"The Daily Show": Week of 9/8/14

[trow125]

It's another arduous three day work week at TDS (anyone know why they're taking ANOTHER Monday off?):

 

9/8: DARK!
9/9: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY & author – promoting book “Off the Sidelines: Raise Your Voice, Change the World”
9/10: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (Secretary-General of the United Nations)
9/11: Tavis Smiley (host of PBS’s “Tavis Smiley” & author – promoting book “Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final Year”)

[Fremde Frau]

This must stop. I've had it with your movie, Jon. (I'm just kidding. I wish you all the best with it. But seriously? Again??)

 

You know what would make up for this, though? An hour-long Daily/Colbert farewell special on Stephen's last night. With some tosses in the interim.

[attica]

With some tosses in the interim.

 

I just gasped out loud with this. If only!!!!

[Fremde Frau]

This last year for their partnership must be as magical as possible. They are falling woefully behind on that, but there's still time!

[solotrek]

9/9: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY & author – promoting book “Off the Sidelines: Raise Your Voice, Change the World”

9/10: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (Secretary-General of the United Nations)

9/11: Tavis Smiley (host of PBS’s “Tavis Smiley” & author – promoting book “Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final Year”)

 

I'm loving all these guests. Ban Ki-Moon probably has nothing to talk about, the world is so safe and stable right now.

 

It's another arduous three day work week at TDS (anyone know why they're taking ANOTHER Monday off?):

 

Toronto International Film Festival. Rosewater is premiering there on Monday the 8th.  I bet I know when their October break is as well since Rosewater is having it's Europe premiere at the London Film Festival and Jon's going to be there.

Edited September 4, 2014 by maculae

[trow125]

Toronto International Film Festival. Rosewater is premiering there on Monday the 8th.  I bet I know when their October break is as well since Rosewater is having it's Europe premiere at the London Film Festival and Jon's going to be there.

 

I had assumed that TCR would also be off, since it's extremely rare that they operate on different schedules, but thankfully I was wrong. TDS will be a rerun on Monday, but TCR will be brand-new. So at least there's that to look forward to. I kinda wish that Jon would have put one of the correspondents in the host chair, but maybe he's afraid they'll do so well that they'd be snapped up by some other outlet!

[LADreamr]

 

I kinda wish that Jon would have put one of the correspondents in the host chair, but maybe he's afraid they'll do so well that they'd be snapped up by some other outlet!

 

I would love to see what Jessica would do with it.  I'm in no rush to lose her or Jon, but I'd love to see if she has those kinds of strengths too.

[trow125]

I just found out that next Thursday's guest description:

9/11: Tavis Smiley (host of PBS’s “Tavis Smiley” & author – promoting book “Death of a King: The Real Story of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s Final Year”)

could be amended. Not only is Tavis a host and author, but he's been cast on the new season of "Dancing with the Stars." I really, really hope Jon asks him about that!

[Sharpie66]

I would love to see what Jessica would do with it.

 

 

She could reprise the Putin imitation! "Ees nice desk--I'll have it..."

[Victor the Crab]

At least we know Jon's gonna spend some time in Toronto (alert the media!).

[The Luvly Junkie]

I had assumed that TCR would also be off, since it's extremely rare that they operate on different schedules, but thankfully I was wrong. TDS will be a rerun on Monday, but TCR will be brand-new. So at least there's that to look forward to. I kinda wish that Jon would have put one of the correspondents in the host chair, but maybe he's afraid they'll do so well that they'd be snapped up by some other outlet!

        

I would love to see what Jessica would do with it.  I'm in no rush to lose her or Jon, but I'd love to see if she has those kinds of strengths too.

        As much I support Jonny-bun's promotions for "Rosewater", I'd highly support any correspondent to be the 'interim host', even for one day. I think Jessica seems to have the guts to host. I would consider Jason or Sam for the job, but I think with their style of comedy, I think those web exclusives satisfy their hosting capacity.

[Fremde Frau]

Jessica is definitely at the top of my list for new hosts upon Jon's retirement. I used to think Larry Wilmore might take over one day, but things turned out even better for him. I think the only person better than Jessica would be Wyatt Cenac, were he to come back. He would bring a totally different vibe to the show, and it would be amazing. As to Jason, I'm starting to think that his Russia series was an aberration and this goofy, cringe humor is his usual style. Could any long-time viewers correct me?

