TDS 3.0: Season One Talk

[jaytee1812]

I doubt betting on elections would improve voter turnout but I doubt you would have any problems with it. People vote for who they want to win and bet on who they think will win. Not necessarily the same thing.

But isn't most betting outside of a casino illegal in the US? I mean I can bet on elections the same way I bet on football, or TV talent show results.

[gesundheit]

I doubt betting on elections would improve voter turnout but I doubt you would have any problems with it. People vote for who they want to win and bet on who they think will win. Not necessarily the same thing.

That's giving us Americans way too much credit, actually assuming that gamblers would vote their conscience/beliefs even if it went against what would make them some fast cash.

 

If I were an Oscars voter and didn't really care about who won, and I also happened to have a lot of money riding on the results, you're damn right I'd vote for who I bet on and I'd encourage everyone else to do the same!

[ganesh]

Well, no, I don't think they were saying people like Oscar voters can bet on who they voted for. I think they just meant the public in general. It's the same thing if you're a pro athlete, you can't bet on your sport, or if you actually work for the casino in the sports book, you can't bet on anything. 

 

Online poker is legal. There's gaming places besides just the casinos. But sports betting has the most restrictions iirc. Even though fantasy sports is a huge gambling industry. 

[Victor the Crab]

Just the idea of banning Donald Trump from entering a country, like the U.K., because of the vile shit that comes out of his mouth is stupid and childish. Now making fun of him and laughing at him, in the manner that the Brits are world renowned for, I wholeheartedly approve!

 

Roy has been my favourite of the new correspondents, and his piece last night showed why. Desi annoys me to no end, and Ronny just seems out of place.

[angora]

OMG, I loved Trump at Liberty U - it reminded me of the footage of him trying to ingratiate himself among Jewish voters.  "2 Corinthians" was ridiculous, and Trevor's reaction to it was great. 

 

Agree that Jordan's piece was so-so, although I laughed at him demonstrating how he'd "smack" the ministers if they were there.  I liked Roy's piece better - I was especially amused by him gathering intel on how candidates performed in the rain or the cold.  The angle, trying to turn fantasy football players into well-informed voters, made me think of one of Trevor's standup bits, where he compared knowledge of American sports (fans are walking stat machines) to knowledge of the American economy (the market does things, and no one really knows why.)

[Victor the Crab]

Nice to see Trevor enjoy Sarah Palin's incoherent word salad cranked up to eleven. I doubt he'll enjoy it once his ears start to bleed like a normal person's would.

[angora]

Slam dunk show for me.  I loved everything about it.

 

The cold open with Trevor and the correspondents in their pajamas was cute.  I especially liked Jessica delivering 2008 Palin-isms with such revulsion.  Trevor's delight and utter bafflement at Palin's speech was so much fun - I liked her as "the original iPhone" of clueless politicians and the remark about Trump spending his life with the working man telling him what to do.  Trump standing in the background listening to Macho Man was great, too.  Oh, and I really enjoyed Trevor contrasting people's warnings to him about being an "outsider" who doesn't understand U.S. politics (ugh) to Trump, Carson, and Fiorina.  "We're like a study group!"

 

Hasan's financial bit killed me.  I love how it kept getting increasingly insane with the Vicodin chart, the words appearing on the screen (my favorite was "The Kids Are Mine,") and the Lego portrait of Hasan's family in the invest-in-Legos ad.  Such a great job skewering that Mad Money frenetic style, and Hasan was fantastic.

 

The interview was awfully light, but I still enjoyed it.  Trevor's right - Gael Garcia Bernal is quite charming (and I was glad Trevor only mispronounced his name once at the top the show.)  Discussing the sexiest parts of the orchestra was funny.

[peeayebee]

I don't know how anyone can take Palin seriously. Also, I don't understand why she is so incoherent. She comes across as drunk. 

 

I wondered what was going thru Trump's mind as she talked. He looked uncomfortable to me. That was probably because he's not used to being silent for so long and for not being the center of attention.

[ganesh]

The thing with the legos though, is that they have to still be sealed in the package, like action figures, in order to retain value. It's not like suddenly your big lego bucket is worth 1 million.

If someone didn't know Palin at all, never seen her, and you showed them that clip, they would have thought she was either doing a bit, rambling drunk, or on heavy medication. You could see her thinking what next to say. One time a couple years ago her teleprompter fizzled out and she went completely off the rails. She just can't speak off the cuff. I also think she talks in that affected voice on purpose too.

