Ho, Ho, Ho, Holy Shit Vintage Christmas Advertising of Yesterday (Third Edition)

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Now that Thanksgiving is finally over, it’s time for Black Friday to let the Christmas season finally commence. And I don’t think it would be more appropriate for me to start my cavalcade of Christmas posts than with some good old fashioned yuletide advertising. After all, chances are you’ve probably been bombarded with Black Friday special from retailers since after Halloween. Maybe even before that. Not only that, but several radio stations have already begun playing Christmas songs to so many people’s dismay who think it’s too freaking early. Now I’m fully aware that many people nostalgize over these old Christmas ads with their technicolor illustrations. However, I’ve done such posts twice before and the ads featured here surely aren’t those many tend to forget. In fact, many of them make you scratch your head, especially if it pertains to Santa doing stuff that put him squarely on the naughty list. And no, I don’t mean causing an Type II Diabetes epidemic every time he drinks a bottle of Coca Cola. So for your reading holiday pleasure, I give you some more vintage ads that might make your grandparents revisit parts of a time they’d rather forget.

  1. With Textron menswear, you can sled ride on a log in your pajamas.
And he's smoking a pipe as well as even has a guy pulling him with a string. Also, are those deer ladies in the background? Man, this ad seems to take inspiration from an acid trip.

And he’s smoking a pipe as well as even has a guy pulling him with a string. Also, are those deer ladies in the background? Man, this ad seems to take inspiration from an acid trip.

2. Pause and refresh with the great taste of Coca Cola.

Now this would make a perfectly good ad. If it weren't for that little bottle cap sprite boy handling the reindeer. Seriously, he gives me the creeps.

Now this would make a perfectly good ad. If it weren’t for that little bottle cap sprite boy handling the reindeer. Seriously, I guess he has the reindeer trample bad children.

3. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from Interwoven socks.

Also, watch Santa beat the living shit out of Axis power leaders. Still, the Japanese depiction is the mot offensive of the 3. Yellow peril, really?

Also, watch Santa beat the living shit out of Axis power leaders. Still, the Japanese depiction is the mot offensive of the 3. Yellow peril, really?

4. This year, Mrs. Santa Claus gets the greatest gift of all: a brand new refrigerator.

First of all, we know the guy dressed as Santa is her husband. Second, uh, fridges are appliances that should be for the whole family since everyone uses it. Not just the wife.

First of all, we know the guy dressed as Santa is her husband. Second, uh, fridges are appliances that should be for the whole family since everyone uses it. Not just the wife.

5. Why use a flying reindeer pulled sleigh when you can drive a 1950s muscle car?

Uh, Santa, I'm sure you really like that car. But seriously, falling into it from your sleigh really isn't a good idea. The next place could be the ER. Or six feet under.

Uh, Santa, I’m sure you really like that car. But seriously, falling into it from your sleigh really isn’t a good idea. The next place could be the ER. Or six feet under.

6. Lionel trains are always a great gift for young boys.

"Excellent. Soon I'll use this train set to carry out my plan to take over the world. Let's see if I can use it to run over my brother's gerbils."

“Excellent. Soon I’ll use this train set to carry out my plan to take over the world. Let’s see if I can use it to run over my brother’s gerbils.”

7. Santa Claus Soap is always best for laundry.

Okay, the Santa isn't that bad in this one, strangely enough. But if I were him, I'd watch out for that creepy child. She may have murder on the mind if St. Nick doesn't give her the chainsaw and hockey mask she wanted.

Okay, the Santa isn’t that bad in this one, strangely enough. But if I were him, I’d watch out for that creepy child. She may have murder on the mind if St. Nick doesn’t give her the chainsaw and hockey mask she wanted.

8. As Santa says, Chesterfield cigarettes come wrapped and ready.

Yes, nothing says Merry Christmas like the wrapped and ready gift of lung cancer, emphysema, COPD, and a 1 out of 3 chance of an early death. But here you have Santa with a cigarette in his hand. Way to put yourself on the naughty list, Kris Kringle.

Yes, nothing says Merry Christmas like the wrapped and ready gift of lung cancer, emphysema, COPD, and a 1 out of 3 chance of an early death. But here you have Santa with a cigarette in his hand. Way to put yourself on the naughty list, Kris Kringle.

9. Boys, spend your Christmas money on this Red Ryder Carbine BB gun.

Warning: Contains a strong possibility that you'll shoot your eye out, kids. Also doesn't come with a gyroscope as you might've thought from Christmas Story.

Warning: Contains a strong possibility that you’ll shoot your eye out, kids. Also doesn’t come with a gyroscope as you might’ve thought from Christmas Story.

10. Cameo stockings are always great Santa bait.

Yes, Santa loves to look at women who wear Cameo stockings from their windows. Of course, if he didn't have that magic sleigh and a sack full of gifts, he'd probably be subject to hundreds of restraining orders by now.

Yes, Santa loves to look at women who wear Cameo stockings from their windows. Of course, if he didn’t have that magic sleigh and a sack full of gifts, he’d probably be subject to hundreds of restraining orders by now.

11. Remember guys, ladies always love when you give them jewelry from Monet.

This guy's like, "I must've made a mistake. I only gave her some gold bracelets since she's a good friend of mine. Now she thinks we're more than that. Sure she's hot and I fantasize about sleeping with her. But I don't know if this is what I really want right now. I'm so confused."

This guy’s like, “I must’ve made a mistake. I only gave her some gold bracelets since she’s a good friend of mine and it was my turn to play Santa. Now she thinks we’re more than that. Sure she’s hot and I fantasize about sleeping with her. But I don’t know if this is what I really want right now. I’m so confused.”

12. Even Santa Claus himself wears a Botany Tie.

Sorry, but I don't think Santa should really go for business attire. If it weren't for the hat, he could easily be some grizzled old guy in accounting for all I know.

Sorry, but I don’t think Santa should really go for business attire. If it weren’t for the hat, he could easily be some mean grizzled old guy in accounting for all I know.

13. Don’t know what to give a man for Christmas? How about a pen?

Because nothing says "I didn't know what to give you this year but I know you hat ties" like a fancy overpriced pen. I'm sure your man will enjoy it.

Because nothing says “I didn’t know what to give you this year but I know you hat ties” like a fancy overpriced pen. I’m sure your man will enjoy it.

14. If you want to give your man something different, how about something among Avon’s all-men Christmas gifts?

Because nothing makes a manlier Christmas gift than a cologne decanter he can also use as a toy. The covered wagon one is particularly stupid.

Because nothing makes a manlier Christmas gift than a cologne decanter he can also use as a toy. The covered wagon one is particularly stupid.

15. Have your child dream of gingerbread men this Christmas with Royal baking powder.

I don't know about you, but that kid better wake up soon. Or else, surrounding magic gingerbread men might subject him to very terrible things.

I don’t know about you, but that kid better wake up soon. Or else, surrounding magic gingerbread men might subject him to very terrible things. That clown looks pretty shady, too.

16. Bob Hope tells you to hope for the best with Page & Shaw chocolates.

Sorry, but Bob Hope would've made a great Christmas movie horror villain in that Santa suit. Seriously, he's already giving me nightmares.

Sorry, but Bob Hope would’ve made a great Christmas movie horror villain in that Santa suit. Seriously, he’s already giving me nightmares.

17. For air-flight mileage on the road, give Fisk tires.

For one, Santa's sleigh doesn't need tires since it's pulled by reindeer and magic. Second, is he in space? If so, how is he and his reindeer able to function? Oh, right magic.

For one, Santa’s sleigh doesn’t need tires since it’s pulled by reindeer and magic. Second, is he in space? If so, how is he and his reindeer able to function? Oh, right magic.

18. For Christmas travel, you can always go on the Pennsylvania Railroad.

And here we have Santa creeping in on a girl in her sleeping car while the conductor seems to be fine with it. Okay, he probably understands. But it's kind of weird.

And here we have Santa creeping in on a girl in her sleeping car while the conductor seems to be totally fine with it. After all, Santa always sees you when you’re sleeping even on the train.

19. When seeing Santa at the mall, always remember to ask for the Plymouth your dad always wanted.

Because nothing says Christmas like parents using their children as pawns during a Santa visit. No, having your kid ask for a new car you want isn't being a good boy.

Because nothing says Christmas like parents using their children as pawns during a Santa visit. No, having your kid ask Santa for a new car you want isn’t being a good boy.

20. Don’t know what to give your woman for Christmas? How about a set of tupperware?

Because we all know that women can't get enough of colorful plastic containers to store food in. This especially goes for containers you can't put in the dishwasher.

Because we all know that women can’t get enough of colorful plastic containers to store food in. This especially goes for containers you can’t put in the dishwasher.

21. Make your Christmas morning a Kodak moment.

From Cracked: "The photograph that woman is taking is about to be mailed to that girl's mother with a ransom demand, possibly with a tiny severed finger included. That weeping girl has no idea where she is or who the monster behind that fine Kodak camera is. We suppose you could say that, in reality, this is just an ad about a mother photographing her little girl on Christmas morning, and this girl likes to open presents in bed (and the girl is apprehensive because she lives in an era when terror lurks around every corner). But Kodak actually had a whole series of these ads, and each and every one featured a woman photographing a young girl, in her bed, with a doll. Often against the girl's will."

From Cracked: “The photograph that woman is taking is about to be mailed to that girl’s mother with a ransom demand, possibly with a tiny severed finger included. That weeping girl has no idea where she is or who the monster behind that fine Kodak camera is. We suppose you could say that, in reality, this is just an ad about a mother photographing her little girl on Christmas morning, and this girl likes to open presents in bed (and the girl is apprehensive because she lives in an era when terror lurks around every corner). But Kodak actually had a whole series of these ads, and each and every one featured a woman photographing a young girl, in her bed, with a doll. Often against the girl’s will.”

22. What a wonderful Christmas to give a Borg scale!

Well, if anyone asked for it. Otherwise, a bathroom scale gift on Christmas is a way to say to a loved one that they really need to go to the gym or change their diet. Seriously, bathroom scales make horrible Christmas gifts.

Well, if anyone asked for it. Otherwise, a bathroom scale gift on Christmas is a way to say to a loved one that they really need to go to the gym or change their diet. Seriously, bathroom scales make horrible Christmas gifts.

23. GE cool brights are Christmas lights cool enough to touch.

Cracked: "OK, this kid is a little too on board with whatever is going on here. In 1970, GE wanted you to know that their lights were cool to the touch, and this little kid wanted to make sure that was the most awkward thing you learned about all day. Now, it's not this kid's fault that she got a haircut as bowl-shaped and lopsided as one of the Three Stooges, but the look on her face says that either there is something really freaky going on off-camera to the right or she's possessed. You can decide which is creepier."

Cracked: “OK, this kid is a little too on board with whatever is going on here. In 1970, GE wanted you to know that their lights were cool to the touch, and this little kid wanted to make sure that was the most awkward thing you learned about all day. Now, it’s not this kid’s fault that she got a haircut as bowl-shaped and lopsided as one of the Three Stooges, but the look on her face says that either there is something really freaky going on off-camera to the right or she’s possessed. You can decide which is creepier.”

24. For the guy in your life, you can always give him his own Iver Johnson automatic revolver.

Yes, ladies, give your men the gift that's a gleaming instrument of death. Let's hope the gun isn't hanging on the tree by the goddamned trigger while it's loaded.

Yes, ladies, give your men the gift that’s a gleaming instrument of death. Let’s hope the gun isn’t hanging on the tree by the goddamned trigger while it’s loaded.

25. From Harper’s Weekly 1865: Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night.

From Cracked: "This 1865 ad is actually just Harper's Weekly thanking its customers for their business. But studying it closely, we've developed a theory that the artist started drawing at the top and slowly went insane as he worked his way down. Because at a quick glance, this seems pretty standard issue old-timey Christmas, but our creep-ometer started going off when we saw Santa winking lustfully from the center, being all "Ladies ... I mean ... children." But keep going down to the bottom and you'll see that the town has gathered for the annual Christmas decapitations of their giant-headed residents, as is tradition, which has incorporated the usual Christmas tropes: swords, dwarfs, kung-fu fighting and exactly one clown. Also, the set appears to have caught fire, leaving no hope of escape for anyone in that crowded building."

From Cracked: “This 1865 ad is actually just Harper’s Weekly thanking its customers for their business. But studying it closely, we’ve developed a theory that the artist started drawing at the top and slowly went insane as he worked his way down. Because at a quick glance, this seems pretty standard issue old-timey Christmas, but our creep-ometer started going off when we saw Santa winking lustfully from the center, being all “Ladies … I mean … children.” But keep going down to the bottom and you’ll see that the town has gathered for the annual Christmas decapitations of their giant-headed residents, as is tradition, which has incorporated the usual Christmas tropes: swords, dwarfs, kung-fu fighting and exactly one clown. Also, the set appears to have caught fire, leaving no hope of escape for anyone in that crowded building.”

26. Christmas time is always Guinness time.

Misplaced wildlife aside, I think the Pelican might have a drinking problem. Just look how many bottles he has in its beak. That's not a good sign.

Misplaced wildlife aside, I think the Pelican might have a drinking problem. Just look how many bottles he has in its beak. That’s not a good sign.

27. A Morris car is always great for the whole family.

Don't look now but these kids walked on their mommy kissing Santa Claus or their dad in a Santa suit. And yet, neither seem very fazed about it at all.

Don’t look now but these kids walked on their mommy kissing Santa Claus or their dad in a Santa suit. And yet, neither seem very fazed about it at all.

28. Give your child a special gift for Christmas like a puppy.

For the love of God, don't give your kids a puppy for Christmas since dog ownership is a 10-15 year commitment. Seriously, don't do it. This ad sets a very disturbing trend because a lot of Christmas puppies end up neglected.

For the love of God, don’t give your kids a puppy for Christmas since dog ownership is a 10-15 year emotional commitment. Seriously, don’t do it. This ad sets a very disturbing trend because a lot of Christmas puppies end up neglected.

29. Real Silk hosiery is a great gift for anyone on your list.

Okay, this might not go well with the kids either since this well-dressed man is sitting with a Santa suit. Yeah, that might require some uncomfortable explanation.

Okay, this might not go well with the kids either since this well-dressed man is sitting with a Santa suit. Yeah, that might require some uncomfortable explanation.

30. Even Santa Claus himself enjoys a good smoke now and then.

Of course, remember that enjoying a good smoke will get your lungs full of tar and possibly result in a slow and painful death from lung cancer. Seriously, tobacco kills people for God's sake.

Of course, remember that enjoying a good smoke will get your lungs full of tar and possibly result in a slow and painful death from lung cancer. Seriously, tobacco kills people for God’s sake.

31. This Christmas give your family the gift that keeps on giving, life insurance.

Let's just hope this father doesn't intend to murder his family and cash in on the money. But I wouldn't be so sure about that.

Let’s just hope this father doesn’t intend to murder his family and cash in on the money. But I wouldn’t be so sure about that.

32. Make this a Browning Christmas with a brand new arsenal.

Great for NRA members and crazy nutjobs for their survivalist bunkers. What more could they ask for?

Great for NRA members and crazy nutjobs for their survivalist bunkers. What more could they ask for?

33. There’s nothing more a woman wants from Santa than a new fur coat.

Okay, Santa, buying expensive gifts for women is one thing. Tucking a sleeping woman in a fur coat? Well, that's just goddamn creepy.

Okay, Santa, buying expensive gifts for women is one thing. Tucking a sleeping woman in a fur coat? Well, that’s just goddamn creepy.

34. Take in the aroma of the holiday season on our December 10th Open House at Sandberg Funeral and Cremation Services.

Because there's nothing that's in the spirit of Christmas than dwelling on the notion of your loved one's imminent mortality. Hope they have senior discounts because funerals are expensive.

Because there’s nothing that’s in the spirit of Christmas than dwelling on the notion of your loved one’s imminent mortality. Hope they have senior discounts because funerals are expensive.

35. Nothing makes a great Christmas treat than hot Dr. Pepper.

Uh, Frosty, you know you shouldn't be around hot drinks for obvious reasons. Also, hot soft drinks are disgusting.

Uh, Frosty, you know you shouldn’t be around hot drinks for obvious reasons. Also, hot soft drinks are disgusting.

36. Give your lady the best she deserves for Christmas like a Hoover.

Oh, God, please don't. Seriously, vacuums are noise machines used for cleaning. Women will not love it.

Oh, God, please don’t. Seriously, vacuums are noise machines used for cleaning. Women will not love it. If my boyfriend gave me one, I’d seriously flip out. Great Christmas gift, you say? Hell no!

37. Mackintosh’s Quality Street sweets are enough to even tempt Santa.

Then again, Santa is overweight and prefers baked goods so it's not too much of a stretch. However, he should beware of Bo Peep and the giant toy soldier behind him.

Then again, Santa is overweight and prefers baked goods so it’s not too much of a stretch. However, he should beware of Bo Peep and the giant toy soldier behind him.

38. Kids, how about give your dad a Zippo lighter for Christmas this year?

Let's hope the kid on the right doesn't accidentally light himself on fire with one of those near his ass. Because that would cause a major disaster.

Let’s hope the kid on the right doesn’t accidentally light himself on fire with one of those near his ass. Because that would cause a major disaster.

39. This Christmas, introduce your wife to the joys of canning.

Uh, seriously? Unless she runs her own cottage business, I'm not sure if a bottling outfit is even necessary. I mean this is wrong on so many levels.

Uh, seriously? Unless she runs her own cottage business, I’m not sure if a bottling outfit is even necessary. I mean this is wrong on so many levels.

40. Men, need a last minute gift for the women in your life? Go with Pyrex.

Because nothing says "I didn't put any thought in your Christmas gift and put off my shopping till the last minute" like Pyrex tupperware. Yeah, Pyrex, what a way to promote yourself.

Because nothing says “I didn’t put any thought in your Christmas gift and put off my shopping till the last minute” like Pyrex. Yeah, Pyrex, what a way to promote yourself.

41. More Santas want Fruit of the Loom underwear for Christmas than any other brand.

Because we all know how men proudly hang out on Christmas in their undies isn't very unusual at all. Still, this is pretty awkward.

Because we all know how men proudly hang out on Christmas in their undies isn’t very unusual at all. Still, this is pretty awkward.

42. Doubl-Glo icicles always deck the best dressed Christmas trees.

I don't know about you. But I wouldn't trust that Santa if I were you. He doesn't seem like himself lately.

I don’t know about you. But I wouldn’t trust that Santa if I were you. He doesn’t seem like himself lately.

43. Ann Page foods are of Christmas quality.

Uh, Santa, we know you like food and all. But I suggest you might want to take it down a notch. You're scaring the children.

Uh, Santa, we know you like food and all. But I suggest you might want to take it down a notch. You’re scaring the children.

44. Nothing makes a great Christmas eggnog like Bacardi.

Still, you may not want the eggnog making duties to fall on Santa's elves. Because who knows what else is in their recipe.

Still, you may not want the eggnog making duties to fall on Santa’s elves. Because who knows what else is in their recipe.

45. Please, Santa, can you give Mommy a Hoover!

If she were my daughter, I would say, "You better not ask Santa for a Hoover, young lady!" Because I hate vacuums.

If she were my daughter, I would say, “You better not ask Santa for a Hoover, young lady!” Because I hate vacuums.

46. At Singer, you can always find the best gifts for your family.

Notice in this ad that the son has a Singer record player while the daughter has a toy sewing machine. Sexist? I'll say. Besides, in those days, I'd rather have the record player or the typewriter.

Notice in this ad that the son has a Singer record player while the daughter has a toy sewing machine. Sexist? I’ll say. Besides, in those days, I’d rather have the record player or the typewriter.

47. Remember, guys, ladies always love a man who’d give them a new fur coat. Just ask Santa.

Santa, I don't think Mrs. Claus will approve of you being between these two lovely women. Please, I don't know how she puts up with you being such a perv.

Santa, I don’t think Mrs. Claus will approve of you being between these two lovely women. Please, I don’t know how she puts up with you being such a perv.

48. Give year round pleasure this Christmas with ice buckets.

"Just think, in 50 years, our grandkids will use these to dump ice on themselves for ALS donations. You know that disease that killed Lou Gehrig? Is that cool or what?"

“Just think, in 50 years, our grandkids will use these to dump ice on themselves for ALS donations. You know that disease that killed Lou Gehrig? Is that cool or what?”

49. Santa says that nothing makes a more ideal Christmas gift than weapons.

Using Santa to sell guns and archery equipment, that's just crazy. Then again, deer hunting season is usually over by this point anyway.

Using Santa to sell guns and archery equipment, that’s just crazy. Then again, deer hunting season is usually over by this point anyway.

50. Murad cigarettes: The great Christmas present for grown-ups.

Yes, this smoking Santa ad has him encouraging kids to buy cigarettes for their parents. Because that's what adults want. Let alone that tobacco kills 1 out of 3 of its users worldwide.

Yes, this smoking Santa ad has him encouraging kids to buy cigarettes for their parents. Because that’s what adults want. Let alone that tobacco kills 1 out of 3 of its users worldwide.

51. The results are in, everyone wants Mrs. Claus’s ironing table.

What Mrs. Claus needs is a desk to answer all those letters. Also, what good is having all those elves around if they won't do the ironing for you?

What Mrs. Claus needs is a desk to answer all those letters. Also, what good is having all those elves around if they won’t do the ironing for you?

52. What she’s dreaming for this Christmas is a White sewing machine.

From Buzzfeed: "I’m positive this is not the “white Christmas” she was dreaming about." I kind of agree.

From Buzzfeed: “I’m positive this is not the “white Christmas” she was dreaming about.” I kind of agree.

53. Santa’s future is still in the bag with Mutual Life Insurance.

I don't know about you. But I don't know why Santa would need life insurance exactly. I mean it's widely said he goes on forever.

I don’t know about you. But I don’t know why Santa would need life insurance exactly. I mean it’s widely said he goes on forever. This doesn’t make sense.

54. Have all your gifts initialed with Seagram’s V.O.

From Flashbak: "The 1965 Class of Alcoholics Anonymous. Perhaps, the choice of graduation gifts could’ve been more thought through."

From Flashbak: “The 1965 Class of Alcoholics Anonymous. Perhaps, the choice of graduation gifts could’ve been more thought through.”

55. Ladies, give him the best with Max Factor aftershave.

I understand this is for family. But the fact a young girl has her lips pursed like she expects to be kissed is a pretty disturbing.

I understand this is for family. But the fact a young girl has her lips pursed like she expects to be kissed is a pretty disturbing.

56. Which of these watches will bring you the best kisses this Christmas morning?

From Flashbak: "Which one’s the best? Hmmm. The “extra hug” and and “kiss for every jewel” (and she’ll call you “sir” watches are nice. But, I’ll have the “one [censored] coming right up” watch instead."

From Flashbak: “Which one’s the best? Hmmm. The “extra hug” and and “kiss for every jewel” (and she’ll call you “sir” watches are nice. But, I’ll have the “one [censored] coming right up” watch instead.”

57. Give the kids a Christmas they’ll never forget with Bell & Howell.

From Flashbak: "Kids – look away! There is a Santa Claus… despite how this irresponsible 1944 advert looks. Bell and Howell are dicks."

From Flashbak: “Kids – look away! There is a Santa Claus… despite how this irresponsible 1944 advert looks. Bell and Howell are dicks.”

58. This Christmas treat your car to some roller bearings.

From Flashbak: "1946 Ad Bower Roller Bearings advert…. strange that there would even be an advert for roller bearings in the first place. Even stranger it would feature girls in sexy Christmas costumes."

From Flashbak: “1946 Ad Bower Roller Bearings advert…. strange that there would even be an advert for roller bearings in the first place. Even stranger it would feature girls in sexy Christmas costumes.”

59. This year make it a family Christmas with Weldon pajamas.

Because nothing says Christmas like wearing matching pink and red pajamas for the whole family. It's amazing if Sonny won't look back at this moment with embarrassment years later.

Because nothing says Christmas like wearing matching pink and red pajamas for the whole family. It’s amazing if Sonny won’t look back at this moment with embarrassment years later.

60. Who needs mistletoe when you have Johnny Walker Red?

Okay, this is a very troubling ad since it hints Christmas date rape. A present no young woman wants period.

Okay, this is a very troubling ad since it hints Christmas date rape. A present no young woman wants period.

61. A boy becomes a man on Christmas when he receives his first typewriter.

From Flashbak: "Yes, since Biblical days, the rite of manhood has been the sacred Gifting of the Typewriter. This advert is from 1976 – it wouldn’t be long before the typewriter would go the way of the abacus and daguerreotype."

From Flashbak: “Yes, since Biblical days, the rite of manhood has been the sacred Gifting of the Typewriter. This advert is from 1976 – it wouldn’t be long before the typewriter would go the way of the abacus and daguerreotype.”

62. When Santa relaxes, he always has his elves tending to his every need.

So Santa gets to relax with the elves who do everything for him for who who knows what. Also, Santa usually drinks Coca Cola from the bottle. An elf shouldn't pour a glass for him.

So Santa gets to relax with the elves who do everything for him for who who knows what. Also, Santa usually drinks Coca Cola from the bottle. An elf shouldn’t pour a glass for him.

63. This Christmas Santa Claus has a sack filled with Chesterfield cigarettes.

Yes, nothing says Christmas like the gift of lung cancer. Santa, you really want us to smoke? God almighty!

Yes, nothing says Christmas like the gift of lung cancer. Santa, you really want us to smoke? God almighty!

64. Santa Claus knows that Westinghouse fridges don’t freeze.

Yet, did he really have to have Inuit children help him? I mean he has elves and I know that's not a great depiction of Native Americans.

Yet, did he really have to have Inuit children help him? I mean he has elves and I know that’s not a great depiction of Native Americans.

65. Nothing makes Frosty feel at home than a basement freezer.

Looks like Frosty the Snowman is now sleeping with the fish sticks. Guess global warming has really got to him these days.

Looks like Frosty the Snowman is now sleeping with the fish sticks. Guess global warming has really got to him these days.

66. Rest your head this Christmas with a Koolfoam pillow.

From Bob Canada: "This poor family of wretches has apparently been without proper head support for a very long time. Dad's positively in ecstasy as he paws at that new pillow. Little Suzie is even ignoring her brand new doll so that she can cop a feel off of that stuffed sack of Nirvana."

From Bob Canada: “This poor family of wretches has apparently been without proper head support for a very long time. Dad’s positively in ecstasy as he paws at that new pillow. Little Suzie is even ignoring her brand new doll so that she can cop a feel off of that stuffed sack of Nirvana.”

67. A Schwinn bike makes a perfect Christmas gift for a kid.

From Retail Hell Underground: "Look at that kid's eyes. He is absolutely planning to murder you with his shiny new Schwinn. It doesn't matter that bikes are made of smooth metal and squishy rubber and luxurious pleather -- he will find a way to butcher you with it, probably after practicing on no less than five neighborhood pets. And check out that drawn-out "O-OH-H." Not only is he getting his first Schwinn, he's also experiencing his first orgasm. The first ones are so easy, aren't they? But soon you get jaded, and the only way you can get your rocks off is by watching a prostitute choke to death on a bicycle bell, her death rattle accompanied by plaintive ringing."

From Retail Hell Underground: “Look at that kid’s eyes. He is absolutely planning to murder you with his shiny new Schwinn. It doesn’t matter that bikes are made of smooth metal and squishy rubber and luxurious pleather — he will find a way to butcher you with it, probably after practicing on no less than five neighborhood pets. And check out that drawn-out “O-OH-H.” Not only is he getting his first Schwinn, he’s also experiencing his first orgasm. The first ones are so easy, aren’t they? But soon you get jaded, and the only way you can get your rocks off is by watching a prostitute choke to death on a bicycle bell, her death rattle accompanied by plaintive ringing.”

68. Santa always knows that a boy wants his own Stevens rifle for Christmas.

From Retail Hell Underground: "We can't emphasize enough that this 1906 ad is for real guns. Not cork guns or BB guns -- actual, "hunt your own food and shoot a man down in cold blood" guns. And this one is being placed beside a sleeping child by a visibly conniving Santa, as if he's preparing the kid for some Christmas morning Hunger Games in which only the sole survivor gets the stocking."

From Retail Hell Underground: “We can’t emphasize enough that this 1906 ad is for real guns. Not cork guns or BB guns — actual, “hunt your own food and shoot a man down in cold blood” guns. And this one is being placed beside a sleeping child by a visibly conniving Santa, as if he’s preparing the kid for some Christmas morning Hunger Games in which only the sole survivor gets the stocking.”

69. When Santa sees you when you’re sleeping, he sometimes even films it.

From Retail Hell Underground: "He sees you when you're sleeping. He also films you when you're sleeping. Then he shows everybody in a seedy, poorly lit theater. We really wish we could see those people's hands ... Wait, no! We take that back."

From Retail Hell Underground: “He sees you when you’re sleeping. He also films you when you’re sleeping. Then he shows everybody in a seedy, poorly lit theater. We really wish we could see those people’s hands … Wait, no! We take that back.”

70. There’s nothing better on Christmas than getting drunk on Kinsey with a ghost.

From Retail Hell Underground: "Easily the best part of any Christmas gathering is when you sit down with your buddy for a nice toast with Kinsey Whiskey and fucking drunken ghosts show up to party. Also, does that guy have a framed photo of himself on the table? Your holiday parties may be painfully awkward, but at least they're not whiskey-fueled ghost keggers with unrepentant narcissists."

From Retail Hell Underground: “Easily the best part of any Christmas gathering is when you sit down with your buddy for a nice toast with Kinsey Whiskey and fucking drunken ghosts show up to party. Also, does that guy have a framed photo of himself on the table? Your holiday parties may be painfully awkward, but at least they’re not whiskey-fueled ghost keggers with unrepentant narcissists.”

Exclusive Magazine Cover Disasters Through the Ages

cosmo-spoof

In a media landscape nowadays, you’d think there’s a magazine for everything. They also come in many forms depending on content. Some may focus on important news stories and analysis like Time and Newsweek. Some may feature interesting educational content from around the world like National Geographic or Smithsonian. Some may pertain to celebrity gossip, fashion, and household tips like the mainstream magazines you see on the racks in a grocery store. Nevertheless, they have loomed large in our pop culture landscape for a long time. After all, most of those vintage ads you’ve probably seen in my vintage blog posts came from magazines. Yet, each magazine issue comes with a cover that advertises what’s inside. For many issues, such images have become rather iconic and well known. Yet, there are also covers that cause considerable controversy. In this post, I’ll feature a treasure trove of magazine covers that will make you scratch your head. Some of these contain photoshop fails (which make people look very unflattering). Some pertain to images that might be unintentionally funny. Some may contain a lot of formatting mistakes. You name it. So enjoy these at your peril.

  1. In Popular Science, learn how to build your own family foxhole.
Apparently, the folks at Popular Science had no idea that a lot of people had basements in their homes in the 1950s. Or that an underground shelter is simply not an option for people in some areas like Florida.

Apparently, the folks at Popular Science had no idea that a lot of people had basements in their homes in the 1950s. Or that an underground shelter is simply not an option for people in some areas like Florida.

2. Presenting our current issue of Rugged Men: the masochist issue.

Because nothing makes a man more rugged than having 2 sexy blondes tie his hands and feet, hoist him up without his shirt on, and whip him senseless. Think about it as Fifty Shades of Grey om reverse.

Because nothing makes a man more rugged than having 2 sexy blondes tie his hands and feet, hoist him up without his shirt on, and whip him senseless. Think about it as Fifty Shades of Grey om reverse.

3. On Man’s Life, we will feature a man attacked by a swarm of bloodthirsty bats.

No, most bats don't viciously attack humans without probable cause. Sure they may spread disease from time to time. But the guy never should've entered the bat cave, at least without a shirt on.

No, most bats don’t viciously attack humans without probable cause. Sure they may spread disease from time to time. But the guy never should’ve entered the bat cave, at least without a shirt on.

4. Today in Man’s Life, beware of the killer turtles.

Sure turtles might have a vicious side. But this cover just seems too hard to take seriously.

Sure turtles might have a vicious side. But this cover just seems too hard to take seriously. I mean the guy’s trying to ward off attacking turtles for God’s sake.

5. On this issue of time, the Beatles.

So why did Time decide to go with freakish Beatles puppets? Couldn't they just put a photo of the Fab Four and leave it at that?

So why did Time decide to go with freakish Beatles puppets? Couldn’t they just put a photo of the Fab Four and leave it at that?

6. In Electrical Experimenter, we introduce to you the Teleport Phone.

Sure they may not have a phone keypad. But they can certainly Skype.

Sure they may not have a phone keypad. But they can certainly Skype.

7. On this issue of Good Housekeeping we sit down with First Lady Michelle Obama.

Or an evil robot of Michelle Obama that has killed her and taken her place. Yes, this is terrible photoshop indeed.

Or an evil robot of Michelle Obama that has killed her and taken her place. Yes, this is terrible photoshop indeed.

8. This issue of Time features the magic of virtual reality.

So is this guy really at the beach experiencing a different virtual reality. Or is that beach a virtual reality? I can't tell.

So is this guy really at the beach experiencing a different virtual reality. Or is that beach a virtual reality? I can’t tell.

9. Time Magazine calls Chris Christie The Boss.

This issue appeared in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. However, the mob boss style photo treatment is actually quite fitting for the shady New Jersey governor who caused a massive traffic jam out of spite.

This issue appeared in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. However, the mob boss style photo treatment is actually quite fitting for the shady New Jersey governor who caused a massive traffic jam out of spite.

10. In Man’s Life, our top story is vicious killer monkeys.

Yes, monkeys can be quite vicious creatures. But this is utterly ridiculous to take seriously. Hope that guy's knife comes in handy.

Yes, monkeys can be quite vicious creatures. But this is utterly ridiculous to take seriously. Hope that guy’s knife comes in handy.

11. In this issue of Weird Tales, we feature a living female buddha.

However, I find it hard to believe that a female buddha would be a redheaded white girl who's dressed like she's from a Las Vegas strip club. But that's just me.

However, I find it hard to believe that a female buddha would be a redheaded white girl who’s dressed like she’s from a Las Vegas strip club. But that’s just me.

12. This issue of Time features hockey.

Hey, I didn't know that Jason Voorhees played hockey before he resorted to killing teenagers. Why did nobody tell us about it?

Hey, I didn’t know that Jason Voorhees played hockey before he resorted to killing teenagers. Why did nobody tell us about it?

13. No, I don’t think this is a magazine about prostitution.

It's actually titled Where magazine. But the fact the woman covers part of the "e" seems to suggest otherwise.

It’s actually titled Where magazine. But the fact the woman covers part of the “e” seems to suggest otherwise.

14. I’m sure all of you remember Time’s infamous O.J. Simpson cover.

No, O.J. isn't that black. But don't tell the people of Time. And yes, I do believe he did it since he's had a record of abuse.

No, O.J. isn’t that black. But don’t tell the people of Time. And yes, I do believe he did it since he’s had a record of abuse.

15. Sometimes in magazine cover design, placement is everything.

This is called, "Parents" magazine. However, the mother's head on the "a" and the green blurb on the "t" makes sound something completely different.

This is called, “Parents” magazine. However, the mother’s head on the “a” and the green blurb on the “t” makes sound something completely different.

16. When doing a cover story on a terrorist suspect, don’t slap photo on the cover that makes him look like a teen rock star.

This is Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who's the surviving Boston Marathon Bomber. The people of Boston weren't happy about this cover at all.

This is Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who’s the surviving Boston Marathon Bomber. The people of Boston weren’t happy about this cover at all.

17. Time Magazine informs us that we’re all puppets controlled by some external puppetmeister.

Well, this is about sociobiology. But the picture seems to suggest something even more sinister. Like we're all slaves to something outside ourselves.

Well, this is about sociobiology. But the picture seems to suggest something even more sinister. Like we’re all slaves to something outside ourselves.

18. This issue of The Economist discusses the trouble with mergers.

So what the hell does camel sex have to do with mergers? Seriously, that makes no sense whatsoever. And it makes camel parents angry.

So what the hell does camel sex have to do with mergers? Seriously, that makes no sense whatsoever. And it makes camel parents angry.

19. In this issue of Spy, it’s obvious that O.J. Simpson is guilty.

If Spy thinks he's guilty, then why do they have him dressed up as George Washington? It's just so absurd. Then again, maybe that's the point.

If Spy thinks he’s guilty, then why do they have him dressed up as George Washington? It’s just so absurd. Then again, maybe that’s the point.

20. In this issue of Time: Are Men Really that Bad?

So basically Time implies that men are pigs. Yet, some sure can dress.

So basically Time implies that men are pigs. Yet, some sure can dress.

21. Today’s special issue of Bloomberg is dedicated to tax evaders.

Actually they're talking about how rich people avoid paying taxes like tax shelters and taking advantage of loopholes. I'm sure it'll give some wealthy people ideas.

Actually they’re talking about how rich people avoid paying taxes like tax shelters and taking advantage of loopholes. I’m sure it’ll give some wealthy people ideas.