 

Speaking of Toronto: I'm not familiar with him, but Jian Ghomeshi will apparently be interviewing Jon this Sunday. (I can't find a reliable source, only these tweets.) He interviewed Maziar Bahari last year about his experience in prison. It's a really nice, 20-minute interview. (Damn, he has the perfect voice for radio. I want to listen to him forever.)

[The Luvly Junkie]

Jessica is definitely at the top of my list for new hosts upon Jon's retirement. I used to think Larry Wilmore might take over one day, but things turned out even better for him. I think the only person better than Jessica would be Wyatt Cenac, were he to come back. He would bring a totally different vibe to the show, and it would be amazing. As to Jason, I'm starting to think that his Russia series was an aberration and this goofy, cringe humor is his usual style. Could any long-time viewers correct me?

        Well, Jason did put an emotionally straight-forward piece with a Republican strategist one time. It's not as goofy and naked as most of his reports, but I like the direction he took to express the substantial feelings about last year's government shutdown. Pouring his opinions of the situation hooked me. I just wished he could something that direct and save the goofiness for a rainy day. Besides, I can sense there's a little straight-man in Jason (no innuendo in context) :P

Edited September 5, 2014 by The Luvly Junkie

[LADreamr]

The weird thing about Jason is that the foreign pieces bring out a shine in him that no other context seems to.  His Iran series was one of my favorite field pieces ever, even before Maziar was arrested.  And then he kind of topped it in Russia, confronting Mikhail Gorbachev the way he did.  He's good anyway, but he's like a savant when he goes overseas.

[shok]

Eww, I can't stand Tavis Smiley. He's so sanctimonious.

[Victor the Crab]

Speaking of Toronto: I'm not familiar with him, but Jian Ghomeshi will apparently be interviewing Jon this Sunday. (I can't find a reliable source, only these tweets.) He interviewed Maziar Bahari last year about his experience in prison. It's a really nice, 20-minute interview. (Damn, he has the perfect voice for radio. I want to listen to him forever.)

 

Jian Ghomeshi is the host of the very popular CBC Radio One program Q. It's described as a national  arts magazine show, where Ghomeshi interviews prominent artists, entertainers, and cultural figures from across Canada and the world. This was an interview he did with Samantha and Jason five years ago:

 

Edited September 5, 2014 by Victor the Crab

[SomeTameGazelle]

Jessica is definitely at the top of my list for new hosts upon Jon's retirement. I used to think Larry Wilmore might take over one day, but things turned out even better for him. I think the only person better than Jessica would be Wyatt Cenac, were he to come back. He would bring a totally different vibe to the show, and it would be amazing. As to Jason, I'm starting to think that his Russia series was an aberration and this goofy, cringe humor is his usual style. Could any long-time viewers correct me?

 

Speaking of Toronto: I'm not familiar with him, but Jian Ghomeshi will apparently be interviewing Jon this Sunday. (I can't find a reliable source, only these tweets.) He interviewed Maziar Bahari last year about his experience in prison. It's a really nice, 20-minute interview. (Damn, he has the perfect voice for radio. I want to listen to him forever.)

 Here's an official link. TIFF Mavericks conversation with Jon Stewart. Jian has confirmed that it is being recorded for Q, although I haven't been able to tell when it will be broadcast.

[Sharpie66]

I really, realllllly hope that Jon covers this (content note--domestic violence topic):

 

New low for ‘Fox & Friends’: Joking about Ray Rice elevator assault

 

Disgusting.

Edited September 8, 2014 by Sharpie66

[trow125]

Tonight's rerun is very, very recent -- the Thursday show with Adam Levine. I don't think there was any discussion of the Levine interview in the 9/1/14 thread, so I assume everyone else FF'd through it like I did.

[Grommet]

I think the Levine interview was the first one I ever skipped entirely, and I've seen every show. 

 

I'm looking forward to the Gillibrand interview.  She's from my part of the state and I think the local politicos expected her to be a flop, so I'm glad she's done so well.

[Victor the Crab]

There's no denying it. We men are pigs. Expect the knuckle draggers on the right to accuse Jon of trying to aid in the pussification of males.

Goin' to Chicago tomorrow. May not post anything 'till next week.

[marceline]

Judging from the responses on the FB page, TDS is not an Adam Levine friendly audience. I don't know why. I thought it was a perfectly pleasant, throwaway interview with someone who I think is a pretty decent guy there to pimp his album and his show.

 

I might be imagining things but I think Kirsten Gillibrand has pulled a Maggie Thatcher and lowered the tone of her speaking voice. I remember it leaning towards the shrill.

