99 Amazing Facts

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99 Amazing Facts for People Who Like Amazing Facts

By Alvin Ward

1. In 1939, Hitler's nephew wrote an article called "Why I Hate My Uncle." He came to the U.S., served in the Navy, and settled on Long Island.

2. Furbies were banned from the National Security Agency's Maryland headquarters in 1999. It was feared the toys might repeat national security secrets.

3. Mark Twain invented a board game called Mark Twain's Memory Builder: A Game for Acquiring and Retaining All Sorts of Facts and Dates.

4. In 1991, Wayne Allwine, the voice of Mickey Mouse, married Russi Taylor—the voice of Minnie.

5. Carly Simon's dad is the Simon of Simon and Schuster. He co-founded the company.

6. When the mummy of Ramses II was sent to France in the mid-1970s, it was issued a passport. Ramses' occupation? "King (deceased)."

7. On an April day in 1930, the BBC reported, "There is no news." Instead they played piano music.

8. Johnny Cash's "A Boy Named Sue" was penned by beloved children's author Shel Silverstein.

9. Ben & Jerry learned how to make ice cream by taking a $5 correspondence course offered by Penn State. (They decided to split one course.)

10. The word "PEZ" comes from the German word for peppermint—PfeffErminZ.

11. Failed PEZ flavors include coffee, eucalyptus, menthol, and flower.

12. In the 1970s, Mattel sold a doll called "Growing Up Skipper." Her breasts grew when her arm was turned.

13. Before Sally Ride became the first American woman in space, a reporter asked, "Do you weep when things go wrong on the job?"

14. In the 1980s, Pablo Escobar's Medellin Cartel was spending $2,500 a month on rubber bands just to hold all their cash.

15. The giant inflatable rat that shows up at union protests has a name—Scabby.

16. When the computer mouse was invented, it was called the "X-Y Position Indicator for a Display System."

17. The inventor of the AK-47 has said he wishes he'd invented something to help farmers instead — "for example a lawnmower."

18. The Vatican Bank is the world's only bank that allows ATM users to perform transactions in Latin.

19. The duffel bag gets its name from the town of Duffel, Belgium, where the cloth used in the bags was originally sold.

20. James Avery ("Uncle Phil" on The Fresh Prince of Bel Air) was the voice of Shredder on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon.

21. At Fatburger, you can order a "Hypocrite"—a veggie burger topped with crispy strips of bacon.

22. When asked who owned the patent on the polio vaccine, Jonas Salk said, "Well, the people. There is no patent. Could you patent the sun?"

23. The Q in Q-tips stands for quality.

24. Editor Bennett Cerf challenged Dr. Seuss to write a book using no more than 50 different words. The result? Green Eggs and Ham.

25. Norwegian skier Odd-Bjoern Hjelmeset on why he didn't win gold at the 2010 Olympics: "I think I have seen too much porn in the last 14 days."

26. When asked why he chose the name Piggly Wiggly, founder Clarence Saunders said, "So people will ask that very question."

27. A sequel called Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian was written but never produced.

28. After an online vote in 2011, Toyota announced that the official plural of Prius was Prii.

29. In his book, Dick Cheney says his yellow lab Dave was banned from Camp David for attacking President Bush's dog Barney.

30. Lyme disease is named after the town of Lyme, Connecticut, where several cases were identified in 1975.

31. Reno is farther west than Los Angeles.

32. William Faulkner refused a dinner invitation from JFK's White House. "Why that’s a hundred miles away," he said. "That’s a long way to go just to eat."

33. In 1907, an ad campaign for Kellogg's Corn Flakes offered a free box of cereal to any woman who would wink at her grocer.

34. Why did the FBI call Ted Kaczynski "The Unabomber"? Because his early mail bombs were sent to universities (UN) & airlines (A).

35. As part of David Hasselhoff's divorce settlement, he kept possession of the nickname "Hoff" and the catchphrase "Don't Hassle the Hoff."

36. "Jay" used to be slang for "foolish person." So when a pedestrian ignored street signs, he was referred to as a "jaywalker."

37. Duncan Hines was a real person. He was a popular restaurant critic who also wrote a book of hotel recommendations.

38. The only number whose letters are in alphabetical order is 40 (f-o-r-t-y).

39. Obsessive nose picking is called rhinotillexomania.

40. "Silver Bells" was called "Tinkle Bells" until co-composer Jay Livingston’s wife told him "tinkle" had another meaning.

