Ted Cruz's ‘Good Dad’ Excuse Is an Insult

In a year where every parent has been stripped down to nothing, Ted Cruz has the gall to believe he gets to be a good one. If you have trouble reading this message, view it in a browser.       There's No Such Thing as a 'Good' Parent in a Pandemic   Ted Cruz wants to be a "good dad." He said so on Thursday, when he was caught sneaking down to sunny Cancun to escape the deep freeze that's squeezing the life out of Texas, the state he claims to represent in the U.S. Senate. Sure, abandoning millions of his constituents might look bad, but, as Cruz explained, "when you've got two girls who have been cold for two days and haven't had heat or power and they're saying 'Hey look, we don't have school, let's get out of here,' I think there are a lot of parents who'd think, 'If I can do this, great.'" Which he said after hastily returning to the States, leaving his family behind at the Ritz Carlton. What Cruz doesn't know, writes Dan Sinker, is that being a good parent isn't about flying to sunny Mexico in the midst of a climate disaster and a global pandemic, it's about teaching your kids compassion, leadership, perseverance, and empathy. It's about showing them that they live in a world and take part in a society. It's about trying to explain, however poorly, that their grandparent is sick, why the trip to Disney was canceled, that they can't go over to their friends house no matter how much you would love that as well. And we do that because we're trying to be good parents, even though all it does is make us feel like bad ones. Read More           Now's the Time to Grab Levi's Most Popular Face Mask   Today, Amazon slashed the prices on Levi's best-selling (and most stylish) face mask down to nearly $5 for an entire 3-pack. If you do the math, that's just over $1.50 each. And according to CamelCamelCamel, this is the cheapest they have ever been. Not only are these cool masks insanely cheap right now, they are actually comfortable on your face. Plus, each one is reversible, so it's almost like you're getting 6 styles for just over $5. These masks have sold out and restocked multiple times over the course of the pandemic, (we've written about them before) and we can't guarantee they will bring them back after this group of inventory is gone. And trust us, a deal this good on a top-rated product won't be in stock much longer. Read More           The $10 Cast-Iron Skillet Everyone Should Have in Their Arsenal   Clocking in at eight-inches wide, this skillet is the perfect addition to any small kitchen. It's large enough to make a full serving of whatever you're craving, but not too big that it'll hog up your precious cabinet space. And, thanks to its versatile design, you can use it for practically anything. Scrambled eggs? Yup. Sautéed veggies? You bet. Pan-seared salmon? If you're feeling really ambitious, why not? Though Lodge's cast-iron cookware is already affordable, it's not every day you stumble across a skillet for under $10. That's cheaper than your favorite, fancy cheese! So, if you want to restock your kitchen without wreaking havoc on your budget and storage space, go ahead and add this to your cart. Read More           Beats Flex Headphones Are on Sale at Amazon. Get'em Before They Sell Out.   Earning their moniker, Beats Flex headphones are flexible as well. The earbuds are magnetic, which not only prevents tangling nonsense, but functions to automatically pause what you're listening in just a simple tap. Beats Flex headphones come with four different size options of ear tips, a warranty card, a quick start guide and a USB-C to USB-C charging cable. Note: Just in case you don't have a compatible USB-C wall charger, Amazon has a bunch of options as low as $12. Considering that Beats Flex headphones have sold out on Amazon before when they weren't even on sale, this is definitely not the deal to procrastinate. Read More           The 15 Best Wine Subscription Boxes to Suit Every Palate   Wine subscriptions were hot long before much of the country shuttered itself indoors to safely wait out a health crisis. Bottles catering to your specific tastes, regularly delivered to your door? Yeah, why the hell not. It's just that these days, even venturing to the front stoop, let alone getting yourself all the way to the grocery or liquor store, carries with it a set of weighty concerns. And yet, wine will be drunk in America, as is our way. So take a minute to find a wine subscription box that'll faithfully send you what you want to drink, be it red, white, bubbly, or weird. These are the best to check out, each with its own quirks. Read More           Yeah, the Diet Cokes and Junk Food. But This Look at Trump's Hotel Is All About Influence-Peddling.   We scarcely ever talk about the fact that our most recent ex-president was an extremely weird guy. Completely bizarro specimen. This inalienable truth was reinforced in a Friday story from the Washingtonian on the life and times of restaurant staff at Donald Trump's Washington, D.C. hotel, a gig that it turns out was also weird, stressful, demeaning, and in some cases highly lucrative. But mostly: weird. Here's Politics Editor Jack Holmes on how patrons at Trump's property were climbing all over each other to grease their way to power's proximity. Read More         Read More on Esquire.com       Follow Us     Unsubscribe  Privacy Notice   esquire.com ©2021 Hearst Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Hearst Email Privacy, 300 W 57th St., Fl. 19 (sta 1-1), New York, NY 10019