Edited September 10, 2014 by marceline

[Fremde Frau]

I get the sense that Kirsten Gillibrand, like Elizabeth Warren, is a politician that Jon genuinely likes and admires. From what I've learned since posting here, it seems like John McCain and Ron Paul used to be held in high regard, as well; we know one of those ships has sailed, if not also the other.

 

EDIT: At the end of the extended interview, she recommended the book to every girl and woman. I like that Jon added his comments about the issue of empathy, admits that he's still growing in that regard, and that he recommends the book to every boy and man, as well. Very nice interview. The only thing that made me sad is when she joked about him becoming more of a feminist and he sort of shrugged. They both played the joke as lighthearted and fluffy, but I wish there wasn't in our society still this reductive, negative view of feminism as a man-hating monolith with no nuance, variation, or legitimacy. I think there's a valid debate in how we define movements and ideologies as we understand more about humanity and understand our complexities (eg. that gender and biological sex are not best understood as a strict matter of binary oppositions, that sexual orientation can be fluid), and perhaps a term more inclusive of all gender definitions would be more representative of what feminism is all about, at its core. That said, "feminism" still has to fight the stigma of being a dirty word, and, unfortunately, Jon's point about empathy is right. For instance: glance at Reddit, and you can hardly tell a liberal user from a conservative one when the topic comes up. It's getting better, but there's still a long way to go.

Edited September 10, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[ganesh]

There's no denying it. We men are pigs. Expect the knuckle draggers on the right to accuse Jon of trying to aid in the pussification of males.

 

I'm sure they're already preparing the "War on Men" graphics. 

[trow125]

Sen. Gillibrand seemed so energetic and enthusiastic -- I can't imagine how you would not feel beaten down by the dysfunction, gridlock and need for constant fund-raising.

[LADreamr]

 

I like that Jon added his comments about the issue of empathy, admits that he's still growing in that regard

 

I'm glad he's aware of it, but this is a little sad.  He has a high level of intelligence and awareness, a wife and daughter he adores, and can be passionately empathetic about other subjects (same-sex marriage, veterans' affairs, health care for 9/11 first responders), but women are a struggle to get on board with?  I sincerely don't understand the disconnect.

[Fremde Frau]

That's not how it came across to me. I don't know if you saw the extended interview, but please don't interpret the quote above as his literal meaning. The words he used were different; I was summarizing, perhaps poorly.

 

This is just my interpretation, but I seriously doubt that he meant it in the sense that he's struggling to see that women need basic equality, too, but in the sense that every day can be a learning experience as human beings on this planet as far as what people without this or that privilege go through. Anyone can believe in and honestly advocate for equality and still have blind spots about particular aspects of experience that have never occurred to them, what with it being something they've never personally had to deal with. That's being human, and also being human is never shutting ourselves off from learning under the notion that we're advocating for the right thing, anyway, and never need to listen to details or examine ourselves again. I think that's what he was going for. No part in the interview or any previous commentary that I've seen have come across as him needing to be instructed on that very basic point of "hey, women should be equal, too." I'm not sure how you got there, except if it's due to my poor job at summarizing. I apologize, if that was the case.

 

I would add, too, that I switched the order of his sentence around: his comment opened by saying that he recommends the book to men and boys, too. For whatever that's worth. Anyway, I'll stop typing now.

Edited September 10, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[Jediknight]

I really, realllllly hope that Jon covers this (content note--domestic violence topic):

 

New low for ‘Fox & Friends’: Joking about Ray Rice elevator assault

 

Disgusting.

Given the new report today, I could see Jon showing the Fox & Friends clip, and also the report that the NFL did have the tape, and there's proof.

[LADreamr]

 

This is just my interpretation, but I seriously doubt that he meant it in the sense that he's struggling to see that women need basic equality, too,

 

I didn't mean to sound like I thought he was going to those extremes.  I didn't read it that way, at all.  I was just surprised by the revelation.  

[alias1]

Unfortunately, naming names is going to do nothing to the detriment of the good old boys, but everything to the detriment of her career.  Whatever state these good old boys were elected from won't care and will continue to re-elect them.,  In my state, the tea party idiots just re-elected a guy who is now known to have had a couple of mistresses and advised both of them to have an abortion, all the while espousing family values and being against abortion. The voters won't care about some cat calls or "harmless" innuendos. 