41. Michael Jackson's 1988 autobiography Moonwalk was edited by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis.

42. How did Curious George get to America? He was captured in Africa by The Man With the Yellow Hat — with his yellow hat.

43. In the early stage version of The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy’s faithful companion Toto was replaced by a cow named Imogene.

44. Tobias Fünke's "nevernude" condition on Arrested Development is real. It's called "gymnophobia" — the fear of nude bodies.

45. Hawaiian Punch was originally developed as a tropical flavored ice cream topping.

46. Andy's evil neighbor Sid from Toy Story returns briefly as the garbage man in Toy Story 3.

47. Jacuzzi is a brand name. You can also buy Jacuzzi toilets and mattresses.

48. During a 2004 episode of Sesame Street, Cookie Monster said that before he started eating cookies, his name was Sid.

49. Roger Ebert and Oprah Winfrey went on a couple dates in the mid-1980s. It was Roger who convinced her to syndicate her talk show.

50. Fredric Baur invented the Pringles can. When he passed away in 2008, his ashes were buried in one.

51. When he appeared on Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!, Bill Clinton correctly answered three questions about My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic.

52. The archerfish knocks its insect prey out of over-hanging branches with a stream of spit.

53. There really was a Captain Morgan. He was a Welsh pirate who later became the lieutenant governor of Jamaica.

54. In 1961, Martha Stewart was selected as one of Glamour magazine;s "Ten Best-Dressed College Girls."

55. Alaska is the only state that can be typed on one row of keys. (Go ahead and try typing the other 49 states. We'll wait.)

56. At the 1905 wedding of Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, President Teddy Roosevelt gave away the bride.

57. Sorry, parents. According to NASA's FAQ page, "There are no plans at this time to send children into space."

58. The German word kummerspeck means excess weight gained from emotional overeating. Literally, grief bacon.

59. The sum of all the numbers on a roulette wheel is 666.

60. Only one McDonald's in the world has turquoise arches. Government officials in Sedona, Arizona, thought the yellow would look bad with the natural red rock of the city.

61. Brenda Lee was only 13 when she recorded "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree."

62. Asperger syndrome is named for Austrian pediatrician Hans Asperger, who described it in 1944. He called his patients "Little Professors."

63. The term "lawn mullet" refers to a neatly manicured front yard with an unmowed mess in the back.

64. After OutKast sang "Shake it like a Polaroid picture," Polaroid released this statement: "Shaking or waving can actually damage the image."

65. In Peanuts in 1968, Snoopy trained to become a champion arm-wrestler. In the end, he was disqualified for not having thumbs.

66. In France, the Ashton Kutcher/Natalie Portman movie No Strings Attached was called Sex Friends.

67. The famous "Heisman pose" is based on Ed Smith, a former NYU running back who modeled for the trophy’s sculptor in 1934.

68. For $45, the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing will sell you a 5-lb bag with $10,000 worth of shredded U.S. currency.

69. Before going with Blue Devils, Duke considered the nicknames Blue Eagles, Royal Blazes, Blue Warriors and Polar Bears.

70. At an NOAA conference in 1972, Roxcy Bolton proposed naming hurricanes after Senators instead of women. She also preferred "him-i-canes."

71. For one day in 1998, Topeka, Kansas, renamed itself "ToPikachu" to mark Pokemon's U.S. debut.

72. Before settling on the Seven Dwarfs we know today, Disney also considered Chesty, Tubby, Burpy, Deafy, Hickey, Wheezy, and Awful.

73. The Dictionary of American Slang defines "happy cabbage" as money to be spent "on entertainment or other self-satisfying things."

74. Herbert Hoover was Stanford's football team manager. At the first Stanford-Cal game in 1892, he forgot to bring the ball.

75. The unkempt Shaggy of Scooby-Doo fame has a rather proper real name—Norville Rogers.

76. If you open your eyes in a pitch-black room, the color you'll see is called 'eigengrau.'

77. In 1965, a Senate subcommittee predicted that by 2000, Americans would only be working 20 hours a week with seven weeks vacation.

78. There are roughly 70 ingredients in the McRib.

79. A baby can cost new parents 750 hours of sleep in the first year.

80. Winston Churchill's mother was born in Brooklyn.

81. Brazil couldn't afford to send its athletes to the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles. So they loaded their ship with coffee and sold it along the way.

