A sign attached to a vending machine accurately describes the emotional state of many Americans

I fear that this sign - stuck to the front of a vending machine - perfectly encapsulates how many Americans are feeling these days. 

The Education Secretary is knowingly endangering children

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos opposed Donald Trump's reversal of Obama's transgender restroom policy because she worried that the reversal would hurt and potentially endanger children in schools.

When faced with the choice of supporting Trump's reversal of the policy (which he promised not to do during the campaign) or resign, DeVos opted support the policy and keep her job.

To be clear: Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has knowingly placed children in danger in order to save her job.

The glory and might of a good old fashioned pillow fight

Back in the early 1990's, when I was living in Attleboro, MA with my best friend, Bengi, in a home we affectionately referred to as The Heavy Metal Playhouse, we engaged in some of the most epic pillow fights in history.

After sunset, the shades would be pulled, the lights turned out, and anywhere from four to eight of us would use pillows, sofa cushions, and even stuffed animals to wallop one another in the near-pitch dark. The sofa cushions has zippers, so they would occasionally leave scratches across faces, arms, and legs, but we wore those scratches as badges of honor.

Couches would be tipped over to provide cover against frontal assaults. Temporary alliances would form out of desperate necessity. Smaller pillows would be fired as projectile weapons across the room. Occasionally a guy and girl would disappear into a corner to make out until discovered by some pillow-wielding attacker who would quickly break them up.

These pillow fights could go on for hours. They were glorious.   

I feel like we could all benefit from a few more pillow fights in our lives.

Of course, not every pillow fight ends well: 

• In 1921, the New York Tribune reported that a small boy named Charles Hunton fell from his six-floor winder after having a pillow fight with his brother Arthur. Although Charles was knocked unconscious, a hospital examination found no broken bones or internal injuries. When asked how he was feeling, the boy nonchalantly said he was “fine” and asked for some ice cream.
• New York police responded to a hospital riot in 1953, but found something more unusual: The New York Herald reported that rival wings of a narcotics ward at Riverside Hospital erupted into an intense pillow fight. Seventy-two men engaged in the melee before armed police came to shut it down. The brawl started at around 10 p.m., but was quelled within 45 minutes. 
• Leave it to the police to ruin yet another good pillow fight. In 2009, a public pillow fight planned at Campus Martius Park was shut down before it even began. Detroit Free Press said police arrived at the scene and sent potential fighters home. "We don't have a problem with consenting adults hitting each other with pillows, but the issue becomes cleanup," Detroit Spokesperson James Tate said. 

Men who grumble about jeans and sweaters are stupid.

Back in December I wrote a piece about the stupidity of forbidding jeans in the workplace.

Just a couple days ago, I wrote a piece about the stupidity of bemoaning casual dress in America.

Yesterday a reader sent me this story about North Dakota's Governor Doug Burgum being asked to leave the North Dakota Senate floor for wearing jeans.

Burgum is a Republican. 

Burgum's preference for jeans and sweaters has reportedly spurred much grumbling at the Capitol among many male lawmakers who wear a suit and tie when the Legislature is in session.

Can you imagine? The state is facing a one billion dollar budget deficit - the largest in the country - and these lawmakers are grumbling about what about the clothing that the governor of the state is wearing.

Middle school nonsense. That's what this is. Wrapping a floral noose around your neck and throwing a needless coat over your shirt doesn't make you a better leader. 

It simply makes you a better conformer.

Trump called the media "the enemy of the American people." This could not be further from the truth.

Donald Trump's assault on the press took a new and ominous step yesterday when he called the press the "enemy of the American people." At a rally in Florida, he misquoted Thomas Jefferson in an effort to defend his position, a fact brought to light by journalists. 

The Jeffersonian quote that Trump should've used was this:

"The only security of all is in a free press." - Thomas Jefferson

He might've also cited the words of South African President Nelson Mandela:

"A critical, independent and investigative press is the lifeblood of any democracy."

I understand why Trump is attempting to turn the American people against the media. In just his third week in office, journalists revealed that National Security Advisor Mike Flynn had lied to the Vice President and the American people about his discussions with Russia prior to the inauguration - lies that Trump knew about for at least two weeks and did nothing about except fire the one person (Sally Yates) who warned him about Flynn's lies and his possible exposure to blackmail as a result. 

