tjpip's posterous

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Stop abusing our future

I’ve seen too many news reports on the topic is child abuse.

I’m a father to two young children and every time I read about someone hurting a killing a child, I have to either turn off the TV or put down the paper. Simply put, these stories disgust me.

Seeing the headlines and the stories, I ask why these things happen. I ask why people do not know that children are a gift and should be cherished. I ask what possesses people to drop dialogue and instead use violence to solve problems that may arise.

I’m thankful that family members and other caregivers can come in and help children that survive. I’m thankful that there are youth and family service organizations who employee people that help children and families reconnect, find their strengths, and become better.

However, I still worry about the future of our communities, our nation, and our world because of the way that child abuse can have a decaying, negative impact on the development of our children.

Will it ever stop? Probably not.

Are there ways we can help minimize tragedies of child abuse from happening? Of course there are.

It will just take each of us having a strong will and a collective desire to make sure that the children are protected and given every opportunity to flourish without the fear of abuse.

It is a challenge worth taking on.Are you with me?

One reason Sarah Palin may have done it

With all of the media's coverage of Sarah Palin's resignation announcement July 3, there was one thing none of the talking heads and chief political analysts mentioned that could be at least a part of the reason she decided to step down when she did.

For whatever reason, she made the decision not to run for a second term. As such, it is extremely logical from a political standpoint to step down and let the Lt. Gov. step in. In so doing, Palin opened the door for her Lt. Gov. to step up and become an incumbent who will run on the record of a year and a half in office when election time rolls around again.

This strategy is one that I've seen unfold first hand with great success on the local level. A town councilman decided he was not going to run again because he wanted to spend more time traveling. As such, he announced his resignation with a few months left on his term. The town supervisor appointed someone to the now open position. That person served out the rest of the term and then ran as the incumbent in the election that followed. She won the seat and is now serving her first full term on the board.

Providing a springboard to incumbency for her successor may not have been the main reason for Sarah Palin's departure from the governor's office, but it certainly was a consideration and a masterful, strategic play.

Diapering social media

About a month ago, I became a dad for the second time. Our daughter has gone through so many diapers in the last weeks that I'm seriously thinking about investing in the diaper business.

Since I've been changing multiple diaper pails full of diapers, I found this story from Mashable interesting.

I think it's great that Huggies is targeting Moms who are into social media. It is a great way to connect with an emerging target public. However, I would hope that Huggies incorporated one minority group into their social media marketing strategies--Dads.

I believe there is a growing number of Dads out there who are taking a larger role in the baby decisions families are making. It may not be huge, but it is growing. Hopefully, these companies are taking notice. If not, they'll be doing the potty dance alone while we go out with our kids.

Thanks for reading!