Edited January 21, 2016 by ganesh

[tenativelyyours]

It's such a neck and neck tie for which of the two lacks the most self-awareness it is kind of hard for me to parse what was going through his mind during that speech.  I think he is such a mixed bag of misogyny and ego he could well have simply not really paid any attention to what she was saying and simply responded every time he heard his name to smirk and then frowned when the applause and cheers were lackluster, tapering off too quickly or simply not present despite the vocabulary salad shooter that is Sarah Palin dropping what she clearly thought were hot talking points but forgot to use her verbs, punctuation, recognizable sentence structure or coherence.

 

Trevor was almost giddy the entire time.  I suspect he and the writers spent the whole afternoon watching it over and over again and finding that, yes, even after several views it never gets less ridiculous.  I bet that after whatever prayers to the Powerball gods the staff had last week, they have been replaced with prayers to the comedy gods that Palin is a regular in the campaign circuit for weeks if not months to come. 

[attica]

I would like to dip into the shallow end of the pool and express my deep appreciation for Hasan in that white shirt and suspenders. Oh, yeah, and that bit was quite good too.

[ganesh]

Aside from the rambling folksy schtik, the "he's a man of the people who has been around workers" was just out of nowhere. Trump was a fairly well known national name prior to his current political experiment. She's talking like no one knows who he is. 

[marceline]

With Palin endorsing Trump I keep picturing Jon clawing at his front door screaming, "We need to go baaaaack!" like Jack from LOST while Tracy tells the kids, "Get Daddy's medicine!! Not the pills, the special medicine Daddy needs to smoke! It's in a baggie at the back of the cabinet!"

[dusang]

With Palin endorsing Trump I keep picturing Jon clawing at his front door screaming, "We need to go baaaaack!" like Jack from LOST while Tracy tells the kids, "Get Daddy's medicine!! Not the pills, the special medicine Daddy needs to smoke! It's in a baggie at the back of the cabinet!"

 

Haha!!  Although, TBH, I see him more kicking back in a rocking chair in the porch, "medicine" in hand, laughing his ass off and waving to Trevor like, "good luck, chump!"

[attica]

For a couple of years now, I keep wondering what's wrong with me, because I've been sure everybody's been pronouncing Alejandro Iñárritu's name wrong, but even on shows where he's been a guest, he never corrects them. So then  I think maybe I don't know the rules of Spanish phonics (I don't speak it, but I live in a place where it is commonplace). So I nearly leapt out of my chair in delight when Bernal name checked him and pronounced it how I've been convinced it's supposed to be pronounced and no one ever, ever does: "ee-NYAH-ree-too", not "inna-REE-too".  What a relief to know I'm not nuts!

[nodorothyparker]

Every time Palin speaks I think of the guy in Blazing Saddles who introduces another character as speaking "pure frontier gibberish."  This time was no exception.  Trevor's unadulterated giddiness at whatever that mess was she trying vainly to communicate was a delight and about the only thing that made sitting through it bearable.  The entire bit, starting with the slumber party horror story, was gold.

 

If I hadn't seen her speak before and knew she's always like this, I would have thought she was about a bottle and a half of Mad Dog in too.

[ganesh]

If we can compare Palin's speech they showed on the show to her others, then I've never heard her that bad before. She's just not a smart woman and has shown that by some of the answers she's given in just regular, softball media interviews. I mean, 'what newspapers do you read?' isn't a gotcha question. If you're in the public eye enough, as any politician is, you're going to just mess up sometimes. This was beyond that. 

 

This was honestly, 'is something wrong with that woman?' It's easy to make fun of, but on the other hand, it is really disturbing. 

[attica]

The pleasure in making fun of Palin is for me now outweighed by the pain caused by having to listen to her in the first place. Diminishing returns!

[nodorothyparker]

For all her ragging on Obama for his use of a teleprompter, the only times I've ever seen her speak when she wasn't utterly incoherent was when she was reading what someone else had obviously written for her with some folksy you betchas and talk about lipstick on pigs or some other animal thrown in.  Every time she's spoken off the cuff, you can almost see her brain trying frantically to connect a bunch of random points and catch phrases without bothering to pause for verbs or punctuation.

