no.66 - That One

On Tuesday morning, hours before the second debate between McCain and Obama, my daughter's dance teacher pointed to my daughter and referred to her as "that one."

This is my four year old's third week in dance class. Her teacher, who lives on a cloud, or with her head up her ass, has no clue what her name is.

A good friend defended the dance teacher to me as "a little flighty", but I am feeling less charitable. If the problem were as simple as not remembering my daughter's name, because she her head is full of dance, I could accept her turning to my daughter and simply asking, "What's your name again sweetie?" or leaning over to a nearby parent and asking discretely. I might even suggest trying what every other teacher I know would do, which is the game where everyone in the circle says their name.

Instead, the dance teacher, frustrated either at her own failing, or at my daughter for having a name she can not remember, pointed to my girl and called her "that one."

"Pass the ball to that one."

Like she was a thing. Or a crow.

It was a poor choice — just like when she moved all the kids over to the corner of the room beside the exposed radiator she had just told the children was very dangerous.

When John McCain used the same words, I did not make the association at once. It only occurred to me the next day, as the media briefly attempted to conflate the words into a controversy. They weren't controversial. They were telling. They showed McCain to be frustrated, cranky and disrespectful.

I can't draw a parallel between these two events for you. It is odd "that one" would come up twice in one day. I can only report to you that in both cases it speaks very poorly of the person who said it.