Does Tomi Lahren deserve any empathy?

Tomi Lahren, the 24-year-old firebrand angered many of her followers when she said during an interview on ABC‘s “The View”:

“I’m pro-choice and here’s why. I’m a constitutional — you know, someone that loves the Constitution. I am someone that’s for limited government. And so I can’t sit here and be a hypocrite and say I’m for limited government but I think that the government should decide what women do with their bodies. I can sit here and say that, as a Republican, and I can say, you know what, I’m for limited government, so stay out of my guns, and you can stay out of my body as well.”

This did not go over well with her bosses at The Blaze, a conservative media site founded by Glenn Beck.  She was initially suspended for a week. Then the suspension became permanent.  Beck said that it if you are pro-choice you could still work for the Blaze as he employee people with differing viewpoints.  So then why the suspension?

I’m a little torn on this one.  People say she would not have had the successful rise she had if she wasn’t pretty and I think people are hating on her for the same thing instead of taking this opportunity to show that some conservative outlets are hypocritical by eating their young.

On the other hand, she did rise to fame by saying such toxic and outlandish things.  I do not follow her or troll her like I do Matt Walsh but I have watched a couple of video clips of her and she definitely spews hate and disdain.

A good friend said “Good for her for standing up for one thing she believes in despite blowback from her tribe, but I can’t feel any sympathy for her despite this single good thing she’s done. If this situation causes any of her current or former fans to pause a moment and reconsider their stances on things, then maybe some good will come of it.”

• Internet blogger and self-proclaimed truth sayer Matt Walsh surprisingly did not have a disparaging word about Tomi herself although he naturally defended pro-lifers.
• Eric Zorn thinks Tomi will have a epiphany that brings her back to the conservative fold.
• Meanwhile, some people just go for the jugular.
• And finally, her former employer is fighting her for her Facebook page.

I’m sure Tomi will end up all right.  Whether it’s in her rightful spot somewhere on Fox or somewhere a little more to the left, I’m certain we have not heard the last of Conservative Barbie.*

*hat tip to Nancy Nall

 

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What we can all learn from United’s Legging Gate

By now the story has hopefully run it’s course over social media:  On a flight from Denver to Minneapolis last Sunday, a gate agent told some young passengers wearing leggings they could not board United flight 215 in that attire.

What’s wrong with Leggins anyway?

The reason:  they were non-revenue passengers, meaning they were using passes issued to United employees that, as part of the deal, come with a behavior and dress code.

“Form-fitting lycra/spandex tops, pants and dresses,” are expressly forbidden for passengers boarding on buddy passes as our own Vociferous Envoy calls them.

Letting a short meme or tweet describe a complex situation

This event should have been the end of this Nothing Burger but unfortunately, only the first part was communicated in the Twitter-sphere where impulse-sharing causes a story to travel at light speed before the facts can catch up.  People see the tweet or headline and they jump to conclusions based on their own experiences and beliefs.  Many believed the airline was being sexist because men were allowed to board the same flight in shorts.

My initial thinky-thought on this when I had more — but not all — of the information was “I think there’s enough blame to go around. The girls failed to follow a rule required to get the discounted airfare and the airline made too big a deal over an article of clothing.” This got me 40 back and forth comment tennis between two opposing viewpoints.

About that Dress Code 

First let’s get this out of the way.  Yes, the airline has every fucking right to enforce a dress code that they see fit.  I’m not clear how the airline benefits from a non-rev dressing up a bit, if no one except the airline knows they are non-revs.  But the comments section of the internet helped me out on that one.

Hmm, okay, fine.  It sets a standard that maybe some passenger observes and decides to mimic, I’ll give you that one.  That said, if you are getting all this negative reaction, perhaps it’s time to review your dress code and update it present day.  I’m not saying you have to change anything.  Just make sure it isn’t biased, sexist or too ridiculous given the times we live in.

This guy would like us to return to the days of stricter business casual apparel.  I”d like to return to the days of not having to be at the airport three times the number of hours of my actual flight time but those days are not coming back.   No one should have to dress up in their Sunday best for a 2 hour flight.

They are Teenagers for Cthulu’s Sake

Obviously these kids didn’t get the buddy pass, it was their father. And whether he told them they needed to dress appropriate or not, I can guess how that would go. [It will be at least a dozen years before I have to deal with the dressing patterns of teenagers but I’m guessing they have their ups and downs same as toddlers.] Expecting teenagers to dress up for a short flight is a bit much.

I know you have to draw the line somewhere and it’s easier to brush in broader strokes rather than try to pin down appropriate leggings versus inappropriate ones, but come on, these are kids on a 2 hour flight.

I’d say the takeaway from this, like so many other stories that go viral before all the facts are in, is:  When something like this happens, it doesn’t hurt to wait to get all the facts. If it’s true at Run Time, it will be true 10 minutes or 10 days later.

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My 3 Justifications for Procrastination

I usually procrastinate for one of two reasons. The first is that I really don’t want to do something I have to do, but cannot get out of doing it so I put it off as long as possible.

