Fremde Frau

Oh, Julia, where do you live? I need to move there. Seriously, it is my favorite food, especially the Hiroshima style. Maculae, I've been considering a move to NYC. (The cost of living is a bit of a deterrent.) I'm mostly yearning to be somewhere with more cultural diversity than this small town in Georgia.

I get the cravings for Arby's, too, every time they have fun with it. (Not for their curly fries, though. Those things are not to be endured.) If only okonomiyaki could become a popular thing here. Everyone I make it for always loves it, but it's never offered at the local restaurants. It is by far the food I miss most since having moved from Japan.

I want to be excited about the interview tonight, but I'm afraid I'll be disappointed. If Jon does a major, mic-dropping segment on something he's really passionate about, like religious profiling or racism, then it could lead to a more serious debate on his part. If he's covering Ebola or midterm elections again in a generally upbeat mood, then I'm not sure I'll watch the interview. (No offense.)

On this day in Jon Stewart history, ten years ago: (I know Crossfire's the one that everyone remembers, but I actually prefer his C-SPAN appearance a day earlier: Part 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7.) EDIT: Is this real life? ‘Crossfire’ Cancelled – Again – As CNN Pulls Programs And Slashes Staff

The GOP is Rip Van Wrinkle. I can't tell if they find it heroic or if they're completely oblivious to it.

I wonder how that trip to Austin is going to go. Does Texas have a long memory?

I think the point is maybe that Dems decry money in politics while taking in quite a lot of their own, and not all from this sort of grassroots fundraising but also and sometimes primarily from bigger, organized contributors. It's not big oil, the NRA, and the religious right, but it's big banks, law firms, insurance agencies, lobbyists, etc. Looking at the data on campaign financing is quite an eye-opener. I'd never vote Republican in a million years, and I think the Dems are fighting the good fight for the most part (certainly on social issues), but neither party has clean hands. That said, Citizens United is definitely the crowning glory of the GOP, and Jon has not infrequently ranted about that and about contributors like the Koch brothers and Sheldon Adelson. It's disillusioning, though, that the options appear to be either/or: either we fall in step with ugly politics as long as it's necessary, or we walk away. We are so locked into this two-party, corrupt system in the States that it's horrifying. trow125, I bet you're right that those GOP emails generate more money with older constituents, but I wonder how they go over with younger Republicans. Family members forward them to me sometimes, thinking they can convert me, and they are so obnoxious. "Why have you abandoned the Republican Party? We must stop the liberal rampage. We'll give you one last chance to send us money." And so forth. Not to mention that old one about H.J. Resolution 15 that will introduce an Obama dictatorship and the likes of which have never, you know, been introduced before by Republicans. And the one where you can donate money to become a Benghazi Watchdog. Oh, shut up.

God, those emails. They are a constant presence in my inbox; I unsubscribe, but that's also frustrating because I'd like to be on such lists in case something actually important were to come up. Anyway, it's so irritating when positions that you generally or totally agree with are presented or supported in a way that comes across as nails on a chalkboard and undermines the fundamental arguments. Like Bill Maher on the oppressive effects of organized religions. I'm glad that someone on television gave those emails some grief because they are as annoying as the hell they should be banished to. (Thanks for that, Jessica.) This was one of those times that I wanted an extended interview but didn't get it. Damn.

Ugh, O'Reilly. He really is a fucking egomaniac. I don't think Jon would ever take off his gloves while he's the host. The code of hospitality seems to be too deeply ingrained; he never even sits before his guest does. Even the Cramer interview was about as amiable as eviscerations get. What he really needs to do is skip his breakfast and get into a really pissy mood. That seems to be the ticket, if Rob Corddry is to be believed.

I just saw the Columbus Day video. For anyone else who might have missed it, here you go:

This will be coming up at some point, courtesy of Jason. (I belatedly remembered the spoiler tag. I hope it's working.)

It seems like the police in this country are more incentivized to abuse their power than to restrain it. I cannot fathom how this happens in the same country that claims to lead the "free world." I grew up in Japan, which is not exactly the freest and fairest society, and I was a foreigner on top of that, but I never felt afraid of the police there. They were aloof rather than warm and friendly, but they were utterly and reliably professional. I never felt that they were incentivized to treat citizens and legal residents as criminals first and foremost. What in the world kind of training and testing do cops go through here?

Thank you, ABay. I'll have to check it out sometime.

That Hitler joke was great. I'm not fluent at all, but I studied German in university, and I was dying.

Yeah, I really like what I've seen of him. It's too bad he'll be a contributor only. Here is his latest tweet, about TDS. I just hope they stick around longer than six months.

I don't notice it as much on TDS because it seems like they balance it pretty well and will have weeks, even consecutive weeks, where women outnumber the men. They do a little better with guests of color, too, but I wish both shows would pick up on that. And guests from the LGBT community, especially transgender guests. Stephen had on Janet Mock, I know, but has TDS ever had a transgender guest? (I've only seen previews for @Midnight during TDS and TCR. Is it any good?)

