The Newsroom.

[FPAlpha]

Hot damn.. awesome show. I just blew through all 10 episodes in about 2 days

I do enjoy my Sci Fi shows, my sitcoms and everything else but with most shows you can tune out for a while and still get most of the episode.

Not so with Newsroom.. you have to stay constantly on the ball because it is so dialogue heavy and people sometimes talk really fast but it's nice to be challenged once in a while and thanks to TrekBBS and TNZ i knew about all the issues and could follow their train of thought.

It's not without flaw.. sometimes a bit too preachy or self important but the cast is fantastic (was always a fan of Jeff Daniels), the stories are intense and i like to be reminded about recent events that were put in story (my favorite episode was the Bin Laden one).

Currently America can't handle just Iraq, what makes you think that you could handle an actual world war without using nuclear weapons as a crutch?

Because the US is deeply divided about Iraq, give them a contemporary Pearl Harbor and watch the US unite. This is the power of the United States and it was very evident immediately post 9/11 when the entire nation stood together as one and set to the task of fighting back (the long term effects though are in another book).

About the current Sex and the City discussion:

It's still a very popular show which is for most parts quite timeless in its themes and styles so it's no surprise that mid 20s women still watch it and become fans even though they were too young to watch it in its original run.
Absolutely fell over in the season finale when they lampooned it by setting up the intro scene and having Maggie go on a tear about the unrealistic approach to life in Sex and the City.. i like the show for its humor and frankness but it's also what i realistically think about the show and the women who overcompensate with it.

[IndyJones]

Guy Gardener wrote:

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Currently America can't handle just Iraq...

America is no longer at war in Iraq.

Officially.

[Drago-Kazov]

Did the thing balance out. Are they equally critical of democrats by now?

[FPAlpha]

Drago-Kazov wrote:

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Did the thing balance out. Are they equally critical of democrats by now?

Judge for yourself

[Methos]

that is quite possibly one of the best clips from this amazing show

M

[Drago-Kazov]

We all do as americans.... There are tons of people that don't vote.
By the way she has to have some ID, i personaly do not know how much voter id affects the outcome of elections.
People sheepish enough to have bumper stickers enough are not the smartest voters but West's comment were stupid.

The amount of partisan hackery is sickenning.

Thank you for making it clear that the show did not change.

[Australis]

I've been given to understand that photo id is required (saw it on the news).

BTW, there's an election coming, please vote. Australia has mandatory voting, and most of us this it's a very good thing and take it serious.

And think of McAvoy's show as the Fox News of the Left, though at least rooted in facts.

[Methos]

i'd be in the same boat if they brought that law in over here...

I don't have a drivers license... never needed one... i live close to london and work in the city, and when i do travel, it's easier to do it by train than drive...

I don't have a passport... never really needed one honestly... i work and live in England, and am quite happy to do so at the moment, no plans to leave the country in the next few years anyway.

So, i don't have any government stamped photo ID... and if i wanted one, either a passport or drivers license would cost me upto £80... and why should I pay for something i'm not going to use except for to vote?

M

[TheGodBen]

Drago-Kazov wrote:

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Did the thing balance out. Are they equally critical of democrats by now?

The show was always balanced, it just so happens that the modern Democratic party is somewhere near the centre while the Tea party are off on the lunatic fringe. The show's problem is that it often comes across as pretentious in attempting to get this message across.

Australis wrote:

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And think of McAvoy's show as the Fox News of the Left, though at least rooted in facts.

America already has a station like that called MSNBC, but More people watch Fox. Go figure.

Methos wrote:

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So, i don't have any government stamped photo ID... and if i wanted one, either a passport or drivers license would cost me upto £80... and why should I pay for something i'm not going to use except for to vote?

Any US state that passes a voter ID law must also provide a free state-issued ID that can be used for voting, otherwise the law would be struck down as an unconstitutional poll tax. The problem is that lots of people don't want to go through the hassle of the process of applying for a free ID just to vote, so many people that don't already have a valid ID just wont bother to vote.

[FPAlpha]

Everyone who knows Sorkin should also know that he won't praise the more radical elements of the US right wing so it should come to no surprise to anybody who wanted to see the right get cuddled.

However, if you look objectively at the facts of the show ( i like the lines about the percentage of voter fraud in the last election and which states introduced voter laws to "prevent" voter fraud.. go form your own opinion) it might get you to think.

Of course Newsroom being a Sorkin show he's preaching to the choir.. it's not like the far right wingers will cheer for the show.

[Count Zero]

Well, they can focus on the shipping.

Weirdly enough, on Tumblr there was a fundygelical who was watching the show and liked it (though he wished they'd swear less). Everything's possible, I guess.

[Drago-Kazov]

The show was always balanced, it just so happens that the modern Democratic party is somewhere near the centre while the Tea party are off on the lunatic fringe. The show's problem is that it often comes across as pretentious in attempting to get this message across.

Had they ever criticized Obama on it?

Why is the Tea Party the lunatic fringe? Can we say what their goals are? Are they fringe even in a historical context?

[FPAlpha]

Drago-Kazov wrote:

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Had they ever criticized Obama on it?

Why is the Tea Party the lunatic fringe? Can we say what their goals are? Are they fringe even in a historical context?

You're kidding right?

[TheGodBen]

Drago-Kazov wrote:

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Had they ever criticized Obama on it?

What for? He's by no means a great President, but what has he done that is so outlandishly terrible that the show needs to call him out on it?

Why is the Tea Party the lunatic fringe?

Watch the video FPAlpha posted, particularly the part from 5:15 on. It's hyperbolic, but it gets the points across.

They believe that Obama is a socialist out to turn America into a communist state when he's very much a centrist leader. They believe that 30 years of trickle-down economics that widened inequality didn't work because taxes for the rich are still too high. They believe that the budget deficit must be addressed now, while still believing that taxes must be cut at the same time. And a large number of them buy into a paranoid conspiracy theory that Obama isn't really an American. They have a very poor grasp on reality, and that's why I consider them loony.

[foxhot]

TheGodBen said the modern Democratic Party was centrist.
That could depend on which specific and current Democrats in power we're referring to.

He also said the Tea Party was lunatic fringe. Some of them whom I've heard in person seem to confirm that, such as the blonde-haired nutjob who screamed ''Obama is the devil'' to her five-year-old son.

But TGB didn't mention the entire modern Republican Party in its entirety. As Will McAvoy demonstrates, Republican is not necessarily synonymous with tea party. Even though McAvoy's a creation of a Democratic writer, there's still credence to that theory. I've come to think lately that Reps and Dems aren't the true problem, but conservatives and liberals. Reps and Dems will occcasionally listen......