Month: November 2020

The whitest thief in the world

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

I mean, there’s really not much to add to the headline.  A Tennessee man is arrested for stealing an alleged $65,000 worth of clothing from Hollister and American Eagle. 

Clearly, the mall in which he was victimizing must not have had an Abercrombie & Fitch, otherwise it’s safe to assume they would have been pilfered from too.

Sometimes, stories just kind of write themselves, and when I see a headline about how Hollister and American Eagle are the companies being burgled, my first thought was “white people clothiers” and how the perpetrator must undoubtedly be a white guy.  Seriously though, it probably wasn’t the best idea to be stealing from global brands like these, because regardless of race, these are companies that live and die by numbers, and $65,000 worth of merch is undoubtedly going to be noticed and it would only be a matter of time in which action would be taken.  Trent McWhiterton III clearly dipped into the well a little too many times and to no surprise, was eventually caught.

The funny thing to me was his general racket of stealing brand new goods, and then selling them to consignment shops.  Undoubtedly, Plato’s Closet was probably only to give him 25% of the value, at consignment rates, so in spite of the fact that he stole like $65k* worth of clothing, he probably made like $10k in sales.  Honestly, if this bro weren’t so lazy, he probably could’ve made vastly more money through eBay, and probably been way safer, since apparently it was Plato’s people who helped tip off the fuzz.

*let’s also not forget that $65k worth of Hollister and American Eagle is probably like $6,500 in materials and Cambodian slave labor to manufacture

What’s also entertaining to me is that I just happened to chance across this story, because like many Americans right now, I’m fixated to election news, and for whatever reason, this story happened to be the first thing listed in related articles.  I guess there is though, a modicum of relation considering just how white and criminal the election process kind of is, that a story about a white guy stealing from white people clothiers can be somewhat related.

Whatever though, white people getting busted for stealing from white companies, and where ultimately everyone comes out a loser, that’s all water off my back.  It’s something whimsical for me to write about while I await hopefully good news to come out of this shit show, because I’m tired of feeling like I’m held hostage by the country with everyone else, who just wants to know who’ll be our dear leader for the future.

Election Paralysis

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

I never wanted to care about politics in my life really.  For the longest time, I remained ambivalent as possible about them, and I didn’t vote in the first three elections I was eligible to have voted in.  Looking back, I have regret for not doing such because I’ve learned just how important they can be, and the symbolic right and privilege we have in being able to do so.

Naturally, and I surmise it’s a natural progression of aging, I’ve become more woke and attuned to politics, and I try to give somewhat of a shit in regards to the systems that run the country we live in.  It would be somewhat accurate to state that I’ve grown to care, somewhat about politics, much to my dismay.

That being said, I’m finding that myself, along with hundreds of thousands of Americans, are dealing with election paralysis – immense struggles at being able to focus on anything or want to do anything, while the election is still unresolved, and awaiting for something to happen, which will put an end to the election and let everyone collectively exhale and move forward, with knowing who will be leading the way.

Like seriously, I’ve spent the last two nights doing little during my free time other than watching various news outlets and trying to keep abreast of election news, as if the declaration of the presidency of the United States is going to directly impact my life, immediately.  Ultimately, this underscores the fact that I, like many, perceive this particular election to be of the utmost importance, and I’m finding myself caring about it more than I would have ever imagined myself caring about an election.

And while the election remains in flux, I’m finding myself incapable of doing anything else, because I seem to care so much about impending news and information that I can’t focus.  I couldn’t find the motivation to write over the last two days because my eyes were glued to the news.  I didn’t watch wrestling despite being available to do so.  I didn’t scour the internet for money making schemes.

I feel like I’m being held captive by my want to know how the election is going to turn out and it’s kind of sad because I used to not give two shits about any election and now I can’t do anything because I’m vested and want to know.  The only reason this post is coming to fruition is mostly based on the fact that just about everyone I work with is in the same boat, nobody’s working, because everyone is so engrossed in what could be happening in the voting chambers of 3-5 key remaining states that have not called yet.

I get it though.  I eagerly want to know what’s going to happen too.  But I do know that big picture, it’s better for the results of the election to take longer if they’re going to be right and true, rather than know that it’s rushed, and ends up rigged or have a billion valid votes thrown out, and then we as a country are stuck for another four years with an agitated baked potato leading the way.

I just want to relax and not feel like I have to care so much about this shit anymore, and get back to watching wrestling, 90 Day Fiancé, and The Mandalorian.

It’s always gratifying to be right about sports

~ dannyhong ~ Leave a comment

This is what I said last year when then-Astros manager AJ Hinch was fired for his role in the notorious trash can banging cheating scandal:

They’re firings of nothing but symbolic scapegoating, and when the day is over, both (former GM Jeff Luhnow) of these guys will be hired by some other MLB team approximately 365 days from now.

And just like that, with his suspension lifted, AJ Hinch has immediately been picked up by the Detroit Tigers to become their next manager.  One of the other guys involved in the scandal, Alex Cora, fired by the Boston Red Sox shortly after Hinch’s dismissal, is already back in talks with the Red Sox to come back and help cheat manage.  I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to hear news of someone reaching out to Carlos Beltran in the near future either.

Because like many things in the world these days, Major League Baseball lacks a moral compass.  If there were one, both guys would be blacklisted for life for compromising the integrity of the game.  But since baseball is a dog-eat-dog business where wins equals profits, teams are more than willing to turn the other cheek when it comes to indiscretions as long as someone can help contribute to more wins, and this is where we stand.

Ultimately, when the day is over, I couldn’t possibly give any shits fathomable about these developments.  It’s just amusing to me how predictable Major League Baseball can be sometimes, and in spite of the high and mighty act they pulled in dropping the weakest hammer down on the Astros and all involved parties, barely anything was punished, a bunch of rich baseball people got year-long vacations, and most will have jobs waiting for them.  The Astros were a win away from making it to the World Series, and frankly it would’ve been a gigantic middle finger to MLB had the Astros won it all when they were supposed to be being punished.

Most importantly though, I get to boast about how I’m right about something, because lord knows that shit doesn’t happen too very often.