The second reason is, I do it as a challenge. In my former life as a paralegal, I had reach a point where there was just nothing to learn and no where to go. Nothing I did required much brain power, it was just manage paperwork and jump at attorney commands. In order to keep myself engaged, I would often wait until the last minute to start on something just to have the challenge of getting it done on time.

And the reward for finishing one of those assignments is getting assigned a new boring task. https://t.co/IeJF6YJdwc via @Dilbert_Daily

— Mysteries of Life (@MysteriesOLife) March 23, 2017

Recently I discovered another reason I procrastinate.    In my line of work I sometimes have to do tasks that are painful and useless.  This happens a lot in Corporate America where you are assigned tasks that are so mind numbing and boring that your brain literally tries to escape out your ears.  And my reward for finishing the task is: I get assigned another painful and useless task.

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Do you procrastinate?  If so, how do you justify it?

Tell me about it here in the comments, then swing by my Facebook page and LIKE it! You’ll find funny, informative links and interesting pictures.  Don’t worry, your FB feed won’t get overwhelmed.

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9 things that annoyed me this week

While I wish I could lead a more easy-going, zen lifestyle, I’m just not wired that way.  I often get annoyed at the most trivial things and even if I ignore them to the best of my ability, they seem to become cumulative.  I miss a turn light  I could totally have made had it not been for the first guy staring at his phone and letting precious seconds of our too short traffic signal waste away.  I miss my train because someone couldn’t walk on the single row escalator at the El platform.  Or I do make the train but had to settle for the crowded last car filled with everyone else who had to walk behind someone who had all the time in the world to catch his train so he watched his phone instead.

Maybe the answer for me is simply blowing off steam and venting my spleen.  Here are 9 things that pissed me off just this last week:

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An Open Letter to Two Different Set of Friends

Dear Childless/Childfree Friend:

I want to hang out with you, I really do.  I miss the getting together after work and going to a social event where it was like $30 all you can drink.  While I don’t miss the chasing after skirts Playing the Field, I wouldn’t mind being your wing-man again.  Though honestly, the thought of staying out just to stay out isn’t something I can do any longer, even if I wanted to.

But in case you haven’t heard, I have children now that depend on me.  Who thought that was a good idea is beyond me but that’s how the system works.  I really want to raise them to be socially-conscious world citizens with beautiful manners and high self-esteem.  So in order to meet up with you, I need this thing called a Hall Pass.  It’s actually not hard to get, I just need minimum advanced notice.  And if we do agree to met at 6pm on Thursday and you have to cancel, just remember it isn’t easy for me to just go out the next night.

So please don’t give up on me, please keep inviting me out and bear with me while I struggle to get things into the new normal.  And if you end up on this same station later in life, I promise to be a valuable resource.

 

 

Dear Friend Whose Children are now Older:

I’m glad you are finally able to get out and do things again.  I  want to join you and hang out.  But here’s the thing.  I’m at a station in life now that you were at not too long ago in the past.  Remember all those times you couldn’t join me for an impromptu beer after work?  I realize now how much I was being squeezed in back then on weekends while you saved the more precious blocks of time for your children.

We had to plan Guys Night Out six weeks in advance.  And all those 11th hour cancellations because your kid suddenly got sick.  That’s my life right now.  And I don’t think it’s asking too much for you to remember what it was like at this stage of the Child Care Train.  In fact, I need the inside scoop and you’re the one who can provide it – the good, the bad and the ugly.  There is some good, right?

So please don’t give up on me, please keep inviting me out and bear with me while I struggle to get things into the new normal.

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Want to work at my company? Talk to me BEFORE applying

For the 3rd time since I started my not-so-new job, a friend has reached out to me asking if I could help them get into the company.  (4th if you count a douchebag who is not a friend so much as a raging asshole with no soft skills whatsoever).

I’m always willing to help a friend out with the job hunt if I can.  Unfortunately, these people already applied to my company before talking to me.  This move disqualifies me for receiving any referral bonus that I would get if they were hired.  I know that sounds a little a greedy but hey I have small children to feed.  After taxes the referral bonus could cover a month of daycare if not more.

Here’s the thing.  You’re asking me to help you get a six figure job (or high five figure) and you want me to put in the effort for nothing?  Brownie points and good feelings only go so far.  Compared to liking a stupid Facebook page for instance.

You’re asking me to stick my neck out and vouch for you.  Why wouldn’t you want me to get rewarded for that?  I know, you didn’t realize it worked that way.  Considering this is a fairly standard policy that tells me you haven’t tried to help someone get a position recently.   Ahem…with at least one of these people, I did tell explicitly tell them to talk to me before applying because of the referral bonus policy.

What’s that?  You still want me to see if I can reach out to the hiring manager?  Sure, as soon as you send me the equivalent of the lost referral bonus.  Don’t worry, if you don’t get hired I promise I’ll eturn it.

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