22. We devote this issue of This is Harrison County to suppositories.

Actually Butt Drugs is a name of a drugstore there. Yet, the name is quite unfortunate so I include this cover.

Actually Butt Drugs is a name of a drugstore there. Yet, the name is quite unfortunate so I include this cover.

23. In Men magazine, Attack of the Giant Otter.

Yes, the giant otter springs to attack some guy in his tent during the night. And that otter is about to have a lamp smashed at it.

Yes, the giant otter springs to attack some guy in his tent during the night. And that otter is about to have a lamp smashed at it.

24. This week in Esquire, the Passion of Muhammad Ali.

Note that they're depicting Muhammad Ali like Saint Sebastian who had arrows shot into him. And that it's not real at all. But it's surely in poor taste.

Note that they’re depicting Muhammad Ali like Saint Sebastian who had arrows shot into him. And that it’s not real at all. But it’s surely in poor taste.

25. This week in Esquire, Andy Warhol is sucked into a whirlpool of Campbell’s Tomato Soup.

Let's hope he comes back from the froth of saltiness. Yes, these old magazine covers can be surreal.

Let’s hope he comes back from the froth of saltiness. Yes, these old magazine covers can be surreal.

26. For Men’s Fitness, we sit down with tennis star Andy Roddick.

I don't know about you. But do you get the impression that one of Andy's arms is bigger than the other. Or is it just me?

I don’t know about you. But do you get the impression that one of Andy’s arms is bigger than the other. Or is it just me?

27. This week’s issue of Life magazine discusses the Generation Gap.

Uh, having people in blue man's glasses doesn't seem to help their case. In fact, makes you wonder if the photo shopper was on acid.

Uh, having people in blue man’s glasses doesn’t seem to help their case. In fact, makes you wonder if the photo shopper was on acid.

28. This week’s issue of Life magazine features an album of Christmas carols.

There's something not right about that golden hair child. Hope you don't find this little moppet in your home during the night.

There’s something not right about that golden hair child. Hope you don’t find this little moppet in your home during the night.

29. In this week’s issue of Life, we feature the scary cloaked masked lady.

Yes, she kind of seems a bit creepy to me. I don't think her soulless eyes contain anything lively for years.

Yes, she kind of seems a bit creepy to me. I don’t think her soulless eyes contain anything lively for years.

30. I guess this is the girls with guns issue of Black Mask.

I hear this Ammo Amy is perhaps the NRA's dream girl. I mean look at all the guns she carries. That's insane!

I hear this Ammo Amy is perhaps the NRA’s dream girl. I mean look at all the guns she carries. That’s insane!

31. In this issue of Male, man takes on giant lizard.

Wonder if this inspired the Star Trek episode where Captain Kirk fights Gorn. Though the man wouldn't use a sword. And the black guy gets trampled.

Wonder if this inspired the Star Trek episode where Captain Kirk fights Gorn. Though the man wouldn’t use a sword. And the black guy gets trampled.

32. In this issue of Stag, we learn how to protect ourselves against crabs.

Looks like STD prevention won't work in this case. Guess this might mean using a shovel.

Looks like STD prevention won’t work in this case. Perhaps a different kind of protection is needed like body armor.

33. According to True Men, even ripped guys are helpless when they’re attacked by hordes of flying squirrels.

Attacking squirrels? Really? Do you know how that's not scary? In fact, it's pretty ridiculous that you'll have to be nuts to imagine it.

Attacking squirrels? Really? Do you know how that’s not scary? In fact, it’s pretty ridiculous that you’ll have to be nuts to imagine it.

34. In Le Vie Parisienne, we feature a woman reading on the train.

Sorry, lady, but transparent top and a lifted skirt will draw attention. Even when you don't intend to.

Sorry, lady, but transparent top and a lifted skirt will draw attention. Even when you don’t intend to.

35. If you’re into shirtless covers, you’ll like this one from Africa’s Bowhunter.

This looks like a cheap cover with amateur photoshop for a cheap magazine. Also, the font isn't great either.

This looks like a cheap cover with amateur photoshop for a cheap magazine. Also, the font isn’t great either.

36. The New Republic features what’s rotten in Great Britain.

Yet, do we have to bring Princess Kate's dental health into this? Besides, those teeth aren't even real.

Yet, do we have to bring Princess Kate’s dental health into this? Besides, those teeth aren’t even real.

37. Presenting the Bill Clinton issue of Esquire.

No, Esquire, don't go with the Bill Clinton's legs spread. Seriously, that really doesn't help his scandal-prone reputation.

No, Esquire, don’t go with the Bill Clinton’s legs spread. Seriously, that really doesn’t help his scandal-prone reputation.

38. On Escape, man is driven to his death by gorgeous bare breasted Amazons.

Things really don't seem great for that guy about to be thrown into the volcano. Man, I don't think this magazine likes women.

Things really don’t seem great for that guy about to be thrown into the volcano. Man, I don’t think this magazine likes women.

39. In today’s Battle Cry, we feature a Nazi orgy.

Funny how the women are clad in their underwear while the guys are in full uniform. Doesn't seem to make much sense.

Funny how the women are clad in their underwear while the guys are in full uniform. Doesn’t seem to make much sense.

40. Looks like Der Spiegel doesn’t like Queen Elizabeth II.

Okay, they're really not telling the Queen to die even though it seems so. "Die" here simply means "the." So there's nothing to worry about.

Okay, they’re really not telling the Queen to die even though it seems so. “Die” here simply means “the.” So there’s nothing to worry about.

41. This issue of Marie Claire features the one and only Eva Mendes.

Thanks to photoshop, all her body parts are out of proportion. This especially goes for her head.

Thanks to photoshop, all her body parts are out of proportion. This especially goes for her head.

42. Tina Fey graces the cover of this month’s issue of In Style.

Tina Fey doesn't look like herself in this. Seriously, you have to wonder what's going on with her during the photo shoot.

Tina Fey doesn’t look like herself in this. Seriously, you have to wonder what’s going on with her during the photo shoot.

43. This issue of Elle, we sit down with Australian sensation Kyle Minogue.

And I have no idea what the hell happened to her leg. Surely, the other shoe should appear in this even with the knee bent.

And I have no idea what the hell happened to her leg. Surely, the other shoe should appear in this even with the knee bent.

44. In Russia, Vogue can be quite different.

This is especially true when you see a model's hand but no lower arm. Seriously, something's missing here.

This is especially true when you see a model’s hand but no lower arm. Seriously, something’s missing here.

45. This issue of Vogue we feature LeBron James and Gisele Bunchen.

Uh, no, Vogue. This has plenty of racist connotations that it's not even funny. Seriously, this is not cool.

Uh, no, Vogue. This has plenty of racist connotations that it’s not even funny. Seriously, this is not cool.

46. On W, we’re pleased to feature Demi Moore.

Unfortunately, they chopped off some of her hip in this. Also, it's likely they just pasted her head to a model's body, anyway.

Unfortunately, they chopped off some of her hip in this. Also, it’s likely they just pasted her head to a model’s body, anyway.

47. From Oops!, we have the pleasure to sit down with Taylor Swift.

Inside, we'll address the ongoing rumors of Ms. Swift being an evil space alien who uses her music to control minds. And whether she plans to assemble her own army to take over Earth.

Inside, we’ll address the ongoing rumors of Ms. Swift being an evil space alien who uses her music to control minds. And whether she plans to assemble her own army to take over Earth.

48. At Glamor, join us for an exclusive interview with Kristen Stewart.

Now we'll ask what the hell happened to her arm. Because we don't seem to see it in this photo.

Now we’ll ask what the hell happened to her arm. Because damn photoshop!

49. In Time, we discuss how Ted Cruz plans to make himself more likable.

He really doesn't look likable in this photo. More like a smug Lucius Malfoy type. Of course, it's hard to make a man like that likable at all.

He really doesn’t look likable in this photo. More like a smug Lucius Malfoy type. Of course, it’s hard to make a man like that likable at all.

50. How’s it hanging in Golf Week?

Why is there a noose in a golf magazine? It's a magazine about golf not executions.

Why is there a noose in a golf magazine? It’s a magazine about golf not executions.

51. In this issue of Esquire, the bearded lady finally shaves.

Okay, she probably doesn't have a beard. But the fact she's shaving her face is kind of disturbing for me. Not sure why.

Okay, she probably doesn’t have a beard. But the fact she’s shaving her face is kind of disturbing for me. Not sure why.

52. In this issue, Time takes you into the world of Cyberpunk.

So is this how they saw cyberculture in the early 1990s? Because they make it seem kind of shady.

So is this how they saw cyberculture in the early 1990s? Because they make it seem kind of shady.

53. This issue of Time talks about Cyber War.

From Time: "Two decades before drone strikes were a common part of military combat, 'Time' was busy warning us that a cyber war was coming." We should've listened.

From Mashable: “Two decades before drone strikes were a common part of military combat, ‘Time’ was busy warning us that a cyber war was coming.” We should’ve listened.

54. Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos comes in a box.

From Mashable: "Most people named "Person of the Year" get stately cover photo shoots. But if you're Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, the fact that Amazon is a website means you're relegated to the geek pile. And geeks don't get serious covers. They get their heads stuffed in boxes of packing peanuts and computer mice." Still, this is really creepy.

From Mashable: “Most people named “Person of the Year” get stately cover photo shoots. But if you’re Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, the fact that Amazon is a website means you’re relegated to the geek pile. And geeks don’t get serious covers. They get their heads stuffed in boxes of packing peanuts and computer mice.” Still, this is really creepy.

55. This month, Rolling Stone features the Passion of Kanye West.

Now, Rolling Stone, you don't have to make your cover in a way that Kanye West sees himself. Seriously, we don't need to feed into his enormous ego.

Now, Rolling Stone, you don’t have to make your cover in a way that Kanye West sees himself. Seriously, we don’t need to feed into his enormous ego.

56. Gracing Todateen is teen sensation Justin Bieber.

Or him as a soulless mannequin who'll kill you in your dreams. You can take your pick.

Or him as a soulless mannequin who’ll kill you in your dreams. You can take your pick.

57. If you like Scandal, then you better get this Essence issue featuring Kerry Washington.

Her body seems totally out of proportion on this one. Maybe it's the outfit. Or maybe it's photoshop. I can't tell which.

Her body seems totally out of proportion on this one. Maybe it’s the outfit. Or maybe it’s photoshop. I can’t tell which.

58. You can’t miss Kerry Washington on this month’s cover of Lucky.

Here she discusses what it's like to be turned into a zombie. Before she eats the reporter who interviewed her.

Here she discusses what it’s like to be turned into a zombie. Before she eats the reporter who interviewed her.

59. This Glamour issue features the ultimate drama queen Kristen Stewart.

Kristen Stewart looks about as lifeless on this cover as she did in the Twilight movies. And I'm sure she's no drama queen by any stretch of the imagination.

Kristen Stewart looks about as lifeless on this cover as she did in the Twilight movies. And I’m sure she’s no drama queen by any stretch of the imagination.

60. In this issue of Life, we give you a sneak preview of the moon landing.

To be fair, this issue came out in 1962. But we all know Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin didn't wear garbage can spacesuits when they came out of the module.

To be fair, this issue came out in 1962. But we all know Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin didn’t wear garbage can spacesuits when they came out of the module.

61. In this issue of Wildlife we talk about lions.

But do we really need to use "pussies galore" in a wildlife magazine. I know you mean cats, but still. It's not great terminology.

But do we really need to use “pussies galore” in a wildlife magazine. I know you mean cats, but still. It’s not great terminology.

62. In Man’s Life magazine, we caution you to beware of attacking otters.

A guy being attacked by otters, that's crazy. I mean otters are playful and cuddly. So it's hard to take seriously.

A guy being attacked by otters, that’s crazy. I mean otters are playful and cuddly. So it’s hard to take seriously.

63. You never know what will be featured in Nails.

From Nails: "It takes a while to see that the cover model is jumping out of a nail. What’s the connection of the image with the cover story? Your guess is as good as ours."

From Nails: “It takes a while to see that the cover model is jumping out of a nail. What’s the connection of the image with the cover story? Your guess is as good as ours.”

64. On this issue of V, we feature Naomi Campbell.

Okay, another woman all tied up and having her mouth taped shut. Now this is very disturbing if you ask me.

Okay, another woman all tied up and having her mouth taped shut. Now this is very disturbing if you ask me.

65. This issue discusses the occult revival and Satan’s return.

Okay, that looks a bit scary. I bet readers will have freak out of this. Yeah, doesn't look good.

Okay, that looks a bit scary. I bet readers will have freak out of this. Yeah, doesn’t look good.

66. In this week’s cover from Shape Up, we cover bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Of course, don't get in shape Arnold's way at the time because he clearly used steroids. Also, there might be something rising in his pants.

Of course, don’t get in shape Arnold’s way at the time because he clearly used steroids. Also, there might be something rising in his pants.

67. In Men Today, check out how Nazis put underwear clad women in piranha pools.

Look, I know the Nazis were terrible people whose cruelty knew no bounds. But please, I'm sure none of them used piranha pools where they could put scantily clad women in. That's just ridiculous.

Look, I know the Nazis were terrible people whose cruelty knew no bounds. But please, I’m sure none of them used piranha pools where they could put scantily clad women in. That’s just ridiculous.

68. Jennifer Lopez rules in this issue of Rolling Stone.

I'm sorry but I don't think J.Lo fits into warrior princess mode. That just doesn't seem like her.

I’m sorry but I don’t think J.Lo fits into warrior princess mode. That just doesn’t seem like her.

69. Ricky Martin gets deep in Rolling Stone.

And here he is in a pool full of naked women. Uh, it's kind of established that Ricky Martin likes guys. Seriously, he's been out of the closet for a long time.

And here he is in a pool full of naked women. Uh, it’s kind of established that Ricky Martin likes guys. Seriously, he’s been out of the closet for a long time.

70. In Terror Tales, love goes mad.

Yes, she loves the Grim Reaper so much that she'll walk all over the River Styx with hands trying to grab her. And here Death just rows along.

Yes, she loves the Grim Reaper so much that she’ll walk all over the River Styx with hands trying to grab her. And here Death just rows along.

71. In this issue of Time, we go to Adolf Hitler playing his organ near his wheel of torture.

This is the one when he was Person of the Year during the 1930s. But at least they give you an idea of how evil he is.

This is the one when he was Person of the Year during the 1930s. But at least they give you an idea of how evil he is.

72. At Bloomberg we talk of how Walmart’s workers love working there.

For some reason, I don't see a happy face behind that smiley face mask. It's pretty clear the smiley face is a facade of this Walmart greeter's misery.

For some reason, I don’t see a happy face behind that smiley face mask. It’s pretty clear the smiley face is a facade of this Walmart greeter’s misery.

73. In this issue of Bloomberg, we talk about the hedge fund myth.

Seems like the man in this cover is in an interesting position. And it seems vaguely inappropriate how the arrows spring from his crotch.

Seems like the man in this cover is in an interesting position. And it seems vaguely inappropriate how the arrows spring from his crotch.

74. This month’s Vanity Fair, we take you to Miley Cyrus.

I know this cover seemed to get a lot of flack. But she doesn't look right in this. Not sure why.

I know this cover seemed to get a lot of flack. But she doesn’t look right in this. Not sure why.

75. In Weird Tales, creepy Asian guy wants blonde to play Wheel of Fortune.

Okay, maybe that's not Wheel of Fortune. But this really doesn't have a good perception on Asians. The guy looks so evil.

Okay, maybe that’s not Wheel of Fortune. But this really doesn’t have a good perception on Asians. The guy looks so evil.

76. Time brings you into the world of dirty words.

So they're talking about American pop culture containing swear words. Well, they can just fuck it for all I care. Because this looks fucking awful.

So they’re talking about American pop culture containing swear words and how it’s ruining everything. Well, they can just fuck it for all I care. Because this looks fucking awful.

77. In this issue of Weird Tales, Death goes for naked women.

This magazine seems to have a lot of scantily clad women on their covers. Possibly since sex sells. Yet, this is crazy.

This magazine seems to have a lot of scantily clad women on their covers. Possibly since sex sells. Yet, this is crazy.

78. In Weird Tales, learn how to keep winged demons out of your relationship.

I guess a knife will certainly scare the creepy guy off. But I'm not sure if it will be enough.

I guess a knife will certainly scare the creepy guy off. But I’m not sure if it will be enough.

79. In this issue of For Men Only, it’s best that you beware of the minks.

Because they will attack in droves. And even the most manly men won't be able to stop them from eating flesh. Yes, these minks kill for your blood.

Because they will attack in droves. And even the most manly men won’t be able to stop them from eating flesh. Yes, these minks kill for your blood.

80. Sophia Loren doesn’t wear much for her Life cover.

While I can understand why she's not wearing much, her outfit is best to be desired. Seriously, that looks atrocious.

While I can understand why she’s not wearing much, her outfit is best to be desired. Seriously, that looks atrocious.

81. Crime Detective presents blondes in bondage.

Okay, she's more likely a skimpy clothed kidnap victim dressed to entice male readers. But you get the idea. Still, this is in very poor taste.

Okay, she’s more likely a skimpy clothed kidnap victim dressed to entice male readers. But you get the idea. Still, this is in very poor taste and even she’s not happy about it.

82. Time introduces you to the world of Vladimir Putin.

Here we have him in a candid pose with the title, "Hello, Comrade." Yet, despite the friendly presentation, they say he's anything but a nice guy from Russia.

Here we have him in a candid pose with the title, “Hello, Comrade.” Yet, despite the friendly presentation, they say he’s anything but a nice guy from Russia.

83. Sarah Jessica Parker graces the cover of Harper’s Bazaar.

In this issue, they ask her about her life before coming to Earth. They also talk to her about how her eyes can shoot laser beams.

In this issue, they ask her about her life before coming to Earth. They also talk to her about how her eyes can shoot laser beams.

84. Hope you can enjoy the latest fashion from this month’s issue of Elle.

Don't mind how one of these women seems to have a freakishly long neck. Or how she might be a vampire.

Don’t mind how one of these women seems to have a freakishly long neck. Or how she might be a vampire.

85. In Weird Tales, there’s no escape from zombies trying to get you.

I get the impression this magazine focuses a lot on the occult. Also, I don't think a whip will save you.

I get the impression this magazine focuses a lot on the occult. Also, I don’t think a whip will save you.

86. Jerry Yang from Yahoo! surfs the net at Time.

Even in the 1990s, this looked pretty stupid. Certainly really looks outdated now. Don't know why they thought it was a good idea.

Even in the 1990s, this looked pretty stupid. Certainly really looks outdated now. Don’t know why they thought it was a good idea.

87. Seventeen reconnects with Sarah Michelle Gellar on her life after Buffy.

Well, her head is a bit big for her body while her arms are a little rubbery. I mean this doesn't look like Sarah Michelle Gellar in the slightest.

Well, her head is a bit big for her body while her arms are a little rubbery. I mean this doesn’t look like Sarah Michelle Gellar in the slightest.

88. In Weird Tales, we go to India where turban guys sexually traffic white women.

And it seems that any scantily clad women in Weird Tales is seen as white. Makes me wonder if it has anything to do with Missing White Woman Syndrome.

And it seems that any scantily clad women in Weird Tales is seen as white. Makes me wonder if it has anything to do with Missing White Woman Syndrome.

89. In Weird Tales, bald emperor guy tries to seduce a blonde.

Yep, that's what it looks like. And she's being carried by women and androgynous bald servants. Also, is that a knife?

Yep, that’s what it looks like. And she’s being carried by women and androgynous bald servants. Also, is that a knife?

90. Time asks you whether you’re mom enough.

I'm sure that boy is way too old to breastfeed by now. Also, Time, how dare you sexualize motherhood and drag a toddler in the national spotlight. This kid will never live it down in high school.

I’m sure that boy is way too old to breastfeed by now. Also, Time, how dare you sexualize motherhood and drag a toddler in the national spotlight. This kid will never live it down in high school.

91. Rolling Stone tells us what it’s like to be Brad Pitt.

Hmmm...so Brad Pitt is smoking a cigarette and wearing a dress. I'm sure he wouldn't want this issue to see the light of day.

Hmmm…so Brad Pitt is smoking a cigarette and wearing a dress. I’m sure he wouldn’t want this issue to see the light of day.

92. Gracing this issue of W is none other than Janet Jackson.

From Carolyn Collado: "The pop artist didn’t deserve such distasteful W cover with her body looking distorted. The W magazine have done everything to ruin the diva’s image including too much makeup, unbecoming outfit and awkward pose you would wonder where was Janet’s neck that time."

From Carolyn Collado: “The pop artist didn’t deserve such distasteful W cover with her body looking distorted. The W magazine have done everything to ruin the diva’s image including too much makeup, unbecoming outfit and awkward pose you would wonder where was Janet’s neck that time.”

93. On the cover of Vanity Fair Spain is Hilton Hotel heiress Paris Hilton.

From Carolyn Collado: "Greg Lotus image for Paris Hilton for Vanity Fair Spain in January 2012 looked stunning and perfect if only for the fact that we are kinda confused whether the magazine really tapped the hotel heiress for the cover or did they have Paris Hilton’s wax figure covered on her behalf? The excessive retouching defeated the purpose of glamour that we rather pay more attention to her cute pup."

From Carolyn Collado: “Greg Lotus image for Paris Hilton for Vanity Fair Spain in January 2012 looked stunning and perfect if only for the fact that we are kinda confused whether the magazine really tapped the hotel heiress for the cover or did they have Paris Hilton’s wax figure covered on her behalf? The excessive retouching defeated the purpose of glamour that we rather pay more attention to her cute pup.”

94. Time sits down with tech sensation and Microsoft founder Bill Gates.

From Mashable: "Imagine you're Bill Gates and you get a phone call saying, "Congratulations, you're on the cover of 'Time' magazine!" and then, in the next breath, they say, "but we want you to look like a stereotypical nerd and spin a floppy disk in your hands." In 1984, this would be reality for the future richest man on Earth."

From Mashable: “Imagine you’re Bill Gates and you get a phone call saying, “Congratulations, you’re on the cover of ‘Time’ magazine!” and then, in the next breath, they say, “but we want you to look like a stereotypical nerd and spin a floppy disk in your hands.” In 1984, this would be reality for the future richest man on Earth.”

95. For Time, it’s 3 cheers for Prince Charles and Princess Diana.

Prince Charles looks particularly unflattering in this. Also, keep in mind that after 2 boys, they'd both cheat on each other and later divorce. Also, Diana died in a car wreck.

Prince Charles looks particularly unflattering in this. Diana doesn’t look great either. Also, keep in mind that after 2 boys, they’d both cheat on each other and later divorce. Also, Diana died in a car wreck.

96. Time scares you with the horrors of children and cyber porn.

To be honest, online porn exposure in children is a very real concern in this day in age. But this cover really makes it horrifying.

To be honest, online porn exposure in children is a very real concern in this day in age. But this cover really makes it horrifying.

97. New in Time, what doctors hate about hospitals.

This doctor seems like the hospital is a house of horrors. Well, this cover story explores medical errors.

This doctor seems like the hospital is a house of horrors. Well, this cover story explores medical errors.

98. According to Spy, Hillary Clinton is a dominatrix.

Or a BDSM dominatrix who should be our next president by now instead of the orange faced fuckwad president-elect we already have. Fuck you, white voters in Rust Belt states. Okay, maybe the BDSM Hillary is a little too far for 1993.

Or a BDSM dominatrix who should be our next president by now instead of the orange faced fuckwad president-elect we already have. Fuck you, white voters in Rust Belt states. Okay, maybe the BDSM Hillary is a little too far for 1993.

99. The New Yorker features the Obamas on their cover.

Now this looks pretty offensive and I remember when it came out. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert would later parody this.

Now this looks pretty offensive and I remember when it came out. Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert would later parody this.

100. Time features the golden geeks.

From Mashable: "Marc Andreessen became a BFD after Netscape went public -- and part of being a BFD meant that 'Time' would sit him in a royal chair and make him take off his shoes. And thus, the modern mythos that Silicon Valley entrepreneurs don't wear shoes was born."

From Mashable: “Marc Andreessen became a BFD after Netscape went public — and part of being a BFD meant that ‘Time’ would sit him in a royal chair and make him take off his shoes. And thus, the modern mythos that Silicon Valley entrepreneurs don’t wear shoes was born.”

Why We Need to Defend Network Neutrality

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Since the 1990s, the internet has become so much a part of our lives that it’s easy to imagine that it will always remain the free and open medium it is now. We’d like to believe it will remain a place where you can always access any lawful content you want and where those delivering that content can’t play favorites because they disagree with the message being delivered or want to charge more money for faster delivery. However, despite that we have rules in place protecting network neutrality thanks to the Federal Communications Commission, there may be no such guarantees after January 20, 2017. Why? Because not only did 60 million voters elect an unrespectable man like our soon-to-be groper-in-chief, Republicans have control of both houses in Congress and will more than likely retain power on the Supreme Court. Furthermore, there Senate hasn’t reconfirmed a Democratic FCC commissioner to another 5-year-term. Not only that, but the man President-Elect Evil Cheeto Head wants to chair the FCC is a longtime opponent of net neutrality and telecom lobbyist. If Donald Trump and his swamp cronies have their way within the next 4-8 years, this open internet and the network neutrality principles that sustain it, could be a thing of the past. Profits and corporate disfavor of controversial viewpoints or competing services can change both of what you see online and your connection quality. And the need to monitor what you do online in order to play favorites means even more consumer privacy invasions piled up on top of the NSA’s prying eyes. A lot of Americans don’t know about net neutrality because it doesn’t get a lot of coverage on the news media than it should. As for me, I first heard about this from my parents while I was in high school after they watched something from Bill Moyers about it. Those who do overwhelmingly support it across the political spectrum. And many Americans take the notion of a free and open internet for granted which they will sure to miss. But unfortunately, its share of detractors are in high positions of power as well as contribute generously to Republican politicians. Here I list a rough FAQ on net neutrality basics because if there’s a time we need to know and preserve net neutrality to protect the internet, it is now.

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Network neutrality is the principle that requires all legal content to be treated equally by internet service providers. This allows consumers to pay a monthly fee to the ISPs in order to access any website and service they want. Net neutrality is essential for a free and open internet in a digital economy as well as in a 21st century democracy.

What Is Network Neutrality?

Network neutrality is the guiding principle that internet service providers and government regulators should allow access to all applications and content regardless of source and without favoring or blocking particular products or websites. In other words, while ISPs provide you access to the internet, they should treat all services and websites the equally, which lets you use it as much as you want for anything you want at the cost of a monthly fee. Network neutrality preserves a free and open internet while preventing companies from discriminating against different kinds of websites and services.

What’s the Difference Between ISPs and Content Providers?

An ISP is a company that provides you access to the Internet like AT&T, Comcast, Verizon, Cox, Charter, and Time Warner Cable. Most people get their high-speed internet access from only these few telecommunication giants. The very few smaller carriers usually rely on the big guys to serve their customers. Content providers are companies that create and/or distribute videos and programs like Netflix and Amazon. Sometimes ISPs can also be content providers as well since Comcast owns NBC Universal as well as delivers TV shows and movies through its Xfinity internet service.

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We should care about network neutrality because it encourages innovation, promotes free speech, and prevents abuse by ISP gatekeepers. Without it, ISPs would demand a cut from every website in order to funnel that content to customers and possibly slow down or block content they don’t like. What the ISPs want the internet to be like should be unacceptable to all Americans.

Why Should We Care About Network Neutrality?

Network neutrality is essential because a free and open internet is the single greatest technology of our times that stimulates ISP competition, helps prevent unfair pricing practices, promotes innovation, promotes the spread of ideas, drives entrepreneurship, and protects freedom of speech. Overall, network neutrality keeps the internet a cornerstone of freedom and opportunity. When we receive or send data over the internet, we expect our ISPs to transfer it from one end of the network to the other. We don’t expect them to analyze or manipulate it. Without net neutrality, telecommunications companies can carve the internet into fast and slow lanes. An ISP can slow down its competitors’ content or block political opinions it disagreed with. ISPs can also charge extra fees to the few content companies that could afford to pay for preferential treatment while relegating everyone else to a slower rate of service. Such actions could destroy an open internet. So this is a very important issue.

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Telecom companies want to interfere with their customers’ internet mainly for profit and corporate interests. They want to block speech that would make them look bad, slow down or block applications that aren’t their own, and increase profits by making developers pay more to avoid having their data blocked or slowed down.

Why Would the Telecoms Want to Interfere with Internet Data?

Well, the answer boils down to simple profit and corporate interests. Companies might want to interfere with speech that makes them look bad, block applications that compete with their own, or increase their profit by forcing developers to pay more to avoid having their data blocked or slowed down.

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Those who believe that competition will ensure a free and open internet are sorely mistaken since building broadband is expensive that most ISPs are telecom companies since they already have the communication infrastructure already in place. And as far as internet provider consumer choice is concerned, most Americans are usually limited to 3 or fewer.

Won’t Competition Prevent Them from Doing Any of This?

Sorry, free-market believers, but your faith in the divine forces of capitalism will not save you. Normally competition should and would prevent telecoms from interfering with internet data. But it won’t. For one, data manipulation isn’t always easily detectable. Content can be delayed or distorted in a number of subtle ways. Secondly, building a high-speed broadband service is very expensive so there aren’t many of them. So it’s no surprise that they tend to be big phone and cable companies because they already have the data “pipes” in place. Most Americans don’t have more than a handful for legitimate high-speed broadband options at home (the vast majority have 3 or fewer). What this means is that customers can’t switch if big broadband providers start messing around with their service. Additionally, big content providers like Netflix have to send their data through these “last mile” gatekeepers. So, all you free-market absolutist libertarians, the current market competition just isn’t enough to stop them from blocking services or charging more for a fast lane.

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If telecom companies had their way which might happen under a Trump administration, you can expect a the future of the internet to look like a pay to play service like this. Doesn’t seem like one you’d want, does it?

Have There Been Any Actual Instances of Service Providers Interfering with the Internet or Is This All Theoretical?

Real abuses have happened consistently over the past decade. New technologies now allow telecom companies to scrutinize over every piece of information we send or receive online like websites, email, videos, Internet phone calls, or data generated by games or social networks. They could also program the computers that route that information to interfere with the data flow by slowing down or blocking traffic and communicators that they don’t like while speeding up traffic they do or that pays them extra for the privilege. To put it this way, imagine if your phone company could mess with your calls every time you tried to order a pizza from Domino’s because Pizza Hut is paying them to route their calls first. Though opponents claim the threat is only “theoretical” or that applying common carrier principles to the internet is a “solution in search of a problem,” there have been numerous incidents of abuse. There’s AT&T censoring words from Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder when he sang, “George Bush, leave this world alone” and “George Bush find yourself another home.” The company complained the words were censored to prevent youth visiting the website from being exposed to “excessive profanity.” Though the song contained none. They later blamed it on an external website contractor hired to screen the performance.  There’s Comcast discriminating against an entire class of online activities by using deep packet inspection to block file transfers from customers using popular peer-to-peer networks like BitTorrent, eDonkey, and Gnutella. In national tests conducted by the Associated Press, their actions were confirmed to be unrelated to network congestion since blocking took place at times when it wasn’t congested. And while Comcast blocked applications often used in trade videos like pirated content, much of what was blocked was legitimate. Then we have Verizon cutting off text-messaging program by the pro-choice group NARAL that it used to send messages to its supporters. The company stated that it wouldn’t service programs from any group “that seeks to promote an agenda or distribute content that, in its discretion, may be seen as controversial or unsavory to any of our users.” And that was just 2007. These are just incidents but this kind of behavior hasn’t become broadly accepted to the internet structure. But without enforceable net neutrality rules in place (which can happen under a Trump administration), that could quickly happen. The consistency of these abuses tells us all we need to know about what will happen if companies are permitted to exploit their power over our Internet connections.

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Net neutrality is great for business since it puts small businesses, startups, and entrepreneurs on an fair and playing field. They rely on net neutrality to launch their business, create a market, advertise their products and services, and distribute their goods to customers. This helps create jobs, competition, and innovation. Without it, ISPs would seize every possible opportunity to profit which would squeeze its competitors out.

Why Is Network Neutrality Important for Business?

Net neutrality is crucial for small business owners, startups, and entrepreneurs, because they rely on an open internet to launch their business, create a market, advertise their products and services, and distribute their goods to customers. They need an open internet to foster job growth, competition, and innovation in the 21st century and beyond. Net neutrality lowers the barriers for them by ensuring the web is a fair and level playing field. And it’s because of net neutrality that businesses and entrepreneurs are able to thrive online. They use the internet to reach new customers as well as showcase their goods, applications and services. Since ISPs are by definition the gatekeepers to the internet, they would seize every possible opportunity to profit from that gatekeeper control if net neutrality wasn’t in place while the next Google wouldn’t get off the ground. So no company should be able to interfere with this open marketplace.

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Net neutrality is essential for a free democracy in the 21st century because it protects freedom of speech. Not only that, but net neutrality allows the internet to be a platform for voices to be heard who wouldn’t be represented otherwise in our media landscape.

Why Is Network Neutrality Important for Communities of Color?

The open internet allows communities of color to tell their own stories as well as organize for racial and social justice. The mainstream media has failed to allow people of color speak for themselves. And due to economic inequality and runaway media consolidation, they own only a handful of broadcast stations. This lack of divers ownership is a primary reason why the media has gotten away with portraying minority communities stereotypically. The open internet gives marginalized voices opportunities to be heard which they wouldn’t previously have access to. Without net neutrality, ISPs could block unpopular speech and prevent dissident voices from speaking freely online. This would lead people of color to lose a vital platform. Not to mention, millions of minority owned small businesses wouldn’t be able to compete with large corporations online, which would further deepen economic inequality in our nation’s most vulnerable communities. This isn’t just limited to communities of color either. For instance, the Internet is a great place to find out about environmental disasters in rural areas that tend to slip under the radar, which I’ve put to very good use. Not to mention, since runaway media consolidation and decline in newspapers has led to less local voices being heard from within their communities and less local content being produced, having a free and open internet more than makes up for it.

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President-Elect Cheeto Creepazoid is a known opponent of net neutrality and has a known telecom lobbyist he wants to tap to head the FCC. It’s also clear that he doesn’t understand net neutrality either. Since he’s an extremely greedy and vindictive bastard who’s no friend to free speech, expect to take his views on this subject very seriously. Because starting January 20, 2017, net neutrality’s days may be numbered.

Why Do We Need to Defend Network Neutrality?

In February 2015, the Federal Communications Commission enacted Title II reclassification of internet access service to a telecommunications service which allows the agency to create strong network neutrality rules allowing customers to have reasonable, reliable, and nondiscriminatory services. What the FCC did was designate ISPs as “common carriers” or private companies that sell their services to consumers without discrimination. This is similar to how consumers received landline telephone service. A federal court decision has also upheld the ruling.  However, even good ideas have their detractors and net neutrality is no different. Since the 2015 FCC Title II classification, opponents have worked everywhere from Congress to the courts in order to dismantle or undermine it. While foes have filed 10 lawsuits over it, Republican lawmakers have put forth more than a dozen bills or amendments to weaken or kill the FCC’s new regulations. None succeeded. However, Donald Trump’s election to the presidency as well as guaranteed Republican control of Congress and possibly the Supreme Court is very likely to mean that net neutrality’s days may be numbered. Trump will appoint 2 new commissioners in 2017 (while a Democratic member hasn’t been reconfirmed for another term) and has 2 people on his transition team with strong ties to the telecom industry. Trump’s man to run the FCC is Jeffrey Eisenach who’s a known anti-regulatory zealot criticized for his anti-neutrality stance as a think tank scholar while receiving funds from Verizon to underwrite his work. As Center for Digital Democracy executive director Jeffrey Chester states, “What Trump appears to be doing on internet and privacy policy is basically allowing the swamp to decide our digital future, allowing crocodiles to eat up our rights. What the big cable and phone companies want Trump to do is to turn the internet over to them to run as a private fiefdom.” Since Trump is known to be very pro-business and a greedy sociopath as well as no friend to the First Amendment and constitutional rights, his opposition to net neutrality is almost certainly sincere. So as soon as Trump is sworn in, expect net neutrality to be a threat.

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Here is a small snapshot of net neutrality camps. Most Americans aware of net neutrality usually favor it along with the following mentioned. Those opposed are usually telecom companies as well as free-market conservatives and libertarians.

Who Supports Network Neutrality?