82. Before Stephen Hillenburg created SpongeBob SquarePants, he taught marine biology.

83. New Mexico State's first graduating class in 1893 had only one student—and he was shot and killed before graduation.

84. George Washington insisted his continental army be permitted a quart of beer as part of their daily rations.

85. When Canada's Northwest Territories considered renaming itself in the 1990s, one name that gained support was "Bob."

86. President Nixon was speaking at Disney World when he famously declared, "I am not a crook."

87. In a study by the Smell & Taste Research Foundation, the scent women found most arousing was Good & Plenty candy mixed with cucumber.

88. In 1958, Larry King smashed into John F. Kennedy's car. JFK said he’d forget the whole thing if King promised to vote for him when he ran for president.

89. Before she wrote The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins was a writer for Clarissa Explains it All.

90. The male giraffe determines a female's fertility by tasting her urine. If it passes the test, the courtship continues.

91. Hell-o? Hell no! In 1997, Kleberg County in Texas designated "Heaven-o" as its official new phone greeting.

92. Jim Cummings is the voice of Winnie the Pooh. He calls sick kids in hospitals and chats with them in character.

93. The first webcam watched a coffee pot. It allowed researchers at Cambridge to monitor the coffee situation without leaving their desks.

94. In 1979, Japan offered new British PM Margaret Thatcher 20 "karate ladies" for protection at an economic summit. She declined.

95. The Pittsburgh Penguins made Mister Rogers an honorary captain in 1991.

96. In a 1917 letter to Winston Churchill, Admiral John Fisher used the phrase "O.M.G."

97. Truman Show Delusion is a mental condition marked by a patient's belief that he or she is the star of an imaginary reality show.

98. During the first Super Bowl in 1967, NBC was still in commercial when the second half kicked off. Officials asked the Packers to kick off again.

99. Sea otters hold hands when they sleep so they don't drift apart.

http://mentalfloss.com/us/go/67145

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35 Tips to Be an Amazing Employee

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35 habits that will make you irreplaceable at work

by Kevin Daum

An employee doesn't have to be a top salesperson to bring exponential value to a company.

Amazing employees stand out from the crowd in many other ways. Simply put, their contribution far outweighs their cost, regardless of their expense.

Many employers today are willing to pay top dollar for the right people, but often they wouldn't recognize those "A" players, because they aren't looking for the right traits or they are too self-absorbed to know a good thing when they have it.

Well, here is a list of traits that can easily be observed for solid company ROI [Return on Investment].

If you are an employee, strive to make each of these a habit. If you are an employer, appreciate and reward the behavior.

1. They don't wait to be asked.

Many employers are accustomed to just telling people what to do. Employees create value when they anticipate what is needed and get it done without any prompting.

2. They attack the disease, not the symptoms.

So much company time goes to firefighting on a reactive basis. Employees create value when they assess the root cause of the problems and make systemic change that eliminates the problems completely.

3. They are the pressure release, not the pressure builder.

Stress is natural in the workplace, and uptight people can feed off each other. Employees create value when they help people decompress so they can improve productivity.

4. They plan the work and work the plan.

Haphazard thinking and action usually delivers mediocre results. Employees create value when they add effective structure and drive the team forward with efficiency.

5. They do their homework.

Idea generation is useful, but not every suggestion is beneficial or appropriate. The wrong proposal can cause distraction or even derail the team. Employees create value when they research ideas before implementation so that little effort is wasted on the unachievable.

6. They look to be smarter than the boss.

People are never infallible, and even leaders need to learn. Employees create value when they bring knowledge to the table that fills the boss's blind spots.

7. They view the path five steps ahead.

Many workers can barely see the tasks right in front of their face. Employees create value when they are looking out beyond step one and two. Often they will solve issues before they even come close to occurring.

8. They act with the big picture in mind.

People who only work in their own isolation often cause challenges for those in other parts of the company. Employees create value when they work to comprehend how their efforts impact the whole so they can adjust accordingly.

9. They build bridges, not bombs.

There are plenty of people looking to sabotage others while trying to get ahead. Employees create value when they encourage camaraderie and an environment where a rising tide lifts all boats.

