’s creatures and we are not the center of it.

"Because I believe in progress and that it requires moving forward, not going back.

"Because I believe being of moral character is less about preaching and more about doing.

"Because I believe love always trumps hate.

"Because I believe – I still believe – in hope."

Thank you, Julie.

Oh, and regarding the tax issue, the reason why many people I know say they will (and I should) vote for Mitt Romney, I would happily pay a few hundred or thousand more dollars per year to lower the debt, make sure our infrastructure is adequately maintained, help our children and grandchildren receive a decent education, make sure everyone has healthcare, support agencies like FEMA, and make sure those pesky "government employees," i.e., firefighters, police officers, teachers, who protect us and keep us safe and educate our children (respectively) and help our economy to grow, keep their jobs.

Beauty is in the beholder of the eye

As some of you know, I've been taking a photography class. My latest homework: exploring depth of field and aperture. My latest test subjects: the teenager and the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

I call this series: "Beauty is in the beholder of the eye."

Note: I took the photos with my little Canon PowerShot S95, as opposed to my new Nikon D3100, as we were fleeing a freezing house (no power all last week) and only had so much room. Considering the limits of my little camera, I think the photographs came out very well.

MIT Style (Geek parody of Gangnam Style)

I have a soft spot for both the PSY song "Gangnam Style" and geeks, having spent a lot of time at MIT during my college days and having married one. So when I saw this parody of "Gangnam Style" created by a bunch of MIT students and professors (aka geeks and nerds), I couldn't resist posting. (We're on Day 4 without power. We have no generator. Schools are closed. We're cold and cranky. And I am easily amused. Or not so easily.)



More of my favorite "Gangnam Style" parodies here.

I will post something incredibly witty and/or profound once my power and sanity have been restored.