The Shrine

'Daily Show,' 'Colbert' set for return

Quite frankly, I think they are cheating here. Jon and Steve are WGA members. They shouldn't be allowed to go on the air. I personally will be boycotting their shows until the WGA strike is lifted, and I think they should be ashamed to try this shit.

I'm also disappointed that the WGA made a deal with Letterman. It weakens the spirit of the strike if these exceptions are being made. No pain, no gain.

Letterman's coming back tonight with the full writer's cast. He made a separate deal to pay them what they're asking for in the negotiations so he's gonna have everything back. Leno's in big shit 'cause NBC won't do a deal like that.

Daily Show and Colbert will likely be the same thing. From those two and Leno you're gonna see 80% new stuff. Could be good or bad. I trust those three have enough talent to do it for a while....at least I hope they do

It's about time someone started scabbing... this fucking strike has gone on long enough and both sides are at fault for dragging it out like this. This should have been a month long debate; not a 6 month strike.

Although for DS and Colbert... I used to be a avid watcher but now I dont' know if I care much for them anymore... I've fallen for Attack of the Show and I am starting to really like it.

Edit-- wait, wtf? They're going to try to do the show WITHOUT writers? So it'll be Jon and Stephen in a room trying to write two shows every day? Haha yeah... that'll be a train wreck.

Where's a fresh flock of interns when you need them?

Tessian wrote:It's about time someone started scabbing... this fucking strike has gone on long enough and both sides are at fault for dragging it out like this.

Seriously! OUR ENTERTAINMENT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN FUCKIN' WORKERS' RIGHTS.

To back up Zeus' point, Letterman actually owns his show (and Craig Ferguson's show), so he has the power to make his own deals with the union. The others are owned by the networks.

Tessian wrote:It's about time someone started scabbing... this fucking strike has gone on long enough and both sides are at fault for dragging it out like this. This should have been a month long debate; not a 6 month strike.

Although for DS and Colbert... I used to be a avid watcher but now I dont' know if I care much for them anymore... I've fallen for Attack of the Show and I am starting to really like it.

Edit-- wait, wtf? They're going to try to do the show WITHOUT writers? So it'll be Jon and Stephen in a room trying to write two shows every day? Haha yeah... that'll be a train wreck.

Where's a fresh flock of interns when you need them?

Letterman and his production company is giving the writers what they want, that's the ONLY reason they're coming back. And since they're technically not crossing the picket line, he'll get the stars too. The others won't be able to 'cause the SAG contract expires in June and the actors are supporting the writers.

Letterman may have free reign for a while........

By the way, six months? I think it's just now approach three.

Tessian wrote:Edit-- wait, wtf? They're going to try to do the show WITHOUT writers? So it'll be Jon and Stephen in a room trying to write two shows every day? Haha yeah... that'll be a train wreck.

No, it's even weirder than that. Jon and Stephen are WGA members! They can't write their own material. The rest of the writing staff are members, too, but they can't join, since they wouldn't have anything to do.

Oh, and I 2nd Andrew's comment. What the WGA is doing is protecting their rights, and if we have to suffer a slight bit of pain of not watching boring shit on TV, so be it. Suck it up, Tessian, and don't be so fucking selfish.

The blame isn't on the WGA; it's the moguls who are being completely unreasonable. The WGA is just trying to stand their ground. If they budged on what they are asking for, they would get next to nothing. They are already asking for less than what they should be getting.

Zeus wrote:Letterman's coming back tonight with the full writer's cast. He made a separate deal to pay them what they're asking for in the negotiations so he's gonna have everything back. Leno's in big shit 'cause NBC won't do a deal like that.

I'm not sure if that's really acceptable or not. After all, if you can make different side deals with different conditions, who's to say that they can't do one contract for one network than another?

I dunno. Maybe it's a good thing, since they can use that as an argument of "See, they made the deal, and they have writers now. Why can't you do that?" But, the whole thing with Jon/Stephen is still dead wrong, and I'm still boycotting them for now.

SineSwiper wrote:But, the whole thing with Jon/Stephen is still dead wrong, and I'm still boycotting them for now.

From what that article said... there won't be much to watch anyway; since most of the show is dependent on writers they can't do them during the strike. So that eliminates their news segments, their correspondence spots... they can pretty much only have guests on to talk to at this point.

I dunno, it's going on 4 months now with no end in sight. I don't hear anyone negotiating; only silence from both parties and speculation as to what we'll do without writers. This is bickering over royalties for online media isn't it? I'm not saying it's not important, but 4 months and still nothing? Wtf?

No, Sine, you misunderstand. It's not a "side deal." As I said, Letterman's company owns his show, so they have the power to negotiate directly with the union, and they did just that. Letterman's company had to work out a deal with the union anyway, they just did it faster. (Probably because the interests of the company are different from the interests of the networks.)

Tessian wrote:I dunno, it's going on 4 months now with no end in sight.

Two months. You went from six to four, so I figure one more post and you'll get it right.

Tessian wrote:I dunno, it's going on 4 months now with no end in sight. I don't hear anyone negotiating; only silence from both parties and speculation as to what we'll do without writers.

It's a game of chicken, not 4 months worth of debating. Don't you even know what a strike is supposed to do? It has nothing to do with people negotiating. It's when you reach a stopping point in negotiations, and the next step is to force the other side to feel the pain of what their jobs really mean to them.