This led to the eventual firing of Flynn - something Trump obviously wanted to avoid but needed to happen for the safety and security of the country.

The truth can be inconvenient, particularly when you are attempting to cover up illegalities in your administration. 

Thankfully, Americans are supporting the media in numbers greater than ever before. Increases in subscriptions and viewership across television and newspapers is astounding:

The New York Times - a favorite target of the President - is enjoying record numbers of digital subscriptions, and their stock is at a 52 week high.  

The media is not and never has been the enemy of the American people. The media is comprised of men and women who seek the truth on a daily basis, oftentimes risking their lives in the process.

Journalism giants like Woodward and Bernstein saved our country from a tyrant (who also referred to the press as an enemy). Trailblazing journalists like Nellie Bly changed the way mental health institutions are run today.

And then there are the thousands of journalists who have been kidnapped, tortured, murdered, beheaded, and otherwise killed in the line of duty.

1230 since 1992 alone.

Here are the faces of just a few of the men and women who have given their lives in pursuit of the truth in the last few years. A President who was granted five highly questionable military deferments during Vietnam has no right referring to our press as the enemy of the American people.

Journalists are all that stands between propaganda and truth. They are underpaid, under-appreciated, oftentimes unsung heroes of the American people.

We must stand beside them in times like these.   

My daughter embraces respectful dissent and nonconformity. Even in the face of Trump.

My eight year-old daughter, Clara, is no fan of Donald Trump. Ever since she saw a clip of him speaking poorly to Megyn Kelly on CBS Sunday Morning months ago (it seems like years ago), she has despised the man. 

Nothing since then has convinced her otherwise. Understandably so.

Still, when confronted with a weekly reader at her school featuring a piece on Trump's inauguration, she said, "Most of the kids in my class scratched his face off the cover of the magazine because they all hate him, too. But I didn't. I wanted to be respectful even though I really don't like him." 

Had Clara scratched his face off the magazine. I would not have complained. I may have even cheered the decision. 

Still, I was proud of her. I appreciated her surprisingly nuanced understanding of respectful dissent.

Her little brother, by comparison, is fond of saying that Donald Trump belongs in a trashcan.

A lot less nuance. 

Also, whenever my daughter takes the side of nonconformity, it warms her Daddy's heart. It's not always the path of least resistance (as I well know), but I believe it's the path to inner strength and enlightenment. 

Trumpian typos abound - and frighten me to death

ALL OF THIS JUST ON SUNDAY:

The US Department of Education published a tweet that spelled W.E.B. Du Bois's name incorrectly. That error stood for four hours before it was finally corrected. The Department of Education then apologized, with another typo:

“Our deepest apologizes for the earlier typo..."

Great start for Betsy DeVos. Or DuVos. Or DeVes.  

A couple hours later, the Republican Party published a tweet that quoted Abraham Lincoln on his birthday, except that it wasn't something Abraham Lincoln ever said. 

In fact, the quote probably originates from the 1940s. As the website Quote Investigator notes, a version of the quote was probably first uttered by a medical doctor named Edward J. Stieglitz, quoted in the Chicago Tribune in 1947.

To top it all off, the official inaugural photo of Donald Trump, on sale now at the Library of Congress, also has a typo in its one and only sentence:

Earlier in the week, The Trump Administration gave the press a typo-riddled lists of terrorist attacks that they claimed were not covered enough by the press.

Kellyanne Conaway's Bowling Green Massacre (a story that she has repeated multiple times until she was caught) was not on this list, but it received ample coverage nonetheless. Rightfully so. 

I know. I know. I'm an elitist for thinking that our government might have some spell checking apparatus in place and we might expect a modicum of professionalism from our leaders, but it doesn't look good and makes me worry about other items requiring precision. 

Say... the value of the dollar. The rate of inflation. Interest rates. The location to drop a bomb on a terrorist. The nuclear codes. 

The Lincoln Memorial. In blocks.

Remember when Donald Trump said that it was “very seldom” for incoming U.S. presidents to celebrate their inaugurations at the Lincoln Memorial, even though both of his predecessors had hosted far larger and more well attended inaugural events at the Lincoln Memorial?

