Don't Be Stupid

"Dad, don't be stupid" is how popstar Rihanna — famous for her Umberellaellaella — responded to father Ronald Fenty's lecture on staying away from drugs. His behavior, including smoking crack in front of her years ago did add some weight to a rebuff that in most teens is just an eyeroll and dismay.

And wouldn't it have been nice if either a son or daughter had given the "don't be stupid warning" to Paul Dupey before he stole the Taser from the cop car he was sitting in when the police came to help him get his car out of the ditch; and certainly before he and son Paul began tasing each other for fun; and, of course, before they decided to video that fun and post it to YouTube, which has become evidence in the charge of illegal possession of an electrical weapon.

** "Don't be stupid" is always good advice for a dad, even if an eye roll calls the intent of the remark into question. **