NRA holds first ever conceal carry fashion show. Man I wish I was joking!

Courtesy of The Cut:

The National Rifle Association held their much anticipated concealed-carry “fashion show” this weekend in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as part of their first annual gun-lovers convention, “Carry Guard Expo.” 

The three-day event featured appearances from outspoken figures like Dana Loesch, as well as workshops and seminars like “Basic Hemorrhage Control,” “Homestead Security Planning,” and “The Most Important Skills You WILL Need in a Gun Fight.” (Emphasis NRA.) 

Over 30 vendors showcased various gun accessories geared toward the NRA patron always looking for a new way to hide her gun in her handbag. 

The options included bra holsters, quick-draw tote bags, and even solutions for the professional woman — all modeled by girls-next-door, biker chicks, and men who look like they own a lot of guns. 

This is disturbing on so many levels. 

"I'm sorry do you have a holster that doesn't create an unsightly bulge yet still flatters my eyes in case I have to draw down on a handsy date or a rowdy bar patron?"

Seriously how did the Palins NOT get invited to this thing?

Oscar Night Open Thread. Update!

I should start off first by admitting that this open thread is not even my idea.

In fact I did not even realize that the Academy Awards were even happening this weekend.

But then I got that call from the daughter.

"So Dad are you ready for the big night?"

"Uh...big night?"

"Don't tell me you don't know what is happening this Sunday?"

"Of course I do it's..uh..you know...an anniversary or something."

"DAD! It's the Academy Awards! You know how important those are to us."

Us?

"Sure honey I was only teasing. Totally going to watch it, and I will even host an open thread on IM.

So here we are.

Just between you and me I have only seen two of the nine films nominated for Best Picture. (For those wondering the films were "Arrival" and "Hell or High Water.")

They were both great and either one could win in my opinion, but beyond that I simply have not been paying much attention.

But I am now, and boy am I stoked! This is going to be a great night!

(That sounds convincing, right?)

Here is a list to get you started.

And remember even if you are watching by yourself, in a dimly lit apartment, just you and your six cats, you are really never alone on Oscar night. The whole world is watching.

In fact in year's past even the new president was an avid viewer.

What ever happened to the good old days of The Academy Awards. This show is an insult to the past, just plain bad!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 23, 2015

The Oscars are a sad joke, very much like our President. So many things are wrong!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 23, 2015

So I imagine that Trump will be watching right along with the rest of us, which is great since I think his name is going to be mentioned quite a few times.

(Boy if he thought the White House Correspondents' Dinner was the lion's den, wait until he gets a load of tonight.)

You can also follow me on Twitter tonight, where I might have a few clever things to say. Though to be completely honest I plan to drink a little so as the night wears on they may only seem clever to me.

Update: For those who missed it here is Jimmy Kimmel's hilarious opening monologue.

After all these years I am still not tired of the Kimmel/Damon feud.

Update 2: Well Trump will be all over this tomorrow.

Good job CNN. That is all the ammunition the Right needs.

Bristol Palin finally uses her blog for something useful. As a way to find men. Update!

Courtesy of Brancy's blog: 

Will somebody please find me one of these?? 

There’s a new trend in men’s style, and I’m loving it! 

You’ve all heard of the ridiculous “metrosexual,” the well-groomed guy who cares more about shaping his eyebrows that I do, has liberal political views, and might even carry a man purse? 

Please. 

Meet the “lumbersexual” – he smells like wood. Loves being out in nature. Wears a full beard, leather boots, denim, plaid — and of course, flannel. (“It’s like Ron Swanson mixed with Ryan Gosling,” the article said.) 

Well, this is what a man should look like! 

I’m not the trendiest person, but I would welcome this one with open arms.

Well somebody is certainly putting it out there aren't they?

So Bristol is on the make again? And this is the kind of guy she is looking for with open......arms?

Now why does this seem familiar to me?

Oh yeah.

Well you know some things just never change.Update: To be fair this is the photo that Brancy used on the original post.

The one I used was just what I found when I Googled "Lumbersexual."

Sorry if that confused anyone.

Just for fun: Robin Williams has a little Twitter fun at Kim Kardashian's expense.

Okay so the very pregnant Kim Kardashian showed up recently at the Met Ball, with a not very enthusiastic looking Kanye West, which spurred social media to tweet, Facebook, and Reddit the pictures all over the internet.