Those were the good old days, before Trump spent a week lying about the size of his disappointing inauguration crowds, blocked immigrants and visa holders from seven majority-Muslim countries, called his decision "a ban" and then became angry at the media for calling it a ban, began the steps for ending Obamacare with nothing at all to replace it, and spoke about Frederick Douglass as if he were still alive.

It's remarkable how much a person can do in just a couple weeks. 

Back then, before the disaster of the last two weeks, Clara asked me questions about the Lincoln Memorial. We looked at some photos. Apparently she did some more looking on her own, and yesterday, she built this from memory.

The Lincoln Memorial. In blocks.

Her only regret: "I couldn't make the 50 steps that I know it has. I just didn't have the right blocks."

9 Specific Steps to Standing Against Donald Trump

1. Always remember and constantly remind others that Donald Trump became President by losing the popular vote and winning the Electoral College by the fourth slimmest margin in American history. About 25% of Americans voted him into office. And he managed this victory with help from the Russians, who decided that he was their preferred candidate. 

This is important because Trump has been dominating the headlines day after day and will continue to do so. Add to this a Republican Congress and it's easy to believe that you are in the minority and that there is little hope of turning America back on a progressive path. None of this is true. You must remember this and (more importantly) remind others of this whenever possible. People are struggling and need hope. These facts offer a desperately needed dose of perspective.

2. Do not insult Trump voters or supporters. Avoid name calling at all costs. Remember what Michelle Obama advised us to do:

When they go low, we go high.

Insulting Trump supporters only serves to divide us further, and this is not good. It's what Donald Trump wants. It's easier for him to govern when America is divided. Insult Donald Trump all you want, but respect your fellow Americans. They have made a terrible and dangerous choice, but there may come a day when they will begin to question Donald Trump and his decisions. On that day, you want to be available to them absent any former hostility or malice.   

3. Do not allow Donald Trump or his supporters to steal love of country away from us. Hold on tightly to words like "patriotism." Do not allow them to make the American flag or the steadfast support of our military their own. Assert your love for flag and country, your support of our servicemen and women, and your patriotic ideals whenever possible. Bring American flags to marches and rallies. Shake the hands of veterans and those currently serving in our military. Call yourself a patriot. Donald Trump wants to paint his opponents as subversive, weak, and un-American. We must make it clear that we love our country just as much as any other American.    

4. No matter what Trump does in the coming days and months, remember these things that he is desperate for us to forget:

1. Donald Trump has not released his tax returns despite repeated promises that he would, as every other President has done for the last 40 years. Regardless of what he says, more than 75% of Americans (including more than half of Republicans) still want him to do so. His refusal to release his tax returns in the face of these staggering numbers indicates that he is hiding something embarrassing and potentially damaging. We must not stop reminding people of this campaign promise not kept.
2. Donald Trump is a sex offender or a person who believes that pretending to be a sex offender is an effective means of making other men like him. This is embarrassing for Trump and cannot be forgotten. Men do not speak like Donald Trump did on that Access Hollywood recording, regardless of what he would have you believe. Remind people of this incident. Do not allow it to be pushed into the past.
3. Donald Trump established a fake university that stole millions from Americans. As a result, he was forced to pay a multi-million dollar settlement. He tried like hell to hide this settlement by announcing it on a Friday night in the midst of the whirlwind of other news. Don't allow this to happen.
4. Donald Trump won the election with the help of the Russians who decided that he was their preferred candidate. This is no longer speculation. Trump himself has acknowledged it. Never let him forget it.  
5. Donald Trump failed to create a blind trust or divest in his business interests as promised and as every other President has done before him. 

5. Support legitimate news sources like the New York Times, the Washington Post, Slate, and more. One of Donald Trump's most dangerous acts has been to undermine faith in legitimate media outlets that threaten to expose him for who he truly is. Thankfully, Americans have responded by subscribing to these legitimate news sources in record numbers. We must continue to support these journalists. They are the people who will investigate Trump and hold him accountable at every turn. Trump undermines the press because he is afraid of them. He has much to hide. 