The good news is that network neutrality enjoys huge bipartisan support among consumers since more than 4 million Americans have filed public comments with the FCC about it, which is more than any other issue it’s handled. Chances are if Americans have heard of net neutrality, they most likely support it regardless of race, age, creed, political stance, or income level. The fact so many organizations support it like Greenpeace, Gun Owners of America, the Christian Coalition, the Electronic Frontiers Foundation, AARP, American Library Association, Consumer Federation of America, and the Media Access Project illustrates how popular net neutrality is across the political spectrum. You can include unions and religious institutions as well. It also enjoys strong support from small businesses and large companies like Apple, Netflix, Tumblr, Kickstarter, Wikia, Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter, Google, Amazon, eBay, Yahoo!, Etsy, and others. President Barack Obama is one of the most prominent supporters of net neutrality whose expressed commitment to the cause helped lead to the landmark 2015 FCC ruling that designated the internet as a utility to preserve it and so are most Democratic Party politicians.

tim-murphy

This is Pennsylvania US Representative Tim Murphy (R). He represents my congressional district. Unlike the most of his possible constituents Murphy publicly opposes network neutrality which is against the interests of every internet user, mostly due to big telecom companies giving him big wads of cash. That and how nobody seems to successfully run against him. If you live in my congressional district and think you can beat him, give me a call. Please, I don’t want him representing me any more. And I don’t care if people in my district approve of him.

Who Opposes Network Neutrality?

The bad news is that despite being a highly good and popular idea, net neutrality has a lot of very powerful enemies such as telecommunications industries, some network engineers, conservative to libertarian scholars, and many Republican politicians. Major ISPs and telecommunication companies like Comcast, Verizon, Cox, AT&T, and Time Warner mainly oppose net neutrality because they want to manage internet access like blocking charging users different rates to access different services or simply blocking certain services altogether. The 2015 FCC Title II ruling was not great to their bottom line that they’ve vowed to fight these regulations all the way to the Supreme Court. And in fact, the last time the FCC tried to instill net neutrality protections, Verizon sued and the rules were overturned by a federal court in 2014. These companies have lobbied against net neutrality 3 times as hard as its biggest proponents as well as outspent them 5 to 1. They also heavily contribute to Republican political campaigns which explains why so many GOP politicians oppose net neutrality while their constituents overwhelmingly don’t. Many of these politicians call it, “Obamacare for the Internet.” Organizations against net neutrality are usually free-market advocacy groups like FreedomWorks, Americans for Prosperity, the American Enterprise Institute, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, Citizens Against Government Waste, and the Progress and Freedom Foundation. Tech companies like IBM, Intel, Cisco, Qualcomm, and Juniper also oppose net neutrality measures as well.

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The main reason why many Americans don’t know much about net neutrality is due to runaway media consolidation. As of 2016, 90% of the media is controlled by 6 corporation. Two of these corporations are telecom giants like Comcast and Time Warner who oppose net neutrality.

Why Don’t We Hear About Network Neutrality?

Mostly because the mainstream media rarely talks about it if ever. Yes, there may have been an episode of John Oliver about it as well as some discussion on PBS but that’s about it. A big reason for this is media consolidation. As of now, only 6 corporations control 90% of media in the United States, including Comcast and Time Warner who are known to oppose net neutrality. And it doesn’t help that Comcast owns MSNBC while Time Warner owns CNN. Then there’s Fox News which is a conservative news outlet owned by Rupert Murdoch. Not to mention, a lot of telecoms sponsor a lot of news programming which can influence their content. The fact so many Americans have never heard about net neutrality leads them to take the notion of a free internet for granted. And if Trump’s administration gets rid of it, most Americans will miss it.

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Protecting Network Neutrality is important for all Americans and we need to make sure it survives the Trump administration. 21st America depends on a free and open internet which is essential for our society. This is a list of what you can do.

What Can We Do to Protect Network Neutrality?

Well, you can do a lot of things to protect network neutrality. You can e-mail the Federal Communications Commission. You can contact your state representatives (though make sure they’re not against net neutrality before you do so because a lot of them receive campaign contributions from giant telecom companies. So if you live in Pennsylvania and your representative is Tim Murphy or Joseph Pitts, contact Senator Bob Casey instead. Because Senator Pat Toomey is against net neutrality, too, along with these big telecom industry stooges). You can donate to civil liberties and consumer groups like Public Knowledge, Electronic Frontiers Foundation, Free Press, Consumers Union, and the American Civil Liberties Union. You can stay informed and tell your friends. At any rate, remember that network neutrality isn’t a partisan issue so don’t let Trump’s swamp cronies let telecom companies slow down or block sites users love. And let the FCC use its Title II powers to stop them.

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Remember Trump and his swamp cronies are enemies of the free and open internet we know and love. Don’t let them kill network neutrality or this will happen. Please, my fellow Americans, I know most of you support this. Please don’t fail me like you did in the 2016 Election. America can’t afford this.

The Seaside World of Seashells

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I know this is more suited for a summer post instead of the middle of November. But I’ve also had this idea for a while. And if I don’t do a post on this before Thanksgiving, it’ll be on my mind until after Christmas. Because I will not have any time to do such a post after next week. Of course, we all should know that a seashell is a hard, protective, outer layer created by an invertebrate sea creature. It’s usually the part of the animal (like its exoskeleton) unless it’s a hermit crab that lives in the most appropriate shell it can find at the moment. Empty seashells are often found on beaches by beachcombers and they’re usually such because the animal has died while the soft parts have been either eaten by another animal or rotted out. Most of the seashells you see on the seashore are those of marine mollusks partly because these shells endure better than others. But other shells found on beaches can be those of barnacles, horseshoe crabs, and brachiopods. Yet, freshwater shells do exist as well as those of freshwater mussels and snails along with land snails. Though such shells aren’t usually very large compared to their ocean counterparts. Anyway, people have used seashells for many different purposes since prehistoric times. Some people have used seashells for money as well as tools, fertilizer, ritual objects, musical instruments, jewelry, and decoration. You can also find seashells on sale at a store. However, just take note the majority of seashells that are offered for commercial sale have often been collected alive in bulk before being killed and cleaned. Such large-scale exploitation can have a strong negative impact on local ecosystems and may significantly reduce the distribution of a rare species. Anyway, in this post, I intend to give you treasure trove of seashell crafts for your reading pleasure. Hope you enjoy these.

  1. This net tapestry is filled with ocean richness.
Well, the shells seem to be of all kinds of different shapes, sizes, and colors. Not sure if any of those are painted.

Well, the shells seem to be of all kinds of different shapes, sizes, and colors. Not sure if any of those are painted.

2. Seashells make a nice touch to this nautical wreath.

Well, most of these will be ocean themed. So you might as well get used to the nautical lore.

Well, most of these will be ocean themed. So you might as well get used to the nautical lore.

3. It takes many different shells to make a fishy wall hanging.

Well, you have scallops, mussels, a starfish and sand dollars. But yes, it still looks quite fishy to me. And that's fine.

Well, you have scallops, mussels, a starfish and sand dollars. But yes, it still looks quite fishy to me. And that’s fine.

4. A seaside mirror should be decked with the right seashells.

Now I'm sure the seashells involved here were from multiple beach excursions. Still, looks quite stunning if you ask me.

Now I’m sure the seashells involved here were from multiple beach excursions. Still, looks quite stunning if you ask me.

5. This shell cross is a sacred seaside relic.

Doesn't hurt that the shells all match in color. Hope this isn't due to bleaching. But it's lovely just the same.

Doesn’t hurt that the shells all match in color. Hope this isn’t due to bleaching. But it’s lovely just the same.

6. Never thought you can find seashells in gold, didn’t you?

Never underestimate the magic of spray paint. Of course, some of these only have a partial coating.

Never underestimate the magic of spray paint. Of course, some of these only have a partial coating.

7. With a basket of small shells, you can make intricate patterns.

Wonder how many animals had to die to make this possible. Still, it's a wonderful pattern for any home.

Wonder how many animals had to die to make this possible. Still, it’s a wonderful pattern for any home.

8. You’ll never know what you might find in an oyster.

Okay, you don't find that many pearls in an oyster. But you have to admit, this is pretty amazing.

Okay, you don’t find that many pearls in an oyster. But you have to admit, this is pretty amazing.

9. For a better mirror frame, it’s usually shiny shell side up for some.

Like how they used the smaller shells for an inner frame. Gives it a rather seashore touch. Love it.

Like how they used the smaller shells for an inner frame. Gives it a rather seashore touch. Love it.

10. You’ll never know how many shells you can find in a net.

Well, this is a longer net than the last one I showed. But it's nonetheless fitting for an ocean scene.

Well, this is a longer net than the last one I showed. But it’s nonetheless fitting for an ocean scene.

11. With a birdbath and a glass top, you can have a seashell table top.

Would make a fine addition to any beach house living room. You can also add other stuff in there, too.

Would make a fine addition to any beach house living room. You can also add other stuff in there, too.

12. No beach side cabin should ever do without a seashell wreath.

Now that's a good way to use shells one's found on the beach. Like the starfish.

Now that’s a good way to use shells one’s found on the beach. Like the starfish.

13. This sacred shell cross uses shells both big and small.

Well, this one uses small snail shells as well as larger ones. Think this cross design is better than the last one I showed.

Well, this one uses small snail shells as well as larger ones. Think this cross design is better than the last one I showed.

14. An assortment of seashells makes a great vase decoration.

Yes, I know it's just a shell decoration. But it certainly gives a seaside flair if you think about it.

Yes, I know it’s just a shell decoration. But it certainly gives a seaside flair if you think about it.

15. A boat wreath is never complete without shells and nets.

Well, you can bet it's an ocean wreath when there are seashells on it. If not, then it might as well be a lake one.

Well, you can bet it’s an ocean wreath when there are seashells on it. If not, then it might as well be a lake one.

16. With this seashell tiara, you can become queen of the sea.

However, since it contains chicken wire, I'm not sure if it would be very comfortable. Might go well with a mermaid costume though.

However, since it contains chicken wire, I’m not sure if it would be very comfortable. Might go well with a mermaid costume though.

17. A conch arrangement often makes a splendid seashell bouquet.

Helps if it has purple gorgonian, too. Yes, atypical shells do exist, too.

Helps if it has purple gorgonian, too. Yes, atypical shells do exist, too.

18. With tiny shells, you can make a dangling shell curtain.

Because shells come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Have to admire the time and energy it took to make this.

Because shells come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Have to admire the time and energy it took to make this.

19. A mermaid queen would kill to have this seashell tiara.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find appropriate seashell crafts on Pinterest for a seashell bra. Because I know the shells involved are fake.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find appropriate seashell crafts on Pinterest for a seashell bra. Because I know the shells involved are fake.

20. Sometimes a mirror frame just requires the right scallops.

Love the shiny shells on this one. Gives this mirror a certain beach side elegance.

Love the shiny shells on this one. Gives this mirror a certain beach side elegance.

21. You have never seen anything as amazing like these mussel trees.

Love how each of them is trimmed with pearls at the ends. Also, the blue color enchants as well.

Love how each of them is trimmed with pearls at the ends. Also, the blue color enchants as well.

22. This seashell wreath only offers a small sampling of what’s on the seashore.

Or the kind of ocean life that's under threat due to global warming. Yes, ocean acidification is a very real thing.

Or the kind of ocean life that’s under threat due to global warming. Yes, ocean acidification is a very real thing.

23. I’m sure nobody could ever resist these seashell puppies.

Yes, I put these in because I know how much people would find them adorable. What's not to love about them?

Yes, I put these in because I know how much people would find them adorable. What’s not to love about them?

24. A blue shell wreath really brings out a beach side touch.

You have to admire the starfish and the bow. Makes it perfect for any beach side cottage.

You have to admire the starfish and the bow. Makes it perfect for any beach side cottage.

25. With enough shiny shells, you can make a mirror frame like this.

Well, it certainly looks like something you'll find in a mermaid home under the sea. Love how intricate it is to behold.

Well, it certainly looks like something you’ll find in a mermaid home under the sea. Love how intricate it is to behold.

26. Set some things on these coral shelves.

Well, they're held up by corals which sometimes wash to the shore. Yet, each gives a nice ocean touch.

Well, they’re held up by corals which sometimes wash to the shore. Yet, each gives a nice ocean touch.

27. Store some precious belongings in this small seashell box.

Well, certainly seems like a box one might find on the seashore. Yet, it's better suited as a decorative item on land.

Well, certainly seems like a box one might find on the seashore. Yet, it’s better suited as a decorative item on land.

28. A seashell tiara like this makes a perfect ocean crown.

Okay, it's more of a crown than a tiara. But come on, any mermaid princess would want one like this.

Okay, it’s more of a crown than a tiara. But come on, any mermaid princess would want one like this.

29. With a basket of seashells, this mirror frame will surely stand out.

Guess this mirror took a lot of time to make from the looks of it. Yet, it seems perfect for any beach side living room or bedroom.

Guess this mirror took a lot of time to make from the looks of it. Yet, it seems perfect for any beach side living room or bedroom.

30. A lighthouse scene can always do with a few seashells on the bottom.

After all, lighthouses appear on the shores in order to serve as a beacon of hope for lost sailors. So it kind of fits to some extent.

After all, lighthouses appear on the shores in order to serve as a beacon of hope for lost sailors. So it kind of fits to some extent.

31. This shell clock can always tell when it’s high tide.

Okay, maybe not. But you have to admire how it's decorated with starfish and sand dollars.

Okay, maybe not. But you have to admire how it’s decorated with starfish and sand dollars.

32. For Christmas on the beach, this star fish topper is perfect for any tree.

So I feature some Christmas decorations on here. Hey, it's not like I'll use ones like these in the next Christmas crafts post any time soon.

So I feature some Christmas decorations on here. Hey, it’s not like I’ll use ones like these in the next Christmas crafts post any time soon.

33. With a scallop and different sized clams, you can create a wind chime.

I'm sure it'll sound quite different than ones made from metal and glass. Still a thing of beauty though.

I’m sure it’ll sound quite different than ones made from metal and glass. Still a thing of beauty though.

34. Of course, some shell mirror frames can be occasionally dark in small places.

This seems like the kind of mirror Ursula would own. Well, if she wasn't more into a simple design in her lair.

This seems like the kind of mirror Ursula would own. Well, if she wasn’t more into a simple design in her lair.

35. Seashells go well with any lighthouse mosaic.

Again, lighthouses are a common motif here. Still, they may often not be decked with shells, you have to hand it to the person who created this.

Again, lighthouses are a common motif here. Still, they may often not be decked with shells, you have to hand it to the person who created this.

36. Seashells can always make a twig wreath look sensational.

Well, if it weren't for the shells, it would just be a wreath of twigs. The shells give this one a lot of color and charm.

Well, if it weren’t for the shells, it would just be a wreath of twigs. The shells give this one a lot of color and charm.

37. Sometimes dirty shells can make a more natural mirror frame.

Yes, I know I show a lot of unique mirror frames on this post. And I know many of these aren't very practical. But they're worth seeing I guarantee you.

Yes, I know I show a lot of unique mirror frames on this post. And I know many of these aren’t very practical. But they’re worth seeing I guarantee you.

38. If you hail from Australia, these seashell koalas will warm your heart.

Who knew you could make koalas out of clam shells. These are adorable. Comes with eucalyptus tree.

Who knew you could make koalas out of clam shells. These are adorable. Comes with eucalyptus tree.

39. These seashell owls are a real hoot.

I guess seashell owls would be easier to make than a lot of seashell animals. But these are truly stunning to look at.

I guess seashell owls would be easier to make than a lot of seashell animals. But these are truly stunning to look at.

40. With seashells, you can make sensational dresses for dolls like these.

Of course, you shouldn't touch them for obvious reasons. Love the one in the purple dress the best.

Of course, you shouldn’t touch them for obvious reasons. Love the one in the purple dress the best.

41. A seashell wreath can always do with a few flowers.

Okay, the flowers might be fake. But it seems like great decoration for any beach side wedding or home.

Okay, the flowers might be fake. But it seems like great decoration for any beach side wedding or home.

42. With enough shells of white, you can make your own seahorse.

This one even has a bridle to boot. Note that most seahorses aren't really horses. They're fish.

This one even has a bridle to boot. Note that most seahorses aren’t really horses. They’re fish.

43. These black seashell flowers are must to any sea side bouquet.

Well, they have mussel shell petals and a snail center. And yes, they look quite lovely with fake stems and leaves.

Well, they have mussel shell petals and a snail center. And yes, they look quite lovely with fake stems and leaves.

44. These shells shown are laid out with a touch of silver.

Again, this was made possible by the magic of spray paint. But none of these have a total coat for understandable reasons.

Again, this was made possible by the magic of spray paint. But none of these have a total coat for understandable reasons.

45. A coral candelabra is perfect for a romantic dinner on the beach.

Okay, it's not totally made from coral since there are shells on the base. But it certainly looks delicate enough to be from under the sea.

Okay, it’s not totally made from coral since there are shells on the base. But it certainly looks delicate enough to be from under the sea.

46. No beach beauty should ever go without pearl and mussel shell earrings.

Okay, those seem quite big for my ears. Yet, if you have strong skin, go for it.

Okay, those seem quite big for my ears. Yet, if you have strong skin, go for it.

47. A sailboat wreath can always use a few seashells.

After all, it's usually the ocean where you see most of these boats anyway. Love how the ribbon matches the sail.

After all, it’s usually the ocean where you see most of these boats anyway. Love how the ribbon matches the sail.

48. These seashell flowers are almost as stunning as the real thing.

Yes, this is a seashell flower arrangement. Yes, it probably took a lot of time and energy to make. But it's surely a thing of beauty.

Yes, this is a seashell flower arrangement. Yes, it probably took a lot of time and energy to make. But it’s surely a thing of beauty.

49. Sometimes as seashell box has a rough top to it.

Yes, it's another seashell box. But these things can be quite fancy if you see enough of them.

Yes, it’s another seashell box. But these things can be quite fancy if you see enough of them.

50. A sea beauty must always be decked in the finest seashells.

This is actually a kind of sculpture people seem to create with shells. I'm not sure why. But it's kind of a thing.

This is actually a kind of sculpture people seem to create with shells. I’m not sure why. But it’s kind of a thing.

51. For that old porcelain look, you may paint these shells blue and white.

Yes, they certainly do have that look to them. But I'm sure some of my readers will enjoy them.

Yes, they certainly do have that look to them. But I’m sure some of my readers will enjoy them.

52. For any seaside bride, a seashell bouquet is a must.

Sure it might be a delicate arrangement. But I'm not sure how you can toss it and not break anything on it. Seashells aren't made of sturdy stuff.

Sure it might be a delicate arrangement. But I’m not sure how you can toss it and not break anything on it. Seashells aren’t made of sturdy stuff.

53. For the yuletide festivities at the beach, this shell Christmas tree will do.

And it surely has to be topped with a starfish, too. Honestly, I'll probably not include this with Christmas crafts this year anyway.

And it surely has to be topped with a starfish, too. Honestly, I’ll probably not include this with Christmas crafts this year anyway.

54. A seashell wreath should be made to carry on an impression.

Seems like it's touched with some seaweed or something that resembles it. Of course, in the sea, there are a lot of animals that look like plants.

Seems like it’s touched with some seaweed or something that resembles it. Of course, in the sea, there are a lot of animals that look like plants.

55. A white shell mirror frame always has a classy look.

Again, I know I've shown a lot of mirror frames on here. But I assure you this white one does have a pearly finish to it. Lovely.

Again, I know I’ve shown a lot of mirror frames on here. But I assure you this white one does have a pearly finish to it. Lovely.

56. This seashell flower picture is a colorful sight at the shore.

Yes, seashell flower pictures are a thing as I've seen at Pinterest. Yet, I love this one the best.

Yes, seashell flower pictures are a thing as I’ve seen at Pinterest. Yet, I love this one the best.

57. With seashells, you can really create an impressive work of art.

This is another one of those figures they decorate with seashell. But this one seems to take shell adornments to a whole new level.

This is another one of those figures they decorate with seashell. But this one seems to take shell adornments to a whole new level.

58. A seashell table can always use some sand.

Of course, sand can get quite messy as well as everywhere. But if you really like the beach, I won't advise against it.

Of course, sand can get quite messy as well as everywhere. But if you really like the beach, I won’t advise against it.

59. For this flower, it all takes a twig and some seashells.

Such shell art never ceases to amaze me. You also have to admire the petals and leaves, too.

Such shell art never ceases to amaze me. You also have to admire the petals and leaves, too.

60. Sometimes it takes a lot of seashells to make one large scallop.

I guess this was done by an artist who had too much time on their hands. At any rate, this is incredible.

I guess this was done by an artist who had too much time on their hands. At any rate, this is incredible.

61. This seashell wreath looks great on any front door.

This includes shells of all shapes, sizes, and colors along with twigs and starfish. Beautiful.

This includes shells of all shapes, sizes, and colors along with twigs and starfish. Beautiful.

62. For those who love Christmas at the beach, you might want to go with these starfish trees.

For some reason, starfish trees like these don't remind me of Christmas. Mostly because I tend to picture snow when there isn't in my area.

For some reason, starfish trees like these don’t remind me of Christmas. Mostly because I tend to picture snow when there isn’t in my area.

63. With cone shells, you can create a 6-pointed star.

Well, it certainly resembles one. But the shells really blend into the background, don't you think?

Well, it certainly resembles one. But the shells really blend into the background, don’t you think?

64. This shell bird is simply irresistible.

Like how they used part of a shell for its beak. So cute.

Like how they used part of a shell for its beak. So cute. Said to be a pelican.

65. This seashell wreath has all the starfish you can ask for.

Well, it's a lighter shell wreath with some unconventional seashells. But it's nevertheless unique.

Well, it’s a lighter shell wreath with some unconventional seashells. But it’s nevertheless unique.

66. Seems like this doll is all shelled out.

Her dress is made from purple mussels. Not sure about the bonnet. But even her hair is made from seashells.

Her dress is made from purple mussels. Not sure about the bonnet. But even her hair is made from seashells.

67. Gold and silver shells this mirror surely make.

Made possible by the magic of spray paint. Seems like something you'd find at an ocean resort.

Made possible by the magic of spray paint. Seems like something you’d find at an ocean resort.

68. This shell cross is decked with yellow flowers.

I mean a shell yellow flower, anyway. Sure it's rather simple but elegant, too.

I mean a shell yellow flower, anyway. Sure it’s rather simple but elegant, too.

69. Hope this shell clock can help you tell the time.

Yes, it's another seashell clock. But this one is pink and in mosaic form.

Yes, it’s another seashell clock. But this one is pink and in mosaic form.

70. These Christmas shell trees will bring good cheer over the holidays.

Yes, I know another seashell Christmas tree. But this one is quite fancy as you can see.

Yes, I know another seashell Christmas tree. But this one is quite fancy as you can see.

71. Large scallops always make a great shell wreath.

This one has the swirly shells with the scallops and starfish. Quite delicate but nonetheless lovely.

This one has the swirly shells with the scallops and starfish. Quite delicate but nonetheless lovely.

72. Perhaps you might want to drop off your conch and stay awhile.

Well, it's a bucket full of shells as you can see. I'm sure this is only used for decoration.

Well, it’s a bucket full of shells as you can see. I’m sure this is only used for decoration.

73. These seashell candles seem to come alight at once.

I think these are lit with a wick. The seashells are in a glass jars. Not sure if I call that fire safe though.

I think these are lit with a wick. The seashells are in a glass jars. Not sure if I call that fire safe though.

74. With shiny shells, you can make a mirror resemble a snowflake.

Maybe not. But this certainly uses a lot of shells with the shiny side up.

Maybe not. But this certainly uses a lot of shells with the shiny side up.

75. You’ll be tickled pink by these seashell flowers.

Yes, these are pink shell flowers. Certainly look pretty and almost real, don't they?

Yes, these are pink shell flowers. Certainly look pretty and almost real, don’t they?

76. Seashells are always great for an under the sea wreath.

This one even has some seaweed and a seahorse. Almost makes you think you're in the ocean.

This one even has some seaweed and a seahorse. Almost makes you think you’re in the ocean.

77. You can stand up your shells in almost anything.

You can uses bottles and candle sticks for these. Depends on the seashell in question.

You can uses bottles and candle sticks for these. Depends on the seashell in question.

78. Shiny shells make shiny mirror frames.

Made possible by the magic of spray paint as far as I'm concerned. Still, love how it sparkles.

Made possible by the magic of spray paint as far as I’m concerned.
Still, love how it sparkles.

79. Nautilus shells make great corners in this mirror frame.

Of course, a nautilus is a marine creature with a snail shell and tentacles. Their shells are quite large as you can see.

Of course, a nautilus is a marine creature with a snail shell and tentacles. Their shells are quite large as you can see.

80. A shell arrangement like this will surely melt your heart.

After all, it's in a heart configuration. Includes flowers, starfish, and coral. Lovely.

After all, it’s in a heart configuration. Includes flowers, starfish, and coral. Lovely.

81. This mussel mirror is all decked in purple splendor.

Well, this must use a lot of mussels if you ask me. Love the black and purple color on this though.

Well, this must use a lot of mussels if you ask me. Love the black and purple color on this though.

82. Shells always make great decor for this chair planter.

Yes. these chair planters do exist as you can see in one of my garden posts. But the shells make it all the more fancy.

Yes. these chair planters do exist as you can see in one of my garden posts. But the shells make it all the more fancy.

83. A decorated shell box must always have legs to stand on.

And this one certainly does. Also has some starfish decoration to boot.

And this one certainly does. Also has some starfish decoration to boot.

84. You can always adorn yourself with some small conch earrings.

Yes, seashells can be that small. I mean mollusks come in all shapes and sizes. Do the math.

Yes, seashells can be that small. I mean mollusks come in all shapes and sizes. Do the math.

85. This seashell shelf is perfect for any seaside home.

Yes, this another seashell shelf. But this one includes actual shells as decoration.

Yes, this another seashell shelf. But this one includes actual shells as decoration.

86. With nets and shells, this sea wreath is good to go.

Well, I have to admire the artistic detail on this one. Love how they make it seem like it's coming from a boat.

Well, I have to admire the artistic detail on this one. Love how they make it seem like it’s coming from a boat.

87. This shell lamp shade is always illuminating.

Well, this really has a unique glow to it. Love this. Wouldn't mind owning this one.

Well, this really has a unique glow to it. Love this. Wouldn’t mind owning this one.

88. This shell queen surely looks like a goddess.

She can almost be a sea nymph herself with how she dresses. Love the outfit.

She can almost be a sea nymph herself with how she dresses. Love the outfit.

89. A beach side home always needs a seashell mailbox.

Doesn't hurt if it includes a dolphin either. Now this looks quite seaside, doesn't it?

Doesn’t hurt if it includes a dolphin either. Now this looks quite seaside, doesn’t it?

90. A seashell bouquet can always use some color.

Indeed seashell bouquets like this one may look pretty. But you wouldn't want to toss them at a wedding.

Indeed seashell bouquets like this one may look pretty. But you wouldn’t want to toss them at a wedding.

91. You can always wear small seashells in your hair.

As long as they are small enough to stick to bobby pins. Still, wouldn't mind having these.

As long as they are small enough to stick to bobby pins. Still, wouldn’t mind having these.

92. There’s nothing more resplendent than a seashell mirror like this.

Yes, I've put a lot of these on this post. But this one really takes the cake with the large whorled shells. Lovely.

Yes, I’ve put a lot of these on this post. But this one really takes the cake with the large whorled shells. Lovely.

93. Bet you’ve never seen a scallop wreath like this one before.

I know this isn't the first scallop wreath on this post. But I assure you that this one is in a different style as you can see.

I know this isn’t the first scallop wreath on this post. But I assure you that this one is in a different style as you can see.

94. These seashell candle sticks are great for any romantic evening on the beach.

Make sure you're away from the tide and it's not windy. Because it won't turn out well.

Make sure you’re away from the tide and it’s not windy. Because it won’t turn out well.

95. A shell bouquet always looks colorful in a scallop.

And it surely looks like a real bouquet to me. Yes, these flowers are made from shells.

And it surely looks like a real bouquet to me. Yes, these flowers are made from shells.

96. Pretty shell flowers always make a pretty picture.

Doesn't hurt if includes a lot of purple, too. Man, this is so beautiful. Lovely.

Doesn’t hurt if includes a lot of purple, too. Man, this is so beautiful. Lovely.

97. With this purple shell mosaic, the white flower is in the center.

Well, it's a wonderful arrangement in purple and white. Yet, I'm not sure how much of it has paint on it.

Well, it’s a wonderful arrangement in purple and white. Yet, I’m not sure how much of it has paint on it.

98. Try planting your flowers in this fancy shell pot.

Yes, this pot is decorated with fine white shells. Still, you can't help but love this one.

Yes, this pot is decorated with fine white shells. Still, you can’t help but love this one.

99. This doll is simply sensational in her seashell dress.

Not sure if there's one available in people size. But you have to admire the detail.

Not sure if there’s one available in people size. But you have to admire the detail.

100. Bet you never saw a seaside chess table like this before.

Even if it's not a chess table, it's still pretty amazing. Love the decor on this.

Even if it’s not a chess table, it’s still pretty amazing. Love the decor on this.

The Transparent World of Glass

glass

You may remember when I did my post on stained glass this summer. Yet, I’ve thought about doing a post on glass for a while since I’ve often come across glass related craft projects for my blog. Anyway, glass is basically everywhere in our modern society that we tend to take it for granted since it’s now designated as a recyclable material. But this wasn’t always the case before the Industrial Revolution when glass was so expensive that colonists who traveled to the New World would often take their windows with them on the boat. Today, not only is glass just as prevalent as plastic as well as used in a wide variety of things we take for granted, there are also many different types. The oldest and most familiar types of glass to us are silicate glasses which are mainly derived from silica a main constituent in sand. You have soda lime glass that’s often used in glass bottles and other containers as well as the more durable quartz glass. You may also be familiar with the modern fiberglass which has only been mass produced since the 1930s as well as has so many applications. We can go on. Not mention, before coal and steel, my area of Southwestern Pennsylvania was distinguished on its glass making as well which explains why such towns like Glassport exist.  And even when the area became known for its steel and coal industry, its glass industry still lived on well into the 20th century, some even to today with 20 currently operating in the region. One of the earliest is the New Geneva Glass Works that was active from 1797-1847 which had Albert Gallatin as an early investor. Bakewell Glass in Pittsburgh founded in 1808 was known as a pioneer in flint glass in America as well as had a family member invent and patent the first known process of pressed glass in 1825 which made the mass production of glass possible for the first time.  F.&J. Mckee Company on Pittsburgh’s South Side founded in 1850 would be associated with Western PA glass for years. The Duncan & Miller Glass Company existed in Washington, PA which spanned from the late 1860s to the 1950s which is distinguished by fine craftsmanship. The Macbeth Evans Glass Company founded and based in Charleroi in 1899 was known for its glassware with beautiful designs, especially in the 1930s. Then there’s PPG Industries started as a pane glass company in the 1880s and was among the first in the world to power its furnaces with local natural gas which stipulated widespread industrial use. In fact, the words PPG stand for “Pittsburgh Plate Glass.” Not to mention, it’s possible that their glass was used as windows in plenty of early skyscrapers. Today PPG is still around as a multi-billion dollar Fortune 500 company that’s diversified to include paints, coatings, specialty materials, chemicals, and even fiberglass, is still headquartered in Pittsburgh at the iconic PPG Place that resembles a cool evil fortress, has 150 manufacturing locations around the world, and they recently received the naming rights from Consol Energy on what’s now the PPG Paints Arena. Also, they still make glass but not just in windows. Anyway, you’ll find a lot of glass crafts on Pinterest since the material is often used in disposable items and other products. Which is where I come in for your reading pleasure.

  1. This glass cup reflects many different colors.
No, this isn't a hallucination. The cup is designed this way with all the colorful bubbles. Not sure if it's an improvement.

No, this isn’t a hallucination. The cup is designed this way with all the colorful bubbles. Not sure if it’s an improvement.

2. Welcome guests aboard your yacht with these glasses.

Okay, these may just be for decoration. But they're certainly sea worthy to some.

Okay, these may just be for decoration. But they’re certainly sea worthy to some.

3. Watch out for this glass dragon eye.

Well, at least it'll make guests think twice about stealing your drink. Then again, better used for decoration.

Well, at least it’ll make guests think twice about stealing your drink. Then again, better used for decoration.

4. An old wine bottle is great for holding flowers.

Works so long as you keep the cork in place. Yet, not sure if it enhances the beauty of any wall you hang them on.

Works so long as you keep the cork in place. Yet, not sure if it enhances the beauty of any wall you hang them on.

5. Imagine a bowl like this on your mantle.

Kind of reminds me of a nebula. Love the colors here. Beautiful.

Kind of reminds me of a nebula. Love the colors here. Beautiful.

6. Perhaps this glass bottle would do with a flowery design.

Well, you have to admire the artwork here. Love that pretty pink flower on green.

Well, you have to admire the artwork here. Love that pretty pink flower on green.

7. A decorated wine bottle can make a great vase for flowers.

Okay, the flowers are fake and the bottle is covered in cloth. But it might look great on a mantle or table.

Okay, the flowers are fake and the bottle is covered in cloth. But it might look great on a mantle or table.

8. This bottle seems to have all the stars on its exterior.

Not sure if it's supposed to be the cosmos or outer space. But it sure twinkles if you ask me.

Not sure if it’s supposed to be the cosmos or outer space. But it sure twinkles if you ask me.

9. Perhaps these wine glass candle holders remind you of the seashore.

Each of them even have blue sand and shells in them. Also, the string gives a beach like touch.

Each of them even have blue sand and shells in them. Also, the string gives a beach like touch.

10. How about a bottle with a beaded mosaic?

Helps that it's in a floral design. Love how the gold ones stand out.

Helps that it’s in a floral design. Love how the gold ones stand out.

11. How about a wine bottle of beads and sequins?

Now that looks kind of funky. Love the flowers and the purple stopper.

Now that looks kind of funky. Love the flowers and the purple stopper.

12. This mason jar chandelier is perfect for any dining room.

Well, depends on the kind of lighting you use. And I don't think this one uses electricity.

Well, depends on the kind of lighting you use. And I don’t think this one uses electricity.

13. Raise a glass with these butterfly champagne flutes.

Well, these gold butterflies certainly look pretty. Not sure if I'd want to drink from them though.

Well, these gold butterflies certainly look pretty. Not sure if I’d want to drink from them though.

14. Heard about a row of bottles? How about a whole fence of them?

Nice to see a fence with so many different colors that the sun can reflect from. Still, decorative use only.

Nice to see a fence with so many different colors that the sun can reflect from. Still, decorative use only.

15. No lawn can be complete without a glass bottle peacock.

Well, isn't that as pretty as a peacock. Of course, some may not have a thing for green bottles as feathers.

Well, isn’t that as pretty as a peacock. Of course, some may not have a thing for green bottles as feathers.

16. This bar set certainly sets everything fancy doesn’t it?

Since everything here is certainly decked in lace. Manly Christmas present, it is not.

Since everything here is certainly decked in lace. Manly Christmas present, it is not.

17. It’s only fitting that these wine bottles are decked with grapes.

After all, wine comes from grapes. So it's only fair. Love how they used glass pieces for each of them.

After all, wine comes from grapes. So it’s only fair. Love how they used glass pieces for each of them.

18. These stained glass bottles can light up a room.

Doesn't hurt they're in psychedelic colors either. Love these.

Doesn’t hurt they’re in psychedelic colors either. Love these.

19. These animal wine glass candle holders are great for down on the farm.

Includes cow, horse, pig, rooster, sheep, and chicken. Yes, they look childish but you can't hate them.

Includes cow, horse, pig, rooster, sheep, and chicken. Yes, they look childish but you can’t hate them.

20. A stained glass bottle should also match the glasses.

Seems like the kind of fine dining set you'll see at a modern art museum. Nice that the glasses match.

Seems like the kind of fine dining set you’ll see at a modern art museum. Nice that the glasses match.

21. A purple bottle works nice with gold trimmings.

This one has lovely flowers and a dragon fly. Love the decor. Beautiful.

This one has lovely flowers and a dragon fly. Love the decor. Beautiful.

22. These bottles come with a unique feminine face.

Well, these have paintings of beautiful women like they're works of art. Love the trimmings on these.

Well, these have paintings of beautiful women like they’re works of art. Love the trimmings on these.

23. A mosaic bottle is just as nice.

Yes, they have mosaic bottles like these, too. Love the design on this one.

Yes, they have mosaic bottles like these, too. Love the design on this one.

24. This rainbow night light should chase your nightmares away.

Well, it will surely light up any room with color. Would like to see this on.

Well, it will surely light up any room with color. Would like to see this on.

25. This mosaic bottle has a classy look to it.

I especially love the purple on this perfume bottle. The pearls are a nice touch, too.

I especially love the purple on this perfume bottle. The pearls are a nice touch, too.

26. By fusing some glassware, you can make an ideal platter.

Of course, it might take a blow torch to do the trick. But you can see what I mean.

Of course, it might take a blow torch to do the trick. But you can see what I mean.

27. Got old beer bottles? Make candle holders out of them.

You have to wonder whether these are for some man cave or something. But I love how they used the tops as stands.

You have to wonder whether these are for some man cave or something. But I love how they used the tops as stands.

28. May I present you with a glass of the beach.

Well, it certainly has a nice seaside view. Love the sun over the waves.

Well, it certainly has a nice seaside view. Love the sun over the waves.