 

Apparently someone somewhere along the way told her this is folksy or authentic or whatever constitutes "real America" instead of disturbing or looking like she might just be having a stroke so she decided to run with it.

[zxy556575]

I also enjoyed Trevor throwing in that zinger about her clothing because, seriously.

Edited January 21, 2016 by lordonia

[angora]

For a couple of years now, I keep wondering what's wrong with me, because I've been sure everybody's been pronouncing Alejandro Iñárritu's name wrong, but even on shows where he's been a guest, he never corrects them. So then I think maybe I don't know the rules of Spanish phonics (I don't speak it, but I live in a place where it is commonplace). So I nearly leapt out of my chair in delight when Bernal name checked him and pronounced it how I've been convinced it's supposed to be pronounced and no one ever, ever does: "ee-NYAH-ree-too", not "inna-REE-too". What a relief to know I'm not nuts!

I found that really gratifying, too. I mean, a tilde AND an accent! What more proof do you need?

Forgot to mention - in the intro to Hasan's segment, I loved Trevor explaining that 9% was almost 20% of 50% before sheepishly confessing that he doesn't follow finance. Hee!

[marceline]

This was honestly, 'is something wrong with that woman?' It's easy to make fun of, but on the other hand, it is really disturbing. 

 

I can't stand Palin but I've thought for a while that she seems to have a neurological issue. I mean that seriously. Something about her behavior is reminiscent of Parkinson's. She doesn't strike me as drunk so much as sick.

 

Slightly OT but I'd encourage anyone to check out Stephen's amazing Palin riff on TLS (Go to the 4:00 mark). Whoever wrote it is a genius.

[Bastet]

I just watched last night's episode, and the Sarah Palin coverage was just fantastic.  I love them sitting around discussing her as a spooky campfire tale, and then Trevor's absolute giddiness at watching her word salad speech.

 

"It's like a bag of Scrabble tiles that grew a body and came to life."

 

"It's almost like she's a malfunctioning robot."

 

"It's like the only thing Sarah Palin hates more than Obama is punctuation."

 

That last one reminded me of Jacob Weisberg (in Newsweek) saying back in 2010 that Sarah Palin is like Fox News without the punctuation:

 

“[sarah Palin’s] exuberant incoherence testifies to an unusually wide gulf between confidence and ability.  She is proud of what she doesn’t know and contemptuous of those ‘experts’ and ‘elitists’ who are too knowledgeable to be trusted.  The issue is not that Palin … still doesn’t know all the details.  That’s understandable.  The issue is that she rarely appears to have the slightest grasp of what she’s talking about.  … Bush-isms … often hinged on a single grammatical or factual error.  Palin-isms, by contrast, consist of a unitary stream of patriotic, populist blather.  It’s like Fox News without the punctuation.”

[Lion]

Just the idea of banning Donald Trump from entering a country, like the U.K., because of the vile shit that comes out of his mouth is stupid and childish. 

Banning people from entering countries is, uh, pretty standard practice.  The US has a very long list of people banned from entering based on all sorts of speech concerns, typically related to a certain type of terrorism.  Trump's language is not simply vile.  It's extremely dangerous and he now occupies a position where it's inciteful.  No country is legally obligated to allow anyone enter their borders and can determine the sorts of speech, behavior, and actions that warrant a ban.  

[ganesh]

Trump has been used literally by ISIL as recruitment. No way I'm a head of state letting him in, on that alone. Much less in Europe with the migration problems they're having. 

[Shermie]

So when Trump becomes your president, what then?

I admit, I turned on TDS with gleeful anticipation after Palin did her screechy shit, and I was not disappointed. Trevor is probably thinking the comedy gods for the double gift of Trump and Palin right now.

As for the financial piece, Americans need to learn that those building bricks are called Lego, not Legos. You don't pluralize it. It's like saying deers or sheeps. Lego is already a plural. And it doesn't matter if that's how people have "always" said it; it's still wrong.

[ganesh]

Legos is a contraction of lego bricks. I don't know if contraction is the right term. Colloquialism? It's been like that since for a long as I can remember. English is an evolving language that's drawn in new words for centuries. It's part of the cultural lexicon. There's no right or wrong to it. 

 

So, I'm waiting for the new television appearances that Palin was clearly trying to shill herself for. Which means we're going to get more of her gems. 

