Category: Media

All Things Being Equal, Jon Stewart Should Be The Next President Of The United States

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again — the best stealth political candidate in modern American politics is Jon Stewart. When he gets mad, he is articulate enough to actually get things done.

So, if the United States was a functioning democracy — and if ding-dong Trump had never been POTUS — we would all be waiting with baited breath for Stewart to run for president. He would likely be a historically good president for a variety of reasons.

But.

Given the bad taste that ding-dong Trump has put in a lot of people’s mouths when it comes to celebrities running for office…meh. And I would prefer if Stewart would run for governor or senator from New Jersey before POTUS. There is a possibility when the “Fourth Turning” strikes the US in late 2024, early 2025 that it could be someone like Stewart suddenly has the Finger of God point at him, telling him to step into the political arena to make a difference.

But, to date, Stewart has shown no interest in running for anything, so, lulz.

Why The Lincoln Project Has Such A Rabid Fan Base

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

While I admire The Lincoln Project’s spunk, they’ve had their fair share of scandals. And there are any number of Blue “thought leaders” who fucking hate their guts. But I do believe that the organization may have its time to shine in late 2024, early 2025 when America is going to be in dire need of anti-MAGA leadership — no matter where it might come from.

Anyway, the reason why some people really get off on The Lincoln Project is there is a huge segment of the electorate which is center-Right by is queasy about MAGA. They’re Traditionalists who aren’t Good Germans. So, the idea of an organization that is organically conservative that hasn’t bought into MAGA’s fascist bullshit really makes them feel good.

I would, again, suggest we all withhold judgement on The Lincoln Project until late 2024, early 2025. That is when it will have it’s moment to shine.

Wait, What: Is Shailene Woodley Married To A Woman?

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

All I have on this is a blind item I saw somewhere — I think Tik-Tok — that suggested one of my favorite crunchy-granola celebrities, Shailene Woodley, may be married to a woman.

I could care less one way or another if she is, and, let’s be honest — no one reads this blog other than my stalkers and family members who for some strange reason are curious what’s on my mind without telling me to my face what they’re doing it. (Ugh.)

But it IS fun to think about.

I really like Ms. Woodley and she seems — at least relative to my media world — to have dropped off the face of the earth. It’s all very curious. It would be a fun-interesting thing to see the entertainment press — which actively hides Kaia Gerber’s activity in the lady pond — have to explain how the poor man’s Jennifer Lawrence is into women.

But, lulz. Whatever. This is probably bullshit. I wish her well, regardless.

When It Comes To The Constitution & Trump’s Potential Extradition, Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer Ron DeSantis Is A Craven Moron

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Nothing sums up how dangerous idiot Ron “Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer” DeSantis is than the following tweet:

The reason why this is so dangerous is the type of mentality it indicates. Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer knows damn well that the Constitution is very explicit that a govenor can do jackshit to stop a criminal being extradited to another state.

And, yet, he says it anyway.

Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer loves, loves, loves to, like Trump, stress test the system to see what he can get away with. So, God forbid, Trump decides to hunker down in Mar-a-Lago after giving the issue some though, DeSantis could very well be put in a position where he is forced to lose face AGAIN when the Federal government swoops in and handles extradition itself.

But it’s clear that if Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer becomes POTUS, he will be America’s Putin. I’m beginning to think, however, that he’s going to hold off running until 2028. Even though if Trump wins in 2024, DeSantis may be president of just the Red States, given how we’re careening towards a very, very dark future in late 2024, early 2025.

Malignant Ding-Dong Trump Has Finally Been Indicted, Now What?

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

It seems as though — as of now — whatever happens with Trump and his (first?) indictment will be historic but mundane. Allegedly, Trump plans to surrender himself next week in NYC and that will be that. He may not even have a perp walk. Though his mug shot will be so historic that it will be the “Candle in The Wind” of anti-Trump merch.

There is, of course, a greater-than-zero-sum chance that ding-dong will give it some thought over the weekend and change his mind. What better way to cause as much fucking damage as possible than to hold up in Mar-a-Lago. And Unfrozen Caveman Lawyer DeSantis has already — despite the U.S. Constitution not giving a shit what he thinks — made it clear he won’t help with any extradition.

My current concern is what happens between now and when Trump is arraigned. If Trump really goes transactional and insane — maybe even returning to Twitter along the way — how many people within the MAGA ranks will be willing to cause problems? If there are any problems, I would suggest you keep an eye on Arizona, D.C., Florida and NYC.

But one thing is clear — the longer this process drags out, the more momentum will build for significant political violence of some sort. That’s what happened with January 6th — Trump had several months to rant and organize the violence that almost successfully staged America’s first coup.

Another issue — is it possible that the political equation has changed now that this particular boil has been sliced and a veritable calicade of indictments will now rain down on ding-dong because it’s been proven that it’s not the end of the world to indict a former president? Trump has so successfully bent the law to his will because of politics that when things snap back into place, it may be a sight to see.