29. With this bottle, you can see an eerie night sky.

Wonder if it contains any witch's brew. Covered in a polymer clay. Like the moon.

Wonder if it contains any witch’s brew. Covered in a polymer clay. Like the moon.

30. How about decorate your room with some colorful mason jars?

These come in 3 colors and have gold foil on them. What's more to love?

These come in 3 colors and have gold foil on them. What’s more to love?

31. No one should ever do without a colorful glass bowl like this.

Sure it seems like a decorated fish bowl. But you have to love how it's painted.

Sure it seems like a decorated fish bowl. But you have to love how it’s painted.

32. This bottle comes with all the unique trimmings.

Love the pearls and flower on this. Wouldn't mind having this as a decoration.

Love the pearls and flower on this. Wouldn’t mind having this as a decoration.

33. With a pine cone this bottle carries a rustic look.

Well, a fall look, anyway when everything seems dead. Just like how I felt when Trump won the election.

Well, a fall look, anyway when everything seems dead. Just like how I felt when Trump won the election.

34. Now these give beer glasses a whole new meaning.

Well, these beer glasses are made from beer bottles. So feel free to put a Bud Light in a Rolling Rock one.

Well, these beer glasses are made from beer bottles. So feel free to put a Bud Light in a Rolling Rock one.

35. For a more colorful celebration, these butterfly flutes hit the spot.

Yes, they're more fancy than the other ones. But I think they're just as nice. Lovely.

Yes, they’re more fancy than the other ones. But I think they’re just as nice. Lovely.

36. I guess you’ve never seen a chandelier like this one.

Yep, this one consists of beer bottles. I know it's tacky but there are guys who will want this for their man cave.

Yep, this one consists of beer bottles. I know it’s tacky but there are guys who will want this for their man cave.

37. In this bowl, a blue butterfly is as vibrant as ever.

I'll say. Love how it shines in the sunlight. Stunning beyond compare.

I’ll say. Love how it shines in the sunlight. Stunning beyond compare.

38. This glass block light comes with a few homey touches.

This one depicts a birdhouse with flowers. Like how it's beautifully painted.

This one depicts a birdhouse with flowers. Like how it’s beautifully painted.

39. For a vintage evening, this grape glass block light is for you.

This one has pink and purple together. Hope it gives a warm glow.

This one has pink and purple together. Hope it gives a warm glow.

40. You’ve put flowers in a vase. How about flowers on a vase?

Of course, vase is a word that can be pronounced 2 different ways. The short "a" way doesn't seem correct to me though.

Of course, vase is a word that can be pronounced 2 different ways. The short “a” way doesn’t seem correct to me though.

41. Watch the little birdie on this vase.

Love how it sits among the purple flowers. So pretty to behold. So well painted.

Love how it sits among the purple flowers. So pretty to behold. So well painted.

42. This windmill bottle really brings a rustic touch to any room.

This is quite clever if you ask me. Love how it has a little door and window. Wonder if it actually turns.

This is quite clever if you ask me. Love how it has a little door and window. Wonder if it actually turns.

43. This bottle lamp is especially illuminating.

Like how it consists of strips of all different colors. Wouldn't mind having this one.

Like how it consists of strips of all different colors. Wouldn’t mind having this one.

44. There’s something underwater going on with these wine glasses.

These have an underwater scene to them. The glass handles are even wavy as well.

These have an underwater scene to them. The glass handles are even wavy as well.

45. Never thought bottles could shine like these.

These are glass bottles that are painted and have clay on them to seem like they're metal. Love the artistic touch.

These are glass bottles that are painted and have clay on them to seem like they’re metal. Love the artistic touch.

46. Take a peek at these glass feathers on a tray.

They're all in different colors like they're all from different birds. But they sit on the same log.

They’re all in different colors like they’re all from different birds. But they sit on the same log.

47. Hope you love the roses on this bottle.

Yes, these roses are very well painted that you'd think they're a work of art. Love it.

Yes, these roses are very well painted that you’d think they’re a work of art. Love it.

48. A perfume bottle must always be well decorated.

This one has flowers and gold mesh on it. Love the flowers.

This one has flowers and gold mesh on it. Love the flowers.

49. Bet you’ve never saw a fishbowl like this before.

Then again, you don't have to do much with it since it's just decoration. Think this is pretty clever.

Then again, you don’t have to do much with it since it’s just decoration. Think this is pretty clever.

50. This wine glass candle holder has a rather beachy touch to it.

Like how it has some shells and sand. Makes it almost feel like you were there.

Like how it has some shells and sand. Makes it almost feel like you were there.

51. These 4 bottle lights can surely dazzle a room.

Like how some of these have terms like "evil" or "bitch." Must be used for parties.

Like how some of these have terms like “evil” or “bitch.” Must be used for parties.

52. How about a bottle lamp with palm trees?

Apparently, there are a lot of glass items with beach stuff on it. Not so sure why that is.

Apparently, there are a lot of glass items with beach stuff on it. Not so sure why that is.

53. You know about stained glass windows. How about stained glass jars?

Well, these are quite unique. Love how these have flowers on them. Beautiful.

Well, these are quite unique. Love how these have flowers on them. Beautiful.

54. Here’s a nice bouquet of flowery glass plates.

Yes, these are glass plates made into flowers. Don't ask me how it's possible. But I really love this one.

Yes, these are glass plates made into flowers. Don’t ask me how it’s possible. But I really love this one.

55. I’m sure someone is bound to enjoy these flowery wine glasses.

Each of these are delicately painted with floral scenes. Better suited for decoration though.

Each of these are delicately painted with floral scenes. Better suited for decoration though.

56. Hope an ornate bottle like this suits your fancy.

This is covered with clay in intricate designs. Still, this is a very beautiful design.

This is covered with clay in intricate designs. Still, this is a very beautiful design.

57. These glass coasters are great with pressed pansies.

Actually you can make glass coasters with any flower. It's just these are with pansies.

Actually you can make glass coasters with any flower. It’s just these are with pansies.

58. These glass bottles would make handy candle holders for a romantic evening.

These also seem to come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. Not sure where I'd find ones like these.

These also seem to come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and colors. Not sure where I’d find ones like these.

59. These Disney Princess wine glass candle holders will make you feel royally welcome.

Each one is turned upside down as a dress. Ariel's is just right side up since she's a mermaid.

Each one is turned upside down as a dress. Ariel’s is just right side up since she’s a mermaid.

60. You can make glasses with some old jars.

Interesting glasses though not ideal for a dinner party. Still, these are pretty creative.

Interesting glasses though not ideal for a dinner party. Still, these are pretty creative.

61. These glass bottles seemed all starfished out.

I think these might be used for wedding centerpieces. Particularly if one takes place on a beach.

I think these might be used for wedding centerpieces. Particularly if one takes place on a beach.

62. This frosted bottle with a snowflake contains winter magic.

Well, it's not fancy enough for a Christmas decoration. But I do think it's so ornate that I couldn't pass it up.

Well, it’s not fancy enough for a Christmas decoration. But I do think it’s so ornate that I couldn’t pass it up.

63. A rainbow chandelier is certainly dazzling on the ceiling.

This one consists of test tubes filled with different colors around it. I think it's quite stunning to say the least.

This one consists of test tubes filled with different colors around it. I think it’s quite stunning to say the least.

64. These royal blue glasses are great for any festive occasion.

I think these are also wedding glasses with some royal blue stain. Like the moon and the peacock.

I think these are also wedding glasses with some royal blue stain. Like the moon and the peacock.

65. These bottles have a stellar silver touch.

These are glass bottles with silver spray paint on them. Almost look like they're metal, don't they?

These are glass bottles with silver spray paint on them. Almost look like they’re metal, don’t they?

66. Glitter wine glasses or glitter shot glasses?

Well, they sure look sparkly if you ask me. Love these. So pretty.

Well, they sure look sparkly if you ask me. Love these. So pretty.

67. This bottle lamp seems fresh as a daisy.

Well, it has a daisy painted on it which I think is a work of art. The ribbon is a perfect match.

Well, it has a daisy painted on it which I think is a work of art. The ribbon is a perfect match.

68. This glass bottle is now a clay castle.

Love this fairy castle. Like how it has pearls near the roof. Stunning.

Love this fairy castle. Like how it has pearls near the roof. Stunning.

69. This perfume bottle has a rather flowery disposition.

This looks very colorful with flowers and foliage galore. It's made by an artist. Lovely.

This looks very colorful with flowers and foliage galore. It’s made by an artist. Lovely.

70. This perfume bottle features a stunning decor of roses, gold, and pearls.

Yes, this is a very fancy bottle. Love the decor on this. Beautiful.

Yes, this is a very fancy bottle. Love the decor on this. Beautiful.

71. There’s nothing more elegant than these flowery purple champagne flutes.

I'd so totally want these for my wedding for obvious reasons. Those flowers are lovely.

I’d so totally want these for my wedding for obvious reasons. Those flowers are lovely.

72. A mosaic bottle is always stunning in purple.

Love how this one has purple glass tiles on this bottle. Love the bejeweled stones, too.

Love how this one has purple glass tiles on this bottle. Love the bejeweled stones, too.

73. This mosaic perfume bottle is decked in blue and gold.

Well, it's in gold and shades of blue. But it's nonetheless fit for any mantle as a decoration.

Well, it’s in gold and shades of blue. But it’s nonetheless fit for any mantle as a decoration.

74. These painted vases can always bring you flowery joy.

Well, they're not like the other flowery vases I previously showed. But they're surely finely painted.

Well, they’re not like the other flowery vases I previously showed. But they’re surely finely painted.

75. I bet you’ve never seen glass bottles like these before.

Well, these seem to be bottles you might find in some old apothecary cabinet in Harry Potter. But they're nevertheless lovely.

Well, these seem to be bottles you might find in some old apothecary cabinet in Harry Potter. But they’re nevertheless lovely.

76. Perhaps you can use these colorful candlesticks.

I'm not sure how they obtain the color of these. I know there's a process. But I'm not sure how it works.

I’m not sure how they obtain the color of these. I know there’s a process. But I’m not sure how it works.

77. This mirror bottle is quite reflective if you ask me.

Well, it's a lovely mosaic bottle with mirror bits. Bet it'll look great on a mantle. Love it.

Well, it’s a lovely mosaic bottle with mirror bits. Bet it’ll look great on a mantle. Love it.

78. These wedding glasses are fit for any bride and groom on their special day.

They're sure to bring a great reception if you ask me. Love these.

They’re sure to bring a great reception if you ask me. Love these.

79. A mosaic bottle is always enhanced with strings of pearls.

The tiles and stones aren't that shabby either. Still, this is very lovely if you ask me.

The tiles and stones aren’t that shabby either. Still, this is very lovely.

80. This chandelier of jars will brighten any dark room from the ceiling.

Yes, it's another jar chandelier. But this one is in a different configuration than the one I saw earlier.

Yes, it’s another jar chandelier. But this one is in a different configuration than the one I saw earlier.

81. A wine glass should always have what wine is made from.

This one has 3 kinds of grapes that are in 3 different colors. I'm sure a wino will love this.

This one has 3 kinds of grapes that are in 3 different colors. I’m sure a wino will love this.

82. This flowery bottle will surely catch one’s eye.

These flowers seem to be hand painted like they're from a porcelain plate. Lovely.

These flowers seem to be hand painted like they’re from a porcelain plate. Lovely.

83. A genie bottle always dazzles with glass tiles.

Sure you won't find any genie here. But it'll be a nice addition to any living room decor.

Sure you won’t find any genie here. But it’ll be a nice addition to any living room decor.

84. Each of these bottles has a spectacular painted design you can’t miss.

Yes, these are eye catching patterns. Some of these might make your eyes sore. Or make you think you're tripping.

Yes, these are eye catching patterns. Some of these might make your eyes sore. Or make you think you’re tripping.

85. Shells always seem to make great bottle stoppers.

Yes, this is a beach bottle assortment to remind you of the ocean. Love the shells on these.

Yes, this is a beach bottle assortment to remind you of the ocean. Love the shells on these.

86. You have to admire the handles on these fancy bottles.

Well, these are sure fancy. I know there's a process to create of the fixtures, but I can't really explain it at the moment.

Well, these are sure fancy. I know there’s a process to create of the fixtures, but I can’t really explain it at the moment.

87. Pink candle holders must always have pink painted flowers.

Helps that they're made from pink glass. But not sure if they'll go with anything for Valentine's Day.

Helps that they’re made from pink glass. But not sure if they’ll go with anything for Valentine’s Day.

88. With wine bottles you can create a string of lights.

Think about combining empty wine bottles with Christmas lights. Might make neighbors wonder about your drinking in the meantime.

Think about combining empty wine bottles with Christmas lights. Might make neighbors wonder about your drinking in the meantime.

89. Even a small blue bottle can be quite fancy.

Sure it doesn't look like much. But you have to love the gold leaf on this. So stunning.

Sure it doesn’t look like much. But you have to love the gold leaf on this. So stunning.

90. A bottle chandelier can illuminate all different colors.

Yes, they sure light up all right. They can also shine in the sunlight during the daytime, too.

Yes, they sure light up all right. They can also shine in the sunlight during the daytime, too.

91. You have to be mad not to adore these champagne flutes in pearls.

Sure the pearls are fake since they cover the glasses. But they're nevertheless stunning to behold.

Sure the pearls are fake since they cover the glasses. But they’re nevertheless stunning to behold.

92. This jar full of buttons is a great base for a lamp.

Well, an electric lamp shaped like an oil one. Still, the buttons make it more festive and quaint.

Well, an electric lamp shaped like an oil one. Still, the buttons make it more festive and quaint.

93. A bottle like this always has to be draped in gold.

Well, it's certainly decorated like an overdressed bottle of champagne. According to Pinterest, it's said to light up.

Well, it’s certainly decorated like an overdressed bottle of champagne. According to Pinterest, it’s said to light up.

94. Mason jars can always contain a candle flame on a chandelier.

Then again, these candles may be electronic. But I think this is quaint just the same.

Then again, these candles may be electronic. But I think this is quaint just the same.

95. Thought you’d never see a stained glass bottle lamp like this before.

I think this is made with sea glass which looks quite different from the regular kind. At any rate, love how the light shows through it.

I think this is made with sea glass which looks quite different from the regular kind. At any rate, love how the light shows through it.

96. A lovely wine bottle must always be painted with gold trim.

This is a rather fancy design. Love the detail on this. Couldn't see myself doing this design.

This is a rather fancy design. Love the detail on this. Couldn’t see myself doing this design.

97. A flat bottle makes a wonderful flowery tableau.

This is a beautiful design that's beyond compare. Love the detail on this. Stunning.

This is a beautiful design that’s beyond compare. Love the detail on this. Stunning.

98. Shiny bottle vases always make ideal centerpieces.

This one has a black shiny exterior with white markings and branches. All in all, these are lovely to behold.

This one has a black shiny exterior with white markings and branches. All in all, these are lovely to behold.

99. A bottle like this is always covered in vines.

Yes, it's looks a bit flowery and viney if you ask me. But I think this is quite cool. Love it.

Yes, it’s looks a bit flowery and viney if you ask me. But I think this is quite cool. Love it.

100. Sometimes a fancy bottle always has to come with a fancy glass.

As you can see here, the bottle and glass each are uniquely decorated in the same pattern. Still, I think these are lovely in their own way.

As you can see here, the bottle and glass each are uniquely decorated in the same pattern. Still, I think these are lovely in their own way.

Mistakes Were Made with Newspaper Corrections

wsj-correction-notice-nov-6-2013

Last Tuesday, over 60 million Americans would make one of the biggest mistakes in American history as well as in their lives. For the record, I did the right thing by voting for Hillary Clinton as well as more Americans who voted since she won the popular vote. But that doesn’t matter because President-elect Pussygrabber won the Electoral College due to those critical states having a bunch of racists willing to overlook how morally degenerate he is. Which means I’m totally not looking forward to Thanksgiving and not sure who the hell many people in my area are anymore. Of course, this kind of mistake can’t be easily remedied and we’ll probably have to live with it for 4 years. Yet, this article doesn’t pertain to such errors which can be remedied. And nothing shows this more than the newspaper corrections section. Because newspapers are run by human beings. And sometimes even newspapers can make errors in their reporting. So if readers notice something wrong in the articles, they can call the newspaper who will correct that mistake the next day. These corrections are listed in a special section. If it’s online, they’re listed in the articles themselves. Now corrections are a fact of life in newspapers and they’re usually a blurbs that usually say nothing noteworthy. Yet, reading some of these corrections will make you wonder what the hell did these reporters do wrong since they sound straight out of an SNL sketch. So this is where I come in.

  1. Dead woman not returning a reporter’s call? How rude!
Yeah, asking a woman for comment in April is kind of stupid if she died last December. Of course, she wouldn't be able to comment.

Yeah, asking a woman for comment in April is kind of stupid if she died last December. Of course, she wouldn’t be able to comment. Dead people tell no tales.

2. Sometimes omitting one letter makes all the difference.

You have to feel for Pastor Dick Bigelow here who was incorrectly identified as Dick Bigblow. You know the kind of name that reminds you of a male porn star.

You have to feel for Pastor Dick Bigelow here who was incorrectly identified as Dick Bigblow. You know the kind of name that reminds you of a male porn star.

3. Apparently, there are Marvel fans who can distinguish between Ant Man and the Atom.

Not only do they get the identities wrong, they also alleged that The Atom can talk to ants (which is one of Ant Man's talents). Yeah, this is kind of embarrassing.

Not only do they get the identities wrong, they also alleged that The Atom can talk to ants (which is one of Ant Man’s talents). Yeah, this is kind of embarrassing.

4. To be fair, you can’t always establish a gender with an Asian name.

To be fair, I had to read journal articles in Asian history while I was in college. Even I couldn't distinguish the author's gender. So I can totally see where this paper is coming from.

To be fair, I had to read journal articles in Asian history while I was in college. Even I couldn’t distinguish the author’s gender. So I can totally see where this paper is coming from.

5. Apparently, this publication doesn’t know the difference between the acting profession and the oldest profession.

For God's sake, it's circus acts, not sex acts. Man, I guess the actress they quoted must be very pissed off by now.

For God’s sake, it’s circus acts, not sex acts. Man, I guess the actress they quoted must be very pissed off by now.

6. When it comes to herpetology, comedians seem to know more than the newspapers.

It's even funnier that John Cleese had to point that out that pythons aren't poisonous snakes. Yes, this is a silly mistake.

It’s even funnier that John Cleese had to point that out that pythons aren’t poisonous snakes. Yes, this is a silly mistake.

7. So it’s 5 beers, not 5 years.

For some reason, 5 beers to get on the dance floor seems to make more sense. And the reasons seem obvious.

For some reason, 5 beers to get on the dance floor seems to make more sense. And the reasons seem obvious.

8. Before you put someone on a female author list, make sure they’re actually a woman.

Then again, most people think Evelyn is a girl's name anyway. But Evelyn Waugh was a dude despite the girly name.

Then again, most people think Evelyn is a girl’s name anyway. But Evelyn Waugh was a dude despite the girly name.

9. Unfortunately, this publication didn’t think the Pope was Catholic.

Yes, it should've been "non-Italian," instead of "non-Catholic." Because the Pope is head of the Catholic Church, duh.

Yes, it should’ve been “non-Italian,” instead of “non-Catholic.” Because the Pope is head of the Catholic Church, duh.

10. In Britain, it’s important to distinguish between “team” and “tea.”

Because one can lead to worse connotations than the other. Of course, someone won't be happy about this.

Because one can lead to worse connotations than the other. Of course, someone won’t be happy about this.

11. Sorry, but this guy’s interpretation of Revelation was quite different.

Interestingly, many people do believe that Obama was the Anti-Christ. And a lot of them voted for Trump who seems like a more suitable candidate in my opinion.

Interestingly, many people do believe that Obama was the Anti-Christ. And a lot of them voted for Trump who seems like a more suitable candidate in my opinion.

12. So there weren’t 30,000 pigs floating down the river?

This correction states that 30 pigs floated down a river which is a lot. But not like 30,000 that could bring down Pigaggeddon.

This correction states that 30 pigs floated down a river which is a lot. But not like 30,000 that could bring down Pigaggeddon.

13. Uh, this author wants to tell everyone that she’s not married to her dog.

She goes on to say that her dog is married to someone else like another dog. Sure it's not bestiality but it's nonetheless strange.

She goes on to say that her dog is married to someone else like another dog. Sure it’s not bestiality but it’s nonetheless strange.

14. I don’t know about you but this mistake should’ve been corrected much earlier.

I'm sure that everyone knew that this kid was a boy by this point. Seriously, there's even a picture of him.

I’m sure that everyone knew that this kid was a boy by this point. Seriously, there’s even a picture of him.

15. Sorry about this publication getting its goat war sources wrong.

What makes me scratch my head more when reading this isn't the corrections. It's why this newspaper had a goat war article in the first place. Because that seems more or less inspired by an acid trip to me.

What makes me scratch my head more when reading this isn’t the corrections. It’s why this newspaper had a goat war article in the first place. Because that seems more or less inspired by an acid trip to me.

16. We’d like to apologize for a hyphen in our print edition.

It later goes on to talk about an Italian villa that has 17 stone dwarf statues. And they're not sure how much they weigh.

It later goes on to talk about an Italian villa that has 17 stone dwarf statues. And they’re not sure how much they weigh.

17. Apparently, Nintendo fans weren’t having it with Mario and Luigi being listed as janitors.

Nowadays, naming Mario and Luigi as janitors instead of plumbers would be unthinkable. But this article is from the 1980s.

Nowadays, naming Mario and Luigi as janitors instead of plumbers would be unthinkable. But this article is from the 1980s.

18. Our apologies to an artist’s girlfriend whom we labeled as a whore.

Calling someone a whore isn't a big deal in everyday conversation. Well, at least not as a big deal as a newspaper calling this. Man, this paper really doesn't want to get sued.

Calling someone a whore isn’t a big deal in everyday conversation. Well, at least not as a big deal as a newspaper calling this. Man, this paper really doesn’t want to get sued.

19. You know that abortion we reported earlier? Well, that never happened.

As a Catholic, I don't find the topic of abortion amusing at all. Yet, in this case, it's kind of amusing how a story like this probably caused a tidal waver of scandal for nothing.

As a Catholic, I don’t find the topic of abortion amusing at all. In fact, quite the opposite. Yet, in this case, it’s kind of funny how a story like this probably caused a tidal waver of scandal for nothing.

20. Okay, we kind of screwed things up on a bunch of articles so let’s give a brief summary.

At least the Daily Mail has the courtesy to apologize for stuff they make up. Unlike Fox News who tend to get the facts wrong all the time.

At least the Daily Mail has the courtesy to apologize for stuff they make up. Unlike Fox News who tend to get the facts wrong all the time.

21. When a newspaper has several paragraphs on an article they screwed up on, you know it’s bad.

I guess with having to correct an entire story like this, the reporter who wrote the original story is probably out of a job. Man, wonder how much credibility this paper has lost.

I guess with having to correct an entire story like this, the reporter who wrote the original story is probably out of a job. Man, wonder how much credibility this paper has lost.

22. Unfortunately, biblical literacy isn’t a big deal in British newspapers.

However, mistaking that it was Moses who built Noah's Ark is pretty unacceptable. Mostly because everyone knows that story about Noah's Ark while Moses doesn't appear until Exodus.

However, mistaking that it was Moses who built Noah’s Ark is pretty unacceptable. Mostly because everyone knows that story about Noah’s Ark while Moses doesn’t appear until Exodus.

23. Remember that carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide are two different gases with one being a deadly poison.

Yes, I'm sure carbon monoxide doesn't cure hiccups. Because I know it kills people.

Yes, I’m sure carbon monoxide doesn’t cure hiccups. Because I know it kills people.

24. Dear readers, please don’t make toast like Jamie Oliver does.

Besides, if you want to make toast with cheese on it, I'd recommend a toaster oven. Because this method described is very dangerous.

Besides, if you want to make toast with cheese on it, I’d recommend a toaster oven. Because this method described is very dangerous.

25. If a publication should do an article about Star Wars, make sure they watched the movies.

Love how they end that correction. But still, most people know that Luke didn't meat Obi Wan Kenobi at the Cantina. It was when Luke and the droids were besieged by Tuscan Raiders.

Love how they end that correction. But still, most people know that Luke didn’t meat Obi Wan Kenobi at the Cantina. It was when Luke and the droids were besieged by Tuscan Raiders.

26. We now believe the guy in the band was Fred Durst, not Robert Durst as previously thought.

I can totally see where this paper is coming from. And yes, the Associated Press can make mistakes, too.

I can totally see where this paper is coming from. And yes, the Associated Press can make mistakes, too.

27. Our apologies to a woman we once reported was fined for prostitution.

Actually her real crime was failure to stop at a railroad crossing, not prostitution. Guess this woman wasn't happy about that.

Actually her real crime was failure to stop at a railroad crossing, not prostitution. Guess this woman wasn’t happy about that.

28. Okay, this paper really screwed up on covering the 2016 presidential race.

You have to wonder who this paper sent to cover the race. And yes, saying that Marco Rubio is a Florida congressman instead of a Senator is the most noticeable here.

You have to wonder who this paper sent to cover the race. And yes, saying that Marco Rubio is a Florida congressman instead of a Senator is the most noticeable here.

29. Our apologies to Mrs. Letterman as reports of her passing were greatly exaggerated.

I think if David Letterman said his mother was dead, we would've known by now. But this paper got this wrong.

I think if David Letterman said his mother was dead, we would’ve known by now. But this paper got this wrong.

30. We admit that Central Asian geography isn’t our strong suit.

I'm sure plenty of people thought that Kyrzbekistan was a real country, too. Thanks for the info.

I’m sure plenty of people thought that Kyrzbekistan was a real country, too. Thanks for the clearing that out.

31. Sometimes punctuation can change the meaning.

Yeah, "Love Trump's Hate" sounds different from "love trumps hate." The apostrophe is unnecessary.

Yeah, “Love Trump’s Hate” sounds different from “love trumps hate.” The apostrophe is unnecessary.

32. Dear readers, all I know about Canada revolves around its hockey teams so don’t blame me for screwing up.

I think this reporter didn't really do much research on his or her article. So I think blaming the Edmonton Oilers and the NHL is far fetched.

I think this reporter didn’t really do much research on his or her article. So I think blaming the Edmonton Oilers and the NHL is far fetched.

33. Well, our original reading was correct if you used a different scale.

Yeah, Fahrenheit and Celsius have different temperature scales. Still, I usually opt for the former.

Yeah, Fahrenheit and Celsius have different temperature scales. Still, I usually opt for the former.

34. Sorry, David Brooks, but Moses didn’t part the Dead Sea. It was the Red Sea.

And yet, another biblical mistake. But this one comes from the New York Times.

And yet, another biblical mistake. But this one comes from the New York Times.

35. Turns out that was a Winchester 1873 gun not a Winchester 1773.

Like the note of the decrepit cowboy. Still, a 1773 gun wouldn't make much sense since you can't fire it once without reloading.

Like the note of the decrepit cowboy. Still, a 1773 gun wouldn’t make much sense since you can’t fire it once without reloading.

36. We regret to identify the woman in this photo as a porn star.

I guess US magazine would've been subject to a lawsuit if it didn't. Still, that's pretty bad.

I guess US magazine would’ve been subject to a lawsuit if it didn’t. Still, that’s pretty bad.

37. Dear Readers, we have of jumble answers all jumbled up.

Let's hope the Arizona Republic gets their puzzle section straightened out. Yeah, it all seems jumbled here.

Let’s hope the Arizona Republic gets their puzzle section straightened out. Yeah, it all seems jumbled here.

38. We apologize for that report about cows falling from planes which is just plain urban legend.

Still, while we can be relieved there aren't any cows falling from the sky, it's kind of disappointing. Seriously, you sometimes wish stories like this could be true just not in your own back yard.

Still, while we can be relieved there aren’t any cows falling from the sky, it’s kind of disappointing. Seriously, you sometimes wish stories like this could be true just not in your own back yard.

39. The people at Business Insurance would like to apologize for flunking in geography.

It's even worse they thought these cities were in places that just seem so wrong. Seriously, why the hell would anyone think that Cardiff is in Vietnam?

It’s even worse they thought these cities were in places that just seem so wrong. Seriously, why the hell would anyone think that Cardiff is in Vietnam?

40. We’re afraid those were khaki pants, not tacky pants.

Kind of sad the guy didn't wear tacky pants. Would've made him a more interesting guy in my opinion.

Kind of sad the guy didn’t wear tacky pants. Would’ve made him a more interesting guy in my opinion.

41. We regret that all these things about Jimmy Holmes from the Miami Dolphins weren’t actually true.

Still, the fake story by the Miami Herald makes him seem like a far more interesting guy. Not sure if it helps or hurts him.

Still, the fake story by the Miami Herald makes him seem like a far more interesting guy. Not sure if it helps or hurts him.

42. I’m afraid there’s no such job who squeezes toothpaste for the Prince of Wales.

Well, at least Prince Charles can squeeze his own toothpaste tube when he brushes his teeth. But it's still pretty funny.

Well, at least Prince Charles can squeeze his own toothpaste tube when he brushes his teeth. But it’s still pretty funny.

43. Seems like the Trenton Times can’t tell the difference between a lab and a men’s bathroom.

Now how can anyone make a mistake like this is hard to explain. Seriously, a laboratory and a lavatory may sound similar but they're completely different things.

Now how can anyone make a mistake like this is hard to explain. Seriously, a laboratory and a lavatory may sound similar but they’re completely different things.

44. Relax, Americans, rapper Public Enemy wasn’t mocking 9/11 but 911.

Guess the original article led to considerable public outcry. Because saying 9/11 as a joke could do that.

Guess the original article led to considerable public outcry. Because saying 9/11 as a joke could do that.

45. Apparently, sports reporters don’t seem to know much about Middle Earth and the Lord of the Rings.

What makes me scratch my head is how many Tolkein fans care about baseball to notice. Yes, guaranteed to piss off a nerd.

What makes me scratch my head is how many Tolkein fans care about baseball to notice. Yes, guaranteed to piss off a nerd.

46. We apologize to any aliens for linking them to Scientology.

Well, aliens could be living among us. And many of them could be offended by being linked to Scientology. You never know.

Well, aliens could be living among us. And many of them could be offended by being linked to Scientology. You never know.

47. We regret that we mistook a public official for an interior designer.

Man, you have to feel for this guy. I'm afraid being a public official in the State Department doesn't have decorating rooms in its job description.

Man, you have to feel for this guy. I’m afraid being a public official in the State Department doesn’t have decorating rooms in its job description.

48. We’re sorry that our newspaper was misspelled on the front page.

So how the hell does this even happen? Seriously, it appears on the headlines every damn day!

So how the hell does this even happen? Seriously, it appears on the headlines every damn day!

49. Apparently, political correctness has been known to confuse some people.

Even worse is that Massachusetts is misspelled here. But yeah, "back in the black" is a figure of speech and doesn't refer to African Americans.

Even worse is that Massachusetts is misspelled here. But yeah, “back in the black” is a figure of speech and doesn’t refer to African Americans.

50. As we see here, sometimes a typo can make a world of difference.

Yet, the typo described in this one is very unfortunate that it's almost Anti-Semitic. However, this term wouldn't be erroneous on Breitbart.

Yet, the typo described in this one is very unfortunate that it’s almost Anti-Semitic. However, this term wouldn’t be erroneous on Breitbart.

51. Some newspaper errors can be easier to explain than others.

You have to scratch your head and wonder how the hell did anyone think Buffy the Vampire Slayer headed a European Commission. It defies all possible imagination.

You have to scratch your head and wonder how the hell did anyone think Buffy the Vampire Slayer headed a European Commission. It defies all possible imagination.

52. When it comes to translations, make sure the reporter knows the language.

Clearly, someone really messed up on their Spanish here. Because that translation was totally wrong.

Clearly, someone really messed up on their Spanish here. Because that translation was totally wrong.

53. So that bit about the drag queen appearing at a church with a dildo didn’t happen right?

That's pretty embarrassing. Also, funny how the drag queen performer in question doesn't even use a dildo.

That’s pretty embarrassing. Also, funny how the drag queen performer in question doesn’t even use a dildo.

54. When writing out recipes, be sure to be specific on the ingredients.

Those think the salsa seemed a bit grainy lately now have an explanation. Yeah, cement shouldn't be used in any recipe.

Those think the salsa seemed a bit grainy lately now have an explanation. Yeah, cement shouldn’t be used in any recipe.

55. Sometimes the wording can give a complete different meaning than intended.

Well, they could've said all that in the original statement. Because it seems like he did something for women other than shopping.

Well, they could’ve said all that in the original statement. Because it seems like he did something for women other than shopping.

56. Apparently, the second hand stores and charities weren’t pleased.

Well, what do you expect when an article includes "old urine smell?" People are going to be mad about that.

Well, what do you expect when an article includes “old urine smell?” People are going to be mad about that.

57. We inform you that the Daily Planet supplement was an advertisement for the new Superman movie.

So this newspaper convinced people that there were actual Superman sightings. Makes me wonder how some people could believe stuff like that.

So this newspaper convinced people that there were actual Superman sightings. Makes me wonder how some people could believe stuff like that.

58. No, Ellen DeGeneres didn’t take a photo with that Bradley.

I wonder how someone could make a mistake like this since everyone should know who Bradley Cooper is by 2014. Not so much in the Guardian.

I wonder how someone could make a mistake like this since everyone should know who Bradley Cooper is by 2014. Not so much in the Guardian.

59. You know the guy who won the lottery? Well, he didn’t and he’s not that guy.

You have to wonder how newspapers could contain stories that are so wildly inaccurate. It's pretty amazing if you think about it.

You have to wonder how newspapers could contain stories that are so wildly inaccurate. It’s pretty amazing if you think about it.

60. Sorry, but his band mate was on drums, not drugs. We regret the error.

Wonder what kind of reputation this guy got who was said to be on drugs. That must be embarrassing.

Wonder what kind of reputation this guy got who was said to be on drugs. That must be embarrassing.

61. So how does the correct My Little Pony identification have anything to do with relationships on the autism spectrum?

Apparently, a My Little Pony fan got upset enough to complain about it. Why? I have no idea.

Apparently, a My Little Pony fan got upset enough to complain about it. Why? I have no idea.

62. It’s important for police to know the difference between babies and jumbo size Mexican food.

You have to wonder how someone could be this dumb to report a baby in a trash can that was really a burrito. It's just seems really crazy to me.

You have to wonder how someone could be this dumb to report a baby in a trash can that was really a burrito. It’s just seems really crazy to me.

63. We should inform you that Grandma’s Toy Box is a toy store not a male escort service.

Love how they said, "Sorry for any disappointment." Never underestimate how typos can really screw things up.

Love how they said, “Sorry for any disappointment.” Never underestimate how typos can really screw things up.

64. Those who misidentify Star Trek aliens would live to regret it.

Now misidentifying a Romulan as a Vulcan makes sense since they look very similar. But a Romulan as a Klingon, what the hell?

Now misidentifying a Romulan as a Vulcan makes sense since they look very similar. But a Romulan as a Klingon, what the hell?

65. We’re sorry that we mistook a homicide for stolen groceries.

How a newspaper can screw up so bad like this, I have no idea. Mistaking a homicide for stolen groceries seems more believable since the former is more serious.

How a newspaper can screw up so bad like this, I have no idea. Mistaking a homicide for stolen groceries seems more believable since the former is more serious.

66. Sorry about using a pigsty as a photo for a black neighborhood.

Guess Nova Scotia's black residents won't be happy about this. And you thought racism was an American thing.

Guess Nova Scotia’s black residents won’t be happy about this. And you thought racism was an American thing.

67. We’re afraid the NYPD steroid investigations were greatly exaggerated.

Who knew that steroid problems were just confined to sports. So 9 NYPD officers are under suspicion for this.

Who knew that steroid problems were just confined to sports. So 9 NYPD officers are under suspicion for this,

68. Seems like they forgot to add a few more zeroes when it came to the oil barrels.

Yeah, less than 250,000 barrels a day seems more like it than less than 250 a day. No wonder Libya is so messed up.

Yeah, less than 250,000 barrels a day seems more like it than less than 250 a day. No wonder Libya is so messed up.

69. Apparently, our reporters don’t understand basic astronomy.

I mean everyone should know that the Earth revolves around the sun and the moon revolves around the Earth. That should be common knowledge to everyone.

I mean everyone should know that the Earth revolves around the sun and the moon revolves around the Earth. That should be common knowledge to everyone.

70. Unfortunately, we weren’t very specific with our surveys that we resulted in some Islamophobia.

So this publication basically said that 1 in 5 British Muslims sympathizing with ISIS in a previous article. Now that's very offensive on multiple levels. Talk about perpetuating hate.

So this publication basically said that 1 in 5 British Muslims sympathizing with ISIS in a previous article. Now that’s very offensive on multiple levels. Talk about perpetuating hate.

