DRW50

Thanks. I saw that Wendy interview but never got around to reading it.

You pretty much get what you expect with the doomsday machine and the media - for instance, the media has helped brainwash so many people into thinking extended unemployment benefits were bad and that people on unemployment are lazy (even though many I know haven't even received ANY unemployment benefits). I am not blaming Manchin or Schumer or other Democrats for that because I know it's not their fault. I do put a lot of the blame for the current messaging and polling problems on Manchin, and Sinema, and those in the Senate hiding behind them, because they have squandered the momentum which was gained with the brisk passage of the stimulus plan. We've since had months of these two doing nothing but stalling, running to cameras to show us how important they are, and setting out traps for Biden over not being "bipartisan" enough. Now we have a bill that is very watered down and will either be defeated, after months more haggling, by lack of 60 votes (followed by even more haggling in a reconciliation, with Sinema and Manchin hemming and hawing for cameras over whether they will support it and reminding us how bad both sides are), or because Manchin and Sinema won't keep their word. That's not even getting into the months of time that will need to be spent on voting rights, something else where it's impossible to guess if Sinema or Manchin or those hiding behind them will allow anything to actually happen. Democrats have a 5-seat House majority, a tie in the Senate, and a White House where, thanks to the GOP and the media, a huge amount of the public believes Biden was illegitimately elected. You have an influential cable news show calling for the execution of up to "tens of thousands" they blame for Trump not being in the White House. You have a sea of states that have passed and are passing legislation to not just oppress voters, but overturn elections. Trump is now demanding his lunatic, murderous followers to "Take Back America." I believe that Biden sees the urgency of this reality. I believe that it had been up to him, these issues would have been addressed sooner. That didn't happen, and instead we have lost so much time we aren't going to get back (as well as a clear message the public could have latched onto to prevent voter apathy or falling for right wing framing), thanks to the showboating of very rich, very out of touch people who are going to be more than fine no matter what happens to us. Even if everything snaps into place now, we should have never been here.

I don't blame Schumer because I don't really think anyone would be able to do much better with Sinema or Manchin, and I hope that the plan Pelosi has worked out will happen, but this type of pretzel-twisting is one of the reasons why even if this thing, or some form of it, ever does pass, I'm not sure how many voters are going to understand or care. Meanwhile, images like all the hysteria at that school board meeting in Loudon are all over the place and being used by the media and right wing astrofurfing groups to dominate the narrative.

It looks like so many of the things fans speculated about and which seemed far-fetched at times are true. There is some audio going around which I don't really want to post - she mostly sounds nervous to me but I know some feel otherwise. I just hope Britney can find some sort of help, if that is possible when she has been exploited her entire life.

I definitely did not go into that expecting stories about multiple people being shoved from moving cars. The article is incredibly stomach-churning, but is a valuable lesson in remembering no matter how much some celebrities may get headlines for bucking the system - they still keep quiet in the face of such malevolent power.

Jackie Lane never had much of a chance as Dodo, and the character was treated poorly in her exit as well as future (non-canonical) novel material. I can't blame Jackie for not wanting to have much to do with Doctor Who, but I'm glad she participated in the 50th anniversary. @Vee

I think 3 or so - maybe until he left TV Guide Canada. I mostly remember it because any time he would mention an actor in a column, if they had gotten one he would throw it in.

Yes, by the man himself (for several years), which makes the constant plugging of them in his columns even more hilarious. https://michaelfairmantv.com/oltls-takes-most-nods-in-soap-opera-spirit-award-nominations/2008/12/23/

There's an article on Politico today (I know most don't like the site so I won't link) with operatives just saying outright the CRT stuff is the new astroturf Tea Party to get Congress back. I guess with Obama not there they need to drum up insane racist hatred some other way. It's also being used as a smokescreen for this type of terror:

Melissa Archer and Jessica Morris.

Asexual?

I also meant the Twitter journalism pundits who had an outsized influence in 2016 and 2020 and still tend to now. This tweet probably sums them up (and your larger point):

I meant in terms of media coverage. They had little interest in Adams compared to Yang (or to others whose campaign flameouts and scandals got a lot of notice, like Morales or Stringer). Once the media gets a bit in its mouth, it will work nonstop to drive a candidate into the ground for clicks. Yang was a lousy candidate and ran a lousy campaign, but he also seemed to run afoul of a lot of media personalities and they spent months wearing him down.

Nellie Oleson and the Daytime Confidential hacks are one of the main reasons I posted a lot here early on. That's the main thing I choose to remember then by...that and sometimes I think of "Soap Opera Spirit award winner" and laugh.

Oh look, it's the can...sailing down the road...again. At least we have Chris Coons telling us how special bipartisanship makes him feel.

As @vetsoapfan might tell you, I'd say he's much more striking and charismatic onscreen.

I would say Rick #1 > Jeff > Rick #2 for hotness. Something about Richard Dean Anderson has always felt a bit cold to me.

Initially, until de Blasio got the momentum in the last weeks of the campaign. There was a lot of built-in animus toward Quinn for approving Bloomberg's third term. I remember some hot takes about how Yang was in a post-Trump world where negative media publicity doesn't matter. I'm not sure if that finally took a toll, or if his own gaffes did. His pro-Israel tweet seemed to be what really threw him off balance. Adams seemed to benefit from being able to wait and watch with all the attention going to Yang (or Stringer or Morales, etc.), as it meant so many weird comments and plans from him and mini-scandals hit too late to make a difference. Stuff like this feels like something from an SNL impersonation:

Thanks.

This was amplified by Politico. What is not mentioned is none of these legislative successes did anything for the Presidents involved or the members of their party who voted for them. (W and the GOP ran on terror, not tax cuts). I get the idea of going out and speaking forcefully, and I also get why some feel Biden's lack of speaking up is further hastening his declining poll numbers, but this is a situation where it doesn't really matter what he says or does - Manchin and Sinema are not interested, nor are the senators hiding behind them. Here is Sinema actually laughing at people who are frightened about the end of democracy: