Posted: 6/11/18 at 3:36pm
...why is it always the left that needs to go slow and be tactful, when the Right is embodied by so many red-faced white men yelling and insulting everyone they dislike?
Posted: 6/11/18 at 3:45pm
Dancingthrulife2 said: "You can say what you want, but at the end of the day, no Russian smear nor calling out Trump can restore sanity in the U.S. Trump is not the problem but a symptom; the real problem is the failing system that gave us Trump. Where do the candidates get most of their campaign funding from? And who do you think they would actually serve--those that gave them the money or the general public? Do you know you DO NOT have the right to vote for the president under the constitution, only the right to elect the elector to vote on your behalf? Do you know half of the country is suffering and gig economy has made a living wageunreachable for a lot despite the fact that they are technically "employed"? Do you know Jeff Bezos would rather have ambulances sitting outside of some warehouses rather than paying for air conditioning? Do you know Flint still don't have clean water? Trump didn't cause any of this. Neither did Russia. It's time to take a look at what is really happening outside the New York bubble."
So, you voted for Trump and you are embarrassed, so you think you have to defend him. I get it. He is embarrassing. The failing system is responsible for Trump, that's true, but now he is there, like a bull in a china shop, destroying everything around him. This is what we must fight against. He must be called out in every venue, any diverse celebration. Yeah, the process needs fixing. In the meantime we need to stop listening to rumors about Bezos, and deal with the ridiculous attacks on our allies, and the imprisonment of children. De Niro said what he said and will distract for a moment, but we can't be sidelined And you have no idea what damage Russia has done. And for your information, I'n not in a New York bubble, I don't live there and I think we are fully aware what is going on across the country. But New York is still one of the most progressive cities, embracing diversity and inclusion.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 3:57pm
Kad said: "RobInNNJ said: "... another person with a "hate has no home here" sign in his window who harbors raging hated.... "
Hating an individual for their destructive and bigoted rhetoric, policies, and actions is not the same as being a bigot yourself.
"
Well that is a very self-serving definition of hate that works a narrative. Hate is an absolute term in the English language and cannot be modified, e.g., one cannot "almost hate" ... if you are against hate you are against all hate in any form. If we use your definition, we can then justify hating one woman, one person of color, one gay man, one person who identifies as transgender, and on and on ... add all those one person exceptions together and then we have a mob.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 4:01pm
Hate- like the word love- is impossible to define really- it is a state of mind- I don't think De Niro was being hateful- he was angry. Different than hate.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 4:01pm
@Kad
Don't even bother they are a new person today. Just here to flame the flames. Wouldn't surprise me if it's another person on here under a different name.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 4:02pm
I knew what he said without even having any confirmation. YAWN.
Why not say something actually insightful and intelligent? Instead of the same lame expletive everybody's been spouting for 3+ years at this point?
Posted: 6/11/18 at 4:55pm
This. I'm not mad at the sentiment. But it's just going to give the media more fodder to distract from pressing issues, it doesn't actually advocate for a damn thing, and it distracts from the Tony winners and their accomplishments. Just because it was de Niro, it doesn't make it any selfish and pointless.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 5:25pm
From what I noticed, it's been almost twenty four hours and nobody really talked about it. I say go for it. If our country survives and if the saying "the wheels of justice turn slow but exceedingly fine" is actually true, then those saying "Eff Trump" will be in the right and those who were complacent in not doing anything will be seen as appeasers who sat back and did nothing. Maybe not in this context because nobody watches or pays attention to the Tonys, but the sentiment rings true overall.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 5:28pm
RobInNNJ said: "if you are against hate you are against all hate in any form. "
That's not even close to true. Hate towards people of color is not the same as hate for rhubarb pie. And calling out of said hatred is not hatred.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 5:31pm
Trump is not the problem but a symptom
He is both. They are not mutually exclusive. Explosive diarrhea can be a symptom of an illness and when it occurs, it is often a problem. Trump is like explosive diarrhea.
Why not say something actually insightful and intelligent?
Because concise and direct works well. In two words, he spoke more intelligently and with more authority than his subject has about anything in over 30 years. Well, except maybe when it comes to sexual assault. Trump can speak at length with personal authority, but he's entirely incapable of speaking intelligently.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 5:36pm
sdrick said: "Dancingthrulife2 said: "You can say what you want, but at the end of the day, no Russian smear nor calling out Trump can restore sanity in the U.S. Trump is not the problem but a symptom; the real problem is the failing system that gave us Trump. Where do the candidates get most of their campaign funding from? And who do you think they would actually serve--those that gave them the money or the general public? Do you know you DO NOT have the right to vote for the president under the constitution, only the right to elect the elector to vote on your behalf? Do you know half of the country is suffering and gig economy has made a living wageunreachable for a lot despite the fact that they are technically "employed"? Do you know Jeff Bezos would rather have ambulances sitting outside of some warehouses rather than paying for air conditioning? Do you know Flint still don't have clean water? Trump didn't cause any of this. Neither did Russia. It's time to take a look at what is really happening outside the New York bubble."
So, you voted for Trump and you are embarrassed, so you think you have to defend him. I get it. He is embarrassing. The failing system is responsible for Trump, that's true, but now he is there, like a bull in a china shop, destroying everything around him. This is what we must fight against. He must be called out in every venue, any diverse celebration. Yeah, the process needs fixing. In the meantime we need to stop listening to rumors about Bezos, and deal with the ridiculous attacks on our allies, and the imprisonment of children. De Niro said what he said and will distract for a moment, but we can't be sidelined And you have no idea what damage Russia has done. And for your information, I'n not in a New York bubble, I don't live there and I think we are fully aware what is going on across the country. But New York is still one of the most progressive cities, embracing diversity and inclusion."