6. Limit your time spent on social media. It is too easy to become consumed with politics while staring at Facebook and Twitter. Your health is too important to sacrifice it to the endless stream of posts and tweets. You have the time you need to do the things that will make you happy: exercise, meditate, play with your kids, dance in your underwear, or read a good book. You're just spending it on social media. Assign yourself a limit and then get the hell off. 

7. Call your Congresspeople. Call them often. Start by putting the names and numbers of your state Senators and Representative into your phone. Make it simple to call them, and then call often. You'll find yourself speaking to a staffer who is professional, attentive, and genuinely cares about what you have to say. Phone calls mean more to members of Congress than emails, letters, tweets, or Facebook posts.

8. Give credit where credit is due. For example, Trump agreed to extend Obama's 2014 executive order protecting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people who work for federal contractors. He did so quietly, at 7:00 AM on a Tuesday, and never tweeted a word about it, but it's still a good decision. You cannot establish credibility if you aren't willing to recognize good decisions on Trump's part. The same holds true for Republican members of Congress. When they stand against Trump or his despicable policies, they must be credited for placing country ahead of party. 

9. Stay positive. I have become fond of saying that we are fortunate to be living in interesting times with real enemies to battle and defeat. While I would prefer to be living in a world where Donald Trump is not President, I have chosen to embrace the moment and stand in opposition to this man. This is not a Democrat-Republican fight for me. It is a battle against a narcissistic, erratic, indecent man who is dangerous for our country.

My father fought in Vietnam. This is my fight. 

This hateful Muslim Ban must end now.

Anne Frank would be a 77-year-old woman living in the United States today, but she and her family were denied entry to our country as refugees because of a fear of European immigrants during World War II.

This hateful, bigoted Muslim ban must be lifted. Refugees are some of the most hard working, patriotic people in America today. Denying them access to safety and opportunity in their time of need is the least Christian and most immoral act imaginable.

Right now there are hundreds of Syrian refugees in airports around the world who have undergone months of intense vetting and sold all their worldly possessions in order to purchase plane tickets for America but have now been stopped by Trump's Muslim ban.

International students throughout the United States are now prevented from returning home to visit family lest they be barred from coming back to America to finish their studies.

Iranian film director Asghar Farhadi won't be let into the United States to attend the Academy Awards even though he's nominated for best foreign language film.

This is an inhumane and unnecessary decision by a bigoted President who has never experienced poverty or violence in his life. It tarnishes America's position as a moral leader of the world. It is an embarrassment to Americans everywhere.

Something to think about as Trump closes our borders to refugees

Our President is a sex offender or pretends to be a sex offender.

I have many thoughts on this historic Inauguration Day, but here is one that I will carry with me for the next four years:

Our President - who has not released his tax returns and will violate the Constitution on his first day in office under the emoluments clause - has either admitted to being a sex offender or pretended to be a sex offender. 

If he did what he described, Donald Trump's name would be on a sex offender registry today.

If he was lying about his actions in an attempt to garner the approval of others, Donald Trump thinks that pretending to be a sex offender is an effective means of getting attention.

There is no third explanation for his behavior. It can only be one or the other. 

Donald Trump is either a sex offender or pretended to be one.   

Thankfully, the countdown to the end of his Presidency begins today.

The countdown begins...

In his first post-election interview with The New York Times, actor Alec Baldwin said that despite his contentious relationship with the president-elect, he does not "hate" Donald Trump.

“I’m a performer, an actor that’s here doing a show. It’s a great part," Baldwin said of his portrayal of Trump on Saturday Night Live. "I don’t hate him. I want him to enjoy his life. I just want him to not be the president of the United States — as quickly as possible.”

Baldwin added on Twitter, "We are not far from the day when the most reviled candidate in our history will become President. Unwanted by a significant majority of of voters. A man who has projected little other than an empty braggadocio and synthetic rhetoric about both his qualifications and plans, but Inauguration Day means the beginning of the countdown to when he will be gone. And he will be gone. January 20. The countdown begins." 

I like this sentiment a lot. 

In regards to Russian hacking: "I think we ought to get on with our lives." Also, word salad.

Donald Trump took a few questions at Mar-a-Lago last night and said this about Lindsey Graham, John McCain, and many Senators - Democrat and Republican - who are pushing for Russian sanctions following evidence of hacking in order to tip the balance of the Presidential election. 