Variety: Distribution rights to Rosewater have been sold in the UK and in Australia. The US release date is November 14th. EDIT: There was pleasant buzz today on Twitter from the BFI London Film Festival. The Daily Mail has pictures of Jon taking pictures in the rain on the red carpet... plus a rather tortured, hilarious description of him that is fixated on his height and fashion sense. Here's a positive review from Box Office Buz and a negative one from Pajiba. Andrew Marr also interviewed Jon and Maziar Bahari this morning. Here is the video, which is unfortunately only viewable in the UK. (BBC.com has a bit of it up.)

I was re-watching that interview earlier today. I hope she is the MOZ. That would be sweet.

This is random, but I was reflecting on this quote from John's interview with Entertainment Weekly back in May: And I was thinking that he's met the darker events of this year with remarkable care and grace. They did such a beautiful job with Ferguson, and their coverage of Uganda, for example, and the interview with Pepe Julian Onziema was excellent and compassionate. Jon was also thrown abruptly into an extremely dark place, with 9/11. Both of these guys, and Stephen, know how to handle these extreme moments of heartache. What does it say about this particular family of hosts, writers, and crew, and the culture they foster? (I think of them as a family.) They support each other wholeheartedly; there is no competition or bickering. They care earnestly about the world, and they essentially wear that concern on their sleeve. They know how to bring about catharsis for their viewers. And they are hilarious and masterful at their profession. Some kind of beautiful gravity brought these people together, maybe. Anyway, I was re-reading that interview and thinking, John, you've well earned that authority now. Just keep being you. /my face is sprinkling a little, maybe

Wish there were a woman in there, but I'm glad they're getting new correspondents! The pack is rather small at the moment. I found some videos.

Yeah, I'm not sure that the offer was well considered, even if Stelter is right. The novelty of it was probably the main appeal, as well as the buzz that Jon can generate with his political interviews. Some of the articles mentioned this, as well, but the thought of Jon actually moderating a panel and discussing the finer points of campaign strategies with the regular blowhards week in and week out is surely enough to make Jon want to curl up and die. Aren't the Sunday morning shows where talking points go to welcome in the new week? It's bad enough that he has to watch it to mock it; doing it himself would suck the life out of Jon. Right now, he has these flexible, open-ended conversations with his guests, not interviews in the traditional sense, and he seems to be most comfortable doing exactly what he does right where he is.

Damn, that almost made me want a toddler of my own. What have I been missing? Speaking of missing things, I have been blissfully unaware of #ImARepublican. Was that ad by Minchillo meant to be satire? I honestly couldn't tell if it was deep undercover trolling by a would-be Colbert or seriously intended to help Republicans. In any case, that was great investigative comedy by Stephen and his crew. Hee! I wish O'Reilly would have the guts to show up on the Report instead of The Daily Show next week. Isn't it time? He's loathsome, but that face-off would be appointment TV. Maybe Stephen will crash their interview. That would be so magical.

That was a great take on it, @trow125. Thank you for the link. I always enjoy reading James Poniewozik's columns on Jon. He seems willing to understand Jon on his own terms, or at least he seems willing to distinguish between his view of Jon and Jon's view of himself. It's a small thing, but it's amazing (or, somewhat irritating) how often it's lacking in coverage about Jon, Stephen, and now John. Brian Stelter confirmed the MTP story. Here are some opinions on the topic: The Atlantic, The Christian Science Monitor, CNN, The Daily Beast, Huffington Post, Mediaite, Mother Jones, Newsday, Salon (who can't seem to decide whether they think maybe-racist Jon is yesterday's news or still vital), TYT, The Washington Post. And the usual Fox/Blaze/Hotair contempt that I won't bother with. They are all mostly against the idea, for journalism's sake and/or for Jon's. I think my favorite non-serious take on it was by A.V. Club: The amount of coverage doesn't surprise me, since every rumor seems to blow up for at least a day, but the readiness of the more thorough arguments leads me to believe that some people have had this general topic (Jon moving into journalism or hosting a serious interview show) on their mind for some time. The tidbit about 60 Minutes in the Newsday article blew my mind. Is that confirmed or just another rumor? EDIT: As pending evolutionary linguist and anthropologist, I can't resist adding my opinion to this discussion of language. I get frustrated reading student papers and so on, but I have to remind myself that the rules we use today are arbitrary and based on the conventions of a once-elite group. So, I take turns banging my head against the wall and taking a bunch of notes on how the internet effects language change. On a related note, I do wish that we could retire the word "devolution" as it is used to describe so-called evolutionary degeneration, whether that be linguistic, biological, or cultural changes. Evolution is not teleological. But the linguist in me has to remind the anthropologist in me that convention creates meaning, and so I just go back to banging my head against the wall. /pet peeve

I love it when unexpected things happen. This week has been full of unexpected moments, big and small: from Jon getting sick, to Kristen making Jon crack up, to the lamp turning on last night and Al almost feeding Jon one of the churros. The coverage of AIG was hilarious and perfect, the interview with Renner was great and much more informative than I expected it to be, everything has been on-point, but I have just really enjoyed all of the giggly human moments this week. EDIT: Welcome back, Al and Kristen. You've been gone too long. Don't be strangers!

It did negatively impact the healthcare packages of some people that I know and, thanks generally to red states like mine refusing to expand Medicaid, some low-income people who might have otherwise benefited from the ACA have been unable to afford the premiums. The GOP, of course, refuses their own culpability in this matter and generalized anecdotes about insurance changes to portray it as a major epidemic unlike any evil the US has ever faced.