10. They cross-train themselves and others.

A company with specified individualists is in constant danger of losing expertise or capability. Employees create value when they increase redundancy of process and talent.

11. They create a circle of influence.

A growing company needs leaders. Employees create value when they can inspire others to make things happen both internally and externally.

12. They work ahead of the curve.

The future is always moving closer, and signs of what's to come are always present. Employees create value when they are future curious and consider what's to come in their actions and thinking.

13. They proactively and effectively communicate.

Being ambiguous or leaving people hanging contributes to a frustrating work environment. Employees create value when they instigate consistent and complete communication that keeps everyone informed.

14. They know when to lead and how to follow.

A leader can't lead all the time if others are going to grow. Employees create value when they encourage others to step up and support them as the enthusiastic second in command.

15. They fight for what's right and commit to the achievable.

People who push without basis can eat time and cause consternation. Employees create value when they stand up for their beliefs and take a pragmatic view before going all in.

16. They make the office a great place to work.

People who are negative bring down morale and demotivate. Employees create value when they help create a positive environment that others can't wait to join.

17. They integrate time for learning and working on the company.

There is more to growth than just the daily grind. Employees create value when they grow themselves in ways that can help advance the company toward lofty objectives.

18. They motivate their co-workers and superiors.

People need encouragement, no matter their position. Employees create value when they make everyone feel good about what they do and why they do it.

19. They instigate admiration for the company.

One bad representative of the company reflects on the whole crew. Employees create value when they provide a positive image that reflects well on everyone else.

20. They make others look amazing.

A showoff can alienate the whole team, creating frustration and rancor. Employees create value when they share credit with others on the team, elevating everyone's happiness and confidence.

21. They create pleasant surprises everyday.

Any work environment can become dull and unimaginative. Employees create value when they stimulate energy and creativity in the workplace.

22. They are problem solvers, not whiners.

Constant complaining runs rampant in the business world. Employees create value when they brush aside the complaints and help people focus on the resolution.

23. They clean up messes.

Even the most productive people can sometimes move so fast the details are left undone. Employees create value when they make sure the company is safe, compliant, and protected from carelessness.

24. They maintain a happy home, at home.

Home life can easily intrude on the workplace, making others uncomfortable and creating distraction. Employees create value when they establish boundaries and set an example of work-life balance so others can learn from their best practices.

25. They turn troublemakers into rainmakers.

There will always be problem people in business. Employees create value when they can turn cynics into advocates and fear mongers into champions.

26. They resolve unhealthy conflict.

The workplace is stressful, and often people channel that stress onto others. Employees create value when they can diffuse tense situations and help people return to civility.

27. They engage in healthy conflict.

A company without strong debate is bound to head over a cliff or be passed by eventually. Employees create value when they bring important issues to the table, even when against the popular view.

28. They make most things seem easy, especially when they are not.

Work today is more involved then ever before. Employees create value when they manage tasks seamlessly, inspiring others to raise their performance as well.

29. They don't just do, they teach.

Companies need people who can help others grow. Employees create value when they improve the work force and delegate, giving others the opportunity to gain proficiency and confidence.

30. They manage obstacles as if they were opportunities.

Bumps in the road are bound to happen. Employees create value when they take on those issues with positivity and excitement.

31. They expand everyone's network of influence.

A company doesn't grow by accident, and the CEO can't be the only one to get the good word out. Employees create value when they promote the company as evangelists, generating opportunities at every turn.

32. They influence often, and manipulate when necessary.

Sitting in a corner and grinding out tasks is the minimum work for pay. Employees create value when they encourage people to reach their potential and help them overcome their internal demons.

33. They leave a trail of manageable process behind.

Often companies move so fast they are constantly reinventing the wheel. Employees create value when they document what works and encourage replication.

34. They attract other valuable employees.

Valuable employees are hard to find, but they tend to know each other. Employees create value when they act as a beacon for others looking to be exemplary.

35. They embody the company's core values.

A company misaligned is a company adrift and unlikely to succeed long term. Employees create value when they demonstrate to others the behavior and attitudes that will lead everyone to success. 

http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-be-valuable-at-work-2015-7

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Surfing the Waves on a Motorcycle

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From the youtube blurb:

“In the summer of 2015, Australian motorbike stunt rider Robbie Maddison realized a vision that was three years in the making.

“Pipe Dream” by DC Shoes takes viewers to the stunning island of Tahiti where Maddison successfully rode the island’s legendary waves on a motorcycle.”

