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A few weeks ago, Magic Johnson stepped down as president of basketball operations of the Los Angeles Lakers. During an impromptu press conference, Johnson said he decided to walk away from the job because he didn’t like the some of the negative talk surrounding the team and his performance in the role. To that end, he said some of the criticism he received surrounding drafting players and fines that were given to him for tampering with players – talking to players on other teams during the season – were not his fault. He claimed, “I did nothing wrong.”

But in reality, he did several things wrong. He did tamper with players. He undermined the head coach early in the season by publicly insinuating the coach’s job could be in danger if things didn’t go well. And one of his last wrong-doings was not letting the owner of the Lakers know ahead of time that he was resigning. The owner learned he was stepping down when the rest of the public learned – during the press conference. That’s just wrong!

During the press conference, Johnson acted though everything was roses and puppy dogs. He said the team was going in an upward trajectory. That’s definitely not the case. The Lakers missed the playoffs even though LeBron James, one of the best players in the world, was on the team. The team has issues.

My question: Why don’t people just tell the truth? Just say ‘I made some mistakes and I want the team to have someone who can dedicate all their time to this job.’ And this goes for everyone. Admit you could have done a better job. There’s no harm in admitting you screwed up. I think people respect you more when you acknowledge your faults. We have all made mistakes in jobs, relationships, etc.

So, swallow your pride, and fess up when you screw up. No one is perfect.

Listening to politicians is maddening — very few answer Yes or No questions. Instead, many politicians will answer a direct question by trying to paint a picture so you will forget the question. It’s ridiculous, but a clever ploy to straddle the line.

We should demand that direct questions are answered with a direct answer. If you want to explain your answer with a little paint, so be it, as long as it is not a dissertation.

I am a firm believer that news reporters and quite frankly, anyone giving a speech or presentation, should use terms or words that everyone is familiarity with. I was watching a news story on how many Americans have little or no savings despite the economy seeming to be strong. The reporter said is this a warning that the economy isn’t that great for the working class, but the reporter used the term “is this a canary in the coal mine” situation.

Though the reporter correctly used the term “canary in the coal mine,” the question is how many people know what that means. The term is used to denote a warning. Coal miners used to take a caged canary into a coal mine to determine the level of carbon monoxide and other gases present in the mine. If the canary died or got sick before the miners left the mine, then the workers knew that was a warning that the toxicity level in the mine is dangerous.

I think reporters and other public officials should use analogies and terms that everyone understands. I doubt many people understand the term or know the story that created this saying.  I am not suggesting we dumb down our language, we just have to make sure we explain sayings and analogies that many may not know. If you can’t explain it, don’t use it.

If you are doing the Bird Box Challenge, you are a Grade A idiot. The Bird Box Challenge is inspired by the Netflix movie “Bird Box” in which people do ordinary, daily routines such as cooking and washing the laundry, blindfolded. This is a stupid idea.

Of course, you have the true imbeciles of the world taken it a step further. Some people have attempted to drive and walk out in traffic blindfolded. These folks are what we call “Dumbasses.”

How incredibly stupid must you be? You not only put yourself in danger, but you put the lives of others in jeopardy.

Apparently, so many people have filmed themselves doing the challenge that Netflix put out a statement asking people not to do it. It’s not Netflix’s fault. Some people don’t use common sense, and quite frankly, are not smart.

These are the people that the Amoeba, the single-cell animal, would call a moron. I can hear the Amoeba now, “I thought I was a simpleton, but I am a genius compared to these dimwits.”

Bird Box is a movie, and it is fiction, and a lot of the actions that occur in the movie are unbelievable. Don’t do stupid things based on an unrealistic movie. If you do, you are an idiot.