buzzsawmonkey 3/11/2020 6:16:06 AM

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buzzsawmonkey 3/11/2020 6:28:22 AM

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On another topic, listening to the NPR-niks crowing over Biden's success in yesterday's primaries, I suddenly wondered whether the entire Biden/Bernie battle is merely a set piece---a put-up job along the lines of Macy's vs. Gimbel's, the "rivalry" between Jack Benny and Fred Allen, or the feud between WC Fields and Charlie McCarthy.

Why would it not be? Why would Boinie the Bought-Off not be a shill again this time around?  His job---his job---is to distill and concentrate the loyalty/passions of the Democrats' radical wing, and then endawse the candidate faw the good of the Pawty.  After all, the People have spoken, and shown that there aren't enough of them to put him ovuh---and the Most Impawtent Thing is to Beat Trump. 

Does anyone really think that the Party of Voter Fraud can't script a set piece like that?

JCM 3/11/2020 8:03:22 AM

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Kiddos are home, schools closed for the virus.

lucius septimius 3/11/2020 8:10:43 AM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 1:

In response to your John Hughes query, I agree with Dopp's assessment.  There is a way in which his comedies present a light-hearted (if not at times absurdist) take on the same social phenomenon described so darkly in Ordinary People.  Note that both that film and the John Hughes movies deal with the same social milieu -- same place, same time, same social class.  And I would say his depiction of the kids as adrift and parents as disconnected and self-absorbed is spot-on.  I knew many people from Highland Park, Lake Forest, and Winnetka who could have been characters in any of his films of that era.  

As for the films themselves, they are in a sense fairy tales.  Ferris Bueller is Til Eulenspiegel -- the merry prankster who is always one step ahead of his pursuers.  And he is a decent fellow at heart.  That is one aspect of the films I find reassuring.  Unlike many of the "teen" movies of the 80s, Hughes's characters are generally well-meaning and decent.   They also are innocents in a world that is increasingly hostile.  Clark Griswold is a good man trying to be a good husband and father the only way he knows how -- according to a script based on a myopic and romantic view of the past.  His striving is comic but also admirable -- he wants to do what is best and it is that desire that pushes him over the edge.  The mother in Home Alone is another case.  Leaving Kevin behind is an accident that parallels in some ways the mistaken identity of Cary Grant as the non-existent FBI agent at the beginning of North by Northwest.  And once she realizes what has happened she embarks on a quest and will brook no opposition to get back home.  Again, it's funny, and she is sort of psychotic in her zeal, but she's trying to correct a mistake.

Like any fairy tales, they are morality tales aimed at the parents more than the kids.  Regarding the latter, the message is essentially "the kids are alright."  The speech the janitor gives to the principal in the Breakfast Club makes that point.  Keep in mind who the parents are:  they are the first wave of Boomer parents who left behind the wild days in pursuit of wealth and status.  Having escaped the loathsome 70s they are seeking a world of stability and order and what to leave that for their kids.  But they remain just as self-obsessed as their tie-died former selves.  They may have exchanged Woodstock for Brooks Brothers but underneath they are the same people, still engaged in the pursuit of instant gratification.  The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles both point out how their children are paying the price for the parent's solipsistic world view.

Ferris Bueller's Day Off is, of course, a very subversive movie, but that's sort of the point.  And given Ben Stein's role, it may be the most thoroughly Republican movie of its era.  As Stein said, it is a celebration of liberty.

doppelganglander 3/11/2020 8:24:11 AM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 1:

Reply to lucius septimius in 4:

Thanks, and thank you for expanding on my comments. Anytime you'd like to collaborate on an article for Quillette, I'm in.

buzzsawmonkey 3/11/2020 8:33:36 AM

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Reply to lucius septimius in 4: Reply to doppelganglander in 5:

Lucius' comment made me realize that "Uncle Buck"---which I've only seen clips of---is very much in line with his analysis, and is in a sense a reconciliation of the "orphaned kids" with their distant parents, via the intervention of the not-really-grown-up adult that John Candy plays.  The feckless adult bridges the gap between the isolated kids and their isolating parents, affirming the "family values" at the end.  And that, too, was a Hughes film.

doppelganglander 3/11/2020 8:38:00 AM

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Reply to buzzsawmonkey in 6:

I was thinking about that, but because I haven't seen it either, I hesitated to make the connection. 

