S07.E25: 2020 U.S. Election

[PrincessPurrsALot]

Main topic: 2020 US Election

Other topics: Trump's reaction to the request to condemn white supremacists; Trump and team contract Covid-19; newscasters announce the month; things people miss due to the pandemic; museums - eratica goes on tour!   

Reference: https://www.getyourbootytothepoll.com/ - the place to watch exotic dancers inform you about the importance of voting 😁

Original air date: 2020.10.04

[Annber03]

"It's officially October, so why not go to Hell?" You mean we aren't already there? 

Okay, after the exhaustion that was both this week and the main story of this episode, I needed that ending segment. Awesome move on the show's part, and I hope a few museums take them up on that offer. Also, penguins :D!

On the one hand, I'm glad the show's taking a couple weeks' break, 'cause after watching this week's news I was like, "THEY JUST CAME BACK FROM ONE A COUPLE WEEKS AGO! Give them some time to breathe!" The show's Twitter account mentioned that the show would be four minutes longer tonight, and this was my favorite response to that:

Quote

I was imaging the show would only be 4 minutes. John just staring and blinking at the camera for three of them and then blood starts dripping out of his eyes then his head explodes.

On the other hand, as I said recently, considering what often happens when they're off, well.... Guess we'll see what kind of crazy news will await them in a couple weeks' time, then.

As for everything with Trump, first off, how the hell does it already feel like the tax returns story and the debates (and the controversy within) were, like, a month ago? How has this administration managed to warp time so dramatically? 

Second, regarding the stunning mismanagement and handling surrounding Trump and his administration getting this virus...

"Who knows what's happened over the last 24 hours." More insanity, pretty much. I especially appreciate John not holding back in his anger and frustration over these people's continued refusal to follow guidelines or wear masks or do anything else to protect themselves and others around them. It's callous, disrespectful, downright dangerous behavior like this (this is practically a national security risk at this point, for cripes' sakes) that explains why so many have a really hard time showing much in the way of sympathy right now. Interestingly, it makes the GOP's extensive efforts to try and hinder people's chances at voting that John described all the more ironic, too, because they're just dooming their own chances with this latest round of particularly significant craziness. If everything else wasn't enough to motivate people to vote in droves before, I think this very well could do it. 

Plus, I've been reading about some other efforts and recent rulings that have helped make it easier for people to vote as well. So indeed, John's absolutely right to raise the concerns about what might happen come election night and the days and weeks following, but there is still a sliver of hope that maybe we will be able to mitigate the problem, at least a little.

Edited October 5, 2020 by Annber03

[paigow]

The easiest way to suppress voters is excluding anyone that is not an Amazon Prime member. It might actually help Biden.

[ahisma]

3 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

but I’ll probably take my iPad with me. Just to be safe, you see

Fully charged and with a power bank! When that guy was talking about watching 5 hours of CYE, I was thinking, you know how some people bring water or pizza for people in voting lines? You need to bring chargers, too.

[Annber03]

3 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

I live about seven minutes from my polling place . . . on foot. I guess that will be how I do it. I don’t think my area has suppression issues, but I’ll probably take my iPad with me. Just to be safe, you see.

Mine's just downtown, at the courthouse (it used to be a nearby church, but pandemic and all, so it moved). Never had any issues with lines when I've gone to vote in person before, but sometimes that's been because we've gone early in the morning before any lines started, too, so... Which certainly helps :p. In-person early voting started here today, so we're gonna figure out the best day in the coming week to go out and do that, and that'll be that, done and sorted, then :). 

I appreciate the people who are willing to stand in line for hours to vote, and the fact some places have such long lines is heartening in the sense that it shows just how many people are willing to get out and vote in and of itself. But yeah, the fact people have to wait that long at all is ridiculous, especially given some of the reasons why they have to do so. Hopefully, someday, we can work out a lot of these issues so that the process runs a lot more smoothly and quickly and safely. 

[peeayebee]

3 hours ago, ahisma said:

Fully charged and with a power bank! When that guy was talking about watching 5 hours of CYE, I was thinking, you know how some people bring water or pizza for people in voting lines? You need to bring chargers, too.

I wouldn't think there'd be any place to charge a device, so it would have to be power banks, right? How many would you need to cover 5 hours? (I can't remember how many hours that one guy actually stood in line.)

I signed up to be a poll worker but haven't heard anything since I first did so a month or 200 back then. I would like to vote early but when I looked into that I was surprised to see that there are no drop boxes or early voting around here. Surprises me since I'm in California. 

It's hard to believe that things really could be horrible and violent and scary on and after Election Day. I mean, I don't doubt that the far-right has it in them, or that Trump is capable of continuing to be an authoritarian, but there's still a part of me that is in disbelief that that can happen in our country.

