EPISODE 516: INDIVIDUAL ACHIEVEMENTS 2016

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5 Responses

  1. Beth says:

    I’m happy to hear David mention “Miss Stevens” in this ep, because I just saw it for the first time two nights ago (pretty much entirely on the basis of David’s original recommendation on this podcast). It’s pretty good, and Timothee Chalamet is super interesting to watch! It’s on Netflix, so everyone else should check it out.

  2. Marko says:

    I think one of the problems with talking about politics is that things have been happening at such a crazy pace as of late, and thus by the time an episode is up, it already risks being incredibly dated.

  3. LJ says:

    From totalitarian and economic perspectives, I think that it is difficult to justify boycotting the Oscars because a boycott results in no “harm” to President Trump and instead results in collateral “harm” to many innocent people. I think that it would be easier to justify boycotting all of NBC programming because NBC is home to the Apprentice. But again, you are “harming” a significant number of innocent parties, many of whom probably share your beliefs, by a blanket boycott of NBC.

    Obviously, you could choose not to watch the Oscars for any number of valid reasons. For example, you could opt out because it perpetuates the cult of celebrity, which led to Trump’s election. But, then you are boycotting an idea or metaphor more than a thing. So, are you going to boycott all forms of celebrity?

    Obviously, this discussion has corollaries to film. I won’t watch any Roman Polanski and Woody Allen films. Polanski is a convicted pedophile. Although Allen was never convicted, I consider marrying your stepdaughter tantamount to a confession. Call me old fashioned. I am always disappointed when talented actors flock to work with these disgusting men. I have decided that I will return to Polanski and Allen’s bodies of work when they are deceased and cannot benefit from my support. They are exceptionally talented, but I cannot support them. That being said, I recognize that I am indirectly “harming” many individuals who do not have the luxury of declining to work with them. I also recognize that the line I’m choosing to draw is fairly arbitrary in that some can look past the flaws of the artist and others take greater issue in the art (e.g., perpetuating gender stereotypes, etc.)

    In the end, unless you are boycotting a class of products (e.g., cars) due to an issue (e.g., climate change) or boycotting a specific individual’s product (e.g., “The Art of the Deal”), the boycott is a pretty blunt instrument for expressing your opinion.

  4. Dan Roy says:

    With respect to David, this has been driving me nuts for a while –

    Cinephile: Film lover

    Cinéaste: Cinephile who makes movies

    • Battleship Pretension says:

      Cineaste has been used so widely and for so long to mean “film lover” that it’s how Merriam-Webster defines the word. That said, I understand that the French roots do support your definition. I’ll try to stick to cinephile from now on.

      – David

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