Edited September 11, 2014 by SierraMist

[solotrek]

Having worked inside the Beltway, I can tell you that naming names is exactly what the city needs. Everyone knew what Bob Packwood was doing for years, but only when women stood up and publicly pointed the finger at him was he held accountable.

 

I have a feeling that it has something to do with the political party some of the men might be in that's the issue with naming names. Especially if they're up for re-election this year. I'm not condoning it, but I'm assuming that may be a reason.

Edited September 11, 2014 by maculae

[Fremde Frau]

That was a great segment on Roger Goodell's bullshit, but I agree, Chattygal. There's a much broader culture of protection that I wish they had tackled more directly, perhaps with an in-studio correspondent follow-up.

 

As someone interested in attending a graduate program at Edinburgh, I've been on the edge of my seat about Scotland's independence.

[dubbel zout]

the disparaging, inaccurate spin that Palmer was punching Rice first.

So what if she hit first? He wasn't the one who was laid out unconscious on the elevator floor. Assholes. Ugh.

 

The Ban Ki Moon interview was a bust, as those kinds of interviews tend to be. The usual blahblahblah about nations working together to improve the world. Yeah, that's going well.

[Fremde Frau]

How did he manage to flip off Goodell, by the way? I saw it online, and it wasn't blurred. Was it blurred when it aired? (Or have those rules changed?)

[alias1]

Having worked inside the Beltway, I can tell you that naming names is exactly what the city needs. Everyone knew what Bob Packwood was doing for years, but only when women stood up and publicly pointed the finger at him was he held accountable.

I totally agree.  But it will take more than one person.  It took ten women, mainly staffers and lobbyists from what I've read, to take down Bob Packwood.  

[solotrek]

I thought John Oliver would have been great if he were still around for the Scotland vote segment. In fact, I bet it would have been the first segment instead of the second segment - I think it should have been flipped. As it were, I didn't really react much to either segment. Neither was really tight or well done. I think the abbreviated nature of both segments to make room for the Ban-Ki Moon interview might be the cause.

 

I liked the Ban Ki Moon interview. Nothing was actually discussed, but it was interesting to listen to. I wonder if Ban Ki Moon is that optimistic in private.

 

So what if she hit first? He wasn't the one who was laid out unconscious on the elevator floor. Assholes. Ugh.

 

Yeah, I don't think there's really an sort of excuse for a guy whose job is to work out for hours everyday and knock around people in full pads to have a clear face shot on anyone who isn't trained or used to that situation. Man or woman. A player from a college team I like was kicked off the team for knocking out a guy like that. A punch in the face like that could easily kill someone, especially if the puncher is basically a muscle machine. With how much he obviously overpowers her, even if he were threatened by her physically, he could have easily diffused the situation without resorting to knocking her out or even hurting her. Hell, he could have tried to diffuse the situation with words or not even gotten on the same elevator. The fact that he didn't even try and then the lack of remorse afterwards just compounds the issue. Regardless, those people are idiots, the guy spit on her twice before she did anything physical. I assume the morons who agree that she deserved to be knocked out because she "hit first" would be the type of people to react if they were spit on as well.

 

The other issue is when Bounty Gate happened, Goodell basically told the Saints GM and HC that (paraphrase) "If you didn’t know exactly what was going on in your program, that’s no excuse. You should have known". I see no reason why Goodell should be able to plead ignorance here. It's a freaken casino - they're obviously going to have cameras everywhere. It doesn't take a great leap of imagination to figure out what happened in the elevator. Now that the video has gone public and everyone has seen it, he's back tracking and covering up like made. Good luck with that.

 

How did he manage to flip off Goodell, by the way? I saw it online, and it wasn't blurred. Was it blurred when it aired? (Or have those rules changed?)

 

He was merely counting with his fingers ;-)

[attica]

[shallow] That UN helmet matches Jon's eyes. [/shallow]

 

Oh, and one other thing: Haggis is fucking delicious. I'm not even kidding. Rich, meaty, savory: scrumptious. And most of it these days is cooked inside plain old collagen casings. I'm waiting for the US ban on importing the stuff to be lifted so I can have it often!

Edited September 11, 2014 by attica

[marceline]

I have a feeling that it has something to do with the political party some of the men might be in that's the issue with naming names. Especially if they're up for re-election this year. I'm not condoning it, but I'm assuming that may be a reason.

 

The issue with naming names is that it gives people the chance to dismiss this kind of behavior as one person being an asshole instead of it being a symptom of a larger culture. If Gillibrand was accusing someone of a criminal act, then I would definitely say she should name the parties involved but she's making a point about the culture of Capitol Hill. Keeping it anonymous forces others to look at everybody and consider whether they are capable of this.