[Brandi Maxxxx]

If you want to get technical about it, "Lego" would be a mass noun.

[Qoass]

And the name is Danish, not English.

[attica]

I've warmed to the variety of Trevor-stagings for the show. I thought you'd all like to know that. :)  The Iranian dancing might have been the thing that put me over the top.

 

I looked up Flavor Flav: he'll be 57 in March. 

[ganesh]

Yeah, the name is Danish, but 'legos' is part of colloquialisms or lexicon of English. "English" is filled with foreign words, it appropriates them. Cavalier isn't an "english" word either. Yet it's found all over the place in english writing. 

 

I was surprised they covered Iran since it happened a week ago. It's not a new story. I'm glad they did, but they did really get into the details much, and would have liked an extended piece. Of of the guys held prisoner was going to be put to death. The negotiations for them took almost as long as the nuclear negotiations. I am also glad that they tied in the sailor navigation issue to the negotiations too. 

 

I'm sure a long time ago, when towns were kind of their own isolated places no one knew about this logo. But nowadays we're very connected. I felt like the mayor was just digging his heels in for the sake of being contrary. Come on, you've got outside observers with no stake in your town saying how horrible it looks. "It's based on history!" If you don't realize that maybe it colors that history in a poor light, then you're just ignorant or just being a jerk. I wonder if it cost them some outside investors or something. 

[marceline]

I'm sure a long time ago, when towns were kind of their own isolated places no one knew about this logo. But nowadays we're very connected. I felt like the mayor was just digging his heels in for the sake of being contrary. Come on, you've got outside observers with no stake in your town saying how horrible it looks. "It's based on history!" If you don't realize that maybe it colors that history in a poor light, then you're just ignorant or just being a jerk. I wonder if it cost them some outside investors or something. 

 

I suspect that seeing their town become a laughingstock finally made them change. It took a little time for it to trickle down to the residents but I can imagine someone talking to a family member or friend and having them ask "How did you vote?"

[Muffyn]

Jessica Williams is a national treasure.  That is all.  Oh wait, there's one more thing.  Apparently she's African American or Black or Negro.  I need a GIF of her reaction at that moment.  The ignorance runs deep in Whitesboro.  

[ganesh]

I'd like to know the racial demographics in that town.

[Hooper]

 

I'd like to know the racial demographics in that town.

According to http://www.areavibes.com/whitesboro-ny/demographics/  Whitesboro is 97.93 % white, and 0 % Native American.  You know. Cuz of the friendly relations that have existed between the white "settlers" and the natives ever since that light hearted rastlin' match. 

 

I suspect that seeing their town become a laughingstock finally made them change. It took a little time for it to trickle down to the residents but I can imagine someone talking to a family member or friend and having them ask "How did you vote?"

I still have family who live in upstate NY, and believe me, if I asked them how they would vote, they would be more than happy to tell me all about the importance of honoring the town's noble history and not bending to the tyranny of political correctness.  Their only regret is that upstate NY doesn't have a confederate flag to defend.

 

But, good on Jessica.  Maybe not as important an issue as Rachel's coverage of the Flint water situation, but still, a nice illustration of how satire and ridicule can bring about positive change.

[iMonrey]

 

This was honestly, 'is something wrong with that woman?' It's easy to make fun of, but on the other hand, it is really disturbing.

 

If you watched (or read) Game Change, you came away with a very strong perception that there is in fact something mentally wrong with Sarah Palin. While I cannot attest to the veracity of the story, it seems the most disturbing part is that anyone - especially a candidate for the Republican nomination - would want to get anywhere near her let alone have her endorse them publicly. It actually frightens me to think there is still any contingency of the voting electorate that embraces her or even takes her seriously at this point. She's a late-night joke that should have disappeared a long time ago.

[ganesh]

Is there anyone who takes her seriously? When she was rambling on at Iowa, it wasn't like there was a ton of cheering. 

 

The thing with the strangling logo didn't have anything to do with the history. Once they told Jessica about the history, she came up with several reasonable logos that maintained that history while also trying actually show that Hugh White (really) was friends with the native Americans. 

 

I mean, "hey, this is our history, this really happened." "Ok, fine, but it really looks like the white guy is strangling the nonwhite guy. You can't admit that others might get that connotation?" "HISTORY!"

 

The mayor was just being petulant at that point and frankly, a jerk.