71. Seems like the LA Times thinks Green Bay, Wisconsin is a seaside town.

It's "De Pere" not "the pier." Then again, French is a confusing language.

It’s “De Pere” not “the pier.” Then again, French is a confusing language.

72. Sometimes people can confuse between Shaquille O’Neal and Aristotle.

Why such mistakes are made, I have no idea. But let's just say, Aristotle would have no idea about basketball since he's from Ancient Greece.

Why such mistakes are made, I have no idea. But let’s just say, Aristotle would have no idea about basketball since he’s from Ancient Greece.

73. No, Rowan Atkinson was not the Archbishop of Canterbury at the time. That’s a different Rowan.

To be fair, Rowan Atkinson was Archbishop of Canterbury on an episode of Blackadder. Or rather his character Prince Edmund was.

To be fair, Rowan Atkinson was Archbishop of Canterbury on an episode of Blackadder. Or rather his character Prince Edmund was.

74. Sorry for making an Australian soldier sound like a psycho.

Once again, punctuation matters here. Yet, not sure why they had to go on with long explanation.

Once again, punctuation matters here. Yet, not sure why they had to go on with long explanation.

75. We regret to inform that one of those Tiger Beat covers was actually from The Onion.

Again, I'm not sure how this mistake is ever possible. Tiger Beat is a teen magazine while the Onion is a parody news magazine.

Again, I’m not sure how this mistake is ever possible. Tiger Beat is a teen magazine while the Onion is a parody news magazine.

76. We regret to inform how we made one of our authors look like a middle aged perv with masculinity issues.

It's even worse when you realize that the author they're describing is Asian. And that his book is his sexual struggles as an Asian man which wasn't helped at all by pervasive stereotypes in the US.

It’s even worse when you realize that the author they’re describing is Asian. And that his book is his sexual struggles as an Asian man which wasn’t helped at all by pervasive stereotypes in the US.

77. Our apologies to Dr. Robert Goddard on his scientific claims we thought were off the wall.

Goddard is well known for his pioneering in rocketry and his findings about rockets existing in a vacuum is correct. And he wasn't the first guy to come up with it either.

Goddard is well known for his pioneering in rocketry and his findings about rockets existing in a vacuum is correct. And he wasn’t the first guy to come up with it either.

78. The Washington Post would like to apologize calling a Gitmo captain fat.

As if his figure has anything to do with the article about Gitmo detainees. Seriously, why?

As if his figure has anything to do with the article about Gitmo detainees. Seriously, why?

79. We’re afraid that we’ve gotten our Hemingway plots mixed up.

A Farewell to Arms and For Whom the Bell Tolls are both very different stories. One takes place in WWI while the other during the Spanish American War.

A Farewell to Arms and For Whom the Bell Tolls are both very different stories. One takes place in WWI while the other during the Spanish American War.

80. We’re sorry for all the errors we made in that Gore Vidal obituary.

I'm not familiar with who Gore Vidal was but these people seem to get a lot wrong about him. To be honest, I don't blame the writers for screwing up here.

I’m not familiar with who Gore Vidal was but these people seem to get a lot wrong about him. To be honest, I don’t blame the writers for screwing up here.

Don’t Ask Me to Give a Chance on an Unrespectable Man

To the Trump supporters and voters out there, I know the election’s over and that your guy has been elected president fair and square through the Electoral College process thanks to your votes. It may not seem fair to me since my candidate Hillary Clinton won the popular vote (even by a narrow margin), but that’s how the system works. Yes, I am heartbroken that my candidate didn’t win through this bitter election and I didn’t get much sleep that night. But now that Donald Trump is president-elect, you tell me it’s time to come together, have an open mind, and to give him a chance to lead that he deserves. After all, you tell me that this is a time of civility, unity, and reconciliation. Besides, you insist that he may not be as bad as I think and my refusal to do so just makes me a whiny sore loser. You want me to treat this moment as a normal election which I should get over with and move on with my life as if everything in this country within the next 4 years will be fine.

However, asking me to accept a Trump presidency is something I cannot do. Not now, not ever. You may call me a whiny liberal with a sense of entitlement who can’t get over her candidate losing. You may call me a spoiled crybaby who can’t accept not getting what she wanted. You may call me unpatriotic for refusing to get behind the future president you voted for. You call me out of touch and immature for saying that Trump is not my president. You may say by not accepting Trump I have no respect for the presidency, the will of my fellow Americans, or democracy.

But in truth, my rejection of Trump has nothing to do with my politics or being unable to accept reality. I accept that Trump won the presidency and will be come January. I know there’s nothing I can do about it. Besides, I’ve experienced political setbacks before which I can deal with. Had the Republicans won this election with a viable presidential candidate, I would more likely put aside political differences and accept that person as my president with little complaint. Sure I’d be sad that my candidate lost, but I’d get over it. But this is not one of those times. Because with your votes, you elected an unrespectable man as president of the United States. No unrespectable man deserves a chance to lead even if he did win the White House.

When you’re asking to give Donald Trump a chance to lead, you’re asking me to accept what I already deem as fundamentally unacceptable in everything that a US president should be as well as represents America at its worst. President or not, Trump is a man I have absolutely no respect for in any capacity and that will never change. Now that he’s set to become the next president, I have never felt so ashamed of my country in my life. I am deeply horrified that so many of you could vote for such a thoroughly despicable human being with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. I am appalled that so many of you were willing to excuse this man’s gross violations of basic human decency that you wouldn’t tolerate in anyone else. I am absolutely disgusted that so many of you can be fine with electing a con artist who’s cheated his customers, investors, contractors, bankers, and employees. And I can guarantee that he will cheat you. I am upset that you could choose a man to lead our nation whose campaign was built on unfiltered disdain toward racial and religious minorities as well as endorsed by white supremacist terrorists. I am outraged that so many of you could be okay with a president who’s a sexual predator with a long history of objectifying and denigrating women. I am deeply distressed that you would vote for a man who is an entitled elitist who is corrupt to the core and doesn’t think the laws apply to him, an unrepentant and vindictive bully who uses litigation as an MO to anyone who’s challenged and criticized him, a pathological liar who’s constantly made promises he never intends to fulfill, and a irrepressibly greedy sociopath who’s tried to enrich himself by abusing trust others have placed in him whenever he’s in a position of authority. I am greatly troubled that you could ever support a man who has little respect for norms of ethical and acceptable behavior. I am angered that you voted for a man who never takes responsibility for his action, never says he’s sorry, and never admits he’s wrong. I am deeply incensed that you’re willing to choose a man to lead our country who’s had a history of unethical business practices that’s hurt thousands, who’s unwilling to release his tax returns and medical records, who’s surrounded himself with sycophants and outright criminals, who’s praised and done business with notorious dictators, whose flag waving patriotism is a sham, and who’s willing to use people as pawns in order to get what he wants and doesn’t care who gets hurt. Finally, I am extremely distraught that you elected a man who clearly has no respect for American values, American institutions, the rule of law, or constitutional rights that have made this nation great. And the fact I know very well that most of you aren’t bigoted monsters only makes it worse.

I know you will tell me that you voted for Trump because you hated or distrusted Hillary Clinton, your stance on the issues, his campaign promises, or what not. But whatever it is, I absolutely don’t give a damn. If you don’t like Trump for any reason, you should’ve tried to stop him regardless of what you believed even if it meant supporting a party that doesn’t share your beliefs and electing a candidate you despise. Hell, you shouldn’t have voted for him during the primaries in the first place and not let him take over the GOP. You could’ve easily stopped him then but you didn’t. But plenty tried, even within the Republican Party. And to be honest, I actually agreed more with Bernie Sanders than Hillary. But I voted for Hillary in the primary anyway because I knew people outside the Democratic Party wouldn’t get behind a candidate like Bernie Sanders even if they were white working class. And as much as I wanted change and see Bernie’s policy ideas a reality, I really didn’t want Trump in the White House and he was already the presumptive GOP nominee by then. I knew he was an unrespectable man even then, just not to the degree I know now. Yet, I also knew that unrespectable men must be stopped. Hillary Clinton seemed to be the only reasonable choice available to me. But unlike you, at least I made the right one I would never regret. I can’t say the same for you even if you don’t now.

Whatever your reasons may be for supporting him, they don’t excuse the fact you have given validation that racist, xenophobic, and misogynist and sexual predatory behavior as well as legitimized greed and authoritarianism as acceptable. It also doesn’t excuse the fact your vote for Trump sends a message that it’s okay to bully, intimidate, incite violence, and lie to people in order to get what you want and not take responsibility for all the hurt you’ve caused as well as being fine with a leader who’s eagerly willing to violate your constitutional rights. I know you don’t intend to say these things when you voted for him. But that doesn’t matter since your vote shows you’ve decided to live in Trump’s world of vanity, hate, recklessness, untruth, vindictiveness, and his disdain for democratic norms that will lead to national decline and suffering. Yet, what’s worse is that you didn’t care. You may not really like him. You may not really believe what he stands for. But casting your vote for him doesn’t make you any less guilty of giving legitimacy to this revulsive message of this unrespectable man.

I thought you were better than to vote for a candidate like Donald Trump who goes against everything this nation stands for. I thought regardless you perceived about Hillary Clinton, you’d do the right thing by electing a leader who’d make people feel proud to live in this great country. Even if you think Hillary is a criminal who belongs in jail. But you voted your self-interests to “take my country back” and elect that despicable demagogue who promised to “make America great again.” Sorry, but voting a man like Trump for president doesn’t make America great again and never will. Nor does it take your country back either but allowing it squandered by a sociopathic demagogue who’s only playing you for a pawn as well as put the dignity of the presidential office in jeopardy. It’s not a matter whether he’ll betray your interests but when. And when that time comes, you will come to despise him as much as those who’ve opposed him. In fact, your election of Trump makes the rest of us lose our faith in the America we’ve known and grown up with and the promise that it brought us that all are created equal and endowed with the unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It especially shatters my faith in the American people beyond recognition as well as in the people I know and love. And for millions of my fellow citizens, the inevitability of a Trump presidency makes them live in fear, many for their lives and families being torn apart. Their fears are entirely rational since Trump fueled his campaign on bigotry as well as promised to do terrible things to them. But what message Trump’s election sends to the American people bears no resemblance to the values I was taught to exercise, admire, respect, or value in anybody, let alone in a president-elect. And I’ve learned many of these values from you, which makes me see your vote for Trump as a betrayal of those American ideals you taught me. Now I’m not sure if I know who you are anymore. To accept Trump as my president would be to normalize him as just a regular politician he’s not, which I won’t do. To accept Trump as my president is to give my stamp of approval of his character and behavior which I will not tolerate. Winning the electoral college doesn’t absolve Trump from fueling his campaign with bigotry and hate or the grave sins he’s committed against millions of Americans. And it’s because of that I’ll never stand united behind a president who’s an unrespectable man.

Don’t tell me that it was economic anxiety that led you to vote for Trump. Because most voters earning less than $50,000 a year voted for Hillary even among whites with the most economic grievances. Besides, while many white working class voters may be struggling but they make more money than their poor neighbors and are very much the middle class of their rural communities. Not to mention, white people across the board voted heavily for Trump. Sure non-college educated whites came out by force but nearly half of white college graduates voted for him, too. I’m sure everyone in the Rust Belt states know those good factory jobs left due to policies that were at least 30 years old and knows they’re never coming back ever. You know that any promise to bring back those jobs is just a mere pipe dream that will never materialize. Also, if Trump’s election was really about economic anguish then I’m not sure why you’d go for a so-called multi-billionaire from Manhattan. Don’t tell me you voted for Trump because he’s an “anti-establishment outsider” because I know though Trump may not have any political or military experience, he’s very much part of the establishment. For God’s sake, he’s been a member of the 1% his entire life and he’s more likely to support his rich buddies than your concerns if you’re white working class. Not only that, but I’ve grown up around people like you and I know very well how you complain about your taxes going to social programs like Obamacare or welfare as a thinly veiled way to poor shame as well as denigrate minorities and immigrants. I’m also aware of how you put rich people on a pedestal as if they’re successful entrepreneurs to be revered regardless of how they earned their money or how much their greed destroys. Now I’m sure that some of you may have legitimate economic concerns, but it’s very clear to me that you couldn’t care less about economic woes unless they pertain to your struggles or your tax dollars going to programs you don’t like or to beneficiaries feel are beneath you. Sure some of you may not like the elites but many of you make wealthy corporations and businessmen sacred cows who can do no wrong. But most of you like to scapegoat minorities and poor people for taking white people’s jobs, mooching from your hard earned tax dollars, and are protected, coddled, or exploited by the white affluent liberals you revile. But those liberals at least care much more about you than the big piggy billionaires, corporations, big banks and Wall Street people you constantly excuse. Besides, out of all the candidates in the 2016 Election, the one really cared the most about you white working class folks was Bernie Sanders. But I know you wouldn’t vote for him because of how much you don’t want to unite with your brown and black brothers and sisters in solidarity since they have more in common with you anyway and how America would be much better off if you did. You shirk at the notion of him calling himself a Democratic Socialist, which you view with suspicion. And I know you don’t like paying taxes either which I know you already view as big government even if it’s for your own benefit.

The exit poll data makes it perfectly clear that most of you who voted for Trump are way more white than working class. But that doesn’t stop the mainstream media from blaming the white working class for resentment of people of color and immigrants. But I know full well that white people at all income levels deride immigrants and minorities as well but they try to conceal it through their fiscal conservative rhetoric thinking liberals like me won’t even notice. If not, then you talk about it through the lens of securing our borders or fighting terrorism. Though the latter is quite ironic to me since you don’t seem to mind voting for a candidate who was endorsed by white supremacists. Or how you talk about how deindustrialization left the poor white working class without good jobs while Democratic party abandoned them for minorities, immigrants, LGBT people, women, and the environment. Sure I may empathize with the white working class on some level and why they’d be discontent with the establishment as well feel that they’re disrespected or left behind. But I find it very hard to believe that the Democrats really don’t care about the struggles in their communities. After all, weren’t the Democrats the ones to talk about paid family and sick leave, improving Obamacare and making healthcare more accessible, environmental protection, network neutrality, making college more affordable, and a higher minimum wage? Meanwhile, Republicans want to curb collective bargaining and union power through right to work laws. To say that the Democrats left behind or disrespected the white working class makes absolutely no sense to me. Or how you talk about it through rampant voter fraud that doesn’t exist. But you don’t fool me. It’s now perfectly clear to me that you still benefit from institutional racism and want it to stay that way whether you admit it or not. I mean the fact that many of you believed Barack Obama wasn’t born in the US or was a secret Muslim illustrates my point. Besides, many of you said that Barack Obama was “not your president” when he was elected in 2008. And I know it wasn’t because Obama wasn’t an unrespectable man since he was a man of great dignity who earned that chance to lead. Trump isn’t. You voted for Trump to preserve your white privilege which you thought was under threat by the nation’s increasing diversifying cultural landscape. Even if it means voting for a man who’ll only drag you through the mud along with your fellow citizens you deem as undeserving. There is no way around it. But while I don’t write off every one of you racist, sexist, or xenophobic maniac, I have to acknowledge that each of you decided that maniacal racism, sexism, and xenophobia wasn’t disqualifying for the President of the United States. Or that your selfish reasons for voting Trump matter more to you than protecting the rights of your fellow countrymen. I’m sorry, but I’m not letting you direct blame to the white working class who you scapegoat in order to avoid responsibility for the man you voted for. It’s another way of saying, “Don’t blame us, it’s the ignorant rednecks’ fault since they’re racists facing economic peril.” You knew liberals would blame them if Trump won as well as feel guilty that they’ve been out of touch with these people. For a while, I almost believed you. Yet, later it became apparent that these white working class voters only consisted of a part of Trump’s support. And those whites who were working class weren’t living on the edges of the economy either. But even if you fancy yourselves as non-racist or non-sexist virtuous people, you deserve all the shame you can get, possibly more than the proclaimed racists. Because you knew by voting for him you willingly handed the reins to a selfish, racist snake (sorry snakes). This makes you complicit in stating that millions of your fellow Americans don’t matter no matter how much you try to rationalize it. And I will not stand for it because it’s not okay.

Look, I know I probably have racist views that I may not be conscious of. Yet, as someone who’s studied history and researched political issues, I’m much more aware than most of my fellow whites. Though that hasn’t always been the case. I know I benefit from inequality and often fail to call it where I see it. But this election wasn’t one of those times since you failed to stop someone whose explicit aim was to scapegoat and pursue discrimination into law as well as in new and dangerous ways. You can’t be blameless for this no matter how strong your love for this nation’s ideals are which I now currently question. And in many ways, I feel like I didn’t do enough to call you out on your bigotry earlier when I should’ve since I knew it was always there. Even then, I underestimated how deep your disdain for the Other until today. And now I’m absolutely disgusted with you like I don’t know who you are anymore. What I find hard to accept is that many of ordinary Americans like you would vote for such an unrespectable man to lead your country. Look, I understand if you’re frustrated by the government dysfunction in Washington and that you may want change. But that doesn’t mean you should latch yourselves onto a wolf in sheep’s clothing who goes against your national ideals. And I know full well this wolf is the man you voted for. So if you berate me for rejecting Trump, don’t call me unpatriotic or a sore loser who won’t accept the election results. Because I do accept the results. But I also accept what Trump’s election means for this country and what it says about the American people. And to call him “not my president” means that I oppose his version of America and everything he stands for. Trump doesn’t represent me or the majority of Americans who voted against him no matter how small the difference. And I will fight him and his government tooth and nail to protect the American values I hold dear which I didn’t abandon on Election Day. I can’t say the same about you. So don’t tell me to embrace or support Trump because we’re one country united. Don’t lecture me about patriotism or values. And don’t ask me to give a chance on an unrespectable man.

An Electoral Catastrophe

I cannot express the fear, anger, and disdain I feel when I heard that our next President of the United States will be a man whom I can never respect in any capacity. Our country doesn’t deserve a man like Donald Trump as its leader. I find it especially shameful that many of my friends, neighbors, relatives, and even my home state went to this most wretched man. I know this man won’t keep his promises because he makes them with no intention to fulfill them. This man doesn’t give a damn about anything or anyone but himself and his own gain. This man has never made sacrifices, never accepts responsibility, never did any good for goodness sake, and never felt any remorse. He’s a man with no interest in anything but his own money, power, and fame. He doesn’t seem to value education, possess any intellectual curiosity, appreciate culture, or hold the truth in high regard. He’s a man of no ideas, political experience, and no understanding of the world he wants to lead. I know this man cares nothing about our country, our history, our values, our institutions, our rule of law, our democracy, or our people. This man won the presidency by stoking many of the worst sentiments of human nature as well as saying that our country is a wretched human wasteland.  His victory is a disaster for democracy at its worst and sets a horrific example for the world as well as our children. His campaign represents a rejection of our democratic norms and put fascism on the ballot while white, working class rural voters responded to his vile, bigotry, and false promises in droves to vote “Yes.” I absolutely loathe Trump so much I’m not sure if I can respect the presidential office during his term because he absolutely doesn’t have the character of someone whom I could be truly proud to say he’s the leader of my country. And at no time in my life have I felt such shame for my country, my extended family, many of my friends from both high school and college, my community, my state, and even my neighborhood who elected this black hole of humanity on anti-minority statements or outright hate that even white supremacist terrorists happily joined in. Except me and my parents who only had the only Hillary Clinton sign in the whole neighborhood and were possibly the only people who voted for her. For that I feel such a sense of shame for the hatred so many people in my life believe about people who are different than themselves. So for anyone who voted for the repulsive unapologetic racist, then may I be the first to say shame on you because it’s your racism that’s wrong with this nation.

Electing Trump as president doesn’t “make America great again” and never will. It does just the opposite by giving acceptable license to such a despicable man’s behavior and rhetoric that can harm millions of Americans. And it doesn’t help that most of Trump’s supporters voted for him because of his racist comments that they were willing to overlook his other unsavory qualities. Perhaps I could be among the few white women in America who’ve not only supported and voted for Hillary Clinton, but also actively wrote about racism throughout my blogging career. Despite overcoming my own prejudices with a great degree of success while writing these and reading a few books by minority authors, I am not proud of it. In fact, I’m absolutely horrified that so many white people in this country don’t actively share my disdain for racism that they’d at least not let the racist candidate win. This especially goes for my fellow white college graduates. It’s no wonder that minorities are scared to death since Trump’s election sends a resounding message that an overwhelming number of white people doesn’t want minorities here which I feel is utterly unconscionable. I’m even more upset that these racists who don’t want minorities here are people I know and people I grew up with. I am deeply disgusted by that fact because I’m well aware that it does not make things okay for many of my fellow Americans who’ll be subject to the Trump administration’s worst abuses. Trump’s presence will embolden white supremacists who supported him to be more audacious as well as push further and more extreme actions. Mosques will be vandalized and perhaps temples, synagogues, along with black and Hispanic churches. Mexican and Latino Americans could be targeted to a degree not seen in decades while Trump’s plan to deport undocumented immigrants will divide thousands of families which to me is beyond the pale. Police departments could be filled with black suspects that are stopped and frisked with no good attorney general willing to stop them. You can also take into account that lax gun laws will allow white supremacists and other right-wing terrorists access to firearms as well as more mass shootings and law enforcement deaths. So I’m not too off about how electing Trump lets the terrorists win. I can’t accept a man as my president whose message that racial discrimination is good and prudent to the entire citizenry because I know such attitudes don’t keep Americans safe from the threat of right-wing domestic terrorism which will undoubtedly rise but will probably be unsurprisingly ignored.

Trump’s presidency will solve none of our problems in this country that desperately needed fixed. As president, Trump intends to repeal Obamacare and has the majority to make it happen, which will result in at least 22 million Americans losing their health insurance, which I won’t stand for because I don’t want our healthcare system go back to the Bush years. Denying healthcare to anyone in need is unconscionably cruel to me because I believe medical care is a basic human right. Besides, despite Obamacare’s faults, the law is a huge success that has lowered the uninsured rate by half and if we didn’t have it, things would be worse. I know that Republicans have pledged to do this since its passage for 6 years saying it’s made things worse. But in reality, they were opposed to it from the very beginning due their party’s free market ideology and contributions from health insurance companies. As for the environment, Trump is sure to reverse Obama’s efforts to curb climate change like the Clean Power Plan, emissions standards, signed on to the Paris Climate Deal, and renewable energy funding. Trump not only wants to reverse all this, he also wants to abolish the Environmental Protection Agency altogether (which was established in the 1970s). The effect on emissions could be enormous which can reverberate for thousands of years and affect hundreds of millions of people. Without drastic emission reductions, global temperatures will continue to rise. Meanwhile the ice caps keep melting, the seas will rise, Florida will go underwater, and mega droughts could affect the Southwest for generations and generations. Not to mention, Trump’s presidency will give a free ride to Paul Ryan’s fiscal plans with 60% benefitting the richest Americans, make devastating cuts in social programs, and tax cuts for the rich with Food Stamps and Medicaid ending as we know it. Not to mention Medicare could be voucherized while Social Security could be privatized. Such a plan will not only keep the rich from paying their fair share, raise taxes on poorer and middle-class Americans, but also tear into the social safety net on the nation’s poorest Americans as well as put millions of children in extreme poverty. In short it will be a disaster because government should play a key role in reducing inequality like granting paid leave, equal pay for women, affordable childcare, and tax increases for the rich. But that’s not going to happen. And I know far too well that the next 4 years will have a presidency that believes in a self-serving capitalism with no conscience that Donald Trump personifies to a tee. Rejecting such legitimized greed in my country is critical part of my progressive Catholic identity. I cannot accept this from a government to undo so much progress this country has made under Obama and I will not bow down to Trump for it.

Trump’s presidency will also tarnish America’s reputation as a respected world power and beacon of the free world. It’s bad enough that Vladmir Putin and WikiLeaks were able to help Trump with the election by hacking into Hillary’s e-mails. But Trump is sure to be Putin’s puppet since his commitment to the Trans-Atlantic Treaty is shaky, doesn’t believe in NATO, and is extremely sympathetic in Russia’s dominance of neighboring countries. He also thinks Putin and Syrian dictator Bashir al-Assad are bombing ISIS when in reality, they’re focusing their assaults on non-Syrian rebels. Yet, Trump’s win should also encourage Assad and don’t expect him to lift a finger on behalf of his victims. It doesn’t help that Putin is greatly feared in Russia who’s left a trail of dead journalists. There are also possibilities of a trade war with China that could cost millions of American jobs, dismantling the Iran deal, the possibility of Trump turning Eastern Europe over to Putin, and his stupid wall he thinks Mexico should pay for. Then there’s the fact Trump supports torture which is a human rights violation in my book along threatening to alter American foreign policy in dangerous ways. I have no confidence that Trump could ever honor diplomatic ties or treaties and thus, I could never call him my president.

Though I might’ve known there may have been a chance that Trump would win the presidency, I always had faith that the American people will wise up and vote for Hillary Clinton despite all her baggage and beliefs. I thought despite whatever issues she represented or personal feelings toward her, Americans would choose a candidate who’d make people feel proud to live in such a great country like the United States. I thought my fellow Americans would put their country over their self-interests when they came to the voting booth this Election Day. And no matter how bad the race got, I somehow had faith that this day would pass and our national nightmare would be over. I thought Americans were better than to elect a sociopath for president like Donald Trump, a man who’d nobody would want to associate with in their every day life nor would want as a role model for their children. I was wrong for Trump’s victory and upcoming presidency thus marks the winter of our discontent. Today my faith in the American people is now shattered beyond recognition.

I know Trump supporters aren’t bad people. I know they work hard and take pride in supporting themselves.  I know that many are angry. But what they did to “make America great again” was selfish, shameful, and disgraceful. And I will make sure they regret it for the rest of their lives. I know such a phrase will evoke nostalgia but it’s of an earlier time that only exists in a dream. I don’t want to go back to a time when they thought things were better when they were actually worse. I know these people want respect. I know these people want change. Hell, I even want change and so does everyone. But they should understand that they don’t get that by entrusting their vote to a wolf in sheep’s clothing who’ll fleece them and turn this great country into his little fiefdom. They say he’s an outsider and doesn’t represent the elite. In reality, he’s an elitist to the core whose interests always go against the common working man he sees an unsuspecting pawn and nothing more. They should also know that blaming vulnerable minorities for their troubles and lack of control doesn’t give them what they want either. What they got was an outright fraud who’s never had any respect for them, their values, their institutions, their freedoms, their country, or their rule of law. In effect, what they thought was a protest against one set of elites was really submitting to another elite as a license to screw them. They didn’t take their country back. They had their country squandered by voting a sociopathic demagogue who appealed to their baser natures. Because I’ve seen people take these deals before and I know the little guy gets swindled every time. Trump won’t fix it and he won’t make their lives better. He has already lied to them like he does all the time. He’s already given them false hopes and promises he never intends to follow through. He will rob them. He will cheat them. He will hurt them. He will let them down. But many seem taken with conservative media like Fox News or so set in their pessimistic reactionary worldview that they may not even realize this. But what’s more disturbing about them is how much they’re willing to overlook Trump’s inexcusable sins like they just don’t care that he was unqualified, temperamentally unfit, dangerous, and represents a major threat to American democracy. It’s as if they have no moral standards of behavior in a presidential candidate whatsoever. Or how their political choices may inspire their children to bully minority kids in their neighborhood or school. In the end, all I know is their support for Trump will give them nothing they want and may be even worse off than they were. And they’re doing with their votes is just bringing the rest of us down with them and dragging us through the mud. I guarantee he will wreck this nation and make the rest of us live with the consequences for the rest of our lives as well as those for generations to come. If they’re wise, these Trump supporters will regret voting for him. Maybe not today or tomorrow. But someday and for the rest of their lives. How do I know this? Because he’s screwed people who’ve trusted him left and right. And Trump supporters will be no exception.

Yet, though these Trump supporters try make themselves seem like they’re rugged individualists, the reality is that many of them aren’t. They’re actually kind of pathetic like many of the rest of us. Sure they may be religious, but they lack real Christian courage and they tend to choose their Un-Christian politics over Christian virtues. They think they’re tough with guns which they think will protect them. Yet, in reality, cling to their guns because they believe the world is a dangerous place and that the police can’t be trusted. Some may believe that government spending is out of control despite that they’re on welfare and food stamps because their job pays a shitty wage and doesn’t offer benefits. And they’re so afraid of being fired they’re so unwilling to stick up for themselves to their employer who’s exploiting or possibly robbing them. Many of them feel their lives seem hopeless no matter how hard they work they tend to scapegoat minorities and others poorer than themselves for being lazy or getting special treatment. Many also believe that if their candidate doesn’t win, then the election must be rigged by rampant minority voter fraud. They also have a tendency to fall prey to people who’d promise them a better life but actually using them for their own ends. But they always seem to cling onto a right-wing ideology that’s failing them and makes them think the world is a far worse place than it actually is. I have very little confidence these people could ever support a man like Bernie Sanders because these people are so adverse to liberal ideas that may sound even a teensy bit Socialist to them even if he best represents their interests, let alone a politician who calls himself a Socialist. I know all too well that these Trump supporters would’ve never accepted him. Many may be distrustful of government feel that it doesn’t support their interests even when their assistance helps them or is necessary that they feel they’re disregarded, disrespected or left behind. And they live in the same old patterns because they’ve been told not to stand up for themselves, revere the rich as successful people who they say earn their money, are so stuck in their ways, or accept everything as God’s plan. I’ve grown up around these people all my life and while I don’t dislike them, I tend to see many as misinformed, ignorant, self-serving, cowardly, hypocritical, and pathetic. Not to mention, I’ve heard their subtle racist comments all the time which are nevertheless damaging. But now I’m absolutely sick of their latent bigotry and won’t tolerate it any longer. Not even on special occasions when I’m supposed to be polite and keep my mouth shut on political matters. Even worse, many of them don’t seem to consider how this election will have on their children. I mean Trump allegedly sexually assaulted several women and teenage girls he called liars and threatened to sue as a form of intimidation. While he owned the Miss Universe pageant, he used to go into the dressing rooms when the contestants were partially clothed or naked, even during the teen competitions. It doesn’t help that his 3rd and current wife is a college dropout who modeled in porn and he objectifies women on a regular basis. He even suggested that he’d date his daughter Ivanka if he could. It doesn’t help these girls’ mothers sold out their political views to this orange piece of human garbage. The fact that Trump’s election may normalize, excuse, or even encourage everything he’s said is particularly troubling. I don’t know if I can call a man like Trump, “Mr. President,” because I don’t want to normalize sexism. Or how Hillary’s defeat could prevent women from entering politics for fear of such a vicious backlash that won’t guarantee them victory (though Hillary did win the popular vote and thank God). Yet, the fact so many parents are willing to overlook Trump’s sexual predatory behavior and misogyny in this election somehow implicitly validates that these actions are acceptable. I am ashamed that American parents everywhere would even do such a thing since it sets an exceptionally horrible example to kids. And I refuse to tolerate it.

However, most importantly, I can’t accept Donald Trump as my president and because I don’t believe he respects the US Constitution as well as Americans made in order to form a more perfect union where all are created equal. He is more of a figure from authoritarian politics, not the American tradition and a democratic constitution that empowers such a leader has misfired badly. It’s very clear the Supreme Court gutting the Voting Rights Act as well as legalized voter suppression and intimidation played a huge role in his victory. In this election, Trump ran on a platform rejecting the Constitution as well as its underlying principles of democratic self-government and individual rights. Other than the 3rd Amendment, there’s hardly a provision in the Bill of Rights or later amendments he didn’t explicitly promise to override. For instance, declaring open season on journalists is a huge violation of freedom of the press as would banning Muslims and shutting down mosques be with freedom of religion. Others include freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures like stop and frisk, the right to counsel along with the Fourteenth Amendment right to birthright citizenship and equal protection to Fifteenth Amendment voting rights. It’s like he offered Americans a bag of magic beans in an exchange for their rights and their form of government with nearly 60 million complying (which didn’t include me since I voted for Hillary who won the popular vote). I deny their right to give Trump my rights or those of others who can’t defend themselves. No result is legitimate threatening the constitutional promise “secure the blessings of liberty.” No amount of angry and frightened voters has a right to strip minorities of equal status and protections or throw away a democratic future of posterity. American national leaders gain their legitimacy by competing in compliance with not just outward forms but the clear values of our Constitution such as equal dignity, religious freedom and tolerance, open deliberation, and rule of law. These sacred constitutional principles don’t bind Donald Trump. In fact, norms of decency don’t apply to him as he shrugs off the very burden of the fact itself. Like Old World dictators, he uses the mass media to lie, insult, to strip individuals of their dignity, to commit the grossest falsehoods against religious and national groups, as well as encourage persecution, torture, and violence. He actively campaigns against any notion of sexual, religious, or racial equality. He threatens those opposing him with the unchecked power of the state. Sure there was a decay in American democratic norms before Trump who took advantage of a political system hardened in hatred that it’s caused constant gridlock as well as the growth of mass surveillance and toxic government secrecy. Though Trump was elected president on November 8, he’s not my president nor ever will be.

Why You Should Never Ever Vote for Donald Trump

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With the election a few days away, most Americans have already decided to vote either for Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump as their new president. Of course, while I think every American has a right to vote their own conscience if they want to, I think the choice for the highest elected office in the land is obvious. And yes, I strongly urge my readers, my friends, and my family to vote to exercise their civic responsibility and for the love of God, cast a vote for Hillary Clinton. Sure she may be a liberal who goes against everything you stand for. Sure she may have a ton of baggage like her e-mails, her marriage to Bill, and what not. Sure she may be pro-choice and think what a woman does with her body is her business. But for God’s sake, she’s running against a fucking sociopath with no political experience who undermines our American ideals, people! Seriously, I don’t care where you stand on the issues or what your beliefs are. I don’t care what you think about Hillary either or whether you can trust her. This election isn’t about the issues but whether we’ll elect the first woman president or a fucking embarrassment who may put this country on the road to ruin as we know it. Say what you want about her, but at least Hillary is a normal politician who will lead this nation within the framework of the constitutional laws. At least Hillary is qualified for president as well as shown herself to be a serious candidate for the job. At least Hillary is an acceptable role model for your children to aspire to. And if Hillary is elected president, at least I’ll be assured the American experiment set by our Founding Fathers will still exist within the next four to eight years. The same can’t be said about her opponent. Trump, on the other hand, should’ve been shut down in the Republican primaries months ago. If you think Trump is more trustworthy than Hillary, then you must be an idiot. If you think Trump can change, you must be a fool. If you think Trump could “make America great again,” like you hope he would, you must be insane. Trump is a volatile con artist who’s abused his power whenever he’s been in a position of leadership. Look, I may be a practicing social justice Catholic who believes in advancing the common good in all else which is why I’m a strong progressive Democrat. But in this election, I’m not saying that Donald Trump shouldn’t be president not because I disagree with my politics which is true. I’m saying that Trump shouldn’t be president because he’s a man not to be trusted with power or leadership of any kind. Because all he cares about is himself. Seriously, there’s never been a candidate so evil in this country as Donald Trump. And here I list 50 reasons why you shouldn’t vote for him.

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Even Trump supporters don’t think Donald Trump is qualified. That should send a red flag. Seriously, why wasn’t he defeated in the primaries already? Why the hell did he have to be the Republican nominee?

  1. He’s Not Qualified or Fit for the Presidency– While Hillary Clinton was a lawyer and advocate by trade as well as First Lady of both US and Arkansas, US Senator from New York, and Secretary of State, Trump has held no political office or has held any government job whatsoever. Yes, we’ve had presidents who never held elected office. Yet, many have had some public service for the US Government. For instance, Ulysses S. Grant, Zachary Taylor, and Dwight D. Eisenhower were generals. Herbert Hoover was a Secretary of Commerce as well as head of the FDA during WWI and organizer for humanitarian relief efforts in Belgium and the Soviet Union. William Howard Taft served as a governor of the Philippines at one point in his life and in Theodore Roosevelt’s cabinet. He doesn’t even have that kind of political experience either. Besides, running a business is very different than running a country as Hoover learned the hard way. There’s also no evidence suggesting that he knows anything about foreign policy, balancing government budgets, education, diplomacy, or the Supreme Court. But more importantly, Trump has the temperament mentality of a spoiled, impulsive, and ill-behaved brat who’d probably not make it out alive in Willy Wonka’s candy factory of horrors. He’s made a lot of terrible decisions over his life that make me seriously question his judgement as well as said things that might not indicate he’s all there or even has interest in what the presidency entails. He also has serious moral character flaws that just can’t be ignored.
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As they often say, the trouble with jokes is that so many get elected. Well, at least nominated as in Donald Trump’s case. However, once he started winning GOP primaries he stopped being funny. Now he’s downright scary.

