Helping Dad set up his first apartment

Okay, so this item caught my eye today at the Onion, "America's Finest News Source," because it's set in Bowling Green, Ohio, up there in Wood County, a few miles north of where I was born and raised in the flatlands of the County of Hancock.

As usual, there's both a chuckle and a bit of truth to be found in the Onion's satirical news reporting. And can't you just picture a couple of tearful kids concerned about their Dad's welfare as they help him set up his apartment. I mean they're naturally worried that Dad's never been out there on his own before. Poor Dad:

BOWLING GREEN, OH—With their father marking the start of an important new phase in his life, the children of local man Barry Hunt told reporters they got a bit teary-eyed after helping the 49-year-old move into his first apartment Thursday.

Teenagers Veronica and Jared Hunt said it was all they could do not to cry as they spent the day with their dad unloading boxes from a U-Haul trailer, assembling a new Ikea coffee table, and finding a spot in the one-bedroom rental unit to hang his Cleveland Cavaliers calendar.

“I can’t believe he’s finally heading out on his own,” said Veronica Hunt, 17, adding that her father was only able to bring a few items from the house, including his favorite DVDs, an old box fan, a few mismatched utensils, and an unwanted futon from the basement. “We knew this day was coming, but there’s still nothing you can do to prepare yourself for it. I kept it together while we were getting him settled, but on the drive back home, the tears just started flowing. It’ll be hard tonight knowing he’s not asleep right there in the bedroom down the hall.”

“I don’t think it will be an easy adjustment for him, either,” she continued. “He puts on a brave face, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he finds himself getting a little tearful the first night, too.”

According to reports, the two Hunt children were able to keep their emotions in check this morning when they accompanied their father to Target and helped him pick out new bedding, a shower curtain, and a desk lamp. But Veronica and Jared admitted they both choked up a little when they arrived in the new apartment and their dad opened a cupboard to put away his favorite mug from a trip to Arizona they took years ago, realizing they would no longer see him drinking from it each morning.

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Must-read at TominPaine: "Barack the Clown"

Photo credits: courtesy of Tominpaine

Go here to read Marc Rubin’s satirical piece at Tominpaine on the latest Howard Dean/DNC scheme to raise money and increase attendance at the upcoming, not-so-open Democratic convention this August.

If Only Sexism and Misogyny Were Off Limits, Too!

Controversial New Yorker cover by Artist Barry Blitt

The cover for the current issue of the New Yorker is pasted all over the Internet today, which is kind of unfortunate because it likely distracts from Ryan Lizza’s fine article inside titled Making It: How Chicago Shaped Obama.

The cover by artist Barry Blitt was intended as satire. Blitt told the Huffington Post: “I think the idea that the Obamas are branded as unpatriotic [let alone as terrorists] in certain sectors is preposterous. It seemed to me that depicting the concept would show it as the fear-mongering ridiculousness that it is.”

Blitt and David Remnick, editor of the New Yorker, ought to have known better. Racism and religious bigotry have justifiably been completely off limits since day one of the Obama campaign and even satire is now being held accountable for violating sensitive boundaries.

One can only wish that sexism and misogyny were also forbidden; Hillary Clinton might well be the Democratic Party’s nominee today instead of Obama. Clinton is easily the better qualified candidate for the presidency.

In any case, do read Lizza’s article.