That one Trump supporter saying that he's a little concerned about being asymptomatic and then saying that it's just all fear-mongering made me head-slap. Oy. I did like John saying that the President currently has a bad case of fear-mongering. That's true both as a basic statement AND as a euphemism for his COVID diagnosis.

I don't think I've ever heard Halloween or October described as spooky season, like that's a common phrase.

Even though I knew the show was going to run over by 4 minutes, I wasn't concerned since my DVR has always covered for it. Except last night. Fortunately I was also watching the recording in real time so I was able to set my DVR for the next airing and add on a few minutes.

[Annber03]

14 minutes ago, peeayebee said:

That one Trump supporter saying that he's a little concerned about being asymptomatic and then saying that it's just all fear-mongering made me head-slap. Oy.

And he's saying this while standing outside a hospital where Trump is being treated for the virus, and during a time when it's sweeping through the White House because nobody followed even the most basic of safety measures. The cognitive dissonance here...it'd be fascinating to study if it weren't so incredibly infuriating. 

[Popples]

Finally, the return of Eratica! Also, I would absolutely watch a show where penguins visited different museums.

I received my mail-in ballot today and will be putting it in the post office (I don't trust the drop-off boxes) no later than Wednesday.

Edited October 5, 2020 by Popples
Left out a word

[Lantern7]

DVR cut off the last few minutes. I wound up watching the end on HBO Max, which I get because my home cable has HBO itself. It is good for something, John! Also, that is an elegant painting of Wendy Williams eating a lamb chop.

I live about seven minutes from my polling place . . . on foot. I guess that will be how I do it. I don’t think my area has suppression issues, but I’ll probably take my iPad with me. Just to be safe, you see.

"I miss licking things." Okay, newswoman. The two guys' reactions really sold it. The lady that missed sniffing candles? I don't do that, but I can understand wanting to do that.

It didn't dawn on me for a while that John is taking off next week because it's Columbus Day weekend, something covered by the show years ago. It is also Indigenous Peoples' Day. For me, it's New York Comic Con Recovery Day . . . or it would have been if it hadn't been canceled for 2020. On-topic: may the world not end before John comes back in two weeks' time.

Edited October 6, 2020 by Lantern7

[PrincessPurrsALot]

Reminder: Primetimer does not allow nicknames for any political figures.  If John says it, you can quote it.  Otherwise, nope. 

[peeayebee]

15 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

"I miss licking things." Okay, newswoman.

I thought she said, "I miss licking my fingers." 

[Lantern7]

3 minutes ago, peeayebee said:

I thought she said, "I miss licking my fingers." 

Shoot, I think you’re right. That was still weird, though.

[swanpride]

When Trump was asked if he is a good loser, my first thought was "He is known for cheating at golf. What do you think?" I mean, that alone tells you everything about Trump and losing right? He can't stand it, and he isn't worried about cheating to win.

 

I'm glad that John doesn't allow himself to get distracted by the whole "Trump has Corona" nonsense and kept it to a close segment. Hopefully he will keep it that way. Life is too short to speculate about Trump's health.

[peeayebee]

3 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Shoot, I think you’re right. That was still weird, though.

Yes. Of all the things to miss.

It really is weird how fast the news cycle moves. Put that on top of COVID and it's no wonder so many of us are losing our minds.

Loved Trevor saying about Trump, "I don't want him to lose his [life]; I want him to lose an election."

"If Trump is cocaine, Mike Pence is just flour. Your nose is still going to burn but nothing cool happens. Ahhhh, argh. Tastes like bread."

Edited October 6, 2020 by peeayebee

[conquistador]

16 hours ago, swanpride said:

I'm glad that John doesn't allow himself to get distracted by the whole "Trump has Corona" nonsense and kept it to a close segment. Hopefully he will keep it that way. Life is too short to speculate about Trump's health.

The story had just broken when they were preparing the episode and there was no way for them to expand on it without it being dated immediately as the show aired. Instead you have the main story focusing on the event taking place in November, which is much more safe to comment on from that perspective.

The news cycle really is aggressively fast these days, I don’t envy John and his crew.

[Annber03]

Yeah, I was wondering if there'd be any last minute rewriting/revamping of whatever they planned to cover, But I agree this was the best way to discuss it for the moment. And if Trump's health does wind up being the main story, it'll probably continue to be more in terms of how it's affected those around him and his messaging more than anything else. 

7 hours ago, conquistador said:

The news cycle really is aggressively fast these days, I don’t envy John and his crew.

Gien the show has been renewed for a few more seasons, I was sitting here the other day thinking, "You know, if and whenever the news cycle does finally start to quiet down a bit, if John and his staff ever wanted to just take, like, a year off just so they could get some proper sleep, I would totally understand." :p. I thank and appreciate them for putting in all the time and hard work that they are, but yeah, I can't begin to imagine how stressful their job must be sometimes. 

[swanpride]

At least they can pick one or two topics each week...others have to be on the top of the current news cycle all the time. That has to be even more exhausting.