His answer strikes me as slightly incomprehensible, questionably incompetent, and (at least in terms of the first sentence) possibly treasonous. Have you ever seen anything this inarticulate come from the mouth of a President?

Lest you think this is a mischaracterization of his answer, the actual video of the moment is even more disturbing. 

When someone suggests that we give Donald Trump a chance, say this.

When someone fires off this Trump talking point:

"He's our President now. Why not at least give him a chance?" 

... please do not remain silent.

I inform these people that I have a policy against giving bigots, misogynists, sexual predators, and liars a second chance, at least when it comes to governing our country and determine the fates of hundred of millions of people.

As the husband of a Jewish woman, the father of a little girl, the teacher of an enormously diverse group of children, and the personal friend to Mexicans, Muslims, immigrants, and the disabled, I will stand in opposition of a man who has insulted and threatened all of these groups both in both word and deed. 

I need not give the man who has hurt so many that I love a chance. I will not normalize indecency, ignorance, disrespect, and the purposeful attempt to divide people with intimidation, violence, and hatred.    

I don't think this is an unreasonable position. 

I suspect that many of the people who suggest that we give Trump a chance do not spend their days alongside little Muslim girls, Mexican immigrants, and the disabled. I suspect that they have not worked in restaurants alongside undocumented workers just trying to make a living and on construction sites with men who do not speak English but are willing to work in subzero temperatures when many will not. They are not friends with minorities, the poor, and the disenfranchised. They do not know (or don't know that they know) the victim of a sexual assault.

It's much easier to give someone like Donald Trump a chance when he has not hurt anyone you love, but for many of us, the world is decidedly less white, less homogeneous, and less affluent. For many of us, he has already done great harm to the people we love.  

I have many loved ones - these included - who deserve a future much better than what he has promised. 

I went to the bathroom alongside a bunch of ladies, and something surprising happened.

I competed last night at a Moth StorySLAM at The Oberon in Cambridge, MA. 

The Oberon has two restrooms. When I started performing there in 2013, these restrooms were identified by placards as "Men" and "Women."

About a year ago, the "Men" and "Women" placards were replaced with placards that read "All Gender." Since then, I had only found myself in the restroom with a woman once, and it was alongside several other men. Though the placards had changed, people for the most part continued to segregate themselves according to sex.

Last night, however, I found myself in the restroom at one point with one other man and three women, and when that man exited the restroom ahead of me, I was the only man in the restroom with these women. I almost didn't notice, but as I stood at the sink washing my hands alongside two of the women, it occurred to me that I was using a public restroom with a majority of women for the first time in my life.

Also, none of us cared a bit.

At the end of the night, I returned to the restroom and found myself alone with one other woman. As we approached the sink together, we began talking. I had won the StorySLAM, and she had recognized me from my previous victories and wanted to know how I managed to win so often. As we washed our hands, I gave her a few storytelling tips, and she told me about her battles with stage fright and her desire to tell a story someday. 

I was back on the street, walking to my car, when I realized that I had just engaged in my first conversation with a woman in a public restroom, and I couldn't get over these two facts:

1. It was no big deal at all. 
2. So many dumbass jerk faces (I'm looking at you, North Carolina) think it's a very big deal.

If your opposed to allowing people to use the restroom of their choice, it's time to put on your big boy or big girl pants and grow up. Sooner than you think, "all gender" or "gender neutral" restrooms will be the norm, and people will wonder why gender segregation was once required in order for people to sit on toilets and wash their hands. 

After last night, I'm wondering it myself.

Trump's two possible views of sexual assault

A Trump supporter argued with me today that Trump's claims of sexual assaulting women were "locker room talk," and more importantly, there is a big difference between saying something and actually doing it.

I pointed out that only one of two conclusions are possible when it comes to Trump's comments about sexual assault:

1. We have a President-elect who has sexually assaulted women and admitted to his crime.
2. We have a President-elect who thinks that an effective and amusing means of currying favor and impressing others is to falsely claim that he has sexually assaulted women.

In the first instance, he is a criminal.

In the second, he is a pathetic, creepy liar who believes that sexual assault is self-aggrandizing, endearing, and a reason for others to like you.

These are the only two conclusions that can be logically reached given what we heard.

Both are disgusting and frightening. 