2. He’s Not a Serious Political Figure Who Commands Respect– When Donald Trump first ran for president in 2015, I wasn’t nearly as upset as I should’ve been since for a long time Trump was basically seen as a joke. And a bad one at that. You know an extremely egocentric rich guy with a hideous haircut who hosted a reality show, built crappy hotels and ugly golf courses, as well as did very ridiculous things for the sake of publicity. Before his run for president, Trump’s been an international punchline as well as the honorary punching bag at a celebrity roast. To be honest, I thought Trump wouldn’t last long in the primaries since I didn’t think people would take him seriously enough to vote for him. Yet, the joke quickly stopped being funny for me when people started attending his rallies in droves and Republicans eventually voted him as their nominee. Now less than a week before the election and what I once perceived as a joke is now downright scary that I was extremely tempted to vandalize Trump signs from my neighbors’ properties. Electing Trump as president makes America look like a joke to the world, which should scare the living shit out of you.

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Donald Trump is a perfect definition of a sociopath as you see in this picture. Trump only does what he can to get what he wants and doesn’t care who gets hurt. He uses people to his own ends and screws them over with no second thought. He never takes responsibility and never feels truly sorry for his actions. And he has very thin skin.

3. He Has No Conscience or Moral Values– Now when it comes to politician’s moral character, I mostly don’t care about what they do in their private lives since I know people are flawed creatures. However, we all know that Trump was never a nice guy to begin with and was never ashamed about being a shameless absolute jerk. But the more you know about Trump as a human being, the more you realize that he’s way more despicable than you could ever imagine. After considerable research into his scandals, even I can’t think of a single instance Trump has ever done anything unconditionally nice, shown any compassion or concern for other people, tried to hold himself accountable. And there are thousands of times from the last several decades when he has done the exact opposite. Trump is willing risk ruining people’s lives to get what he wants with no second thought. He just doesn’t seem to care about anything but himself. His sins aren’t just shocking but also appalling. He’s a narcissist at best and a sociopath at worst. Hell, even his The Art of the Deal co-author Tony Schwartz said if he was writing the book today, he would’ve made it a very different book with a very different title: The Sociopath. He’d later write, “I put lipstick on a pig. I feel a deep sense of remorse that I contributed to presenting Trump in a way that brought him wider attention and made him more appealing than he is. I genuinely believe that if Trump wins and gets the nuclear codes there is an excellent possibility it will lead to the end of civilization.” Schwartz found Trump to be such a horrible person that he continues to feel a sense of shame for his time as The Art of the Deal ghostwriter. Glenn Beck has also called him a sociopath asking Charlie Rose, “Have you seen him during the last year and a half truly feel for someone that couldn’t help him? Truly connect on a human level?” He went on saying how alarming and frightening how little empathy Trump shows adding, “A sociopath is somebody who doesn’t really see the human experience in somebody else, and I haven’t seen that in him. I haven’t seen him deeply affected by the human condition in an individual.” Let’s just say while Glenn Beck may have outlandish theories, his idea of Trump being a sociopath is very believable and can be thoroughly supported by biographers, people who knew him, and reporters.

Donald Trump Promotes 'Trump University'

Those who think Hillary Clinton isn’t trustworthy may have a probable cause. However, those who think Donald Trump is more trustworthy than Hillary are nothing but morons. Seriously, Trump has made a career of swindling people of their money that Wall Street no longer wants to do business with him. Also, his Trump University was a major scam and he’s due to go on trial for fraud later this month.

4. He’s Not Trustworthy– Say what you want on Hillary Clinton’s e-mails and her other activities, but if you’re voting for Trump because you can’t trust her, I strongly think you should reconsider. Yes, I know that so many people are willing to trust him over Hillary with running the country, but that rationale is absolutely insane. Trump’s long record of corruption since the 1970s is well documented as well as been recorded in legal proceedings and court cases. His flamboyant corruption runs to the very core of his identity. Trump has been a defendant in literally thousands of lawsuits brought by service providers and vendors whom he failed/refused to pay for services rendered to him and his business organizations. It’s abundantly clear that wage theft is part of Trump’s business model. Even Trump’s lawyers allege he didn’t pay their legal fees. What kind of businessman would do this? He’s also failed to pay his debts on his failing casinos that he later had less control of them with each bankruptcy. Not to mention, several major financial institutions like JP Morgan Chase and Goldman Sachs have flatly refused to do business with him for these and other reasons. In fact, Trump’s reputation in business is as a scam artist or as Mitt Romney put it a “con man” and “snake oil salesman.” You can also look into the allegations involved in the Trump University scandals to support Romney’s conclusions and why he won’t support him. Sure Wall Street may not be the most trustworthy when it comes with handling other people’s money. And yes, I know these banksters have campaigned against political candidates like Elizabeth Warren because of policy disagreements. But what Wall Street bankers and Warren can agree on is Trump. What Wall Street has against Trump is that they know he’s a swindler and a cheat who will take their hard earned money they’ll never see again. In fact, many there probably have done business with Trump themselves or know someone who has. So much so that they now deem Trump a high financial risk potential investors should avoid at all times. If Wall Street bankers can’t trust a Republican presidential candidate, especially one who claims to be a successful businessman, you can’t trust him with running the country.

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Hillary Clinton may lie. But whenever Trump opens his mouth, it’s easier to know whether he’s lying than whether he’s telling the truth. That’s why Politifact named him 2015 Liar of the Year. The competition wasn’t even close.

5. He’s a Pathological Liar– Trump’s dishonesty is so well known that Politifact named him the winner of its annual “Lie of the Year” Award in 2015, a competition which the fact-checker said “was not even close” unquestionably in reference to the fact that it rated 72% of Trump’s public remarks on factual circumstances as false. Politico states he lies every 5 minutes. There’s even a website called Trumplies which is a vast compendium of misstatements, inaccuracies and outright falsehoods. Greatest hits include his RNC acceptance speech, defamation of Ted Cruz’s father in his first post-convention news conference, and his recent statement to the New York Times about NATO which was reported the next day and which he categorically denied. Seriously, the guy blatantly lies in public like there’s no tomorrow. As a businessman, he’s constantly lied to people in order to give him what he wants then making excuses why he didn’t fulfill his promises. Now cheating rich investors may be understandable to some extent since many forgave him for not paying him back. Yet, the fact he promised to pay his workers before refusing to pay them later is just beyond the pale. He’s also constantly lied to cover his own ass. You can re-watch any of the debates to prove my point. Seriously, whenever I see him on TV, I usually assume he’s lying because he’s lied so much. He even doubles down on his lies. Sorry, but Trump never tells it like it is. In fact, he tells what his supporters want to hear which isn’t.

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Donald Trump has a habit of not paying his bills on time, in full, or ever. He says he pays his workers based on whether they do a good job or not. Though it’s abundantly clear that he’s been subject to hundreds of wage theft allegations by people who worked for him he stiffed. Yeah, you’re better off not working for his projects.

6. He’s a Boss from Hell and No Friend to Working People– Trump may boast that he creates thousands of jobs over his business career. However, he has proven to be a man you don’t want to work for at all. For one, Trump has long been subject to hundreds of wage theft allegations over the past few decades from workers ranging from contractors, casino employees, and even his lawyers. Small businesses worked for him have either failed or struggled to continue because Trump didn’t pay their bills. One Republican consultant even tweeted how Trump stiffed his own dad in the 1980s. Trump has used various excuses like shoddy workmanship. Secondly, Trump also has a history of hiring undocumented workers many of whom worked under terrible conditions. During the demolition of the Bonwit Teller Building in order to make room for Trump Tower, Trump’s companies hired over 200 undocumented Polish workers who did backbreaking work for $5 an hour without hard hats and often slept on site. Also, workers complaining about back pay were threatened with deportation. He’s also been subject to allegations from former models at Trump Model Management who lived in squalid conditions while earning almost nothing and not having proper work permits. Not to mention, he’s hired foreign guest workers at his resorts even when Americans applied for the same positions. Third, he’s been sued by unions as well as tried to prevent workers from unionizing at his Las Vegas hotels. Fourth, he forced production employees from The Apprentice to work for him after Hurricane Sandy despite New York City being in a state of emergency and effectively shut down. Many of these employees endured dangerous conditions during commutes to Trump Tower. Fifth, his companies have been subject to complaints for disrespecting women and discriminating against minorities. Sixth, former employees have testified that Trump was prone to micromanagement as well as takes little interest in the diversity of his executives or the welfare of lower-level staff. Many said that Trump lacks the temperament deal with setbacks and becomes instantly impatient with those who don’t support or agree with him while remaining resolutely loyal to those who do. Others said he was a workaholic with very few true friends who felt sometimes awkward with company outside the workplace. Some said he doesn’t get the best people around and hates when someone else gets credit. Not to mention, he’s made many of his employees sign non-disclosure agreements. All these incidents and more should tell you that Trump is a horrible boss and is no friend to working Americans.

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Sure Trump may be subject to a Celebrity Roast on Comedy Central, host SNL, and appear on late night TV from time to time. But a lot of comedians don’t like working with him because he’s very particular on how they make fun of him. This is a huge problem because a president is joked about 24/7 and doesn’t have control which jokes get aired. This is why Trump bombed on SNL. If Trump can’t take a joke, he can’t be president.

7. He’s Dangerously Petty and Vindictive– There’s overwhelming evidence that Trump can’t take any form of criticism no matter how slight and that he’s vindictive to the extreme. Dare to challenge, mock, criticize him, or stand in his way, and he’ll either take to Twitter or threaten to file a lawsuit against you (which might be substantiated). You might remember his confrontations with reporters and news organizations during the primaries, his weeks long attack on Megyn Kelly, as well as his shameful and despicable attacks on Khizr Khan and his wife. Yet, you can even look at his record before that. Trump sued a New York Times reporter for libel over saying he was worth less than a $1 billion as well as threatened to sue a MSNBC newscaster for saying the same thing. He’s sued Bill Maher for making fun of his involvement in the Birther movement. He lashed out at Jon Stewart on Twitter for calling him “Fuckface von Clownstick.” He’s threatened to sue a rapper for writing a song about him. He’s threatened to sue an activist who campaigned to get Macy’s to dump him as the store’s spokesman and remove his branded products from their stores. He’s sued a New York attorney general for bringing suit against Trump University and the Trump Institute or as I call it, “doing his job.” He’s smeared Alicia Muchado whenever Hillary Clinton talked about him fat shaming her. He’s even bashed SNL for Alec Baldwin’s impression of him. We should all know that Trump turns to Twitter and lawsuits to intimidate and suppress. Yet, there are time in which led to victims suffering real life consequences. In 1990, he threatened to sue Janney Montgomery Scott unless they fired gaming securities analyst Mark Roffman who correctly issued a negative forecast for Trump Taj Mahal. The firm caved and Roffman lost his job as well as spent the next few years in a living hell. The next year, Trump would successfully suppress an 80 minute documentary called Trump: What’s the Deal? by threatening litigation to broadcasters and distributors. Why? Because the documentary powerfully and disturbingly portrayed Trump as fraud which is very well supported. There’s even a persistent rumor that Trump is running for president just to get revenge for his treatment at the White House Correspondents Dinner, which has substantial merit. Say what you want about Hillary Clinton, but this woman has endured vicious and false attacks by her enemies for decades, some in powerful positions. But has Hillary ever resorted to Twitter wars and threatening litigation against people who’ve criticized her, challenged her, mocked her, or stand in her way? No. Because whenever someone goes after Hillary, she does what she has to do and moves on. Sure she might get occasionally angry, but she gets over it. She doesn’t take political attacks and jokes personally because that’s what she has to deal with as a politician running for president. She can take even the most damaging accusations that’s thrown at her. Whereas Trump retaliates viciously over mere jokes about him which makes him very dangerous if he’s ever elected president. This is especially when you consider that the offices would allow him to have access to the nuclear codes. Doesn’t help that he’s threatened to drop nukes. If Trump can’t take Alec Baldwin impersonating him on SNL, then he poses a serious national security risk in the White House.

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Out of all the things he’s said, the one thing I can count on Donald Trump being honest about is his greed. Sure he’s been greedy and grabbed all the money he could however way he can. But it came at a very terrible cost to people who’ve invested their dough and never got it back as well as people who worked for him and never received the money. And he’s not a good businessman either.

8. His Candidacy Normalizes Greed and Exploitation– We all know that Trump is greedy and that he’s not at all ashamed of it. Since he began his presidential campaign, he’s encouraged voters in his Nevada primary victory speech, “to get greedy for the United States … to grab and grab and grab … to bring in so much money and so much everything.” Sure people might take it as: I’m rich and successful. Vote for me and you’ll be rich and successful, too. Come with me and grab as much as you can to make America great again. While Trump may not be wholly responsible for normalized greed in this country since it’s been prevalent for the last several decades as part of the conservative and libertarian gospel. Yet, normalized greed often leads to so many social and economic problems in our nation throughout its history like labor exploitation, income inequality, for-profit health insurance, environmental devastation, subprime loans, lack of Wall Street accountability, cuts to social programs, climate change denial, privatization, large-scale wage theft, union busting, poor shaming, Citizens United, policing for profit, and more. Not to mention, normalized greed has proven very destructive Americans’ souls so much that social justice issues are now seen as liberal talking points. I staunchly want to put an end to this normalized greed not only as a liberal Democrat but also as a practicing Catholic who deeply believes in fulfilling the common good. Donald Trump not only is a staunch adherent to normalized greed, but he even resorts to measures that will even make Wall Street bankers blush such as refusing to pay his workers, not making good on his investors, using his foundation as an all-purpose slush fund, running his Trump University scam, using intimidation tactics to shoo out tenants, and more. But no matter how you look at it, Trump has lived his whole life enriching himself at the expense of others and unashamedly so, which we should never accept in a presidential candidate.

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Here are some things that Donald Trump says about women. Of course, these poster came out before the “grab ’em by the pussy” audio bit came out. And these quotes are rather tame compared to his other sexist comments.

9. His Candidacy Normalizes Sexism and Sexual Abuse– It’s well known that Trump is notoriously sexist and has objectified women all his life. And yes, he’s a walking and talking example of toxic masculinity in our culture as well as a great contributor to misogyny and rape culture. He’s also rated women by their looks from a scale of 1 to 10 as well as criticized them for being fat and ugly. His sexist comments on women are utterly repulsive and his history of sexually humiliating beauty queens who won’t tow the line is well known. He’s even used Bill Clinton’s infidelity to attack Hilary on the campaign trail. Oh, and he’s even talked about banging his own daughter. So it should surprise no one that women have come out alleging Trump of sexual assault once his “grab ‘em by the pussy” rhetoric leaked. Not to mention, the former beauty pageant contestants who stated that Trump went into their dressing rooms while they were changing. Yet, even before that, he’s been accused of sexual misconduct by his ex-wife for rape, makeup artist Jill Harth for sexual assault, and an anonymous woman for child rape in the 1990s. Trump has denied many of these allegations and has threatened to sue them as always. Yet, the fact people still support Trump despite these allegations against him is very disturbing. Meanwhile, so many women have gotten sexually assaulted and raped that many don’t report their abusers out fear they won’t be believed for what happened to them. Some don’t even receive the support they need. And some victims have seen their rapists receive an all too generous sentence. Now none of us is perfect when it comes to addressing sexual assault. But when you support a candidate like Trump whose sexism is unparalleled in our times, you’re basically making a statement by saying that this sort of behavior is okay which shouldn’t be acceptable.

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During the 2016 campaign, Donald Trump has shown a shocking ignorance of how the federal government works. Just look at Stephen Colbert’s face in this bit.

10. He’s Ignorant About Government– Now I have to admit, Trump isn’t too ignorant about how government works. Or at least when it comes to political contributions to candidates. Or hiring the most savvy lawyers and accountants. But as far as I know, that’s just as far as it goes. Trump has been constantly criticized for his lack of knowledge about the US political system. Of course, you can’t expect him to know more about government than his more politically experienced opponents. We do however, expect a presidential candidate to know at least about as much about government as anyone who’s taken a high school or college civics course. Surely that’s not too much to ask a presidential candidate to know about American federalism, the basic function of federal courts, as well as the grants of and limits of federal power. We’re not sure if Trump even knows even that much. During the primaries, Trump said he’d pick Supreme Court Justices who’d “look very seriously” at Hillary Clinton’s e-mails. It’s like he doesn’t know what the Supreme Court does even in the most elementary sense. No, SCOTUS doesn’t initiate criminal prosecutions, doesn’t investigate crimes, doesn’t try criminal cases, and doesn’t serve as a fact-finder in criminal prosecutions. The Supreme Court only reviews cases on appeal whether they’re criminal or not. And they’re usually concerned whether laws pertaining to the case were constitutional. Yet, from what Trump says, he seems as if he’s suggesting that Supreme Court Justices could prevent Hillary from “getting away with it,” such as investigating her or demanding that she be tried and convicted of a crime. In a primary debate in Houston, Trump referred to federal judges as “signing bills.” Even an eighth grade civics course can tell you that federal judges don’t sign bills. That’s what the president does in the federal system. Sure many Americans don’t understand how the Supreme Court and federal judiciary system works. But if you’re a major party nominee for president and there’s an open seat on the Supreme Court, you absolutely must have some basic understanding that Trump clearly doesn’t. Yet, the fact his supporters don’t seem to mind really sends a red flag. Having a major party presidential candidate with such astounding ignorance about how the political system work may seem like he doesn’t care about the government its supporters want him to lead.

11. He’s Extremely Inconsistent– Now I know that many political candidates are guilty of flip-flopping to some extent in order to pander to their base and make themselves look electable. But it’s well-known that Donald Trump has changed his positions on issues as often as he changed his socks even during this campaign season. Trump changes his mind so frequently and so dramatically that a compilation of his current policies wouldn’t tell the whole story nor would be up to date for very long. I mean this is a guy who once offered up 3 different views on abortion within an 8 hour timespan. So if you’re only voting for Trump for his pro-life position, you might want to seriously reconsider as well as rethink what actually constitutes a “pro-life” candidacy in this election. He also tends to mix facts with exaggerations and outright falsehoods while simultaneously refusing to offer any specifics. He even insists that unpredictability is an advantage he’ll use to cut better deals. Now Trump and the Republican Party are now putting forward the most elusive platform in modern history. So much so that NBC News has compiled a list featuring no less than 138 distinct shifts on 23 major issues. And that’s just his stated views since he announced his candidacy in June of 2015. But if Trump becomes president, his views are going to matter. And the fact he lacks core ideological convictions on many of these issues is huge a problem as well as posts another reason why people shouldn’t trust him. I mean if you don’t stand for nothing, what do you fall for?

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This quote sums up on how much of an egomaniac is Donald Trump. Sure he thinks he’s a smart guy who went to one of the best schools in the country. Mostly because his daddy could send him there as a legacy.

12. He’s a Dangerous Self-Delusional Egomaniac Who Doesn’t Listen to Anyone Else– We all know that Trump is a raging narcissist with a very high sense of self that he can’t tolerate any ill word against him. We know this from his own interviews, interviews with people who’ve known him, employees, and you name it. Yet, he has such an inflated sense of self that he’s very hostile to people who call him out on his mistakes, disagree with him, make him look bad, challenge him, or what have you. Because according to him, Donald Trump’s the most wonderful, terrific, and brilliant person on the planet who’s a rich and successful businessman able to solve any problem as well as can do no wrong. And if anything bad happens to him isn’t his fault. A guy with an “I alone can fix it” mentality is a man not to be trusted because he’s not going to listen to anyone else. Trump’s career as a businessman shows this repeatedly over the years with his gigantic ego leading to many of his business failures. For instance, Trump would’ve had more success with Trump Airlines if he just merely kept it the no frills Eastern Air Shuttle he bought exactly how it was and focused on the customers’ real needs. But no, he wanted to revamp it into Trump Airlines to suit his own image of gaudy luxury that the company ended up accumulating a lot of debt it couldn’t pay. Another instance pertained to Rank Group offering to invest in Trump’s Castle with a deal that would’ve helped reversed declining fortunes for Trump Hotels and Casinos. All Trump had to do was let Rank rebrand Trump’s Castle as Hard Rock. But Trump backed out at the last minute because he wanted his name to stay on the property. A savvier person in his place would’ve taken the deal because rebranding is a small price to pay. Then there’s the time when he threatened to sue a brokerage firm unless they fired a guy for accurately predicting that Trump Taj Mahal was going to fail. And the time when he tried to evict tenants from a building he owned in order to build a luxury condo complex, which would’ve failed if the residents didn’t successfully sue to keep their homes. Now what makes one a good businessperson may not make one a good president. However, if someone is lousy in business due to their humongous ego, then they’ll certainly be a terrible president, if not then dangerous. This is certainly the case with Trump.

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Here’s a stock slip from Trump Hotels and Casino Resorts Inc. from the 1990s. Of course, this company would end up bankrupt in 2004 and 2009. Sure Trump may say he’s a good businessman, but his record of failures that include 4 bankruptcies related to his casinos shows that he’s not. Besides, Wall Street bankers no longer want to lend him money anymore.

13. He’s a Horrible Businessman– Trump likes to sell himself on the idea that he’s a rich and successful businessman whose wealth and business acumen as evidence he’ll make a great president. The reality has shown that he’s nothing of the sort. For one, he was born to wealth and privilege thanks to his dad’s success as a real estate developer during the Great Depression. If it weren’t for his daddy’s wealth or close ties to politicians, then Trump would’ve most likely became nothing more than a sleazy used car salesman at best. I apologize to the sleazy used car salesmen. Has he had success? Of course, he has such as the renovating the Commodore into the Grand Hyatt Hotel and his dad chipped in on that one. But most of his ventures have been disasters. Some have been outright scams that defrauded hundreds of people like Trump University. In fact, it’s been said that if Trump didn’t have his dad to repeatedly bail him out, he would’ve declared personal bankruptcy before he was 35. Because his tax returns during the late 1970s and early 1980s shows that his personal finances were a disaster. By the time Trump came up with his Atlantic City casino scheme, his finances were falling apart. A lot of times, it’s been his own fault like using junk bonds to finance Trump Taj Mahal that it was already losing in its first year and would eventually go bankrupt. His inability to manage his debts at his Atlantic City casinos would later lead to 3 more bankruptcies as well as reduced control each time. According to Kurt Eichenwald of Newsweek, “Lost contracts, bankruptcies, defaults, deceptions and indifference to investors—Trump’s business career is a long, long list of such troubles, according to regulatory, corporate and court records, as well as sworn testimony and government investigative reports. Call it the art of the bad deal, one created by the arrogance and recklessness of a businessman whose main talent is self-promotion.” Trump’s net worth is almost unknowable given the loose standards and numerous outright misrepresentations he’s made over the years that many don’t even think he’s a billionaire. He also tends to claim success even when it’s not there which in the business world is called lying. Not only that, but he’s gained a reputation as a scam artist on Wall Street that major banks now refuse to do business with him. Let’s just say, you don’t want to do business with this guy, let alone allow him to run the country.

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While Donald Trump may call Hillary crooked, he’s way more corrupt than her. The amount of corruption cases is mindboggling. This chart shows what he did with some of his campaign cash for personal use.

14. He’s Corrupt as Hell– As I said before, Trump has a long and documented history of corruption since the 1970s which run to the very core of his identity. Many of his scandals have been recorded in court cases and legal proceedings. He’s so corrupt that I’ve had to continuously update my list of his corruption scandals on a regular basis and the sheer amount is mind-boggling, thanks to reporters unearthing many of these alarming stories. These range from unfair business practices, connections with mafia figures and known criminals, his ties to dictators, scams that defrauded hundreds of people of their hard-earned money, bankruptcies that left investors holding the bag while he made off with their cash, refusing to pay workers, history of being charged with housing discrimination, funneling money through a charity for his personal use, his history of exploiting undocumented immigrants, anti-trust violations, campaign financial abuse, and so much more. Whenever Trump has been in positions of power and authority, he’s demonstrated a pattern of trying to enrich himself while abusing the trust they placed in him whether it’s creditors, contractors, charitable givers, Trump University students, regulators, or campaign donors. Sometimes his abuses of trust are within legal bounds or entail breaking the law. Yet, the common thread shows that Trump screws people over to benefit himself. And despite the plethora of excellent reporting, too many voters either are unware of his troubling history and may view him as a successful businessman who says offensive things or don’t care. The fact so many voters think Trump is more honest and straightforward than Hillary is very troubling. Trump’s record makes it crystal clear that he’s more interested in rapaciously extracting what money he can and doing what he wants with little regard to laws, rules, or other people. Not to mention, he’s repeatedly proven willing to violate norms about what sort of behavior is acceptable and ethical. If you look what he’s done with power in the past, his corruption becomes the most troubling of his many unsavory qualities. There are many, many reasons to be concerned about a Trump administration’s ethics and potential to abuse power.

15. He’s a Perpetual Backstabber with No Respect for Loyalty– When it comes to relationships, Trump is as likely to build them, exploit them, and toss them for his own ends. Never mind if they were long time business partners who stuck by him through failure and success. Never mind if it’s the wives #1 or #2 who get tossed aside by a hotter and younger successor. Never mind if it’s the investors who gave money to him whose debts went repaid. Never mind if it’s the workers who poured their heart into his buildings for a set pay that they’d never receive. Whenever he’s in power he’s abused people’s trust. If he is ever elected president, he will certainly abuse the trust of the American people, honor no loyalties and commitments, and betray the office and government he’s sworn to uphold. Put your trust in Donald Trump and you’ll live to regret it. Because he will let you down and let you down hard.

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Here’s Donald Trump tweeting about a woman being murdered in Chicago. First one just has condolences. The second one has him trying to make it all about him. Yes, it’s insensitive.

16. He’s Exploited Tragedies and Disasters– Whenever something bad happens in this country, Trump gleefully steps into the national spotlight and tries to benefit from it whether it pertains to money or stumping some speech. He has done this on several occasions throughout his life and in the worst way possible. In 1989, he faked a near death experience to get front page headlines when 3 of his company executives were killed in a helicopter crash, claiming he was supposed to be there but changed his mind at the last minute. In the 2000s, he took $150,000 from the Empire State Development Corporation which was designed to help small businesses after 9/11 when many of them were destroyed or went under that led furious local politicians issuing an open letter that Trump return the money. In 2005, he received $17 million in insurance for hurricane damage at his Mar-a-Lago club while repairs were only totaled at $3,000. During his campaign, Trump has claimed that the mass shootings at the Orlando night club and San Bernardino as well as terrorist attacks in France vindicated his claims on Islamic terrorism in America. Now that has to be very insensitive. When it comes to national tragedy and there have been many, a president must be able to give a condolence speech in remembrance to the victims. Not try to capitalize on it as Trump does, which is just so insensitive and so unbecoming.

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Donald Trump racism isn’t just limited to his presidential campaign since he’s been sued for discrimination before. Yet, his ad calling for the deaths of the Central Park Five is perhaps one of his worst moments. I mean these were teenage boys for God sake! Never mind that they were railroaded by the system until the authorities caught the real rapist with DNA evidence. Yet, Trump still thinks these guys are guilty to this day.

17. His Candidacy Normalizes Racism, Discrimination, and Xenophobia– Contrary to what some experts might say, what made him so popular that people voted for him was his offensive remarks that reeks cultural hatred, which is scary enough. Yet, Trump has a long and documented history of racism. Back in the 1970s the Department of Justice sued him and his father for violating the Fair Housing Act by refusing to rent to black tenants and lying about whether apartments were available. Trump claimed that the federal government was trying to get him to rent to welfare recipients. The case dragged for two years where he signed an agreement in 1975 agreeing not to discriminate to renters of color without admitting to discriminating before. He’d later break that promise by the way. There have been reports of black employees being discriminated against at his casinos over the decades. In 2000, Trump secretly ran a series of ads in opposition to a casino proposed by the St. Regis Mohawk, which he saw as a financial threat to his casinos. In them, he suggested the tribe had, “record of criminal activity [that] is well documented.” In 2010, he opposed the construction of a proposed Muslim community center in lower Manhattan two miles from Ground Zero which he called “insensitive” and offered to buy out one of the investors in the project. On Letterman, Trump argued referring Muslims, “Well, somebody’s blowing us up. Somebody’s blowing up buildings, and somebody’s doing lots of bad stuff.” The next year, he played a big role in pushing rumors that Obama wasn’t born in the US and urged the president to release his birth certificate which he did. But Trump still didn’t believe him. He also argued that Obama wasn’t a good enough student to get into Columbia and Harvard Law and demanded he release his University transcripts. However, one of his most infamous racist tirades was when he ran an ad in the local papers in the wake of the Central Park Five where 5 black and Latino teenagers were accused of attacking and raping a jogger near Central Park. In these ads Trump demanded, “BRING BACK THE DEATH PENALTY. BRING BACK OUR POLICE!” Below that, he wrote: “I want to hate these muggers and murderers. They should be forced to suffer and, when they kill, they should be executed for their crimes. They must serve as examples so that others will think long and hard before committing a crime or an act of violence.” The teens’ convictions were later vacated after spending 13 years in prison in a great miscarriage of justice and the city paid a $41 million settlement. Trump still believes they’re guilty to this day despite that the real culprit turned himself in and DNA evidence to the contrary. During his campaign, Trump called Mexicans rapists who were bringing crime and drugs, called for a ban on Muslims, argued that a judge should recuse himself from the Trump University case over his Mexican heritage, tweeted an image of Hillary in front of a pile of money and a Star of David, attacked a Muslim Gold Star family, and made a pitch to black voters saying, “You’re living in poverty, your schools are no good, you have no jobs, 58 percent of your youth is unemployed. What the hell do you have to lose?” Furthermore, he’s been endorsed by white supremacist groups like the KKK and the American Nazi Party whom he has yet to denounce. Trump’s blatant racism on the campaign trail is a serious problem since it gives even the most ardent white supremacists some level of legitimacy as well as put racial minorities in danger. And like I said, supporting a racist like Trump for president basically gives license that whatever he say is acceptable no matter how much it has threatened people’s lives.

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Donald Trump often talks about how he’ll fight the terrorists. Yet, he’s never denounced the terrorists who endorsed him like the Klu Klux Klan and other white supremacist groups. Let’s just say if Hillary loses these terrorists win.

18. He’s Endorsed by Extremists and Terrorists– And if his candidacy legitimizing racism isn’t the worst thing about Trump’s campaign, well, it gets worse. Trump’s virulently racist rhetoric has attracted a lot of enthusiastic endorsements by white supremacists and anti-government extremists who think he’s the candidate they’ve been looking for. These people are domestic terrorists and who’ve posed a growing threat to our nation’s security in recent years. While lack of media attention on radical right wing terrorist attacks emboldens these people to attack minorities and other potential victims in their neighborhood, Trump’s failure to denounce their ringing endorsements of him encourage them even more. This further compromises public safety for vulnerable populations such as minorities particularly blacks, Latinos, and Muslims. There have been reports of these Trump supporters resorted to acts of violence and not just at rallies. These include a Moroccan taxi driver shot in Pennsylvania, a black church vandalized and burned in Mississippi, a black family being assaulted by a hospital volunteer in North Carolina, a Muslim woman being thrown an “unknown liquid” in her face in Virginia, a Hispanic couple’s truck being vandalized in California, and the list goes on. Trump’s campaign also has connections to the Alt-Right which is a set of far-right ideologies, groups, or individuals whose core belief is that “white identity” is under attack by multicultural forces using “political correctness” and “social justice” to undermine white people and their civilization. They’re usually characterized by their heavy use of social media and online memes, eschewing “establishment” conservatism, skew young, and embrace white-ethno nationalism as a fundamental value. Trump is a hero to these people while one of his campaign managers works for Breitbart magazine, an alt-right publication. These are the real deplorables among Trump supporters and if Trump can’t denounce these dangerous people, then he doesn’t deserve your vote.

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Donald Trump hasn’t just praised dictators on the campaign trail, he’s done business with some of them. While on a visit to the UN in 2009, Trump rented Libyan dictator Moammar Qaddafi his house in Winchester, New York. Qaddafi would set up his tent on Trump’s estate but he never slept there. Mainly because the locals voted to kick him out their town. Of course, who could blame them because Qaddafi sponsored terrorism that killed many Americans. At least Hillary and Obama got rid of the bastard.

19. He’s Linked to US Enemies and Dictators- It’s well known that Trump has openly praised Russia’s dictator Vladimir Putin, calling him, “a man so highly respected within his own country and beyond.” In reality, Putin is far from respected. In fact, he’s highly feared having left a trail of dead journalists and invaded countries like Ukraine. Trump has numerous ties to Russia since he’s financed projects from its banks and it’s well known that the Russian government is behind hacks at Wikileaks and the DNC. His campaign manager Paul Manafort has offered his services to pro-Russian Ukranian President Viktor Yanukovych that paid him $12.7 million in undisclosed cash payments. Manafort has also worked for Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos, the Saudi royal family, a Bahamian president accused of drug trafficking, and a former Angolan leader accused of torture. Before his campaign, Trump went into business with an Azerbaijani billionaire playboy with familial connections to its kleptocratic and dictatorial government, did business with the Cuban government during the Embargo in the 1990s, rented New York office space to a state-owned Iranian bank that’s been linked to the country’s nuclear program and terror groups, and tried to rent his opulent Winchester estate to none other than Moammar el-Qaddafi. Yes, that Qaddafi who’s notorious sponsorship of terror that’s killed scores of Americans. During his campaign, Trump has praised Kim Jong Un saying, “How many young guys — he was, like, 26 or 25 when his father died — take over these tough generals, and all of a sudden … he goes in, he takes over, and he’s the boss. It’s incredible. He wiped out the uncle, he wiped out this one, that one. I mean, this guy doesn’t play games. And we can’t play games with him.” No, it’s not. That’s scary since North Korea is an autocratic dictatorship that’s a US enemy and tests nuclear weapons. He’s lauded Syria’s Bashir al-Assad and told ABC that the US shouldn’t trust some of the groups rebelling against the repressive regime. “Assad’s a bad guy, but they’re all bad guys. We’re supporting rebels. You know they talk about the Syria Free Rebels. We’re supporting rebels. We don’t even know who they are,” he said. And during a North Carolina rally, he said, “We shouldn’t have been there. We shouldn’t have destabilized Saddam Hussein, right. He was a bad guy, really bad guy. But you know what he did well? He killed terrorists. He did that so good. They didn’t read them the rights. They didn’t talk. They were terrorists. Over. Today, Iraq is Harvard for terrorism. You want to be a terrorist, you go to Iraq. It’s like Harvard, OK? So sad, so sad.” Saddam Hussein’s best known for committing genocide against the Iraqi Kurds with chemical weapons. Trump’s history and praise for dictators from US enemy nations should really scare the shit out of you. This is not what I’d want in a president.

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Here’s Donald Trump tweeting on how Scotland took its country back by voting for Brexit. However, Scotland voted IN. Yeah, not very informed in international affairs.

20. He Alienates Our International Allies– As I said before, Trump doesn’t value loyalty and commitments to his business allies, employees, investors, and even wives, Trump is likely not to value the support of our allies either. He’s also has had precarious relationships with world leaders, many of whom express fear in a Trump presidency. Some US allies have used words like “stupid” to describe his ideas. And the fact Trump has business dealings with reviled tyrants known to commit human rights abuses as well as praised known US enemies only makes it worse. Please, for the sake of our world, don’t vote for Donald Trump.

21. He Has No Broader Interest in the World– It’s well known that Trump has some interest in the world, when it pertains to his business interests. But when it comes to making the world a better place, then he just doesn’t give a damn. Even in America, his whole life revolves around making the world his personal playground he could build stuff on and profit from. He has no interest in making the world a better place or sacrificing for the greater good. He never has. He doesn’t care who gets hurt or screwed. He doesn’t care if his business deals put entire countries and people in danger. Nor does he take any interest in other cultures or honoring national commitments to other nations which should be essential for a president. For instance, Hillary Clinton’s tenure as Secretary of State, her Clinton Foundation, and time as First Lady show that she really has an interest in global affairs, which will help our image abroad. During his presidency Barack Obama often played tourist while in a foreign country which improves our diplomatic relationships. Foreign countries like it when our leaders show an interest in them. I don’t see Trump doing this. A world of ruthless competitors guided by nothing but blind ambition and profit is hardly a pleasant place, especially with someone like Trump in political office.

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Even Trump supporters know that Trump sets a a very bad example for children. Yet, Trump supporting parents are really not helping their case when they endorse a candidate they don’t want their kids to emulate. Hillary has taken advantage of this.

