Just what busy people need these days as tax deadline time approaches: a mailed four-page, single-spaced pitch accompanied by an oversized sheet with 41 questions --- from the Republican National Committee, finds Grumpy Editor.
Some folks are getting the “You have been selected” wordy missive a second time in two months followed by an e-mail with like material.
The four-page personalized pitch in an envelope marked "DO NOT DESTROY OFFICIAL DOCUMENT" is over the signature of Reince Priebus, chairman, Republican National Committee, who reminds recipients with a “this just-in” thought: “Winning the 2016 presidential election is going to take a massive grassroots effort all across America.”
Received 11 days after the date on the Priebus message indicates the speed of things coming out of Washington.
Made to appear official, the sheet with the two-score questions is topped by a “document tracking code,” composed of a series of letters and numbers.
What question is No. 4 on the lengthy list? Do you plan on voting for Hillary Clinton or the Republican nominee?
An amusing --- actually laughable --- line is in the donation section where the busy, perhaps exhausted responder, after spending considerable time providing “meaty” answers, is asked to check off a box to signify, “I do hereby certify that the answers to the enclosed 2016 Congressional Census document are my own,” and to provide a signature.
No indication, however, if a notary is required.
Responders are asked to send back the detailed information --- with a donation.
And put a stamp on the return envelope.
IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…
Both Fox News on radio and Fox News Channel aired a report over the weekend on a small plane crashing onto a freeway “in Southern California” but not pinpointing exactly where. But CBS News gave the location: Fallbrook, adding a woman in the car was killed. Three others in the vehicle were injured along with the pilot and his passenger…When Digital First Media completed its purchase of Freedom Communications, parent company of the Orange County Register and the Riverside Press-Enterprise, the Register’s editor along with more than 70 staffers from editorial, circulation, advertising and marketing departments were given pink slips…Politico CEO Jim VandeHei said, "Any reporter who's dealt with this White house will say it's as frustrating, if not more frustrating, than dealing with past presidents”…Observed Howard Kurtz, who hosts Media Buzz on Fox News Channel: “We are now at the point in this political season where everyone is hating on everyone else. Think about it: What was the last time you saw a piece or watched a segment in which a candidate was portrayed positively?”…The Library of Congress, switched the terms “illegal alien” or “illegal immigrant” to “non-citizens” and “unauthorized immigrants”…No April Fool’s joke, because CNN ran with this on April 2: It reported Nature, the scientific journal, said melting ice in Antarctica has the potential to contribute to a rise in sea levels of more than three feet by the end of this century and with ice also melting in other parts of the world, seas could rise five or six feet in the same period…The U.S. Navy now allows bigger tattoos and in a wider range of locations on the body, an acknowledgement of a changing culture and youthful population, said officials. Meanwhile, three Sikhs who recently enlisted in the U.S. Army, filed a lawsuit demanding the military allow them to wear beards and turbans in uniform as their faith requires…How many times have you heard this almost on monthly basis? Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen says the Fed will move forward very slowly as it looks to hike interest rates…Chipotle Mexican Grill filed an application to trademark the term "Better Burger,” a forerunner in a potential move into the hamburger business…Slumping demand for diet sodas sold by PepsiCo and Coca Cola triggered a decline for the broader industry, as overall sales of carbonated soft drinks in the U.S. drop for the 11th consecutive year.
In the stop-the-presses department:
A headline over an Associated Press story read, LEONARDO DICAPRIO MIGHT BE BANNED FROM INDONESIA.
Why?
His criticisms that palm oil plantations are destroying the country’s rain forests.
