Teddy Duncan Has Another Reason To Be Embarassed About Her Mom

No thank you. It’s not law. Just an overreaching suggestion. But you do you.

— Leigh-Allyn Baker (@L_A_Baker) June 27, 2020

The clusterfuck weekend story is that the Russians offered bounties to the Taliban for American soliders and Trump was told/didn't do anything. This is just a little kick the baby (maybe the stupid tack-on kid that I still am annoyed they added) moment. Oh, she's also anti-vaxxer. Of course, she is. She felt a need to respond repeatedly. That's always a good idea. Well, "Teddy" still is okay -- she defended Dr. Christine Ford, who is a close relative.

This is a reminder that entertainers will include some people with unsavory thoughts. The original Buffy, e.g., has tweeted some pro-Trump stuff. Having "Amy" being an asshole about masks is a tad depressing. BTW, as a prelude to their delayed release of their first album in a long time, the Dixie Chicks not only dropped a music video in honor of protests that probably deserves consideration of some award but changed their name to "the Chicks." "Dixie" started in antebellum times but it does have a certain taint.

Seems a bit much but you know given their politics and all, understand them being careful. Plus, there is now a new thing where white people are stopping voicing non-white characters. A hazy line there might be interracial ones. I assume audiobooks will not all start to have group narration if the characters are a variety of colors?  No, the overall idea makes sense.  Why should some white bread actress voice a non-white animated character when there are a diverse number of non-white voice actresses to pick from?  Sometimes, you have a show like The Simpsons with a limited number of voice talent with a lot of characters, but a show of that nature also is such an institution at this point that you very well can have POC voice those characters.  Plus, it seems to have seeped into the writing. 

There is some ridicule of cosmetic changes, but these things do matter, which is suggested by how much attention it is given to those whose efforts are aimed at changing bigger wrongs.  Some are upset at the lengths taken to replace statues or something, but it is time we talked about these things, and any major fix is going to include line drawing debates. This is fine. We can handle it. Some years back, Melissa Harris-Perry (whose weekend show was worthwhile but left after disputes with management) honored an animated black girl doctor.  She is voiced by a black woman voice actress with a wide resume. It matters.  Disney Channel actresses (if not a current one) being anti-mask does as well.  Yes, they are but celebrities whose wisdom is mixed.  But, it is not novel or surprising they have cachet. 

Plus, I know it's silly on some level, I don't want the people I watch being assholes in real life. Guess it's my bad for checking Twitter on the weekend.

It Begins ... I Dissent

The Fight Continues

Appreciate Ivanka Trump's company realized blatantly monetizing the presidency (promoting something she wore on 60 Minutes) was a bad idea, but her dad still going after the NYT on Twitter. Learning curve. A reminder the Dems also won the popular vote in the Senate. Also, "rules for survival" against autocrats. The 2000 elections still hit me hard when I started this blog a few years later. It's 16 years later and it's worse now in certain ways. It's so depressing and aggravating. Sugar or heat, the fight continues. Garland deserves seat. It was robbed.

Update: Part of this is staying true to your values in every day life. Starts there.

Yeah, that really happened, not a bad dream

As the stages of grief pass, "acceptance" should involve accepting ... no seriously ... there will be a President Trump, but not being complacent about it. Also, it won't be just horrible. Few things are. No "told ya soes" though as if people figured Trump just means the end of life as we know it or something. Yet again proof 'live in interesting times' is something of a curse. Meanwhile, don't understand language, but liked this CD.

Update: Various critics now saying we should hope for the best, hope he succeeds etc. Eh. He has to earn respect. Sniping at protestors on Twitter after being elected? Not helping.

The City of Thieves

Picked up this book after learning the new Dixie Chicks spin-off took its name from a "book" cited inside. It is an enjoyable fictional account of a mismatched Russian pair looking for some eggs during a seige in WWII. One plot turn annoyed me but as a whole good read.

Good Luck Charlie

Listening to the songs and interview that can be linked up from the Court Yard Hounds website -- good stuff. A new cute series is on Disney, the most familiar face played a teen vampire on WWP. A mock exterminator commercial on a recent episode was very clever.

Connections

The sisters of the Dixie Chicks started a new band -- "Court Yard Hounds," the name from a WWII novel, The City of Thieves. The author of which is Amanda Peet's hubby, who just had a baby (seen via a cute clip on Letterman recently). Also, robbery victim.

Dixie Chicks Are Back ... Sorta

After a hiatus, they are back. Natalie Maines -- whose outspokenness got them in trouble -- will not be involved in the newest effort (under a new name). The two sisters started out without her, but still, doesn't seem the same. Good luck to all three of y'all!

Go Chicks!

And Also: Slate had a piece on how the public is turning against the death penalty as the Supreme Court might be going the other way. My .02. Zoe Heller's novel What Was She Thinking? [Notes on a Scandal], the basis of the Oscar nominated film, was rather good. I'm not sure how much you are supposed to sympathize with the narrator (the older teacher), but I did.

A nod to the winners of the Grammy Award for Best Country Album:

I'm not ready to make nice,
I'm not ready to back down,
I'm still mad as hell
And I don't have time
To go round and round and round
It's too late to make it right
I probably wouldn't if I could
Cause I'm mad as hell
Can't bring myself to do what it is
You think I should

I know you said
Why can't you just get over it,
It turned my whole world around
and i kind of like it.

Natalie Maines' latest hair style is pretty nice too. Check out Shut Up and Sing! and their videos on YouTube. "Goodbye Earl" is particularly amusing. Actually, though I saw them win the country music award, their success was much more complete than that, winning each category for which they were nominated:

After death threats, boycotts and a cold shoulder from mainstream country radio, the Dixie Chicks gained sweet vindication Sunday night at the 49th annual Grammy Awards, capturing honors in all five of the categories in which they were nominated...

The Dixie Chicks took home Grammys for the top three awards: record, song and album of the year. Their "Taking the Long Way" (Open Wide/Columbia) won best country album and "Not Ready to Make Nice" also captured best country performance by a duo or group with vocal. That song is an unapologetic response to the furor set off in 2003 when the band’s lead singer, Natalie Maines, made an off-the-cuff antiwar remark to London concertgoers: "Just so you know, we’re ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas."

But Sunday’s awards were the Recording Academy’s rejoinder to the country music radio establishment. Accepting the award for song of the year, Ms. Maines joked, "For the first time in my life, I’m speechless." When the trio returned to the stage for the best country album Grammy, Emily Robison, another member of the group, added that the band had been in a "strange place to be sometimes, without a genre."

Go Chicks!