22. He Sets a Terrible Example for Children– What sickens me more about Trump’s supporters the most is that many of them have children who attend school or younger. When a parent supports a political candidate, they’re implicitly telling their children that whatever this candidate does is acceptable behavior. If not, then it’s giving one’s children license to look upon that candidate as a respectable role model to emulate and admire. It doesn’t take much to see that Trump is a terrible role model for children and even parents who support him don’t want their kids to act like him. After all, he spews profanity, insults women, mocked a disabled reporter, demeaned a prisoner of war, made racist comments, incited violence at his rallies, is on his third wife, threatens to sue people on a regular basis, and calls anyone disagreeing with him a “loser.” I mean the guy is a total bully with no consideration for other people. You may say he’s a role model for children of what not to be when they grow up. Sure Trump’s own grown children may have turned out all right. But we have to concede that he was barely involved in their childhoods unlike their mothers, nannies, and even their grandparents. So they’re not really a reflection on him per se. Still, teachers have become increasingly worried about Trump’s candidacy leading to a rise in school bullying. This is especially the case when it’s white children harassing minority students. And it doesn’t help that some minority kids might be among the few nonwhite children in their schools. Now there are kids who fully understand that Trump is a bully and a terrible role model. But there are kids who may not see Trump that way and take his offensive words to heart and think that being a bully is a winning strategy. How parents feel about politics is one thing but what we teach our children is another. I know that all parents want to teach their children the right things. But for parents who support Trump need to understand that they may unintentionally be teaching their children the wrong lessons. I know most wouldn’t actually teach that Trump’s behavior is okay. But that may not be what their kids would take from it. At least I can respect Glenn Beck opposing Trump on this since he said, “I don’t want my children to look at that man and say, ‘Yeah, he’s my President.’ I won’t have that. I will not endorse it, I will not tolerate it.”

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Donald Trump has often claimed that not being sorry for anything is a sign of strength. However, he’s too dumb to realize that not taking responsibility for his actions and never apologizing for anything just makes one an asshole.

23. He Never Takes Responsibility and Never Apologizes– While we all make mistakes once in a while, we’re taught to take responsibility for our actions as well as apologize. Holding oneself accountable for one’s sins isn’t easy but it’s an act of true moral courage and strength. This is especially true when it pertains to a public figure running for the highest elected office in the land. It’s well known that Trump has refused to take ownership for the outrageous things he’s said and done not just during his campaign but also over the course of his life. He never apologizes for any missteps or intemperate attacks. He’s demonstrated a remarkable lack of empathy for people whom he’s attacked, injured, or harmed. When Trump is caught he usually does one or more of the following: deny involvement, deny it ever happened, blame someone else for it, say they deserved it, spin it into something positive or trivial, threaten litigation, or resort to legal action. But he will never see it his fault and never see himself wrong. He will avoid apologizing as well as taking responsibility unless he’s pressured to do so. DOJ suing him and his dad housing discrimination in the 1970s? Say the federal government was forcing him to rent to welfare recipients. Refusing to pay hundreds of contractors? Tie them up in court and other negotiations to financially overpower and outlast them in order to drain their resources. Also, claim that their work was shoddy. Caught cheating on Ivana with Marla? Blame Ivana for losing her attractiveness after having kids and wanting to do more with the business. Gaming securities analyst forecasts trouble at Trump Taj Mahal? Threaten to sue his employer to get him fired. Call for the deaths 5 minority teenagers who were later found innocent? Assert they’re guilty as sin to this day. Caught taking advantage of a federal loophole to avoid taxes? Say that makes him smart. Caught declaring bankruptcy to avoid taxes? Claim he takes advantage of the laws when running a company. Humiliate a beauty queen for her weight gain? Say she wasn’t honoring her contract and that she starred in a porn. Cheer for the housing crisis? Say it’s called business. Trump University consumers suing for fraud? Blame them for being suckers. Call the state attorney general investigating a liberal stooge for Obama or Hillary. Use family charity as personal piggy bank? Call the state attorney general investigating a liberal stooge for Obama or Hillary. Publicly advocate birtherism even after Obama shows his Hawaiian birth certificate? Claim Hillary started the controversy in 2008. Claim opponent’s dad conspired to kill Kennedy? Deny it. Claim global warming is a hoax by the Chinese? Deny it.  Caught saying, “grab the pussy” on tape? Say it’s locker room talk. Multiple women come forward with sexual assault allegations? Deny it, claim some of them ugly, and threaten to sue. No matter how you look at it, Trump always tries to cover his own ass and take considerable action not to be held accountable. And whenever he does say he’s sorry, the apologies are nothing but hollow. This is not what you want in a leader or anybody.

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This is Donald Trump’s tweet after the Pulse Nightclub shooting where he just had to pat himself on the back for being right on Islamic terrorism. For God’s sake, nobody should be tweeting this shit.

24. He’s a Selfish, Shameless, and Sleazy Opportunist– Whenever Trump is in a position of power, he uses it to empower and enrich himself by abusing those who placed their trust in him. If he wins, expect the presidency to be no different. Many Trump supporters would claim that they like him because he’s not afraid to “tell it like it is”, “be politically incorrect,” and intends to “make America great again.” Some say he’s an “outsider” who “can’t be bought.” But even before he ran for president, I knew Trump was a sleazy opportunist and self-promoting con man willing to do anything to get what he wants and doesn’t care who gets hurt. I saw him do it before whenever he promoted his projects and latched on to political causes for the sake of wealth, power, and fame. While many supporters swear he, “tells it like it is,” he’s actually lying on multiple levels. He’s conning people into voting for him by telling them what they want to hear and what would entertain them. He’s playing for an audience by appealing to voters’ frustrations, insensitivities, and unsavory emotions. His candidacy is nothing but a reality show satiating a bloodlust and structured insanity. And while supporters may swear that Trump will make America great again by moving our system through sheer force of un-bought will, it’s really just part of his Big Lie. He’s telling folks never mind the policy details, never mind the separation of powers, and never mind profound partisan disagreement. Everything will be easy and terrific. But in the end, we should all understand that all who Donald Trump cares about is Donald Trump. Win or lose, he will let his supporters down and they will regret it. Like he has let down so many other people throughout the years. He’s let down Wall Street investors by breaking his promises to pay them back as well as making off with their money when things go south. He’s let down his employees by refusing to pay for their work despite promising otherwise. He’s let down his customers with his scams. He’s let down veterans after promising to donate millions to a charity for them when he didn’t. And what’s worse is that Trump doesn’t care who suffers.

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Donald Trump’s campaign is one of the biggest train wrecks we’ve seen since June if 2015. Here we have Trump with a notorious anti-Hillary ad with a Star of David. It was changed into a circle to tone down the anti-Semitic imagery.

25. He Can’t Run a Decent Presidential Campaign– Since he announced his candidacy in June 2015, Trump’s presidential campaign is just a horrific train wreck that really should’ve gone away during the Republican primary season. The only reason why Trump managed to outlast his primary opponents was the fact his celebrity and penchant for controversy gave him free campaign publicity. But even then, you could sense critical flaws. For one, Trump’s candidacy was all spectacle but no substance as well as relied on his offensive statements and antics in order to hog the camera. There were no detailed policies but campaign promises consisting of simplistic bullishit by a guy who seems completely unconcerned about the implications in order to accomplish them. I mean Trump promised to build a wall between the US and Mexican border as well as promised that Mexico will pay for it. How do you expect to accomplish that? Second, Republicans working to elect Trump described his campaign debilitated by infighting, a lack of staff to carry out basic functions, minimal coordination with allies, and a message that’s prisoner to their guy’s momentary wins. According to NBC News, veteran operatives were shocked by the Trump campaign’s failure to fill key roles. In June, there was no communication team to deal with hundreds of media outlets covering the race, no response director to quickly rebut attacks and launch new ones, and a limited cast of surrogates lacking a cohesive message. It’s also said that staff appeared unprepared to address scandals and controversies like Trump University or whatever comes out of Trump’s mouth. Third, the Trump campaign was far from clean and has been prone to scandals ranging from shady campaign managers, allegations of malpractice, and the list goes on. Fourth, Trump has repeatedly violated political norms of acceptable behavior in this election. Let’s just say if one can’t run a decent campaign, they can’t run the country.

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Melania Trump has promised to fight cyberbullying as First Lady if her husband is elected president (and God, please don’t let this happen). However, it’s ironic that she’s married to one and could do her part by taking away his phone.

26. He’s an Unrepentant Bully– It’s not hard to see that Trump is a bully whenever you turn on the news as he always has been all his life. But I’m not saying this because he insults whole demographics and people he doesn’t like or thinks treated him unfairly. Yet, while Trump may seem to have all the characteristics you might associate with a narcissistic school yard bully, he’s much worse. Sure he may attack immediately when someone criticizes them even for the slightest insults. You may notice that Trump frequently talks about “winners” and “losers.” Of course, “losers” to him include opponents or anyone who disagrees with him. To him, “losers” are people who “deserve to lose” which clearly reveals his indifference to, and rationalization for, injuring or humiliating others. Yet, he also does far more damaging things than that like flaunting a rival’s dirty laundry, spreading unsubstantiated claims to the masses, throwing temper tantrums, and taking an active efforts at character assassination. And if things go wrong for him, then he’ll say that the whole system is rigged against him. It’s very clear that Trump uses intimidation tactics not only to defeat, but also to demean and destroy his rivals. And that’s just on the campaign trail. Trump has also threatened and filed lawsuits against those who merely said negative things about him or joked about him. He’s threatened and took litigation against anyone daring to hold him accountable for his actions or challenging his perceived image as a skilled businessman. He’s humiliated people for not wanting to do things his way and even afterwards like with Chris Christie and Ted Cruz. Let’s just say that Trump intimidates not just to win and get his way, but also to escape the consequences of his actions. And he does it in an attempt to destroy people with no second thought. Nobody should find this acceptable behavior in a president.

27. He Associates with Horrible People– While Trump always claims that he associates and hires the best people throughout his life, this is far from the reality. You may know he has shady ties to dictators like Putin, Qaddafi, and the Castro brothers. Yet, he’s been linked to the mafia many times for many years over varying degrees of closeness. Of course, it wasn’t unusual for construction magnates like him to have mob connections during the 1970s and 1980s. Trump often portrayed himself as an unwilling participant but that’s probably bullshit. Trump’s reputed to have a close relationship with Gotti associate Robert LiButti whom he worked very hard to keep happy like not letting black and women card dealers at his table whenever he gambled at his Atlantic City Casinos, gifting 9 luxury cars in exchange for $1.65 million in cash, inviting him on his yacht and helicopters, and other instances. In the 1970s, he and his father were represented by a lawyer named Roy Cohn while sued for housing discrimination under the DOJ. Cohn also represented Genovese crime family boss Tony Salerno and worked for disgraced US Senator Joseph McCarthy in the 1950s. Cohn would later get disbarred for fraud and other wrongdoing. But Trump didn’t just limit doing business with mobsters and despots. In 1992, Trump Taj Mahal foreign marketing vice president Danny Leung and 3 other Trump casino employees were named an associates of the Hong Kong-based organized crime group 14K Triad. Additionally, Leung was said to give complimentary tickets for hotel rooms and Asian shows to numerous Asian organized crime associates and members. And according to the New York Times, Leung, “flew in 16 Italian crime figures from Canada who stole more than $1 million from the casino in a credit scam. The incident was never reported because Trump never filed charges.” His casino and junket licenses were later removed. Another criminal Trump was associated with is Felix Sater in a questionable condo hotel scheme who had a 1998 racketeering conviction for a $40 million Mafia-linked stock fraud scheme and who had then become an informant against the mafia. Another associate in that scheme was Bayrock Group’s Tevfik Arif who was detained in Turkey for running a high priced prostitution ring consisting of him setting up trysts between wealthy businessmen and Eastern European models, some underage aboard a $60 million yacht once used by the nation’s founder Ataturk. Then we have a couple of con artists named Mike and Irene Milin who ran Trump Institute in the mid-2000s and were known were known serial operators of get-rich-quick schemes. And let’s not forget his campaign mangers Corey Lewandowski who arrested for battery of a Breitbart reporter, Paul Manafort who lobbied for despots along with campaign adviser Roger Ailes best known for sexually harassing women as CEO of Fox News and surrogate New Jersey Governor Chris Christie who’s under investigation for causing a traffic jam in political revenge against a mayor. You don’t want to see a guy with these connections in the White House. Then you have Ivanka’s husband Jared Kushner whose dad spent 2 years in prison on campaign finance charges as well as used his New York Observer to punish real estate Mogul Richard Mack for refusing a write-down on a loan. Let’s just say Trump does not have nice friends.

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Here is Donald Trump tweeting about New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman whom he thinks is going after his Trump University because he’s a liberal stooge for the Obama administration. My theory: I think Schneiderman is after Trump for the Trump University scam because he’s doing his fucking job!

28. He Promotes Conspiracy Theories– One of my criticism in my Fox News article was how the network had a tendency to promote unsubstantiated conspiracy theories. Even before his campaign, Trump has spent years pushing conspiracy theories to his supporters’ delight and his enemies’ disdain. And he pushes these theories mostly to make his foes look bad. I’m not sure if he really believes them or not. His advocacy of birtherism is utterly shameful as well as his inflammatory claims about Obama. So was his claim that Ted Cruz’s father was involved in the Kennedy assassination or his and Rubio’s questionable eligibility for the presidency (Cruz was born to an American mother in Canada while Rubio was born in Miami). Or anything about Muslims like 9/11 hijackers having girlfriends who fled to Saudi Arabia, Muslim Americans celebrating in New Jersey on 9/11, mosques preaching hate, or Syrian refugees billing ISIS for their phones. He’s even pushed theories like fake racist crime statistics, immigrants mostly being rapists and criminals, Mexico deliberately sending criminals to the US, people coming into the country with Ebola, vaccines causing autism, global warming being a hoax by the Chinese, and rampant voter fraud. As for the Clintons, well, Trump is eager to get those out like alleging their involvement in Vince Foster’s murder (which was actually a suicide), Hillary wanting to take guns, Hillary lying about Benghazi, the Clintons’ involvement in Whitewater, and more. By the way, he kept talking about Hillary’s involvement in Benghazi even after the late Chris Stevens’ mother told him to shut up about it. Recently 370 economists signed a letter to the Wall Street Journal as citing Trump’s promoting of conspiracy theories that mislead the public saying: “He misinforms the electorate, degrades trust in public institutions with conspiracy theories, and promotes willful delusion over engagement with reality. If elected, he poses a unique danger to the functioning of democratic and economic institutions, and to the prosperity of the country.”

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When Donald Trump tried to make a deal of how he made so many sacrifice after attacking a Gold Star family, there was a Twitter campaign called #TrumpSacrifices. Many of these were parodies of how little Trump sacrificed in his life.

29. He’s Made No Sacrifices for Anybody or Anything– One of the most powerful speakers at the DNC in July was when Khizr Khan addressed Trump to, “Go look at the graves of brave patriots who died defending the United States of America. You will see all faiths, genders and ethnicities. You have sacrificed nothing and no one.” This comes from a Muslim Gold Star father of a decorated war hero calling Trump out on his bigotry and selfishness. Trump cruelly and viciously attack Khan and his wife in true Islamophobic fashion. But when asked by George Stephanopoulos whether he made any sacrifices to his country, Trump replied, “I think I’ve made a lot of sacrifices. I work very, very hard. I’ve created thousands and thousands of jobs, tens of thousands of jobs, built great structures. I’ve had tremendous success. I think I’ve done a lot.” Really? Well, from what I’ve heard, Trump skipped out of Vietnam while 58,000 men in his generation died there, bragged about cheating on his wives, neglecting his children, refusing to pay workers, failing to pay back investors, deliberately avoided paying taxes while taking government money, constantly breaking promises, uses his charity as a personal piggy bank, as well as conning customers in his scams. Not to mention, suing people in order to avoid the consequences of his actions. Let’s just say when it comes to sacrifices, it’s the party Trump deals with who ends up making them. Apparently, Trump’s idea of sacrifice is all about making wealth or you know greed which is the exact opposite. So much so that there’s a Twitter hashtag called #TrumpSacrifices as a joke. Seriously, this is a guy who’s never made any sacrifices whether it be for his country, in his relationships, or for anything else. If he becomes president, he will throw the American people under the bus.

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Despite that Donald Trump having a penchant for patriotic displays during his presidential campaign, his record shows that his patriotism is a sham. I mean the guy used government money for his projects and doesn’t pay taxes. Also, skipped out on Vietnam.

30. He Has No Respect for America, Its Values, or Its People– I’m very aware that Trump always likes to show himself as a flag-waving American patriot who loves his country. In truth, he’s more likely to say he loves his country in order to exploit it for his own gain while he couldn’t care less about our nation. He’s used his wealth and privilege to get out of Vietnam, avoid taxes, use taxpayer funds for his little projects, and filing lawsuits against people who’ve criticized him or want to hold him accountable. Hell, he even brags about paying as little as possible in taxes as he can get away with. Not to mention, he won’t release his tax returns. What about creating American jobs? Well, Trump has but a lot them came with imaginary paychecks that never materialized as well as jobs that pay below minimum wage. Some of them are even done by undocumented immigrants who could be easily told to shut up with deportation threats. Oh, and a lot of his goods were made in foreign countries like China, Mexico, Turkey, Slovenia, or anywhere in Southeast Asia. What about praising repressive dictatorships who hate America and have a rap sheet of human rights violations? I mean he did business with Cuba during the Embargo, rented out his Winchester house to Qaddafi, rented out New York office space to state-owned Iranian bank, is chummy with Russia’s Vladimir Putin whose country is hacking Democrats’ e-mails on his behalf, and praised despots on the campaign trail. What about spreading damaging but unsubstantiated claims about the President? What about calling a Vietnam War POW a loser for getting captured? What about renigging his promise to donate money to veterans? What about advocating torture? What about hostility to minorities and immigrants? What about his RNC speech about America being a pitch black country soaked in blood a la Hunger Games dystopia? A presidential candidate who has done these things deserves to have his patriotism questioned. Sorry, but I think Trump seems to salute himself and not any flag. And certainly not the American flag. To Trump, patriotism is just a convenient cloak to play to the masses.

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If Donald Trump had any respect for democratic values, then tell me why he feels the need to issue legal threats and file lawsuits to anyone who’s challenged or criticized him. Of course, the New York Times knew how to respond to this threat.

31. He Has No Respect for Democracy– Now the United States was built on the idea of democracy which Americans cherish as a government that’s conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all are created equal. Now let’s see how Trump does with democratic values. American melting pot of cultures? Build a wall to keep Mexicans out and ban Muslims. Free speech? Sues people who challenge or criticize him. Also, hates when people joke about him. Freedom of the Press? Bashed the media for liberal bias despite airing almost every word he’s said and sued a reporter for challenging his billionaire status. Freedom of Religion? Ban Muslims and attack the Pope. Freedom of assembly? Stop a bunch of workers from unionizing at his Las Vegas hotel. Right to petition? Threaten to sue a guy who wants you dropped from Macy’s. What about election results? If he loses, then it must be rigged by minorities committing voter fraud. Equal rights? Believes that women should be fired for being pregnant, ugly, or fat. Also, blacks need to be stopped and frisked, Muslims banned, and Mexicans deported. That and along with a disturbing affinity for tyrannical dictators, Trump doesn’t have much respect for democracy.

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On the campaign trail, Donald Trump has often said he’ll bring back American jobs and how he’s created so many jobs fore this country. Excuse me, but can you tell me where this was made?

32. He’s a Notorious Hypocrite– While Trump likes to relish in dishing out Hillary Clinton’s baggage such as calling her a liar and a crook who’s put our country in danger. However, records show that Trump is a much bigger liar and crook who praises and does business with dictators. He’s savaged people for not paying taxes as well as companies for moving overseas for tax and business advantages. Meanwhile, Trump hasn’t paid federal income taxes in over 20 years and has no problem using the American tax code to suit himself. Besides, many products with his name on them aren’t American made. Trump has attacked Bill Clinton for his affairs while he tried to get his wife to pose for Playboy, bragged about his affairs, and has been married 3 times. He’s blasted Hillary’s use of foreign donors for the Clinton Foundation pay for play scheme. At the same time, he’s been using his charity as a personal piggy bank with other people’s money for over two decades. He complains about undocumented immigrants being criminals while exploiting them as cheap labor he could threaten to deport. While he constantly slams Hillary for her e-mails on private server during her time as Secretary of State, court records show that his company has yearly erased e-mails since at least the late 1990s.

33. He’s a Trigger Happy Coward– We all know that Trump tends to be quite aggressive in his rhetoric. And he’s been seen by many as crazy and unstable. Doesn’t help he lacks total self-control on a podium. He has to attack everyone who opposes him even after he’s defeated them. He has to be hostile on Twitter as well as threaten or file lawsuits at anyone who’s challenged him or wants to hold him accountable. Even when it’s a Muslim Gold Star family stating how he has never made any sacrifices. His menacing, angry convention speech can only be seen as delusional and demented as if it’s spoken by a raving lunatic. He’s promised to bomb the shit out of ISIS and lock Hillary up in prison. Sure he may talk tough to trigger happy proportions. Yet as David Atkins states in Washington Monthly states, “Ultimately, however, Donald Trump is a coward. Not just for serving himself at the expense of others even as millions of Americans devoted their lives to causes greater than themselves on the battlefield, in the classroom, at the laboratory table and in the civic engagement hall. He is a coward because he cannot face the reality of what he has done with his life before an audience not prepared to idolize him.” And in many ways, he usually takes a coward’s way out in order to cover his own ass whether it be denial, blame, lawsuits, threats, or what have you. Because if Trump was truly brave, he’d take responsibility for his actions and apologize. Democrats have a word for crazy men like him known as “chickenhawk.”

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Though Donald Trump brags about being a successful businessman, the truth is that he inherited his money from his father Fred. Fred also bailed him out a number of times until his death in 1999.

34. He Constantly Appeals to His Privilege– Note I’m not talking about white or male privilege here. But privilege Trump enjoys as a lifetime member of the 1% which allows him to be the entitled rich man he’s always been. All his life, Trump has constantly appealed to his status of as being born a white man of wealth and privilege to do whatever he wants and get away with it. His inherited status has allowed him to get out of serving Vietnam when thousands of other drafted young men were killed. When his personal finances were a disaster, his dad bailed him out. He’s used his status to get government funding for his projects, avoid paying taxes, and avoid responsibility for his actions while leaving his workers, investors, customers, and others screwed. And it’s his affluence and privilege as being part of the 1% that Trump can rise to positions of power and get away with breaking laws. Any normal person who’s committed a fraction of his crimes would’ve been stopped years ago. In fact, it’s because he’s so rich and powerful that he’s able to use lawsuits as a technique for retaliation, intimidation, and damage control. And he’s not shy about it at all. Yet, it’s because of his privilege as the rich white man Trump is that he’s been able to sell his image as the successful businessman for years despite it only being a façade as slews of renowned reporters have pointed out.

35. He Constantly Appeals to Secrecy– Trump has often harangued Hillary for being secretive as each batch of her e-mails is being discovered by the FBI and the Russians as well as made public by WikiLeaks. However, Hillary has released both her medical records and tax returns while Trump hasn’t. In fact, Trump is far more secretive than Hillary. Transparency is just simply not his style. His platform doesn’t have clear cut policies and no clear details on how to accomplish them. And even before his presidential campaign, Trump has a penchant of secrecy such as having employees sign non-disclosure agreements, erasing e-mails from company computers each year, destroying and withholding testimony and evidence, not disclosing charity records, and more. We don’t know how much Trump actually earns since he won’t release his tax returns. Neither does Wall Street know what Trump did to the money he stole from them. The fact Trump has resorted to secrecy so much over the years matters, especially when he’s a candidate of a major party for president. If he wins, his administration will be one of secrecy which won’t be good for the country.

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While politicians are used to mudslinging each other during campaigns, Donald Trump attacks his opponents unusually viciously. Here he is saying how Ted Cruz’s wife is ugly.

36. His Campaign Strategy Mainly Revolves Around Bringing Down His Foes– Trump’s campaign is particularly noteworthy since it’s more or less on appealing to people’s prejudices and anxieties while viciously attacking his opponents in any way he could in order to get media attention. He won the Republican primary this way as he attacked and defeated his toughest opponents one by one. And it’s clear that Ted Cruz and Jeb Bush got the worst of it. Whether its calling Hillary a criminal who should be in jail or promoting conspiracy theories, Trump’s campaign has set a very hostile precedent for this election. In fact, if you watch his debates, Trump devotes more time to attacking Hillary than discussing actual policy. Even during the town hall which Trump devoted to interrupting her and talking about Bill Clinton’s sex scandals and even spent some time following her on the stage. And if he thinks he’s losing, he claims that the whole thing is rigged by voter fraud and that people need to be vigilant poll watchers in order to intimidate minorities at polling places. In years of ugly elections, Trump’s persistent bullying on the campaign trail makes it so apparent that he should be the candidate to lose.

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Here’s Donald Trump giving his daughter Ivanka a friendly hug during the RNC. Yes, I know there’s a real Manchurian candidate vibe here. It’s disturbing. Yeah, that’s just creepy.

37. He’s Terrible to His Family– Yes, I know that Trump’s family is extremely loyal to him despite that he’s completely despicable. Of course, his father was the same way which is why the two got along so well. But this didn’t help his brother Freddy whose fatal flaw was being a normal guy born to an affluent family of sociopaths. He also liked to fly planes which his father and brother Donald constantly thought was at the same level of a bus driver. Freddy died an unhappy alcoholic at 43 in 1981. Yet, it was reported that Trump helped draft his father’s last will that cut Freddy’s kids out of their grandfather’s inheritance when the old man died in 1999. According to the New York Times, “Freddy’s children sued, claiming that an earlier version of the will had entitled them to their father’s share of the estate, but that Donald and his siblings had used ‘undue influence’ over their grandfather, who had dementia, to cut them out.” It gets worse as the Times adds, “A week later, Mr. Trump retaliated by withdrawing the medical benefits critical to his nephew’s infant child.” We should take note that his nephew’s son had cerebral palsy. And you thought his mocking a disabled reporter was bad. He’s also very shitty husband who bragged about cheating on them as well as groped other women. His marriage with first wife Ivana ended after Trump’s affair with Marla Maples went public and their nasty divorce with Ivana claiming Trump raped her. His second marriage with Maples also ended in a nasty divorce with her taking their daughter Tiffany to California. As with third wife Melania, well, there’s rumors that she may not have been legal when she came to this country. But you probably know what she has to deal with. Then we have his children for whom he wasn’t really around much when they were growing up. But how he treats his daughters is pretty telling. I mean Trump once told reporters that he’d date Ivanka she wasn’t his daughter. And then he touched her ass at the RNC. Yeah, that totally seems too much like Mrs. Iselin and Raymond Shaw in reverse. Let’s just say if Jared Kushner’s New York Observer isn’t endorsing Trump right now, this is probably the reason. As for Tiffany Trump, well, he doesn’t really take much notice of her as her RNC speech makes her seem like she’s begging for his attention. And he didn’t even watch her. Yet, when she was born Trump already seemed to reduce her to body parts saying that she had her mom Marla’s legs but wasn’t sure whether she’ll have her breasts yet. Oh, and there’s a chance he may not have wanted her in the first place. His sons Donald Jr. and Eric have turned out to be pricks who hunt endangered animals on African safari. And according to one of Donald Jr.’s classmates, Trump once slapped him across the face in college and that Jr. despised his father, was habitually drunk, and hated the attention his last name afforded him. Yet, he and Eric also inherited their dad’s racism and sexism, too. Yeah, Trump isn’t really very nice to his family is he?

38. His Campaign Is Tampering with the Political Process– The reason why Trump managed to get this far in the 2016 election is that his train wreck go so much press attention during the Republican primary that the news networks basically gave him free publicity that basically put his competition out of commission. And he did the same thing during the general election with constant allusions to the Clintons’ scandals as well as Hillary’s e-mails. It doesn’t help that he’s had help by Putin’s Russian government and WikiLeaks who both have beefs with Hillary and the Obama Administration. We know the DNC hacks were by the Russians. Not to mention, Trump has called for his supporters to poll watch for in person voter fraud at the polling places particularly where minorities vote. There are even allegations of voter suppression in states like North Carolina, Indiana, Florida, and Pennsylvania. And we know who’s targeted in these states. You know minority voters who support Hillary. That doesn’t get me started by how Republican dominated states have resorted to gerrymandering. Let’s just say if Trump is losing, it’s not because the election’s rigged against him as he believes. Quite the contrary.

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Donald Trump rallies have been known for their moments of violence. And Trump is said to encourage the spectacle. Here is a fight in Tucson, Arizona.

39. His Campaign Rhetoric Is Inflammatory and Incites Violence– All through the campaign season, Trump’s rhetoric is very inflammatory with racist and sexist comments that have caused supporters glee and opponents cringing in fear. And some of them have a good reason to be concerned, especially if they’re minorities since Trump’s endorsed by white supremacists. Yet, Trump also has a history of calling for violent acts against those who protest at his events that goes back until at least August of last year. He’s encouraged supporters to beat up protesters at his rallies, particularly if they’re people of color. He’s even suggested violence against Hillary alleging she’d get rid of the Second Amendment. Yet, what’s even more disturbing is how he talks about it so casually. But violent rhetoric can get too out of hand, particularly since some of his supporters are known terrorists.

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Here’s what Donald Trump said about appointing Supreme Court Justices. What he says indicates he doesn’t know what the Supreme Court does at all. This is a problem.

40. His Campaign Has No Substantive Policies– While Trump’s campaign contains enough spectacle to take over the airwaves, but there’s no substance to it unlike those of his opponents. He’s never been transparent on anything especially when it comes to his medical records and tax returns. We don’t know how he’ll build his wall on the US-Mexican border or how he’ll force Mexico to pay for it. He doesn’t have details on his healthcare plan he intends to replace Obamacare with (and probably has none). Most of his campaign promises tend to have vague assertions and broad rhetoric. There’s little on what Trump plans to spend, how he plans to pay for it, and what he thinks his programs will look like. In his rhetoric, Trump doesn’t seem to have much knowledge on public policy details even stumbling on basic American governance and frequently demonstrating his ignorance of key challenges and issues in policymaking. For instance, Trump accused President Obama for keeping interest rates low which is the Federal Reserve’s job. If he’s elected president, we won’t know what he’s going to do which is very troubling.

Protestors hold up a sign towards the crowd at a rally for U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma

While the media has tried to make Trump support about economics, support is mostly based on racism, xenophobia, and authoritarianism. This banner makes it clear.

41. His Political Appeal Is Based on Cultural Hatred and Authoritarianism– I know many Trump supporters probably don’t have much faith in government and are going through tough economic times. I know many Trump supporters are working class whites with no college degrees. Yet, according to Nate Silver, Trump supporters are on average wealthier and more educated than their peers. So the white working class isn’t a monolithic group. For instance, there were a lot of white working class voters who supported Bernie Sanders during the Democratic primary. Besides, a lot of these white working class voters tend to be very suspicious of government as well as continually complain about paying taxes for welfare recipients. So it’s more likely that Trump support has more to do with race and xenophobia since it’s Trump’s spewing of cultural hatred that has made him so popular like building a wall, stop and frisk, and banning Muslims. The fact he’s been endorsed by white supremacists and terrorists that he hasn’t denounced shows this. Besides, if you’ve heard “Make America Great Again,” it evokes some kind of warped nostalgia as if he sets to make it the way it was. Even though that imagined past didn’t really exist or wasn’t anything like that they thought it was. We should also take into account how white society in the South has long been structured to view whiteness as a mark of higher status whether during slavery or segregation. Not only that we should also account how Southern whites learn their history within the nostalgically racist “Lost Cause” mythology when it pertains to the American Civil War. And how Barack Obama’s presidency challenged that and many didn’t like it. Let’s just say, the cultural hatred angle for Trump support makes a lot more sense for me.

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This list shows who’s been suing Donald Trump for stealing their money over the decades. What he’s done by cheating these people really shows how Trump doesn’t have much respect for the law. Not to mention, he uses the court and his money to get away with

42. He Has No Respect for the Rule of Law– If reading Trump’s history tells me anything about him, it’s that he often believes that the rules don’t apply to him. Or at least when the penalty doesn’t consist of jail time. But whatever the case, he tends to treat rules and laws as inconveniences as well as exploits legal loopholes. He ignores conflicts of interest as well as takes what he wants regardless who gets hurt. He’s been repeatedly caught for discriminating against blacks whether in housing or in the casino business. For years, he’s been repeatedly fined for breaking rules relating to operating his casinos including an incident in 1990 when his father Fred bought 700 chips at Trump Taj Mahal for $3.5 million. He’s also went to great lengths to avoid being accountable for paying back investors along with wage theft. Yet, what shows Trump’s disrespect for the law the most is his Trump Foundation charity in which he used other people’s money for his own purposes. With his Trump Foundation, Trump has used the money to pay for lawsuits, bribe public officials, buy stuff like portraits of himself and a helmet signed by Tim Tebow, and funneling money in them that would’ve been counted as taxable income otherwise. He’s even said to use Trump Foundation money to fund his campaign. All these are known as self-dealing which is illegal for a charity to do under the IRS. But Trump gets away with this. Even more telling is how many times Trump has used lawsuits to avoid taking responsibility for his actions. Furthermore, Trump’s campaign has been plagued with money shenanigans. Another can be him expressing no regret calling for the Central Park Five to be executed despite the fact they were exonerated due to DNA evidence. But Trump still believes they’re guilty to this day. Even legal experts across the political spectrum are scared of a Trump presidency since he doesn’t seem to have respect for the rule of law in this country nor has any respect for American constitutional traditions. As Adam Gopnik wrote for the New Yorker, “The American Republic stands threatened by the first overtly anti-democratic leader of a large party in its modern history—an authoritarian with no grasp of history, no impulse control, and no apparent barriers on his will to power. The right thing to do, for everyone who believes in liberal democracy, is to gather around and work to defeat him on Election Day.” He later goes on to say, “If Trump came to power, there is a decent chance that the American experiment would be over. This is not a hyperbolic prediction; it is not a hysterical prediction; it is simply a candid reading of what history tells us happens in countries with leaders like Trump. Countries don’t really recover from being taken over by unstable authoritarian nationalists of any political bent, left or right—not by Peróns or Castros or Putins or Francos or Lenins or fill in the blanks. The nation may survive, but the wound to hope and order will never fully heal. Ask Argentinians or Chileans or Venezuelans or Russians or Italians—or Germans. The national psyche never gets over learning that its institutions are that fragile and their ability to resist a dictator that weak. If he can rout the Republican Party in a week by having effectively secured the nomination, ask yourself what Trump could do with the American government if he had a mandate.” In the US, it’s well established that nobody, not even the President is above the law. Unfortunately Trump always thought he’s above the law because he’s rich. And there’s a strong chance he won’t uphold the constitution if he ever becomes president.

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Here’s Donald Trump Mar-a-Lago portrait that the Trump Foundation paid for at $20,000. It’s at his Florida Resort. Of course, how Trump got it is an act of self-dealing which is illegal under the IRS.

43. He Constantly Breaks His Promises– All his life Trump has made promises to people in order to give him what he wants. Yet, once he has it, he often doesn’t fulfil his word and always making excuses why. A June article from the USA Today alleges that Trump has refused to pay workers for decades when he said he would. As of 2016, Trump has at least 60 lawsuits involving employees and contractors alleging he didn’t pay them. He’s settled with 48 servers at his Miami golf resort in a lawsuit about failing to pay overtime for a special event. There were at least 253 subcontractors who weren’t paid in full and/or on time for work on Trump Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It’s very clear that Trump promised to pay these people or they wouldn’t have agreed to work for him. And yet, he refused to pay them in the end. He’s also failed to pay back investors who’ve lent money to him and now Wall Street no longer trusts him. Not only that, but Trump has promised to donate money to charity over the years and never makes good on them. Well, unless he’s called out on it. It’s not that Trump constantly breaks his promises. It’s just that Trump constantly makes promises that he has no intention to fulfill. It’s part of how he works. You can’t have a president like that.

44. Even Republicans Hate Him– We should understand that Trump was never the favorite to win the Republican primary in the 2016 election. The Republican establishment wasn’t happy when he was ahead in the polls or when he won primary after primary. And when the many of these Republicans finally caved to Trump in the general election, it was mostly because they feared for their jobs and possibly the good of the party. Yet, many Republicans still won’t support Trump such as Mitt Romney, the Bushes, Colin Powell, Condolezza Rice, Glenn Beck, Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Tom Ridge, Former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Reagan Education Secretary Bill Bennett, the National Review, Wall Street bankers, the Weekly Standard, and many conservative newspapers. George Will even left the Republican Party for his opposition to Trump. Nebraska Senator Bob Sasse wrote a long Facebook post explaining why he won’t vote for Trump. Right wing radio host, Eric Erickson explained his reason because he’d, “put my country before my party and decline to help the voters in this country commit national suicide.” At the RNC, it’s very apparent that the Republicans weren’t warmly behind their candidate. In fact, many prominent Republicans like John McCain refused to attend. Those who did, didn’t give an enthusiastic endorsement and don’t seem to like him much. For instance, I know that Paul Ryan doesn’t like Trump and has even called him out on it. Yet, he ended up endorsing the guy anyway, because he’s Speaker of the House and was in a tough primary fight with a Trump supporting opponent. And even in his convention speech, he barely mentioned the guy. Then there’s Texas Senator Ted Cruz who declined to endorse Trump at the RNC in his speech after the latter viciously attacked him at the primary for calling his wife ugly and insulting his father. Yet, Cruz would eventually cave to endorse Trump anyway when he discovered he was up for reelection in two years. You also have Chris Christie who’s only been supporting Trump to get on a ticket or at least a cabinet position, whom Stephen Colbert likened to “a best man at a wedding he doesn’t believe in.” Any way you look at it, the Republican establishment more or less supports him as if they feel that they have to since he’s their party’s nominee.

