The Sad Case of Blogger X

I don’t plan to name Blogger X, although with a bit of research, you could probably figure it out. 

Here’s the situation:  on a certain hometown newspaper, there’s been a blogger who sometimes was blessed with publication in the print version of the newspaper.  He’s a young man (24, if we can believe that), and black, with a conservative point of view.  Not many of them around, which automatically made him somewhat unique.  He’s a lover of jazz and history. 

The biggest problem with his writings is that they’re pedantic.  On another blog, I recently commented that he seems to be unable to express an opinion without citing multiple sources to back it up.  I said I thought that was a form of insecurity.  I said that if he quoted James Madison one more time, I would puke.  I hoped he would get over that in time. 

Like most people, I flail around looking for the “truth”, and I’m probably right about half the time.  But this time, boy did I nail it.  Sadly. 

Last week, Blogger X acknowledged in an article in the print version of the newspaper that his blog profile was untrue.  In it, he claimed to have attended a local community college, followed by attendance at a local four-year college.  The implication was that he was still a student at said four-year college.  Something, I don’t know what–a tip?–made the newspaper look into him, and the end result was, they found he is not currently a student anywhere.  Worse, neither he nor the paper made it clear whether or not he was ever a student at the four-year college. 

He apologized, in print, and asked for a second chance.  He said he wanted to be a journalist.  He said that he’d never been able to adapt to formal education, but he is still a “student”, and spends many hours of study on his own.  I believe that.  But claiming to be a student, I think, was something he felt would bolster his “credentials”.  Insecurity at work. 

In reality, Blogger X is the kind of guy who would have done well in times past, when education was all a matter of desire, a driving need to know things.  I’m thinking of Darwin here.  Now that’s assuming Blogger X had the money to pursue that interest, rather than spending 18 hours a day trying to survive. 

Today there are still colleges and universities which allow you to set your own curriculum.  Maybe Blogger X would do well at one of them.  Granted, getting a college degree involves paying attention to a lot of stuff you may not really care about.  And having a college degree does not make you smarter. 

But ugh.  He lied.  

My friend and fellow blogger eehard said he was proud of Blogger X for fessing up, that it was a brave thing to do.  Well no, it wasn’t.  He got caught.  Big difference. 

The newspaper hasn’t banished him, and has vowed to give him that second chance he asked for.  That’s good…I guess.

Pink Stuff

October is breast cancer awareness month, and everywhere you go, starting in mid-September, you see pink stuff.  Pink ribbons and pink ribbon lapel pins are the standard, but there is a wide variety of pink stuff to be had.  Water bottles with pink Neoprene covers.  T-shirts with the pink ribbon logo in sequins.  Hershey’s Kisses wrapped in pink foil.  This year my grocery store of choice (Publix) has a pink cloth grocery bag for sale, which says “Support Breast Cancer Research” on the outside. 

All this faintly embarasses me.  Why?  Because there are many other kinds of cancer, and each has its own color ribbon and awareness month, but nothing gets the kind of attention that breast cancer gets.  Why is that?  Yes, it’s the biggest killer of women outside of skin cancer.  But prostate cancer is the biggest killer of men outside of skin cancer.  But you don’t see the same sort of hoopla.  For instance, September is prostate cancer awareness month (ribbon color: blue), but while the stores were filling up with pink stuff in anticipation of breast cancer awareness in October, did you see a single blue ribbon?  Hershey’s kisses in blue foil? 

I don’t know the answer to this question, but I believe part of the answer lies in a huge backlash against the medical establishment by women.  In 1973, the first edition was published of Our Bodies, Ourselves.  Those were the days when PMS was all in your head, and suffering during menopause was unavoidable.  Suck it up, already.  As more women came into the medical profession, and as more women refused to take “it’s all in your head” for an answer, attitudes started to change. 

Maybe part of the answer is that women shop more than men, especially for groceries.  And much of the pink stuff you see is nothing more than a shameless marketing ploy.  If supporting breast cancer research is your goal, then look at the packaging to see how much of the money you spend on your Hershey’s Kisses actually goes to research.  If 10% is okay with you, by all means go ahead.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with that.  If you can do a good deed, even a 10% good deed, easily, and by buying something you were going to buy anyway, why not? 

Not everyone is impressed with the pink ribbon/pink stuff idea.  In a 1997 book called Holding Tight, Letting Go, there is this quote:  “This is not a pastel-colored disease, and little strips of cloth will not end the epidemic,” wrote Barbara Brenner, Executive Director of Breast Cancer Action of San Francisco. 

But I find that attitude to be too cynical for me.  So every year, I buy one of those pink things.  By September of next year, I plan to buy something blue.

Sarah Palin and the Shoes

Who won the debate?  Biden.  I have nothing further to add.  I read commentary and analysis and poll results until it nearly gave me a migraine, and I don’t even have migraines.  I will say this about Biden, his smile is just as dazzling as Palin’s (but without the winks), and I thought that sky-blue tie was a really nice touch.  It softened his image right off the bat.  I was glad he avoided that blazing red “power tie” that politicians seem to be so fond of. 

However, in all that I’ve read, I have yet to see a single mention of a critical component of the debate, which is Sarah Palin’s choice of shoes.  For several “behind the podium” photos, click here:

http://elpasotimes.mycapture.com/mycapture/folder.asp?event=606334&CategoryID=34682&ListSubAlbums=0

Now first of all, these shoes are red, unless my eyes are deceiving me.  That was in many ways a brilliant choice.  Sexy and aggressive at the same time.  Kind of a Scarlett O’Hara statement.  But, was this the time for red high heels?  Real, working, serious women don’t wear red high heels to work.  When I think of political women of power–Golda Meir, Madeleine Albright, Hillary Clinton even–I don’t see them wearing red high heels. 

Okay, you say, but they’re all older and uglier.  Fine, how about Benazir Bhutto or Eva Peron?  Do you see them in red high heels?  Well, Eva Peron, maybe.  But the point is that if you wanted to project a sensible, take-charge image, you would have chosen flats, or at the least, low heels.   I think Sarah Palin was deliberately projecting sexy.  Well, as the old saying goes, use what you got. 

Interviewer:  Sir, who do you think won the debate?

Guy:  Sarah Palin of course.

Interviewer:  Would you mind sharing why you think so?

Guy:  She has much better legs than Joe Biden. 

It’s too bad there won’t be another Veep debate, because I have suggestions for Palin on footwear.  In her case, I would skip the flats and low heels and go directly to snow boots.  I’ll give you two choices, you pick which you think most projects a strong, yet feminine image.

This selection, by Sorel, is called “Joan of the Artic”. 

Nice name, but there is a sort of tackiness to the rubbery lower section, making them look like galoshes. 

Personally, I prefer these.  I like that ostrich feather effect at the top, and the lowers are suede, treated to be water-repellent.  Much more elegant.  Strong, yet feminine.  I wonder if they come in red?