 

I really hope Gillibrand manages to remain a "friend of the show" to use Stephen's term. She's a good guest and I would hate for this to turn out like John McCain or Obama. Unfortunately Jon seems to put people on pedestals then get hurt when they disappoint him. 

[ganesh]

I'm actually interested in the Scottish vote because I want to know what's going to happen to the nukes. Much like Ukraine when the USSR dissolved. 

[purist]

Ugh, Jon's interviewing style really annoys me sometimes. Every time he asked Ban Ki-Moon a question it was actually three or four questions. No wonder we didn't get any straight answers.

 

For example, here's one of Jon's questions: 'How difficult is it to rally the world to these causes? Because we see this situation - Boko Haram in Nigeria, ISIS, Syria, Ukraine, Gaza - all around the world. Is it too much to ask the UN to-- to-- or is it better for the UN to keep focused on humanitarian issues and try and sort out the more political issues later? Or can you accomplish both?'

 

I mean, I wouldn't even know where to start in answering such a 'question'!

[Fremde Frau]

I feel like he tries to provide various layers of context for the questions he asks. Sometimes, it works, and sometimes, it drags down the interview. He sort of made up for it this time by clamping down pretty well on his impulse to interrupt. I think also that the status of his guest was such that he perhaps tried to squeeze in as much as he could ask, knowing he'd probably never get a chance like this again and that there was no time for an extended interview. All of that, unfortunately, made him ask "question bombs" rather than questions.

 

Having never seen Ban Ki-Moon being interviewed before, I had no idea that he is such an optimist. That was sort of heartwarming (if it's the truth).

 

EDIT: Speaking of "optimism," the extended interview with Tavis Smiley was fantastic, even though Jon clearly hadn't read the book--probably due to how busy he's been with Rosewater. Since I grew up in Japan, I wasn't exposed to American history as taught in the American school system, so I feel like I've always been playing catch-up and looking for reading material that gives me details rather than myth. Smiley's book looks like a valuable one to add to my reading list. Also: I'm not religious at all, but when Smiley seemed slightly unsure of the reaction he's get mentioning MLK's faith, sermons, and so on, I appreciated that Jon didn't shut him down or mock him. Not that I expected him to, but it seems like religion is something that most shows either treat as something to take a wide berth around or allow to dominate the conversation, either in a positive way or a negative way. It's nice that, on TDS, it's just another part of the humanity of whatever or whomever they're discussing.

 

In other news: what was Betsy McCaughey thinking, agreeing to a DS interview again? Did she only belatedly recognize the name of the show, or did she think she'd be safe with a correspondent and away from Jon?

Edited September 12, 2014 by Fremde Frau

[atir]

Yeah that Betsy deal was odd. Short memory on her part? However it did make me look her up & got me to view her interview with Jon in 2009 (?). I vaguely recall that death panel smackdown he wielded. It was great.

[solotrek]

If you haven't watched the Tavis Smiley extended interview, go watch it now. That is someone who came in prepared and hit all the points he wanted to hit. I learned a lot about MLK that I don't think was ever or will ever be taught in schools. Really fascinating.

 

To be fair, Betsy didn't really give an interview - she sort of just stormed out which actually looks worse than looking like a moron in her debate with Jon. Jordan has really developed as a correspondent, good segment on his part.

 

I thoroughly enjoyed the IS/ISIS/ISIL segment. Of course Jon didn't mention the reports of the fact that Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar are all unofficially backing or have influential people withing backing IS for their own reasons so that's why they're not really helping with the coalition. I was surprised that they didn't hit on Russia saying that US air strikes in Syria would be a violation of international law. Ironic since they're doing their best to "send their soldiers on vacation" to Ukraine.

[ganesh]

Do interview subjects not know the gist of the Daily Show by this point? Regardless if they are regular viewers. That woman storming out seemed ridiculously calculated. "I'll show them." I assume she took the time to go through makeup, hooked up for sound, scene blocking or whatever. Then they roll the cameras and she storms out? 

 

You show them what? You don't have cogent criticisms of Obamacare? There's things to criticize for sure, but 99% of this sky is falling bs has been completely and definitively disproven. Oh, I remember how my friend's mother screamed at me on FB how the ACA would ruin health care. How's that working out for you?

In other news: what was Betsy McCaughey thinking, agreeing to a DS interview again?

