Would You Like Fries with Your Voter Intimdation?

McDonald's French fries Potato (01)

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Employees at an Ohio McDonald’s discovered a handbill in their most recent paychecks urging them to vote Republican. Reminding them of the following:

“If the right people are elected we will be able to continue with raises and benefits at or above our present levels. If others are elected we will not.”

Well, that was subtle.

And not even the tiniest bit legal.

McDonald’s disavowed the insert and the franchise owner, Paul Siegfried, and Siegfried has issued an apology claiming he didn’t mean to offend anyone.

But offense was clearly not the intent, the handbill which urged his employees to vote Republican in the races for governor, Senate and the 16th Congressional District implies they can kiss higher wages good-bye if Democrats – and their tax happy ways – gain office.

Not legal and not fair.

A person’s vote is private and should be driven by his/her beliefs and knowledge of the issues and candidates. It should not be dictated by bosses, churches or be cast under duress.

Siegfried’s sinister attempt at coercion shows that he not only values larger profit margins for himself over his employees’ standards of living but that he doesn’t understand – as so many Americans don’t – that the economic situation is still dire and precarious.

Taxes aren’t going down and they shouldn’t.

Americans want a lot. They expect services and yet feign ignorance about how these services are funded.

Siegfried’s employees hired a lawyer. The state of Ohio is investigating. Midterms elections are Tuesday.

Justin Bieber Has Led a Full Life

All sixteen years of it, begging to be immortalized in black on a white pages.

I shouldn’t poke fun except at the lunacy behind the notion that a 16-year-old teen idol with a combover has anything to add to life’s discourse that he couldn’t just croon to little girls who will outgrow his feminine-tinged attractiveness soon enough.

Dee expressed mild interest in Justin “Beaver” recently. Her best friend, Tina, let her listen to the collection of Bieber tunes on her iPod.

“The other kids on the bus make fun of her and say that Beaver sucks,” Dee commented.

We were watching a clip of the boy on You Tube. He is very young and not the least bit masculine in the way of most teen idols. I remember a distinct preference for slightly girly boys myself when I was young – longish hair, trendy dress, no facial or chest hair. My, how I have grown up.

“Well,” I said, “what do you think?”

“I think his music is okay,” she said.  She did not comment on the boy himself. This past year she has abandoned her chatter about boyfriends and husbands and even babies.  She is “just friends” with boys because she is “too young to date” and anyway “I am never getting married or having babies.  I will have a dog instead. Only after you are gone, Mom, because of your allergies.”

I didn’t query about where I might be going.

“You don’t have to like the music that other kids like,” I said. “If you like his music, then don’t worry about what other kids think.”

“Oh, ” she said, “I don’t. That’s just what kids tell Tina. That Justin Beaver sucks.”

Dee begged for Miley Cyrus‘s autobiography, which interestingly was written when she was sixteen as well. A milestone year for the too famous/too early crowd. I don’t think she’ll be asking Santa for the Life of Bieber for Christmas though.

Falling in Love In A Fifth of a Second

Doki and Nabi meet, and Doki falls in love at ...

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Love at first sight takes less than a full second to occur.

A recent meta analysis study at Syracuse University discovered that the “infatuation” also known as “falling in love” trips the circuits in 12 areas of the brain and jump starts an overload of dopamine and adrenaline. It also unleashes bonding hormones. Powerful little buggers like oxytocin (which also plays a critical role in mother/baby bonding) and vasopressin.

It seems that infatuation is not to be lightly dismissed. Without it, there is no love.

The over-stimulated areas of the brain during the love first bloom are responsible as well for physical manifestations like heart palpitations and butterflies in the stomach.

Researchers didn’t mention whether or not people needed to be staring into each other’s eyes or making pupil contact across a crowded room, but my guess is that probably isn’t necessary.

Reading Rob’s words, via email and then IMing was enough to toggle my circuits. Perhaps it was some other life recall? Or just kindred spirits.

People still scoff at infatuation as though it were a lesser, inconsequential step in the process. All steps in the “falling in love” process are essential and none more so than the first steps.

Which take all of a fifth of a second.