Enough of this "locker room talk" nonsense. I refuse to live in a world where claims of sexual assault are amusing or endearing.

Which is funnier? Saturday Night Live? Trump's response to SNL? Alec Baldwin's response to Trump?

Follow this timeline, especially if you don't use Twitter and haven't seen any of the Donald Trump-Saturday Night Live sparring matches. 

I'm honestly not sure which is funnier:

Saturday Night Live's weekly skit on our President-elect:

Donald Trump's inevitable, almost immediate, thin-skinned, sad trombone response to the skit via Twitter:

Alec Baldwin's eventual and always brilliant response to Trump's tweet:

All are truly comic gold.

Also, can you believe the world that we live in now? We have a President-elect who watches SNL and then tweets about how they make fun of him.

Does he not know how this show works?

Also, praise be to Saturday Night Live, Alec Baldwin, and anyone else willing to stand up and call out the ineptitude, dishonesty, immaturity, and ego-driven nature of our President-elect. These are the people who will bind us, make us laugh, make us think, and speak out against an Emperor who wears no clothes for the next four years.  

We need you Alec Baldwin. More than ever. 

How I stand against the vile, intolerant, hateful speech and policy proposals of the President-elect (and how you can, too)

You may have noticed if you follow me on any form of social media that I haven't been quiet about my opposition to the President-elect.

I can't be.

This is not a Democrat-Republican or liberal-conservative divide. Those who have known me for a long time or read this blog on a regular basis can attest that during previous Presidential campaigns, I have been far less vocal about my political positions, simply because I felt that Americans were faced with the choice of two serious minded candidates who were both more than fit for the office. 

While I certainly preferred one candidate over another, I did not think that either candidate was bad for America, and therefore, I did not feel the need to be overly vocal. 

In the case of Donald Trump, I believe that we have elected a fundamentally indecent man who has said vile, despicable things about enormous numbers of American citizens and proposed unconscionable policies that in many cases would violate the Constitution of the United States and the fundamental rights of American citizens.

I do not believe that he is fit for the office of President of the United States.

Since he will soon be the President, I have sought ways of personally counteracting his hateful speech, his xenophobic policy proposals, and the fear that he has instilled in so many of the people who I know.

If you are feeling powerless, hopeless, angry, or afraid, it's important that you take action. Doing something productive and meaningful will always make you feel better and stronger. I promise you.

So far, I have done this by embracing, supporting, and promoting the things that he he has stood against most often.

For example:

• I have strongly supported my Mexican, Muslim, female, immigrant, and disabled friends and promoted their acceptance and success whenever possible.
• We have purchased subscriptions to The New York Times and Slate Plus in an effort to support the journalists who will work tirelessly to hold Trump accountable for his words and deeds.
• My wife and I have called Senators and Congresspeople in order to express our opposition to appalling Presidential appointments like Steve Bannon.
• I have sought to engage in constructive discussions with reasonable people who voted for Trump in an effort to understand them better and promote a more positive, liberal agenda to them.
• I have sought to bring the voices of the marginalized and the maligned to the Speak Up stage in order to allow them to be heard beyond the hateful speech of Trump and his surrogates.
• I have shared, endorsed, and proliferated news stories and other bits of media that stand against the Donald Trump's racist, misogynist, religiously intolerant, and xenophobic speech and policy proposals.

This holiday commercial for Amazon, starring an actual priest and imam, is exactly the kind of thing that I am talking about. It offers a beautiful message of religious tolerance, inclusion, and understanding. It has also incensed the religiously intolerant and xenophobic supporters of Donald Trump (especially when it aired during NFL games last weekend), so sharing it whenever possible warms my heart.

I'll do what I can, whenever I can, to stand against Donald Trump's vile and hateful speech and unconscionable policy proposals. Sometimes this simply means embracing and sharing the opposing voices.

This is what the Democratic Party must do now to protect voting rights

It’s time for the Democrats to wage a two front battle on protecting voting rights:

1. Work tirelessly to eliminate needless and egregious voting restriction laws. 
2. Get a voter ID card in the hands of every American, starting with every battleground state. Do this now. 

This strikes me as a no brainer. 

I'm also more than willing to run for President in 2020 if they need me, but this might be a tougher sell.