Who told you I voted for HIM? There was more than one "her" in the last election, and I was with the other "her."
Posted: 6/11/18 at 5:54pm
I suppose it is not surprising that people who are interested in theater- drama, literature, music, the arts....- are so pointedly aware of what is happening to our democracy- and the slow build up we are getting to a president who believes he is above the law- and can do what he wants to his enemies using the full weight of any governmental agency. He openly states his intentions- so this is not surprise to us who are paying attention. He does some good- mostly bad- but that is besides the point- he does not believe in the rule of law- and consistently denigrates our institutions and checks and balance system of government- and that is the bottom line. And if we do not do something soon- and do not win big in the midterms and take the House at least- the road to dictatorship will be greased. These things do not happen all of a sudden- there is a subtle and long deterioration- Cabaret was no joke- nor was Fiddler On The Roof- and so many other dramatizations of historic periods where pogroms and fascist dictatorships occurred- and we are not immune- and are, undoubtedly- in my opinion- and in De Niro's opinion I would certainly guess- going down that horrendous road.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 6:07pm
Posted: 6/11/18 at 6:10pm
Elfuhbuh said: "I’m personally tired of these celebrities setting the bar lower and lower for themselves and doing the absolute bare minimum to make any impactful change, and then getting patted on the back and fawned over for weeks for it. Spitting out, “**** Trump!” isn’t new or revolutionary or even making any kind of deep statement. Yeah, you hate Trump. So do a lot of other people. Either say something meaningful about it or keep the focus on the awards and nominees. "
Come on, someone with that awesome avatar has to appreciate a good “f*ck you” gesture. Anyway, considering what happened this weekend and I’m not just talking about the G7, it was a good time to say “F*ck Trump”. He and his cronies truly deserve it.
Updated On: 6/11/18 at 06:10 PM
Posted: 6/11/18 at 6:13pm
I agree with you- but we need Obama, GW Bush, Clinton and Carter- and maybe a few more GOP-ers- to get together and warn the American people- and the low information voters- that the soul of our democracy is being threatened. If that does not do any good- we have had it as a democracy- IMO.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 6:24pm
ScottyDoesn’tKnow2, it’s not that I’m opposed to the words themselves so much as it usually seems like celebrities are just “preaching to the choir” when they do stuff like this. It comes off more like, “**** Trump, amirite fellow liberals?” than it does calling for any impactful change. And yeah, that would be fine, but the media swarms the moment and acts like De Niro singlehandedly accomplished Trump’s impeachment with a quick crude statement. For anyone who doesn’t already oppose Trump, this kind of thing just makes them roll their eyes and change the channel. To them, it’s just annoying celebrities with their annoying politics if there isn’t any deeper message other than, “I don’t like the President you picked.” I can assure you it doesn’t make the bold, revolutionary, country-changing statement some people seem to think it does.
And this is coming from someone who didn’t vote for Trump, by the way.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 6:28pm
Posted: 6/11/18 at 6:46pm
Posted: 6/11/18 at 6:50pm
There’s a time, place, manner. These issues are so complicated and nuanced and it’s clear people don’t want to have meaningful discussions that may require people read and I mean really read like academic journals or at least articles longer than five pages. That doesn’t work to get concise points across. They only like sound bytes and elections are won based on that...that and memes and bots. One side has been winning overwhelmingly just by doing that and bamboozling people exploiting their ignorance and penchant for only hearing what they want to hear. Both sides are guilty of doing that. The real discussions and deep self-reflection are happening in conferences all across the country, but regular people have no interest in partaking. They want a cultural war.
Updated On: 6/11/18 at 06:50 PM
Posted: 6/11/18 at 7:04pm
The way I see it, you can be like Robert De Niro or you can be like Tony Shalhoub. De Niro basically just blew off steam to make himself and everyone else in the room feel better, and Trump will probably fundraise off it for months. He (De Niro) accomplished little. Shalhoub gave a very personal, thoughtful, moving speech about the greatness of immigration and of learning from those who experienced it. In terms of actually reaching minds and hearts, I'm pretty sure he accomplished way more.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 7:07pm
Posted: 6/11/18 at 9:42pm
Broadway Joe said: "I thought it was just silly because all it did was steal headlines away from the actual awards and he said absolutely nothing new or intellectual. He said exactly what most people in that room already have said before in other ways and this was like preaching to the choir since pretty much everyone there and watching on TV agrees already anyway and it's stuff Deniro has said already too."
Spot on. Rants like that are viewed as liberal propaganda and only gives fodder for conservatives to spew more unpopular stances just to make their points. We all know the ugly climate in Washington but as Michelle Obama said, when they go low, we go high. That’s the only way to counteract hate. Those awards last night should have stood alone in their inclusive message. That said so much more than an FU to Trump.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 9:53pm
I understand what people are saying, but I think we need to look at it from the other direction. Everyone should be saying "F**k Trump" at the start of all of their speeches, so one guy doing it no longer stands out. Start your day with "F**k Trump". Say "F**k Trump" instead of hello/goodbye. Make it as commonplace as possible, and remind the rest of the US that this is not okay. You do not condone this.
Posted: 6/11/18 at 10:02pm
This is not like accumlating likes or RTs and unlocking some reward. No amount of F**k Trump statements is going to change things. Grass roots activism to get people registered to vote and then to the polls, as well as lobbying Congress on relevant votes, is what will bring about change. Almost everything else is noise including De Niro.