[trow125]

The first time I saw that seal, I honestly thought it was a parody inspired by the Pawnee town murals.

[ChelseaNH]

Plus the seal has been changed several times over the years, so they weren't defending Ye Olde Historickal Emblem.

[redfish]

Jessica Williams is a national treasure.  That is all.  Oh wait, there's one more thing.  Apparently she's African American or Black or Negro.  I need a GIF of her reaction at that moment.  The ignorance runs deep in Whitesboro.

 

 

When that guy kept repeating it over and over again to Jessica Williams, I kept thinking "Stop. Just stop. You're making your position worse." Was he even aware that the cameras were on? I'd hate to see him without filters.

[angora]

Jessica's reaction shots throughout that piece were perfection.  Good on The Daily Show for (even unintentionally) getting the story the press it needed to make something happen.  Loved Jessica and Trevor high-fiving over "solving racism."

 

I laughed at Russia being pissed at Britain for explaining its joke, as well as the U.S. demonstrating its improved relations with Iran by no longer pronouncing it "EYE-ran."  And any time Trevor wants to call out Ted Cruz's bomb-first, there-is-no-step-two tendencies is fine by me.

 

marceline, thanks for posting that Palin riff - it's incredible!  Since it sometimes seems to me that Palin fancies herself a Tea Party Allen Ginsberg, I died when Stephen started quoting "Howl."

[ganesh]

When that guy kept repeating it over and over again to Jessica Williams, I kept thinking "Stop. Just stop. You're making your position worse."

 

At some point, it's like come on. You (the guy) are seriously that tone deaf? Don't tell me you don't watch the news and understand, at least tenuously, that we have a critical race problem in this country. What are you thinking? I'm going to bully "this girl". Ha. I told her! I said "negro!" If they rely on outside business investment or tourism, they really shot themselves in the foot. 

[annabel]

Trevor needs to not button his jacket during the standing-up segments or get some better fitting jackets.

[DrSparkles]

Gael Garcia Bernal ... still so foine, still so charming. Phew!!!

[trow125]

Trevor needs to not button his jacket during the standing-up segments or get some better fitting jackets.

I notice in the end credits that his suits are from Tiger of Sweden (the "Sweden" part jumped out at me 'cause that's where I'm from). The suits seem to be cut for VERY slim men, but the models on the web site don't seem to have the gapping below the buttons that Trevor has. If you look at this one, for example, it seems to fit far better than any of Trevor's suits do. (I will admit here that I know nothing about menswear, but I have also noticed that his suits don't seem to fit quite right.)

[peeayebee]

I don't know much about men's suits either, but I can imagine that the jacket the model is wearing would gap in the front if he raised his arms. I think if Trevor just stood there with his arms by his sides, the jacket would lie just right.

[ganesh]

I am actually a man, who has worn suits, and I did not notice any of this.

[topanga]

 

 

The suits seem to be cut for VERY slim men, but the models on the web site don't seem to have the gapping below the buttons that Trevor has. If you look at this one, for example, it seems to fit far better than any of Trevor's suits do. (I will admit here that I know nothing about menswear, but I have also noticed that his suits don't seem to fit quite right.)

 

I am actually a man, who has worn suits, and I did not notice any of this.

I certainly did. Trevor is a slim man, but I think his suits are a tad too small. That seems to be the trend these days for male celebrities--tailoring their suits so tight the men can barely breathe. 

[Victor the Crab]

I had heard about the eyebrow raising seal of Whitesboro, New York a while ago through different media outlets. But I had no idea TDS was instigating this. Taking into full account the origins of the town, you would think the civic leaders there would come up with a new seal for their town that wouldn't look eye and jaw droppingly stupid on their part - the upwards handlock between a white settler and a Native American looks perfect, and the one where both of them are beating up a British redcoat would satisfy the lizard part of my brain. Good thing they're deciding to come up with a new one. First victory for Trevor.

[Bastet]

I certainly did. Trevor is a slim man, but I think his suits are a tad too small. That seems to be the trend these days for male celebrities--tailoring their suits so tight the men can barely breathe.

 

Yes, I do not see this fit among real-life male colleagues, but I see it enough among men on TV that I think it's a deliberate style rather than a poor fit.  But, to me, it looks like the latter.  To the point it's distracting, and I'm not one who focuses on fashion.