Editor's Take

Before we know it, we are going to be inundated by robo-calls, baby- and (pardon my French) a**- kissing politicians, and backstabbing political commercials that make an episode of Scandal look like a Disney movie of the week. Actually, it has already started. There are currently 17 (yes, you read correctly: 17) GOP candidates for the 2016 Presidential Race. One of those candidates is a friend, but with so many running, that’s almost inevitable.

As I sit here writing, I hear that Biden may be throwing his Democratic hat into the ring. (Say it ain’t so, Joe!) My first instinct, in response to all this hubris, is to shut my TV off and just gloss over the endless print and internet stories. But then my second instinct kicks in…

If you’ve been reading Hamtpon Sheet for the past 18 years, you probably know that I like to complain, about the smell of NYC garbage stewing in the hot summer sun, or cab drivers who zig-zag through midtown traffic while talking on cell phones and eating out of cardboard containers. And those treacherous and unpredictable bikers! Yikes! The other day, I was treated to a dose of my own medicine when one of my friends started complaining about the declining quality of life in NYC. She grumbled about people using the streets as a public urinal and about the current NYC school chancellor undoing the work put in place by Joel Klein during the Bloomberg administration. She confidently told me that she believed the recent uptick in crime was thanks, in large part, to Mayor de Blah Blah’s agenda on crime and that Bratton was the only person saving the City from mayhem.

After her rant, I looked my friend in the eyes and asked if she voted in the last mayoral election. She looked at me for a few seconds and then sheepishly responded, “No.” I was not surprised. The 2013 election for New York City mayor set a record low of 24 percent of registered voters. We live in a City of 8 million people, 4.3 million of whom are registered voters. Our current Mayor won the election with just over 750,000 votes. What is even more depressing is that some people treated the election as a joke, with almost 2,000 writing in the names of noncandidates including Alex P. Keaton (Michael J. Fox’s character on the 1980s TV-series Family Ties), Alec Baldwin (p.s. Hampton Sheet loves you), 70s rock star Alice Cooper, Derek Jeter, former (and deceased) President Ronald Reagan and NYC Mayors Fiorello Laguardia and Ed Koch, Daily Show host Jon Stewart, astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson and Star Trek star Patrick Stewart. Voting is a fundamental right in a democracy, yet few people in this City (and more importantly in this country) seem to exercise it or take it seriously. All I can say is, Stop That! Become informed about the issues, now! Don’t wait until November 2016, or your complaints just might fall on deaf ears.

Now that I have that off my chest, I need to go to a party to take the edge off (or to many parties, as you can see within the tony pages of The Sheet). Meanwhile. check out our cover girl profile on Lizzy Caplan, by Linda Lee. I am enthralled by the Showtime series Master of Sex. Lizzy is hot hot hot, not to mention a great actress. Also, Dr. Martin Fox discusses a new treatment where you no longer need reading glasses, Dr. Thomas Romo tells us how to stay forever young, Jill Brooke talks about traveling to Iceland, and Jeffrey Lyons reviews some new films. The Sheet’s Hot Dates event calendar will keep you up with your social activities. And of course, you’ll also find the Best of the Best parties and philanthropic galas in the Hamptons and NYC, and more! PS: For those of you who read about me in hamptons.com, yes, I used to teach Latin dancing and if you see me at an event, ask me to show you some moves.