A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, this moron thought this was a GREAT idea:
There are some who say this is a PhotoShop creation. There are others who say it is real. It doesn’t matter. While normally I’m in favour of creativity and original thinking, this is heinous, and must be stopped.
Hey, Barack Obama still smokes.
I thought he’d quit a long time ago. But as he tells Men’s Health this month, he still “bums smokes” while he’s out there campaigning. But then, for some reason, this guy who can’t actually quit offers up advice for others in the same boat: “Eliminate certain key connections — that first cigarette in the morning, or after a meal, or with a drink,” he said. “If you can eliminate those triggers, that should help.”
Uhh … I guess it actually doesn’t, Barack, since you’re still smoking. He then goes on to say it’s no big deal, as he only ever smoked eight or nine deathsticks a day anyway … so smoking now isn’t that bad.
“I figure, seeing as I’m running for president, I need to cut myself a little slack,” he says. Hmmm … that’s a pretty Clintonesque attitude.
I used to make excuses along those lines, like “I’m under a lot of stress,” or “Just let me get through Christmas,” and I kept bumming smokes every time I quit. The eventual trick, the thing that has kept me smoke-free for a long time now, is this: quit making excuses.
But I don’t think they teach that at presidential candidate school.
The Premier of Ontario is a guy named Dalton McGuinty. (Premiers are like governors, for you Americans). He’s leading his second Liberal majority government, and is kind of a nerd. Liberals tend to be nerdy here in Canada. I’m not sure why.
Anyway, Dalton has a reputation for being cold and aloof. I think these two photographs illustrate that perfectly. These show Dalton being confronted by an angry anti-poverty activist in Kingston, Ontario, during last year’s provincial elections.
Notice how he doesn’t even bat an eye? He’s good at that. Picture after picture, video after video, Dalton McGuinty looks composed, collected and cool. He also looks like Norman Bates, but that’s a whole other thing.
As the U.S. race builds up steam, I think John McCain could take a lesson from Dalton McGuinty and learn how to stay cool under pressure.
As you may know, I’m a newspaper editor. I work at a newspaper with a large staff, many of whom are just starting out. I’ve taught writing and critical thinking. And I have three little kids. So I deal with a lot of rookie writers.
Sometimes, when I’m just overwhelmed by the abuses young reporters can heap on this language of ours, I stop by this website for a chuckle. It helps remind me, too, that English is a difficult language to learn, let alone master — and that goes for people who’ve been using it all their lives, not just foreign types.
That would be how things like this happen:
Yes, English is funny.
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