I love VH1’s reality show, Tool Academy, which began with a great swerve. A group of guys thought they were competing on a TV show to discover “America’s Top Alpha Male- AKA- Mr. Awesome”, but they’d really been nominated by their girlfriends for the Tool Academy.


Ouch.


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Gwenn and I can’t stop watching. The guys get little tool badges when they pass tests and make the inevitable cut at the inevitable “ceremony” at the end of each show. Formulaic? Sure, but it’s must-see TV... speaking of tools, did you hear about the senator from Colorado, Dave Schultheis?


He voted against a bill that would require pregnant women to be tested for HIV. See, mother-to-child transmission of the virus can be reduced dramatically if a woman knows she has HIV, and can take HIV medications during her last trimester.


Here was his reasoning: ?This (HIV) stems from sexual promiscuity for the most part and I just can?t go there. We do things continually to remove the consequences of poor behavior, unacceptable behavior, quite frankly. I?m not convinced that part of the role of government should be to protect individuals from the negative consequences of their actions.?


Ouch.


The Bill is about the safety of the unborn child- that’s supposed to be kind of a big deal in the Republican party. When someone brought this to Dave’s attention, he saved his most shocking words for what should have been his apology.


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?What I?m hoping is that yes, that person may have AIDS, have it seriously as a baby and when they grow up, but the mother will begin to feel guilt as a result of that. The family will see the negative consequences of that promiscuity and it may make a number of people over the coming years? begin to realize that there are negative consequences and maybe they should adjust their behavior.? - Senator Dave Schultheis


So wrong, on so many levels. I’m a silver lining kind-of-guy, though, and I find inspiration in this man. Which is why I am proud to announce the senator as the first inductee of Shawn’s Tool Academy, a recurring feature on this blog to honor those who solidify themselves as tools beyond a shadow of any doubt. Anytime Dave is referred to on here, there will be a (T) after his name: his tool badge of dishonor.


So take a bow, Dave Schultheis (T), for you are a complete and utter tool.


Positively Yours,
Shawn