Should the powers that be in Northwest Arkansas establish an award for "Most Publicly Humiliating Moment," I have my nomination ready to submit. I believe Andrew Bell could take the prize for reportedly dropping the sex toy he'd allegedly stolen from Fayetteville's racy novelty store Seductions directly in front of the officer who arrested him.
Bell's adventure began recently, according to news accounts, when the homeless man entered Seductions about 9 p.m. and milled around a while before stepping into a back room. The suspicious sales clerk said she heard an object strike the floor and went to investigate. She told police that's when she noticed Bell with a pocketknife and the sex toy (no further description offered) stuck in his jacket.
The 30-year-old man reportedly refused to return the toy and lunged toward the clerk with the knife's blade open. The understandably frightened clerk locked the door to prevent Bell from leaving. But he demanded she open it, and he then fled.
A short time later, a patrol officer driving within blocks of the robbery noticed Bell, who matched the description of the robbery suspect, walking alone and pulled in front of Bell. The mystery toy in question is said to have fallen from Bell's clothing as he walked toward the officer, and the little drama ended with Bell charged with aggravated robbery, theft of property and criminal mischief.
When his trial rolls around and the bell tolls (sorry) to determine his guilt or innocence, I suspect to see considerable interest in learning exactly what was compelling and endearing enough about Exhibit A to warrant the possibility of a cell.
Highest-paying jobs
LinkedIn, the social network focused on employment, has issued its list of top-paying professions in 2017 and how many openings are available.
At the top are cardiologists with a median base annual salary of $356,000 (150+ openings). Radiologists follow close behind at $355,000 (100+ jobs); anesthesiologists, $350,000 (100+ jobs); and surgeons at $338,000 (600+ jobs).
You have to drop all the way to No. 10 to get outside the medical and related administrative professions to find ... waaait for it ... lawyers. Senior corporate counsels earn a median of $175,000 (300+ jobs), followed at No. 11 by staff software engineers at $168,000 (350+ jobs). Rounding out the top dozen are dentists, earning a median $165,000. There are more than 2,000 openings for those.
By the way, valued readers, by wisely choosing journalism at age 23, I never made it into the top 7,000.
Trump's tenacious tweets
There's little doubt our new president has developed a reputation for continually tweeting his impromptu opinions, plans and feelings to the American people. Many say they wish he'd just stop with the 140-character messages because they don't seem at all "presidential."
While he gets criticized by some for choosing that informal style of communication over formal news conferences, I have a theory about the calculated wisdom behind it. In light of the victory he achieved in the face of overwhelming criticism, distorted news accounts and resistance even from within his own party, tweeting his messages directly can actually make perfect sense.
Trump realized during the campaign that his chance at victory was improved by taking his case directly to the overwhelming number of frustrated, angry citizens. The mainstream (or establishment) media from both coasts clearly were aligned against him, which meant he certainly couldn't rely on them for fair and balanced treatment.
As his tweets became more popular, his genuine political power lay among the people more than any self-interested party. With the massive support he'd established came leverage and power fueled by this modern tool for direct and unique communication.
While his messages and style certainly flew in the face of conventional political tactics, they steadily gained in influence. His tweets eliminated the traditional liberal media filters so accustomed to decades of political kingmaking.
And so the phenomenon has continued. While many among us wince when he incessantly takes to the tweet, I can imagine him smiling like a wily fox. He knows that in these brief messages sent to millions of Americans lies the power and influence of speaking directly to those who make the final decisions.
So today, any group or political figure from either party who moves to obstruct the 45th president from fulfilling the campaign promises made to Americans who elected him based on his messages risks facing Trump's raw, honest reactions sent to those millions of voters.
They arrive with a ding on millions of cell phones, unfiltered or spun in language and content by those in the media who've now earned their reputations for opposing his every utterance and action.
And that ability, my friends, continues to give him a remarkable amount of political leverage with Congress and others in politics, particularly considering the 2018 elections are less than two years away. Dumb, you say? Maybe like that fox.
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Mike Masterson's column appears regularly in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. Email him at [email protected].
Editorial on 02/04/2017