Even today it is so pervasive that it is almost impossible to go anywhere on line without bumping into the image.

However it is not my usual kind of a subject so I have not paid a great deal of attention. That is until one of the folks I follow on Twitter responded to the picture in a way that MUST be shared!

I think I wore it better! twitter.com/robinwilliams/…
— Robin Williams (@robinwilliams) May 8, 2013

Okay you have to admit THAT is pretty funny!

By the way just in case there are any of you who still think that Kim is pulling a Sarah Palin with a fake pregnancy, I just have to say, "Yeah, not so much."

NOBODY who was as vain as this woman clearly is, would allow herself to be seen like this unless she had no other choice.

Okay back to politics now.

The Year in Political Fashion. And some obvious observations by moi.

The Washington Post's Jonathan Capehart has put up his picks for "The Year in Political Fashion."

There were a number of obvious choices such as Santorum's sweater vest, Chris Christie's omnipresent fleece, and Mitt Romney's Costco purchased mom jeans.

There were also a few that became internet memes, such as this picture of Hillary.

And this picture of Paul Ryan.

I am certainly by NO means an expert on fashion (Understatement of the year), and I disagree with some of Capehart's choices. However with one example I think he was dead on.

Here is how Capehart described this look: 

Sarah Palin was all over the place with this outfit, worn while stumping for Missouri Senate candidate Sarah Steelman. The superman t-shirt screamed: “laundry day!” The Capri pants were fine, even with that belt. Don’t get me started on her wedges. Any taller and they’d qualify as stilts.

Yes indeed Palin's choice to just throw on any old thing laying on the Palin recreational vehicle floor certainly sent the message that either she simply did not give a shit about dressing professionally anymore, or she had no idea HOW to dress herself. (Guess which one I am leaning toward.)

However it occurs to me that there were other, earlier examples that she had some form of "dressing yourself dyslexia" as well.

Wearing a see thru top and drenched in sweat in July.

In Wasilla voting during GOP primary in March

Sweaty and bitchy in Iowa wearing Piper's t-shirt during straw poll in February.

Sporting her vagina crucifix during screening of "The Undefeated" in Pella.

 And I am not even going to bother with post pictures of ALL of the bizarre wigs that Palin has stapled to her head in the last few years. Those pretty much speak for themselves.

(And I believe I mean that quite literally.)

However, to be fair, was there EVER really a time that when Palin was forced to dress herself that she WASN'T adorned in trailer park chic?

You know I think that SOME people actually bought into the image of the perfectly coiffed, professionally dressed politician that the McCain campaign spent $150,000 trying to create.

But let's face it, Palin was ALWAYS that poor mentally challenged girl in the corner with the mismatched clothes and the bike helmet on her head to keep her from running into sharp corners. Yet people saw what they WANTED to see in her and THEY were the ones who were surprised that she could not live up to their expectations.

Alaskans? Yeah, not so much.

Update: I almost forgot to include this last photograph which I think succinctly drives home my point.

Once relatively famous bag lady spotted at LAX.

I know what you're thinking, "Gryphen, WHY would you pick on the lovely Paz de la Huerta, famous model, and one of the stars of HBO's scintillating series "Boardwalk Empire?"

Well I wouldn't obviously. I have no bone to pick with Paz de la Huerta, and in fact have watched several episodes of "Boardwalk Empire," and enjoyed them immensely.

I'm not talking about her. I'm talking about the pathetic creature behind her.

Yep that one. The one staring daggers into the back of the actress/model.

Oh you can almost see in her bloodshot eyes how jealous she is that the cameras are trained are the much more glamorous starlet, while at the same time hoping like crazy that nobody recognizes her in her frumpy woolen poncho/comforter from her bedroom in Wasilla.

I assume that since this picture was posted yesterday that she was arriving to support her daughter's last night as the most pathetic contestant to ever appear on Dancing with the Stars.

Though I have to say I don't remember seeing her in the crowd.

Is it possible that she had other business in the City of Angels? Or perhaps the dress code for audience members demanded that they not be wearing the bedding from their house in lieu of actual clothing.

Residents of Ketchikan "honor" their Quitter Queen.

Well we have seen more than our fair share of both the sublime and the ridiculous, now get ready for the bizarre.



