The fragrance of Tea Olive blooming-with this Political Cycle we need a little sweetness.
/Spring, summer and fall my Tea Olive bushes bloom. They are so deliciously sweet in fragrance. Tea Olive and Gardenias are my favorites. When it’s humid outside which it was today, you can smell the fragrance literally the whole way across the yard. I didn’t realize Tea Olive is a Legendary plant from China “With a rare perfume that penetrates deep into your heart.” The plant apparently symbolizes true love and faithfulness. Who knew? After that intense, unbelievable Presidential Debate we need a little sweetness.
I didn’t even turn it on until 8:45. I had my bourbon in hand, a full belly—the TV with post-debate commentary set to record on two channels and my cell phone juiced and ready to text. Text my people with twitter comments, Jan comments and anything relevant sent to me from others. This was an event. I watch all the presidential debates but this one was Special. Because we knew it was going to be a show, and it did not disappoint!
According to Nielson 81.4 million people tuned in breaking the 1980 record of 80 million viewers for the Jimmy Carter/Ronald Reagan debate. This doesn’t include the social media numbers, Twitter, Facebook, etc. The world is changing.
This was reported by the Associated Press. As a comparison, just over 100 million viewers watch the Super bowl.
The tweets were going strong. An article by Nicholas Wells/Mark Fahey noted the top three tweets for each candidate.
For Trump: His top three
1) His comments around supporting “Stop and Frisk” something that was found unconstitutional by a Manhattan judge in 2013—There were 30,000 tweets in one minute. Most tweets rallied around Lil Chano@chancetherapper. He tweeted:
Dear God, the words law & order shouldn't strike so much fear in my heart as a law abiding citizen but I am so damn scared of Donald Trump
2) “I have a winning temperament” There were 27,000 tweets in one minute.
From now on whenever I'm having a disagreement with someone and it's not going well I'm going to say I've got a winning temperament.
3) “400 pounds” referring to who could be cyberattacking the DNC, could be Russia, China or a 400-pound person sitting on a bed. That got 26,000 tweets in one minute.
For Hillary Clinton: Her top three
1) “Prepared to be President” When Trump provoked her over her decision to stay home and prepare for the debate while he visited the inner cities. She said “you know what else I prepared for? To be President. That got 20,000 tweets in one minute.
2) “Provoked by a tweet” That got 18,500 tweets in one minute when Clinton said:
A man who can be provoked by a tweet should not have his hands anywhere near the nuclear codes. #DebateNight
3) “I think it’s real” When Clinton said that Trump thinks climate change is a Hoax perpetrated by the Chinese. That got 17,500 tweets in one minute.
Here’s what I am trying to say to quote Dr. Phil. “Words are powerful and so is knowledge.” When we make decisions about our political candidates we do so based on what they say to us. We also do so based on our own knowledge about our country, world events and issues. Then we contrast it to what they say. We also make discernments regarding how knowledgeable the candidate is overall in many categories. We struggle when on one hand we really like what someone is saying, but we can’t find a way for that person to make it true. We like the “idea” and “concept” but we don’t trust that candidate to have the capacity for fulfillment. Both sides experience this frustration. So we waffle until we don’t. Or until November 8th gets here and we must go pull that lever one way or the other. Thank goodness for deadlines. Words and knowledge matter. Capacity for fulfillment matters.
Dr. Phil ends with “Engage your brain before you put your mouth in gear. Never miss a good chance to shut up!”
I know I can certainly learn from this. I think our politicians can learn from this as well. Focus on the issues, not the insults. Insults just mean you have nothing of value, nothing constructive to say. It isn’t funny when someone says “you look old, smug, fat, tired-in fact you look ridden hard and put up wet". Those aren't compliments. Don’t we as United States Citizens have the right to know what their plans are for our country? What their personal financial situations are and what type of character they actually have? What about their history and experience makes them able to lead and to serve? I think so. That way we can make educated and wise decisions on how to cast our votes. Can’t wait for October 9th—round two.
Let’s just remember this:
“You can’t take back Stupid”
-Dr. Phil
Until next time.
Peace out.
Jan