In a sense, this is just the beginning of a series of potentially historic, jaw-dropping events. Stay tuned.

We’re On The Cusp Of AI Generated Celebrity Porn Being A *REAL* Problem

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

It seems to me that, in the end, the first tranche of AI-related regulation will probably concern AI generated celebrity porn. Whenever there is a new technology, porn is usually the thing that everyone uses it for most effectively right out the gate.

If my Twitter feed is any indication, a bunch of fucking hornytoad Incels are going to start making all of their dirtiest dreams come true by generating massive amounts of porn using celebrity images so good that they look very, very real.

As such, I think it might be possible that some sort of legislation that would one demand celebrity approval or compensation may get enacted as well as some sort of watermark requirements. Or, put another away, AI-related regulation is going to start streaming out of Congress far, far sooner than you might think.

We’re just about to reach a tipping point where the current Wild West of AI simply is no longer viable. I say this in the context of the 2024 presidential election cycle beginning to pick up steam. Regulating AI generated celebrity porn will just be the first wave of it all because it’s sexxy and everyone likes to think about porn.

How Netflix Could Challenge Disney

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

I’ve given it some thought, and here’s a hypothetical media goliath that would give Disney a run for its money. See, here’s what you do — combine Paramount with Warner Bros Discovery and NetFlix.

The reason why this works is if you combine Paramount with Warner Bros Discovery rather than NBCUniversal, you don’t have the touchy issue of what the fuck to do with CNN. It would be easy to fuse CBS News with CNN, something that has long been talked about.

Meanwhile, if you fuse Netflix with this combination, it’s a win-win: Netflix gets a massive back catalog and two has-beens in the streaming wars get an instant link into Netflix massive subscriber base.

Remember, Disney is fucking huge. Enormous. And so the combination of these three companies would allow this new and improved Netflix the ability to challenge Disney head-on.

Do I think this will happen — probably not. There are too many variables and given what idiots corporate suits are in general, it’s far more likely that it would be Warner Bros Discovery merging with NBCUniversal. Then we all spend a year watching as the politics of Who Will Own CNN gets fought over in a very, very public manner.

‘Let’s Rock ‘n Roll!’

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

Of all the “duh” things I’ve discovered during the course of developing and writing this novel, the one I’ve realized recently is up there – you really need to establish character right out of the gate. It is within that context that you have to convey to the audience — as quickly as possible — what the fuck the story is about.

In reviewing the latest version of this second draft of the novel, I realize I may have finally, finally stumble across why Stieg Larsson starts The Girl With Dragon Tattoo the way he does. That story opens with establishing the stakes — our Hero has just had his reputation ruined and he is looking for a way to redeem himself.

I now — finally — not only establish the stakes of the story but I also know what the fuck the story is about.

Despite my joy and this new development, I also feel a bit sheepish that it’s taken me this fucking long to get to this point. But, I suppose, I just should be grateful that I’ve figure all of this out at all.

But I have.

The first couple of chapters lay the groundwork for the events that happen during the course of the story. And, what’s more, I’ve come up with a really interesting characters that I hope — HOPE — will engage readers to the point that they’re willing to spend the hours necessary to finish the novel.

It’s been a real fucking struggle. It really has.

Fascism’s Asymmetrical Attack On Democracy: We’re All Missing The Point When It Comes To MAGA

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

The issue is no so much that DeSantis keeps screwing up, it’s that he keeps stress testing the law to see what he can get away with. This heartens his supporters and alarms his detractors. There is going to come a point where he wins a huge autocratic win.

What’s worse, Trump’s second term — should it happen — will be vengeful and radical to the point that he could, unto himself, spark a Second American Civil War one way or another.

There is such a deluge of fascist bullshit being generated by autocrat state governments that it’s inevitable that MAGA — lead by DeSantis or Trump — will score some huge autocratic win.

And THAT of course, leads to the question of what will be the political consequences of such a win. Will there be something to a Civil War or or will we just shrug as we continue our slouch towards autocracy? I don’t have an answer for you. It could go either way. It really could.

Well, This Is Fucked Up

by Shelt Garner
@sheltgarner

It was only a matter of time before Republicans fused their love of guns and hypocrisy with their hate of Trans people. The fact that the most recent mass shooting was perpetrated by a Trans person led to this inevitable tweet:

I think everyone knew this was coming eventually. And, what’s more, the tweet above is a reminder that it’s people on the edges of society that fascists come for first. And that’s why I grow very frustrated with the “illiberal Left” who seem determined to do everything in their power to drive Traditional conservatives into the arms of fascists.

“Woke” people are so fucking triggered for so many different reasons that it’s sometimes difficult to keep up. Some of this, of course, comes from how technology is aiding some amazing changes in what is orthodoxy among the center-Left, with being gay being “aspirational” for a lot of young people at the same time that it’s still considered a sin for a lot of old fart conservatives.

I totally get why so many Trans movement “thought leaders” are hysterical, but at the same time they’re the very people with the most to lose if we have a civil war or turn into an autocracy. Ugh.