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Donald Trump has received very few major newspaper endorsements during this election than most candidates. Perhaps it’s because Trump is no fan of freedom of the press. And that he’s a morally bankrupt individual to begin with.

45. Newspapers and Experts Have Warned People Not to Vote for Him– While experts and newspapers usually have their own political biases, what’s unusual about this election is how many have refused to endorse the Republican nominee. In fact, there are many who are coming out to encourage Americans not to vote for Trump. For one, Hillary has received way more newspaper endorsements than what’s usual for any presidential party nominee. Even more telling is that many of these publications usually endorse Republican candidates with some not endorsing a Democratic presidential nominee in decades. Major publications that didn’t endorse Hillary usually went with no endorsement, Gary Johnson, or not Donald Trump. Nevertheless, Hillary’s high newspaper endorsement count doesn’t indicate an acceptance of her politics that many of these papers disagree with. In fact, it’s indicative that the newspaper industry doesn’t want Trump to be president for good reason. After all, Trump is no fan of First Amendment rights since he sued a reporter for challenging his billionaire status. Experts who oppose Trump include 370 economists, 50 GOP national security officials, legal experts across the political spectrum, and more. Even 600 historians have spoken against Trump. David McCullough said the prospect of a Trump presidency distressed him that he felt he could no longer remain publicly attached saying, “When you think of how far we have come, and at what cost, and with what faith, to just turn it all over to this monstrous clown with a monstrous ego, with no experience, never served his country in any way — it’s just crazy. We can’t stand by and let it happen. The Republican Party shouldn’t stand by and let it happen.” Filmmaker Ken Burns voiced opposition against Trump in his commencement address at Stanford University, where he said that despite 40 years of avoiding advocacy in his work, he no longer had, “the luxury of neutrality or ‘balance’ or even of bemused disdain.” It should be a red flag that a Trump presidency poses nothing but trouble.

46. He Brings Out the Worst of America– Watching the Republican primaries take its course this election was especially distressing for me. Whenever Trump would do something outrageous that would get normal presidential candidates out of the race, he didn’t suffer any fall in his popularity. It’s like his supporters kept excusing his behavior on the stage even when he was encouraging them to beat up protestors at his rallies. There are even people comparing Trump rallies to 1930s Germany which led to the rise of Adolf Hitler. And we know what happened there. Yet, such comparisons do have merit since Trump’s campaign revolves around a cult of personality like he would make everything okay. And these supporters think he would because look how successful Trump is. Look how strong and fearless he is. And to prove how much America needs him, Trump reminds voters that America is in deep, deep trouble. Yet at same time, Trump’s campaign has no substantive policies on how he’ll get things done. Nevertheless, a candidate who says he’ll fix it but doesn’t offer any plans spells trouble. But it seems that his supporters don’t seem to care what he does and seem to take him at every word. This is bad.

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Donald Trump likes to use “America First” in his presidential proposals, particularly when it comes to foreign policy. This term was used by Charles Lindbergh’s anti-war group called the America First Committee known for its isolationism as well as virulent Anti-Semitism. Lindbergh’s “America First” speech was filled with Anti-Semitic language and cost him his reputation.

47. He Has Little Knowledge of History or the Lessons Learned from It– Trump has never cared about the consequences of his actions and his candidacy certainly shows this. It’s very clear the Trump isn’t just ignorant on matters of basic civics, he has no sense of the American past and doesn’t understand the achievements in this country. Sure he’d want to “make America great again,” but he doesn’t understand what already makes America great in the first place. According to the New Republic, he’s never read a presidential biography and that his knowledge of presidential history is almost entirely self-serving. It doesn’t help that people in the media have compared aspects of Trump’s campaign to parts of America’s past and none of them are good. One example would be Trump’s foreign policy outline which he refers to as “Restore Fortress America” or “America First” which to him means disconnecting from other countries, more barriers to trade, tougher negotiations with long standing NATO allies, and a more restrictive immigration policy with a wall and Muslim ban. It also shares similarities to the America First Committee before US entry into WWII while Nazi Germany was taking power across Europe. Now the American First Committee was an isolationist group who opposed US involvement in the war, which originated with college students. Yet, it soon became a group that included conservatives who wanted to stick it to a liberal president as well as virulent Anti-Semites and Nazi sympathizers. Things got worse when famed aviator Charles Lindbergh became their public spokesman and gave a highly Anti-Semitic speech in 1941 that was universally condemned, which combined with being too nice to Nazi Germany led him to suffer an epic fall from grace. The phrase “America First” has become taboo ever since as well as an Anti-Semitic byword. But when Trump was asked about this group in July, he claimed that “America First” was a brand-new modern term and that he never related it to the past and not what Lindbergh had in mind. It’s very clear that Trump doesn’t know about the shameful American First Committee nor does he even care. Nor does he care about the parallels that suggest how the old isolationist movement is relevant to his campaign. Because he kept using “America First” as a slogan not just to his foreign policies but his other ones, too. It’s like he’s using this phrase because he thinks it sounds good for his campaign. Another term is the “silent majority” which seem eerily reminiscent of the radical right John Birch Society of the 1960s, which played an active role in the Red Scare. It was also used in the Nixon campaign of 1968. Yet, what Trump doesn’t know is that the past doesn’t always stay in the past and those who don’t know much about history are doomed to repeat it.

48. He Gives Little to No Thought to His Responses to Questions or Challenges– Trump’s campaign has been characterized as all spectacle without any substance. Trump doesn’t seem to think that policy matters much, details don’t matter at all, and that positions are negotiable. All that matters for Trump is running on attitude and charisma, strength and success, that goo-goo elites make America a loser, and that he’s the superhero who can make it win again. However, this campaign style is extremely done. Presidential elections aren’t about mere policy face offs, they’re also about competence, leadership, values, vision, records, and which face voters want to see their TV the next 4 years. Sure like Trump, Obama ran as a political outsider which worked out well for him. However, Obama had a detailed policy agenda and much of it has become the law in the land. We’re not sure what would become law under Trump or how he’d face challenges. Even worse, Trump has given little or no thought in his responses to questions or challenges as we’ve seen from his debate performances. But when we’re choosing a president, then we need to know what they’re going to do if elected. And if Trump can’t give a good response to a policy question, then he shouldn’t be elected.

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While Donald Trump’s campaign has many veteran supporters, this doesn’t mean he’s nice to them. In fact, quite the opposite. Here is his fake veterans hotline voicemail.

49. He’s Shown Disrespect to People Who’ve Supported Him– Trump has been unusually vicious to people who opposed him and not just on his campaign either. Yet, he could also be quite awful when it comes to people who support him. First, Trump has had a long record of bashing veterans including times when he’s had disabled vet vendors chased off Trump Tower, calling a decorated war hero and POW a loser for getting captured, organizing fake veterans fundraisers, accepting a Purple Heart from a supporter and saying how he always wanted one, ignoring a mother’s demands not to politicize her son’s death in Benghazi, setting up a fake veterans hotline, calling his sexual escapades during the 1970s his “Vietnam,” attacking a dead soldier’s parents, claiming to know more about ISIS than the generals, and more. Let’s just say Trump really has no respect for those who served our country in uniform and kept our country safe in a time of war. Yet, veterans rank among some of his most loyal supporters despite all that. Second, while Trump claims he’s pro-life and has considerable support in the pro-life crowd, his record isn’t, even on the campaign trail. He’s taken 5 different positions on abortion in 3 days, called pregnancy an “inconvenience” for a business” (before he denied it), had a woman fired for getting pregnant, tried to replace a pregnant employee who refused to sleep with him, may not provide maternity leave to his employees, mocked a disabled reporter, rejected his first wife after she popped out 3 kids for him, bragged about sexual assault, rates women based on their bodies, cut medical benefits to his nephew’s son with cerebral palsy, praised his future current wife for taking birth control every day on the radio, may have paid and urged mistresses to have abortions (since he answered, “such an interesting question” when asked this), and once told future second wife “Uh, excuse me? What are we going to do about this?” after finding out about an accidental pregnancy (despite that Marla Maples had already made up her mind to go through with it). Sorry, pro-lifers, but Trump is not your man. I mean calling pregnancy an “inconvenience for a business” is even less pro-life than calling abortion “a women’s right to choose” especially since the former statement has killed far more innocent unborn children than the latter. And I think Trump’s belief in pregnancy as an inconvenience for business basically sums up his stance on reproductive rights. In other words, he believes a business’s needs are more important than an unborn child’s or even the mother’s. Besides, whenever he speaks on the matter, he seems like he has to go the extra mile to prove he’s pro-life. Yet, while the pro-life movement backs Trump in droves, it’s very apparent that these people are being played for major fools. Third, are women, LGBTQ+ people, immigrants, and minorities who are supporting him but that goes without saying. Fourth, this can go on.

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Of course, this is very true when it comes to Trump supporters. It seems that these people treat Donald Trump like he’s a bad boyfriend thinking he’ll change. But let’s just say his employees, investors, and ex-wives thought the same thing. Seriously, if you support Trump, I guarantee he’ll let you down. So I hope Trump let’s you down by losing the race. Because if he wins, we could be in trouble.

50. He Brings Out the Worst in His Supporters– I know that a lot of Trump supporters aren’t bad people. I know that a lot of Trump supporters are well-educated and not stupid. Yet, whenever I see or hear people I know support Trump, I feel utterly appalled. Now Trump isn’t a guy these people would want in their neighborhood or someone they’d want their children to emulate. Of course I know many of these people support Trump because they’re racist, Islamophobic, and xenophobic even if it doesn’t define them. Some people who support Trump are violent like some of the Second Amendment fanatics who like to carry their guns in full view as well as right wing terrorists and extremists. But this is a man who’s violated the norms of ethical behavior even the most ardent Trump fans wouldn’t accept in someone in their lives, let alone in a presidential candidate. And yet, these same people continually excuse Trump and his campaign no matter what happens like they have little to no standards for what a presidential candidate should be. Look, I know many people are supporting Trump because they’re pro-life, Republican, or don’t like Hillary Clinton. But come on, to support Trump for these reasons just makes you look pathetic. Because there are plenty of people who are in all these camps but are still voting for Hillary Clinton anyway because they have standards for what to expect in a president. Hell, even some of Hillary’s enemies are supporting her like Michael Chertoff. Yet, what’s worse is that plenty of Trump supporters don’t seem to care if their man is a raging sociopath with no political experience who’s lying them into a gigantic con. They don’t seem to question his morals. They don’t seem to question his policies or lack of them. They don’t question whether he’s fit for the presidency. They don’t question whether the veracity of his statements or whether he’s lying to them. They don’t question his sordid past that debunks his claim as a successful businessman. All they care about is whatever Trump says and how he’ll make America great again. And the fact so many Americans are willing to vote for a guy like Trump, including people I know such as friends and family just scares the living shit out of me.

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Yes, here we have robber baron Trump sitting in his gaudy gold oval office ushering a new autocratic gilded age for America. For the love of God, America, please don’t let this happen. Jesus, please, don’t. I don’t want to see a Trump presidency.

Calaca Inspired Dia de los Muertos Costumes

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Disclaimer: I am aware that the Dia de los Muertos is not just a holiday just confined to Mexico or celebrated by Latinos who aren’t just of Mexican heritage. But I have to remind viewers that this isn’t a post to give you ideas to do a Halloween costume (unless Dia de los Muertos is part of your culture and you want to save money). Dia de los Muertos is not Mexican Halloween and unless your culture celebrates the holiday, then you shouldn’t wear these costumes whether on Halloween or on any occasion. Dia de los Muertos is a time for Mexicans and people from some parts of Latin America to remember their ancestors. I understand that cultural appropriation is an American tradition and not a very good one. If your culture doesn’t celebrate Dia de los Muertos, then walking around in a Day of the Dead inspired costume for Halloween because you thought the art was cute is offensive, ignorant, disrespectful, and complicit in erasing a rich culture and identity. Painting your face with sugar skull decoration is not being cultural, it’s stupid. There’s a meaning behind sugar skulls and just because you do it doesn’t mean you understand the significance of this symbol. So please, don’t do it.

Special Disclaimer: I understand that some of these costumes may be culturally appropriated which is offensive. But since Pinterest unintentionally encourages this and I know they tend to be promoted as Halloween costumes, cultural appropriation might not be avoidable. Yet since I’m aware that blond and redheaded Hispanics do exist and that they can be of any race, distinguishing between which costumes are culturally appropriate and which are not is difficult. And you can’t always tell with a photograph. Yet, I will try my best not to be disrespectful to viewers who celebrate this holiday that they view so central to their cultural identity. And I intend not to promote them as Halloween costumes for this post. Nor do I encourage people do dress in these costumes despite having no connection to the holiday whatsoever. Just because I may show a costume post on Dia de los Muertos doesn’t mean I think these are perfectly fine for just anyone.

Aside from setting altars and visit cemeteries to honor and celebrate their dead ancestors and loved ones, it’s not unusual for those who observe Dia de los Muertos also don costumes as well as parade and dance in the streets. Yet, this tradition may not always be practiced in some places in Mexico or Latin America. But there are some areas that do. Many tend to don the calavera makeup and dress in fancy clothes in order to mock death or celebrate their deceased loved ones. For most Mexicans and other Latin Americans who celebrate the holiday, there is nothing scary about dressing up as the elegant “La Catrina” and other figures of death the holiday celebrates. Some may even wear skull shaped masks to scare the dead away. After all, death in Mexico is just part of the natural cycle of life, not something to be feared. So for your reading pleasure, I give you a treasure trove of richly elaborate Dia de los Muertos costumes for you to enjoy. And if your culture doesn’t celebrate the Day of the Dead, these are just for your eyes only.

  1. The makeup scheme must always match the flowers.
Well, she has a pink skull face with beautiful flowers in her hair. The clothes aren't too shabby either.

Well, she has a pink skull face with beautiful flowers in her hair. The clothes aren’t too shabby either.

2. This woman honors her dead great-grandmother by wearing her clothes.

Yes, I know she looks what you might see in a horror movie. But she's not meant to be scary. Just honoring her deceased loved ones.

Yes, I know she looks what you might see in a horror movie. But she’s not meant to be scary. Just honoring her deceased loved ones.

3. Thought you’d never see a dead lady in red before.

If it wasn't for the face paint, I would've sworn she seemed like one of those Mexican women from the Old West movies. Love the dress.

If it wasn’t for the face paint, I would’ve sworn she seemed like one of those Mexican women from the Old West movies. Love the dress.

4. These men celebrate Dia de los Muertos in their fancy hats.

Now this is a great way to mock death along with the Mexican elite who used to starve 90% of the country's population in the early 20th century. The hats and suits are spot on.

Now this is a great way to mock death along with the Mexican elite who used to starve 90% of the country’s population in the early 20th century. The hats and suits are spot on. Then again, maybe that’s another case of cultural appropriation on multiple levels.

5. Don’t forget to don the skulls and feathers.

You might see that a lot of Dia de los Muertos costumes do contain feathers and skulls on them. Then again, it's to be expected.

You might see that a lot of Dia de los Muertos costumes do contain feathers and skulls on them. Then again, it’s to be expected.

6. Sometimes a small touch up is all you need.

Seems like she has a pink shawl to match the flowers. Surely looks stunning.

Seems like she has a pink shawl to match the flowers. Surely looks stunning.

7. This skull face woman is draped with curls.

She's even wearing a white embroidered dress. Love the intricate makeup job.

She’s even wearing a white embroidered dress. Love the intricate makeup job.

8. To look at her is to see a window into your own mortality.

I understand that skeletons aren't supposed to be scary on Dia de los Muertos. But this costume is so good that it doesn't help matters.

I understand that skeletons aren’t supposed to be scary on Dia de los Muertos. But this costume is so good that it doesn’t help matters.

9. White hair is always chic on a dead woman.

I'm sure the white hair is a wig in this. But kind of reminds us that you grow old and then you die.

I’m sure the white hair is a wig in this. But kind of reminds us that you grow old and then you die.

10. A spiderweb on your forehead goes great with flowers.

Notice how she has dark circles under her eyes. Oh, wait, that's makeup, not sleep deprivation.

Notice how she has dark circles under her eyes. Oh, wait, that’s makeup, not sleep deprivation.

11. No Day of the Dead costume could be complete without an embroidered flower skirt.

Well, if it's DIY, then she must've spent a long time doing this costume. Love the rich flowery detail.

Well, if it’s DIY, then she must’ve spent a long time doing this costume. Love the rich flowery detail.

12. Hoop earrings and roses create a neat traditional look.

This woman has roses in her hair as well as an intricate skull makeup scheme. Absolutely stunning.

This woman has roses in her hair as well as an intricate skull makeup scheme. Absolutely stunning.

13. Sometimes it’s best to stick with the basics.

Well, she didn't really do too much as far as makeup goes. Yet, the lipstick provides a nice contrast.

Well, she didn’t really do too much as far as makeup goes. Yet, the lipstick provides a nice contrast.

14. It helps if you top off your look with a colorful sombrero.

Like how she used shiny face paint for her mask as we.. Love the rose design.

Like how she used shiny face paint for her mask as we.. Love the rose design.

15. On Dia de los Muertos, a bride always has her diamond rosary.

Well, she has a nice white dress with her skull makeup as well as matching flowers in her hair. Love it.

Well, she has a nice white dress with her skull makeup as well as matching flowers in her hair. Love it.

16. Dia de los Muertos is a holiday that’s been celebrated for generations.

Here we have 3 generations of a family in their skull face makeup and flowers. Two of them carry parasols in hand.

Here we have 3 generations of a family in their skull face makeup and flowers. Two of them carry parasols in hand.

17. This dead looking girl is all dressed up with no place to go.

She's also wearing a black lace veil with a white lace dress. Nevertheless, really like the flowers.

She’s also wearing a black lace veil with a white lace dress. Nevertheless, really like the flowers.

18. This man seems to have the look of death upon him.

You can even see all his teeth. Yet, this guy seems to have a rather scary touch up.

You can even see all his teeth. Yet, this guy seems to have a rather scary touch up.

19. This little girl dances in her flowery dress.

Helps she's wearing a ribbon to match her dress. Love the flowers on it, too.

Helps she’s wearing a ribbon to match her dress. Love the flowers on it, too.

20. Sometimes death can bring a dour look upon you.

Well, she has a rather rich costume with fancy black lace and all. The rose on her face seems like it's losing petals though.

Well, she has a rather rich costume with fancy black lace and all. The rose on her face seems like it’s losing petals though.

21. Perhaps a red veil can go best with the flowers.

Helps she has a string of pearls to complete the outfit. Love the makeup, too.

Helps she has a string of pearls to complete the outfit. Love the makeup, too.

22. Even a skeleton needs a fine pair of gloves at times.

Well, I said they dress up to mock death and the old Mexican elite. Love the flowery black veil.

Well, I said they dress up to mock death and the old Mexican elite. Love the flowery black veil.

23. Don’t forget to set up an altar for your loved ones on the Day of the Dead.

Well, at least there's not a lot of cultural appropriation going on here. At least the picture gets the tradition right and has some inscriptions in Spanish.

Well, at least there’s not a lot of cultural appropriation going on here. At least the picture gets the tradition right and has some inscriptions in Spanish.

24. You may see some revelers in Mexico during the Day of the Dead.

Here we have a La Catrina and a mariachi. Both seem a bit dead on the outside but are actually quite lively.

Here we have a La Catrina and a mariachi. Both seem a bit dead on the outside but are actually quite lively.

25. Skeleton makeup isn’t always confined to the face.

She even has a cross on her skull makeup. Love the roses in her hair.

She even has a cross on her skull makeup. Love the roses in her hair.

26. This little senorita is all dressed to kill.

She even has a cute little fur stole and necklaces. I think this is so adorable.

She even has a cute little fur stole and necklaces. I think this is so adorable.

27. Sometimes the skull eyes could be lined with jewels.

Of course, I'm not sure her skin is that white, given how they add photo effects. But this is stunning.

Of course, I’m not sure her skin is that white, given how they add photo effects. But this is stunning.

28. Man, does she really have her heart on display.

Funny how it's not encased in her skeleton which is normally the case. Love the flowers though.

Funny how it’s not encased in her skeleton which is normally the case. Love the flowers though.

29. This man celebrates Dia de los Muertos like he’s on of the Three Amigos.

I'm sure this guy is white and is wearing the makeup. But even I have to admire the intricate costume details.

I’m sure this guy is white and is wearing the makeup. But even I have to admire the intricate costume details.

30. This couple are dressed like they’re together in death.

Well, they're surely dressed nice. And I do like the flowers. But I sure hope they're not wearing these outfits for a Halloween party.

Well, they’re surely dressed nice. And I do like the flowers. But I sure hope they’re not wearing these outfits for a Halloween party.

31. This woman’s Dia de los Muertos costume is truly revolutionary.

Since she's dressed up as a Mexican revolutionary that got fed up with the elite back in the early 20th century. Hope those bullets aren't real.

Since she’s dressed up as a Mexican revolutionary that got fed up with the elite back in the early 20th century. Hope those bullets aren’t real.

32. Sometimes a simple white veil is all you need.

Well, she does have an intricate makeup scheme on her face despite how it makes her look like the Joker. Okay, that might be pretty insulting. Sorry about that.

Well, she does have an intricate makeup scheme on her face despite how it makes her look like the Joker. Okay, that might be pretty insulting. Sorry about that.

33. It helps if you top your costume with a fancy hat.

It's especially true if the hat has marigolds in it since they're a critical flower for Day of the Dead. Also, calla lilies also symbolize death.

It’s especially true if the hat has marigolds in it since they’re a critical flower for Day of the Dead. Also, calla lilies also symbolize death.

34. Flowers can go almost anywhere on your costume.

She seems to have roses around her dress and in her hair. By the way, this was taken by a Hispanic photographer.

She seems to have roses around her dress and in her hair. By the way, this was taken by a Hispanic photographer.

35. Who said a La Catrina can’t have purple hair?

Well, she does have a Joker like face makeup. But you have to love the flowers and the large rings.

Well, she does have a Joker like face makeup. But you have to love the flowers and the large rings.

36. At Dia de los Muertos weddings, it’s till death do they part.

Too bad they only had the bride, groom, and a bridesmaid in this photo. Would've loved to see the rest of the party.

Too bad they only had the bride, groom, and a bridesmaid in this photo. Would’ve loved to see the rest of the party.

37. Sometimes a plain, simple dress will always do fine.

This woman just wears a traditional Mexican outfit. Just a white top and green skirt.

This woman just wears a traditional Mexican outfit. Just a white top and green skirt.

38. Always have a skull mask and rose bouquet in hand.

She certainly has her outfit match her face and hair. Love the flowers.

She certainly has her outfit match her face and hair. Love the flowers.

39. Sometimes a dress in bright colors is all you need.

Yes, you might think she looks like Frida Kahlo from the costume. But that doesn't mean she's supposed to be dressed as her.

Yes, you might think she looks like Frida Kahlo from the costume. But that doesn’t mean she’s supposed to be dressed as her.

40. May you allow this gentleman to tip his hat?

At least this guy chose to wear a mask. At any rate, I do like his hat with a skull decoration.

At least this guy chose to wear a mask. At any rate, I do like his hat with a skull decoration.

41. “Well, that certainly didn’t seem dead funny to me.”

She has a nice made up face with blue around the eyes and a spiderweb. Love the rose in her hair.

She has a nice made up face with blue around the eyes and a spiderweb. Love the roses in her hair.

42. The skull face can occasionally really show up in the dark.

This one has black skull eyes and roses in her hair. But you can see her almost blend into the background.

This one has black skull eyes and roses in her hair. But you can see her almost blend into the background.

43. Here comes a skeleton bride with her veil over a crown of thorns.

Well, I have to admit how stunning this in in black and white. Love the keyhole heart on her chest as well.

Well, I have to admit how stunning this in in black and white. Love the keyhole heart on her chest as well.

44. This woman stands proud in her skull makeup and flowers.

The flowers in her hair seem to match the makeup on her face. Though her lips are in a zipper fashion.

The flowers in her hair seem to match the makeup on her face. Though her lips are in a zipper fashion.

45. This skeletal woman has absolutely nothing to hide.

Well, she's dressed in a skeletal outfit. But she has the skull face, flowers, and veil for Dia de los Muertos.

Well, she’s dressed in a skeletal outfit. But she has the skull face, flowers, and veil for Dia de los Muertos.

46. Couples always dress their finest in their skull and flower finery.

Well, I think this might be from a Dia de los Muertos in California. Yet, both wear the same kinds of flowers and other decoration.

Well, I think this might be from a Dia de los Muertos in California. Yet, both wear the same kinds of flowers and other decoration.

47. This photo surely shows that love is stronger than death.

While he has a tux, she has a rose bouquet and a longhorn necklace. Any guess they might be from the Southwest?

While he has a tux, she has a rose bouquet and a longhorn necklace. Any guess they might be from the Southwest?

48. She knows where it’s at with red and black.

She even has the bony fingers to show it. Yet, she wears roses to go with her red corset.

She even has the bony fingers to show it. Yet, she wears roses to go with her red corset.

49. Sometimes it helps if you have a showy flower headdress.

It also helps if you wear a dress of black lace since it gives a distinctive look. Still, she does seem stunning.

It also helps if you wear a dress of black lace since it gives a distinctive look. Still, she does seem stunning.

50. It’s not just hombres who don the sombreros.

This woman wears a sombrero that matches her outfit and makeup. And she has it buttoned to show some of her ribs.

This woman wears a sombrero that matches her outfit and makeup. And she has it buttoned to show some of her ribs.

51. With light colors come light flowers.

Though she wears a dress without sleeves, she seems to have a poofier skirt. Yet, the flowers match perfectly.

Though she wears a dress without sleeves, she seems to have a poofier skirt. Yet, the flowers match perfectly.

52. This little girl is dressed like she just woke from her grave.

For the record, there are Dia de los Muertos celebrations devoted to children and adult souls on separate days. Still love the flowers and lace.

For the record, there are Dia de los Muertos celebrations devoted to children and adult souls on separate days. Still love the flowers and lace.

53. This little girl comes all dressed in black.

She even has a bouquet of black flowers in her hands. Yet, the flowers she wears on her head are colorful.

She even has a bouquet of black flowers in her hands. Yet, the flowers she wears on her head are colorful.

54. Hope her sombrero isn’t too wide for your taste.

Well, it's a nice touch to her costume. Let's hope she's not wearing it for a Halloween party. Because that would be bad.

Well, it’s a nice touch to her costume. Let’s hope she’s not wearing it for a Halloween party. Because that would be bad.

55. If looks could kill, then this man has racked a high body count.

Yes, he surely seems like a debonair skeleton who might actually be a supervillan. Yet, I can't really tell from here.

Yes, he surely seems like a debonair skeleton who might actually be a supervillan. Yet, I can’t really tell from here.

56. When in doubt, you might want to decorate your face with sequins.

Well, that's a little flashy for my taste. Not sure what I think about that. Might be from a Dia de los Muertos in Vegas.

Well, that’s a little flashy for my taste. Not sure what I think about that. Might be from a Dia de los Muertos in Vegas.

57. Sometimes a mujer has to have dress to show off her top vertabrae.

This one at least has a marigold print trim on black. She even has a necklace to resemble marigolds.

This one at least has a marigold print trim on black. She even has a necklace to resemble marigolds.

58. Dia de los Muertos is a time to visit the dead where they lay.

Well, at least she's in a cemetery, perhaps to honor her dead relatives. Yet, I do like her multicolored serape.

Well, at least she’s in a cemetery, perhaps to honor her dead relatives. Yet, I do like her multicolored serape.

59. Here comes a skeletal bride with a large skirt.

She even has a white parasol to go with it. Might want to clear a path for her.

She even has a white parasol to go with it. Might want to clear a path for her.

60. Let’s hope the love never dies for these two.

This bride is surprisingly tame compared to the previous one. But she's still dressed in white lace.

This bride is surprisingly tame compared to the previous one. But she’s still dressed in white lace.

61. Best to have flowers in your hair of all different colors.

And she's sure lined her face wit quite a few of them. Still, I really like this one.

And she’s sure lined her face wit quite a few of them. Still, I really like this one.

62. On Dia de los Muertos, the dead come up to party.

Don't look now. But the guy almost seems to be close to a "stinkin' badges" stereotype. Well, as far as I'm concerned.

Don’t look now. But the guy almost seems to be close to a “stinkin’ badges” stereotype. Well, as far as I’m concerned.

63. This la Catrina is expecting you.

This is fairly close to a traditional Catrina which was a figure of Mexican satire on the upper class. And yes, she dressed like the Dowager Countess from Downton Abbey.

This is fairly close to a traditional Catrina which was a figure of Mexican satire on the upper class. And yes, she dressed like the Dowager Countess from Downton Abbey.

64. This man seems to have his heart turned to stone.

So does this mean he's not a guy you should associate with? Because his expression doesn't reveal that he's that kind of guy at all.

So does this mean he’s not a guy you should associate with? Because his expression doesn’t reveal that he’s that kind of guy at all.

65. Hey, look, a little mariachi boy.

He even has his own little guitar as a prop. So adorable.

He even has his own little guitar as a prop. So adorable.

66. This woman in black now takes the mic.

This one has a black dress with a rose in her hair. The mic is just a vintage touch akin to Walk the Line.

This one has a black dress with a rose in her hair. The mic is just a vintage touch akin to Walk the Line.

67. What’s bright about her costume are the marigolds in her hair.

Seems like she's wearing a shawl over her head. By the Mexican marigold was used as a medicinal plant and incense by the Aztecs.

Seems like she’s wearing a shawl over her head. By the Mexican marigold was used as a medicinal plant and incense by the Aztecs.

68. With your Day of the Dead costume, use all the flowers you want.

This woman has hers on her hair, neck, and dress. And she's all dressed in leather.

This woman has hers on her hair, neck, and dress. And she’s all dressed in leather.

69. This couple seems all flowered up.

Guy seems dressed with a powder blue tuxedo top and a string of flowers across. Woman only took to black and roses.

Guy seems dressed with a powder blue tuxedo top and a string of flowers across. Woman only took to black and roses.

70. As far a I can tell, she has the look of a goddess.

Well, an Aztec goddess if you get my drift. Of course, some might find worth sacrificing for.

Well, an Aztec goddess if you get my drift. Of course, some might find worth sacrificing for.

71. Someone seems unusually pale these days.

Yet, she decked with so many beautiful flowers that add color to her outfit. Quite stunning if you ask me.

Yet, she decked with so many beautiful flowers that add color to her outfit. Quite stunning if you ask me.

72. A lady must always have a taste in elegance.

My, does she have a huge hat. But at least it can give her plenty of shade.

My, does she have a huge hat. But at least it can give her plenty of shade.

73. This Catrina has so many flowers in all her finery.

She has flowers all over her outfit as well as inside her large black hat. And she even fans herself, too.

She has flowers all over her outfit as well as inside her large black hat. And she even fans herself, too.

74. This La Catrina has just woke up from the wrong side of the grave.

I have to admit, I really like that purple dress. Also, how this actually resembles a skeleton.

I have to admit, I really like that purple dress. Also, how this actually resembles a skeleton.

75. Anyone can look stunning in a lighter shade of red.

Sure she may wear a corset with flowers. But you have to concede that she does strike a pose.

Sure she may wear a corset with flowers. But you have to concede that she does strike a pose.

76. Of course, you could always wear a mask.

She's even dressed in traditional Victorian attire, too. Love the purple on this.

She’s even dressed in traditional Victorian attire, too. Love the purple on this.

77. My, does she have flowery eyes.

Well, her eyes are laced with gold petals. Yet, she has red flowers in her hair and an embroidered dress.

Well, her eyes are laced with gold petals. Yet, she has red flowers in her hair and an embroidered dress.

78. This little girl only has two roses in hand.

Yet, she wears some in her head to brighten up her black outfit. So adorable.

Yet, she wears some in her head to brighten up her black outfit. So adorable.

79. Seems she’s a little red around the eyes.

However, that's just the magic of makeup. Yet, I do love the roses in her hair.

However, that’s just the magic of makeup. Yet, I do love the roses in her hair.

80. Sometimes death can come out behind you when you’re not looking.

She's even wearing a colorful shirt to go with the flowers on her hair. Love the eye makeup on this.

She’s even wearing a colorful shirt to go with the flowers on her hair. Love the eye makeup on this.

81. How about 3 red roses in your hair?

Man, she seems to have a lot of paint on her and not just her face. Love the roses.

Man, she seems to have a lot of paint on her and not just her face. Love the roses.

82. My, what a lovely hat she wore.

Well, it's not a large hat but it's a fancy one nonetheless. Goes nice with her black lace dress.

Well, it’s not a large hat but it’s a fancy one nonetheless. Goes nice with her black lace dress.

83. Of course, she only shows some of her ribs.

Well, she's painted ribs on her chest. Still, like the lace jacket and flowers.

Well, she’s painted ribs on her chest. Still, like the lace jacket and flowers.

84. How about a sombrero lined with gold?

Wonder if she's worried that she'll mess her hair if she dons the sombrero. Yet, I do think it's finely embroidered.

Wonder if she’s worried that she’ll mess her hair if she dons the sombrero. Yet, I do think it’s finely embroidered.

85. Not sure about her, but she seems a bit bony if you ask me.

Well, she has a lot of skeleton makeup on her. Yet she has a black dress on to, if you look closer.

Well, she has a lot of skeleton makeup on her. Yet she has a black dress on to, if you look closer.

86. Seems like she’s had to tie up to hold herself together.

She seems to have to keep her organs contained for the moment. Yet, you have to admire her red dress.

She seems to have to keep her organs contained for the moment. Yet, you have to admire her red dress.

87. Seems like someone likes to wear the flag of Mexico.

Well, the woman at least does as well as dons a turquoise shawl. The man dresses like one of the Three Amigos.

Well, the woman at least does as well as dons a turquoise shawl. The man dresses like one of the Three Amigos.

88. I suppose she might impress the proper set.

Reminds me of a Dia de los Muertos character Tim Burton would create. This especially since I think Helen Bonham Carter wore a similar outfit in Sweeny Todd.

Reminds me of a Dia de los Muertos character Tim Burton would create. This especially since I think Helen Bonham Carter wore a similar outfit in Sweeny Todd.

89. A rose headdress surely makes an impression.

Well, the roses are certainly stunning. But the make up seems somewhat terrifying.

Well, the roses are certainly stunning. But the make up seems somewhat terrifying.

90. How about roses on your hat?

Well, she doesn't dress too badly here. Still, I think the hat goes well with her Victorian dress.

Well, she doesn’t dress too badly here. Still, I think the hat goes well with her Victorian dress.

91. Unfortunately, these well dressed women seem to be all bone.

Though the two of them seem quite lively with each other. Love their hats.

Though the two of them seem quite lively with each other. Love their hats.

92. My, she has a very colorful Chiapas dress.

Well, it's in white unlike some of the others I featured. But the embroidery really stands out.

Well, it’s in white unlike some of the others I featured. But the embroidery really stands out.

93. When you’re in a big dress, you’ll need a big flower.

She even has a big parasol with her, too. Still, the rose really catches your eye.

She even has a big parasol with her, too. Still, the rose really catches your eye.

94. Perhaps you can go to a lighter shade of blue on some occasions.

Well, these women have made up their faces to match their outfits. At least to some extent, especially the one in the middle.

Well, these women have made up their faces to match their outfits. At least to some extent, especially the one in the middle.

95. Hope she’s not laced too tightly in that corset.

Well, she seems covered in flowers and has her hair all nice. But sexy Halloween costume, it is definitely not.

Well, she seems covered in flowers and has her hair all nice. But sexy Halloween costume, it is definitely not.

96. Sometimes you’ll just need a bowtie to snazz it up.

Seems to look more like a little Jack Skellington with hair and brighter clothes. Still, this is cute.

Seems to look more like a little Jack Skellington with hair and brighter clothes. Still, this is cute.

97. Who says you can’t have Lego people join in the celebration?

Well, Lego people must exist in Mexico. Seriously, they just got to.

Well, Lego people must exist in Mexico. Seriously, they just got to.

98. This man always dresses to kill for the Dia de los Muertos procession.

Yes, he stands proud in his Mexican outfit that probably serves no practical use to him besides special occasions. Love the black.

Yes, he stands proud in his Mexican outfit that probably serves no practical use to him besides special occasions. Love the black.

99. Make sure your face paint matches your outfit.

Well, she certainly has the roses and black lace nailed. Love it.

Well, she certainly has the roses and black lace nailed. Love it.

100. Now he’s reduced to a walking, talking skeleton.

Well, at least he's wearing the cape. But it still doesn't protect him from exposing his bones.

Well, at least he’s wearing the cape. But it still doesn’t protect him from exposing his bones.