Recommend full screen at minimum 1080p quality (higher is available) by clicking the gear on the lower right of the youtube screen:

https://youtu.be/lDi9uFcD7XI

Maddison's customized motorcycle

[pay no attention to the black box]

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The Real Danger Behind The French Connection’s Famous Car Chase

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From Road & Track

 

"The French Connection" car chase was as dangerous as it looked

Renegade filmmakers, no city permits, and at least one crash with an unsuspecting driver

1971's The French Connection features one of the most harrowing car chases in cinema history: Detective Jimmy Doyle (Gene Hackman) hurtling down crowded NYC streets in a brown Pontiac to catch a bad guy who's commandeered an elevated subway train. It's a lurid orgy of screeching tires, darting traffic, and considerable impacts–and as Gothamist explains, much of it was shot on busy city streets with no traffic control, putting unsuspecting drivers and pedestrians literally in the center of the deadly high-speed action.

From IMDB's trivia page on the Academy Award-winning movie:

The car chase was filmed without obtaining the proper permits from the city. Members of the NYPD's tactical force helped control traffic. But most of the control was achieved by the assistant directors with the help of off-duty NYPD officers, many of whom had been involved in the actual case. The assistant directors, under the supervision of Terence A. Donnelly, cleared traffic for approximately five blocks in each direction. Permission was given to literally control the traffic signals on those streets where they ran the chase car. 

Even so, in many instances, they illegally continued the chase into sections with no traffic control, where they actually had to evade real traffic and pedestrians. Many of the (near) collisions in the movie were therefore real and not planned (with the exception of the near-miss of the lady with the baby carriage, which was carefully rehearsed). 

A flashing police light was placed on top of the car to warn bystanders. A camera was mounted on the car's bumper for the shots from the car's point-of-view. Hackman did some of the driving but the extremely dangerous stunts were performed by Bill Hickman, with Friedkin filming from the backseat. Friedkin operated the camera himself because the other camera operators were married with children and he was not.

And that sudden, jarring crash with a crossing white Ford? There's a reason it looks so spontaneous: The other driver was a local who stumbled unbeknownst into the renegade stunt shoot that was taking place on an uncleared public road, according to IMDB:

The car crash during the chase sequence, at the intersection of Stillwell Ave. and 86th St., was unplanned and was included because of its realism. The man whose car was hit had just left his house a few blocks from the intersection to go to work and was unaware that a car chase was being filmed. The producers later paid the bill for the repairs to his car.

Catch it at 3:27 here*:

[* Article says 2:41 as it features a shorter youtube version of the chase.]

https://vimeo.com/64163069

This five-minute car chase is, of course, a thriller to watch, thanks in no small part to the stunt driving of Bill Hickman, who piloted the black Dodge Charger that dueled with Steve McQueen in Bullitt. 

But filming it this way was astoundingly reckless, especially in the days of no crumple zones, metal dashboards, and minimal seatbelts. That's to say nothing of the pedestrians. With the perspective of time, the filmmakers now seem to grasp that fact, though some renegade swagger still shows through in the retelling of the tale.

With that said, it's still a phenomenal movie. The legend of its filming will never be repeated by big-budget filmmakers, though the reckless stupidity of rogue GoPro-wielding YouTube wannabes can never be underestimated.

And now that we've had a good scoff, aren't you in the mood to rewatch this classic? Good news: It's just been added to Netflix streaming

http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/entertainment/videos/a24683/the-french-connection-chase-was-shot-on-uncleared-public-streets/

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Donald Trumping the Republicans

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President Donald Trump? Just Say No

By Peter Wehner | July 8, 2015

Donald Trump is a force in the Republican presidential race. Two recent polls show him running second to Jeb Bush nationally. He’s also polling second in Iowa and New Hampshire. And his pronouncements are commanding attention, especially on Fox News, where he’s a popular presence.

Some of this is attributable to the fact that Mr. Trump is a genius at drawing the spotlight to himself. He thrives on social media. Democrats and the press are only too happy to highlight Mr. Trump’s stream of invective and outrageous utterances, including his claim that Mexico is purposely sending us drug dealers, rapists and carriers of infectious diseases.