Now thisis how Alaskans REALLY feel about Snowdrift Snooki, and don't let anybody tell you any different.

Maureen Dowd believes that Michelle Obamas sculpted biceps inspire Americans.

Let’s face it: The only bracing symbol of American strength right now is the image of Michelle Obama’s sculpted biceps. Her husband urges bold action, but it is Michelle who looks as though she could easily wind up and punch out Rush Limbaugh, Bernie Madoff and all the corporate creeps who ripped off America.

In the taxi, when I asked David Brooks about her amazing arms, he indicated it was time for her to cover up. “She’s made her point,” he said. “Now she should put away Thunder and Lightning.”

I’d seen the plaint echoed elsewhere. “Someone should tell Michelle to mix up her wardrobe and cover up from time to time,” Sandra McElwaine wrote last week on The Daily Beast.
Washington is a place where people have always been suspect of style and overt sexuality. Too much preening signals that you’re not up late studying cap-and-trade agreements.
David was not smitten by the V-neck, sleeveless eggplant dress Michelle wore at her husband’s address to Congress — the one that caused one Republican congressman to whisper to another, “Babe.”

He said the policy crowd here would consider the dress ostentatious. “Washington is sensually avoidant. The wonks here like brains. She should not be known for her physical presence, for one body part.” David brought up the Obamas’ obsession with their workouts. “Sometimes I think half the reason Obama ran for president is so Michelle would have a platform to show off her biceps.”

During the campaign, there was talk in the Obama ranks that Michelle should stop wearing sleeveless dresses, because her muscles, combined with her potent personality, made her daunting.

She ignored that talk, thank heavens. I love the designer-to-J. Crew glamour. Combined with her workaday visits to soup kitchens, inner-city schools and meetings with military families, Michelle’s flair is our depression’s answer to Ginger Rogers gliding around in feathers and lamé.

Her arms, and her complete confidence in her skin, are a reminder that Americans can do anything if they put their minds to it. Unlike Hillary, who chafed at the loathed job of first lady, and Laura, who for long stretches disappeared into the helpmeet role, Michelle has soared every day, expanding the job to show us what can be accomplished by a generous spirit, a confident nature and a well-disciplined body.

Now before I start making any comments I must confess that I know absolutely NOTHING about fashion. I think I watched an episode or two of Top Model, and have seen the actresses walk the red carpet for the Academy Awards, but beyond that I am fairly un-evolved when it comes to what is considered "in style" or not.

However, like everybody, I do know what I find personally appealing.

And I did find Mrs. Obama's sleeveless dresses appealing. Not in an overtly sexy way, but just that they seemed to make her feel comfortable and looked very chic on her.

I am also somebody who appreciates a fit body, whether male or female, and Michele's choice of attire reveals a body that is being well maintained. In a time when health care is on every Americans mind, it is a good reminder that HEALTH care is about eating right and exercising, and that what happens in the doctor's office or hospital is actually SICK care.

And possibly the main reason that the stuffy Washington crowd may find themselves intimidated by Michelle Obama's shapely arms is that it is constant reminder that their sedentary overfed lifestyle makes them her physical inferior.

Let's face it if the President wanted to guarantee getting his policies passed through Congress and the Senate he could just invite them to arm wrestle Michelle over it. Most of them would run away in terror and those that accepted would suffer yet another humiliating defeat at the hands (or arms) of the Obamas.

Tired of your little snowflake dressing like a slut? Boy do I have the clothing line for you.

The women of a polygamous sect are selling their distinctive handmade children's clothing online.

The enterprise was initially started to provide Texas Child Protective Services with clothes for the 440 children seized in an April raid on the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints' ranch at Eldorado, Texas.

Now, the polygamous sect's women hope to earn a living from the site. The venture has drawn queries from across the U.S. from those seeking modest clothes for their kids.

Well I have to tell you that if you want to keep boys from looking with lust at your teenage daughter, then these are the fashion choices for you.

When I look at the pictures of these women sex is the farthest thing from my mind.

Actually the first thing that occurs to me is that somebody desperately needs to send these poor ladies a couple of complimentary issues of Martha Stewart's Living.

Perhaps they could learn to tailor their dresses so they don't look like somebody stapled the living room drapes to their bodies. Just a thought.