 

Oh, hold on. Are you telling me she's already been on the show? I really don't understand. I know people have differences with policies, how to go about solving problems politically, etc., but the opposition to the ACA has been vitriolic and continues to be. It's like people are feral in screaming against it. Pulling stunts like this like you're an emo teen.

 

I also have to laugh at the backhandedness with the plan to deal with ISIS. It's probably a little too slow in coming, but it seems well thought out and carefully considered. "Well, he *is* the commander in chief. So I guess we'll do it." Thanks guys. eyeroll. The bottom line is, as they said on PBS News, nothing's going to really get done unless the bulk of the real forces are a coalition of people who actually live there, and that's going to be very hard to pull off. 

 

I find it so short sighted to pull the "we go in there and kill them. One by one. All of them. Wipe them out. Erase them from existence." Maybe that is kind of doing the recruiting for them, no? 

 

The bulk of enemy combatants nowadays are subnational entities motivated by religion, rather than nationalism. Unprecedented strategies are needed. I don't think screaming about mass murder is really the best approach.

[solotrek]

Oh, hold on. Are you telling me she's already been on the show?

 

Betsy McCaughey was someone who was interviewed by Jon in 2009 when they were focused on "death panels" and other nonsense. It's one of his more famous takedowns. I think she lost a lot of credibility after that interview and it was all over the news - so yes, she knows ALL about TDS. Clearly she was out to prove a point this time and it was "I can say more if I don't speak because when I open my mouth I sound like a moron".

 

part 1 extended

Part 2 extended

[dubbel zout]

As a woman, I was really embarrassed to watch McCaughey. The takedown was glorious, but she practically winked at the audience when she couldn't find her way in her big book, and her little-ole-me? act was just awful. For one thing, she's way too old to play coy like that. For another, it's astoundingly unprofessional. Forget about her completely idiotic interpretation of the ACA—I don't know how she thought people would take her seriously when she got all boopsy.

Edited September 12, 2014 by dubbel zout

[alexvillage]

 

I find it so short sighted to pull the "we go in there and kill them. One by one. All of them. Wipe them out. Erase them from existence."

Not only short sighted, impossible.

ISIL's fight is a sectarian one. They want publicity, so they behead Americans. We, like little children, take the bait and vow to "exterminate" them. This is never going to end. It is in part our fault, the western world, because of all the intervention, support of dictators and regimes that were not legitimate over decades. But is is also their own problem, their fight, and we cannot solve it, ever. It is just never going to happen. 

It started with Afghanistan, when we "had to" go for revenge, instead of learning a little bit about the culture, how the people would react, the backlash. Now, when a threat is not fabricated, we act like brats and take the bait of evil people who don't see they have anything to lose.

All this because the assholes in the Capitol need to be reelected, so they cannot look "week".

[ganesh]

Forget about her completely idiotic interpretation of the ACA—I don't know how she thought people would take her seriously when she got all boopsy.

 

I'm finding it more and more hard to believe that these people are actually legit in their policy analyses than they are promoting their "brand". Clearly, the more outrageous comments you make or things you do the more people are going to talk about you, etc. Not that proposing the ACA will eventually raise costs is outrageous. There's legit criticisms but with time, they've been put to rest. But the "this will ruin America as we know it," type stuff. 

 

I don't think they expect to actually be taken seriously: it's a classic misdirection scam. I don't think they actually believe what they are saying. The thing is, I get why they're on Fox, etc., they're all in on it. I'm surprised TDS just doesn't flat out say it. It's not like I'm all ESP, but surely others have come to the same conclusion. 

 

They want publicity, so they behead Americans.

 

That's kind of a no-win though. You can't let innocent people be captured and killed. It may be the fault of the west, but something needs to be done. 

 

But is is also their own problem, their fight, and we cannot solve it, ever. It is just never going to happen.

 

I think this is what Obama is trying to get everyone to accept. Because going in there an laying waste is just going to bring the cycle back again in the next generation. To really do it right is going to take a radically different approach. 

Edited September 12, 2014 by ganesh

[alexvillage]

Yes, Obama might be trying to do that but then he goes on TV and says what the Democrats afraid of losing their jobs want him to say because according to polls, the American public wants the intervention. I think the government should launch a poll that asks: "do you think we should attack ISIL and spend millions of dollars every day?" Let's see how the support goes down

[fastiller]

Everytime I think of Betsey McCaughey, I can't help but recall that she married someone named Ross, she became Betsey (McCaughey) Ross.