To their credit, several Republican presidential candidates, including Rick Perry, Marco Rubio and Mr. Bush, have criticized Mr. Trump. Yet it’s also true that Mr. Trump has garnered respect from some of his fellow Republicans. According to Ted Cruz, Mr. Trump is “bold,” “brash” and “speaks the truth.” Rick Santorum likes it that he’s focused on “a very important issue for American workers and particularly, legal immigrants in this country.” An editorial in The Weekly Standard says Republicans can benefit from “a little touch of Trump” in rhetoric, attitude and bearing. According to Rush Limbaugh, Mr. Trump’s statements will “resonate” with many Americans.

They may. But they shouldn’t.

For starters, Mr. Trump, though he claims to be a conservative, is nothing of the sort. He’s barely even a Republican. For most of the last decade, he was a registered Democrat. It wasn’t that long ago that most of his political contributions went to Democrats, including Senators Harry Reid, Chuck Schumer and Hillary Clinton. Before he discovered his Republican roots, Mr. Trump favored a single-payer health care system and proposed a large “net worth tax” on wealthy individuals. He once declared himself “strongly pro-choice” and favored drug legalization. He is a vehement protectionist. Earlier this year he even accused Republicans running for president of “attacking” Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. Why would conservatives find him the least bit appealing?

Mr. Trump has no coherent governing philosophy. All he has is an attitude, and a crude one at that. As his announcement speech and subsequent statements have made clear, his command of the issues is superficial, his presentation often rambling and demagogic.

At the heart of Donald Trump’s candidacy is folie de grandeur. Mr. Trump will build a fence on the southern border — and get Mexico to pay for it. He’s got a “foolproof” plan to defeat the Islamic State “very quickly,” but when asked what it is, he told Fox’s Greta Van Susteren, “I’m not gonna tell you what it is tonight.” He’ll have a “great relationship” with Vladimir V. Putin while also keeping Iran from getting a nuclear weapon. His policy views on China consist mostly of bluster (“Oh, would China be in trouble. The poor Chinese.”). Mr. Trump is eager to tell us that “there’s nobody bigger and better at the military than I am.” He also gets things done “better than anybody.” And he will be “the greatest jobs president that God ever created.”

Mr. Trump thinks he’ll snap his fingers and everyone from his political opponents to foreign nations will bend to his will. He is a man operating on his own fantasy island.

There’s also the matter of Mr. Trump’s erratic and conspiratorial temperament. He believes “massive vaccinations” cause autism (“the doctors lied”). He was the most prominent person in America pushing the theory that President Obama — a “psycho!” and “maybe” a Muslim — might not be a natural-born American citizen. And he delights in making malicious statements. He’s absolutely sure, for example, that Mexicans crossing our southern border are drug dealers and rapists, but he can only “assume” there are “some good people” crossing the border as well. (Mr. Trump would later say that “many fabulous people come in from Mexico” and “I get along great with Mexico. I get along great.” Of course he does.)

As for political discourse, Mr. Trump is insulting and witless. His critics are “losers,” “jerks” and “dummies.” These kinds of taunts are usually found in schoolyards rather than presidential campaigns. But a presidential campaign is right where he is.

There’s not much that can be done about that. If conservatives rally to defend Mr. Trump on the grounds that he’s “refreshing” and has “passion,” that he’s “anti-establishment” and irritates liberals, they will do considerable damage to their movement and to the Republican Party. Mr. Trump is a pernicious figure on the American political landscape. He can’t be wished away. Which means the people who have to confront and expose him are conservatives. We’re the ones who have the most to lose from a successful Trump candidacy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/08/opinion/peter-wehner-president-donald-trump-just-say-no.html?emc=edit_th_20150708&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=65886944

^^^

The Wasted Gift of Donald Trump

By Frank Bruni | July 8, 2015

I keep reading that Donald Trump is wrecking the Republican Party. I keep hearing that he’s a threat to the fortunes of every other Republican presidential candidate, because he sullies the brand and puts them in an impossible position.

What bunk. The truth is that he’s an opportunity for them as golden as the namesake nameplates on his phallic towers, if only they would seize it.

The brand was plenty sullied before he lent his huff and his hair to the task. And by giving his Republican rivals a perfect foil, he also gives them a perfect chance to rehabilitate and redeem the party.

As it stands now, he’s using them.

If they had any guts, they could use him.