If you haven't already, take a look at tvtropes.com. It goes beyond TV into all kinds of literary and cinematic archetypes, like Joseph Campbell on steroids. Be forewarned,  it's a very long rabbit hole and you will get sucked in.

buzzsawmonkey 3/11/2020 9:01:18 AM

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buzzsawmonkey 3/11/2020 10:06:28 AM

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lucius septimius 3/11/2020 11:10:24 AM

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In #9 buzzsawmonkey said: I want to see AOC do a topless centerfold

It's probably inevitable.  That or a sex tape.

buzzsawmonkey 3/11/2020 11:21:31 AM

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In #10 lucius septimius said: a sex tape.

"The Poky Little Puppy Much-Poked Little Puppy?"

lucius septimius 3/11/2020 2:45:05 PM

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In #11 buzzsawmonkey said: Little Puppy

So a bitch, in other words.

buzzsawmonkey 3/11/2020 2:58:08 PM

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Syrah 3/11/2020 4:02:03 PM

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Syrah 3/11/2020 4:03:59 PM

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They haven’t closed the schools on my side of the Sound. 

There is worry over here, but everything is still up and running.

buzzsawmonkey 3/11/2020 4:06:38 PM

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Reply to Syrah in 14:

I haven't had time to drop dead yet---I'm too busy running around in circles panicking.

Kosh's Shadow 3/11/2020 4:07:59 PM

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I've been consistently saying the whole COVID-19 hype is an overreaction.

Now I'm wondering if there is something they know but aren't telling.

I don't think it itself is a bioweapon, but maybe some genes being tested for a bioweapon got mixed with the pangolin coronavirus due to sloppy practices.

Syrah 3/11/2020 4:08:04 PM

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https://www.king5.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/gov-inslee-to-announce-social-distancing-plans-for-washington-residents-amid-coronavirus-outbreak/281-c8db691c-6a10-428f-bcdf-829cc1d05226

fun Times. 

midwestgak 3/11/2020 4:11:23 PM

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In #14 Syrah said: Are we all dead yet?

Not in Crook County government positions, last I heard.

midwestgak 3/11/2020 4:16:53 PM

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In #17 Kosh's Shadow said: Now I'm wondering if there is something they know but aren't telling.

Some are preparing for an unforeseen viral onslaught. Try buying hand sanitizer at your local market (nevermind that antibacterial soap does not kill viruses).  But try finding it all the same if you are so inclined.

doppelganglander 3/11/2020 4:21:25 PM

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Reply to Syrah in 15: 

Schools in my county were closed the last two days after an "itinerant teacher" tested positive. (I think that refers to a supply teacher or a sort of permanent substitute who goes where needed.) They'll reopen tomorrow except for the two schools where the person taught.

So far they've canceled the St. Patrick's Day parade and there will be no fans present at the NCAA Final Four. They're looking for a smaller venue for the games. Delta has stopped all flights from Atlanta to Rome. A lot of large companies are ramping up work from home plans. 

midwestgak 3/11/2020 4:33:42 PM

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In #21 doppelganglander said: So far they've canceled . . .

A lot. In many states and elsewhere.

Money money everywhere not not a place to spend it.

lucius septimius 3/11/2020 4:39:06 PM

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Reply to doppelganglander in 21:

That's interesting -- my kids had school today.

doppelganglander 3/11/2020 4:45:05 PM

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Reply to lucius septimius in 23:

I don't think there's been a confirmed case in your county, while mine has at least four, two of whom are teachers. I wouldn't be surprised if your schools are closed next week or the week after.

Syrah 3/11/2020 4:48:42 PM

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The Costco store near me:

”We apologize for the inconvenience but we are currently out of stock on the following items.

paper towels

toilet paper 

disinfectant wipes 

arrowhead water 

hand sanitizer 

doppelganglander 3/11/2020 4:55:41 PM

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Reply to Syrah in 25:

Amazon is your friend. I signed up for Subscribe and Save about a year ago. I get regular monthly shipments of things like laundry detergent, toilet paper, paper towels, dishwasher tablets, coffee, and kitty litter. You can set items to arrive monthly, every other month, or whatever you want, and you can skip a delivery at any time. I might add Kleenex and disinfectant wipes for April, but that's about it. I'm in good shape.