They could piggyback on the outsize attention that he receives, answering his unhinged tweets and idiotic utterances with something sane and smart, knowing that it, too, would get prominent notice.

They could define themselves in the starkest possible contrast to him, calling him out as the bully and bigot that he is. Then he wouldn’t own the story, because the narrative would be about cooler heads and kinder hearts in the party staring down one of its most needlessly divisive ambassadors and saying: Enough. No more. We’re serious people at the limit of our patience for provocateurs.

There was a hint of this last weekend, when Jeb Bush, whose wife is Mexican-American, lashed out at Trump’s broad-brush comments about Mexican immigrants crossing into America with an agenda of drugs and rape.

Bush labeled those remarks “extraordinarily ugly” and “way out of the mainstream” and said that there’s “no tolerance” for them.

But he didn’t exactly volunteer that assessment. It came in response to a reporter’s question, and it came more than two weeks after Trump’s offense.

Neither he nor Marco Rubio exhibited any hurry in distancing themselves from Trump, though both of them trumpet their personal biographies as proof that they’re sensitive to Latino immigrants.

On Fox Business on Tuesday, Rubio gave a pathetic master class in cowardly evasion, stammering his way though an interview in which he was asked repeatedly for an opinion about Trump. You would have thought that he was being pressed for malicious gossip about the Easter bunny.

He never did manage to upbraid Trump, though he was careful to mention the “legitimate issue” of border security that Trump had raised.

As in 2012, Republicans can’t summon the courage to take on the dark heroes of the party’s lunatic fringe. As in 2012, this could cost them dearly.

The Charleston, S.C., church massacre and subsequent debate over the Confederate flag afforded them an ideal moment to talk with passion and poetry about racial healing.

But the leading contenders reacted in fashions either sluggish, terse, muffled or all three. They showed more interest in fleeing the subject than in grabbing profitable hold of it.

Trump’s rant about immigrants, which he has since amplified, was another squandered moment.

Chris Christie could have made good on his boasts about always telling it like it is and being unconstrained by politesse. Instead he made clear that he liked Trump and considered him a friend. That soft crunching sound you heard was the supposedly hard-charging New Jersey governor walking on eggshells.

Rand Paul claims the desire and ability to expand the party’s reach to more minorities. So where’s his takedown of Trump?

Bush has said that a politician must be willing to lose the party’s nomination in order to win the general election, but that philosophy can’t end with his allegiance to the Common Core. It has to include an unblinking acknowledgment of his party’s craziness whenever and wherever it flares.

Trump’s hold on voters stems largely from his lack of any filter and from his directness, traits that they don’t see in establishment candidates. So his fellow Republicans’ filtered, indirect approach to him just gives him more power.

And while he should be irrelevant, he’s becoming ever more relevant, because he’s exposing their timidity and caution.

They’re wrong to try to ignore him, because the media won’t do that and because he’s probably going to qualify for the debates.

Looking ahead to the first of them, the conservative pundit George Will bought into the notion of Trump as an ineradicable pest who “says something hideously inflammatory, which is all he knows how to say, and then what do the other nine people onstage do?”

Oh, please. That’s hardly an existential crisis. It’s a prompt for an overdue smidgen of valor.

Without any hesitation, they tell him that he’s a disgrace. Without any hedging, they tell him that he’s absurd.

It’s the truth. And for the Republican Party, it might just be transformative.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/08/opinion/frank-bruni-the-wasted-gift-of-donald-trump.html?emc=edit_th_20150708&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=65886944

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Florence’s Modern Gladiators - Calcio Storico

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From the Vimeo blurb:

“Calcio Storico is a game that has been played in Firenze, Italia for centuries. Four teams; RED, WHITE, BLUE and GREEN, representing different parts of the city; punch, kick, run and scrape their way toward victory in a round robin tournament.

A mix, of rugby, soccer, american football, boxing, MMA and Greco Roman wrestling, CALCIO STORICO FIORENTINO is by for the most exciting sporting event I have ever witnessed live.”

MODERN GLADIATORS - CALCIO STORICO from David Battistella on Vimeo.

https://vimeo.com/25512336

https://youtu.be/VVJEvtkFKBc

From the NY Times: A Most Dangerous Game

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/01/sports/the-most-dangerous-game.html?emc=edit_th_20150702&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=65886944

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2013 Lindy Hop Finals

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https://youtu.be/v9xxeWRxSbA

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