Think of it this way: The moguls have 1000 (units of whatever), and the WGA are asking for 5. The moguls demand that they only get 1, not 5. At what point does the WGA say "Okay, we'll take it"? Should they try to negotiate below this already low figure? No. Why should they? Asking for 5 is already crazy, and asking for 3 or 1 is just fucking stupid. (Besides, they already got fucked over with this on the last strike 10-15 years ago.)

So, why do you think they should be negotiate?

I don't really see the big deal...Sine is being a bit oversensitive...and Tessian is replacing DS and Colbert with ATTACK OF THE SHOW!?

Well...

Um...

HA HA HAHAAHAHAHAHHAHAAHHAAHAHHAAH!

Zeus wrote:He made a separate deal to pay them what they're asking for in the negotiations...

He's giving them a 2.5% take? I don't believe you. Give me a source. Everything I've read has said it's an interim deal, which to me means "better than nothing for now, but we're dumping this pig as soon as we get something better". It's kind of like dating someone you don't particularly like, but they happen to be available.

My guess is that the contract is a strategic temporary move by Letterman's company . They get a shot at becoming top show (Letterman gets owned by Leno ratings wise) while pretending to be sympathetic to workers rights for fly-over states and certain Canadians.

Zeus wrote: Daily Show and Colbert will likely be the same thing...

I don't believe that either.

Hey Zeus, I wouldn't be me if I didn't disagree with everything you post in a blind knee jerk manner!

SineSwiper wrote: They shouldn't be allowed to go on the air...

I understand what you're saying, but there's a bigger picture. Tons of other people are affected by the strike too. The writers represent a fraction of the people whose livelihoods depend on the show. The construction people, costume people, make up people, caterers, actors, etc all suffer when shows go on strike. And the WGA doesn't care about them.

The point is this - everyone is looking after their own interests, not anyone else's. There's no "cheating" going on. There's no such thing as "cheating" here. The WGA have convinced you to feel sorry for them and forget anyone else exists. They are very good at PR.

The people the strike are meant to hurt, big wigs with tons of money, are affected the least of anyone ("oh well, only buying 10 MClarens this year honey!").

Ishamael wrote:
I understand what you're saying, but there's a bigger picture. Tons of other people are affected by the strike too. The writers represent a fraction of the people whose livelihoods depend on the show. The construction people, costume people, make up people, caterers, actors, etc all suffer when shows go on strike. And the WGA doesn't care about them.

The point is this - everyone is looking after their own interests, not anyone else's. There's no "cheating" going on. There's no such thing as "cheating" here. The WGA have convinced you to feel sorry for them and forget anyone else exists. They are very good at PR.

The people the strike are meant to hurt, big wigs with tons of money, are affected the least of anyone ("oh well, only buying 10 MClarens this year honey!").

God damn-- who'd expect Ish to be the voice of reason? He's definitely right-- with the writer's strike EVERYONE who makes a living creating shows is hurting. I'd be PISSED if I was squeaking by as a new upcoming actor,etc and I can't get work cause of another guild's strike. I can still be for a strike, but when you start threatening MY livelihood because of it I'd get pissed.

Ishamael wrote:I understand what you're saying, but there's a bigger picture. Tons of other people are affected by the strike too. The writers represent a fraction of the people whose livelihoods depend on the show. The construction people, costume people, make up people, caterers, actors, etc all suffer when shows go on strike. And the WGA doesn't care about them.

The point is this - everyone is looking after their own interests, not anyone else's. There's no "cheating" going on. There's no such thing as "cheating" here. The WGA have convinced you to feel sorry for them and forget anyone else exists. They are very good at PR.

The people the strike are meant to hurt, big wigs with tons of money, are affected the least of anyone ("oh well, only buying 10 MClarens this year honey!").

You sound like one of those anti-piracy commericials, where they showcase the "little guy" and how much it's hurting them. Strikes aren't supposed to be fair. It's a necessary evil when things really go sour on the contract front.

Let's go through your list, anyway:

Construction, Make Up, Caterers - Can easily seek other jobs elsewhere temporarily
Costume people - Might have some other jobs elsewhere with Broadway and the like; not sure
Actors - Most fully support the strike and are due to get the same time of negotiations in June
Writer - Can't really go anywhere during the strike, except back to waiter positions

Don't doubt how much money the moguls are losing from this strike, either. It will be in the billions when this is all over. Granted, there won't be any individual loss, like you would expect from the other careers, but there would be a definite business impact that would eventually force their hand. The WGA wouldn't be doing this otherwise.

Tessian wrote: ...Although for DS and Colbert... I used to be a avid watcher but now I dont' know if I care much for them anymore... I've fallen for Olivia'a tats...

I understand.

Black Lotus wrote:

Tessian wrote: ...Although for DS and Colbert... I used to be a avid watcher but now I dont' know if I care much for them anymore... I've fallen for Olivia's tats...

I understand.

Seriously-- did you catch last night's episode? She had a shirt so low cut I was waiting for them to fall out.

It's not the reason why I watch the show... but the beautiful Munn is definitely a perk to watching.

I did. And they were.

SineSwiper wrote: You sound like one of those anti-piracy commericials, where they showcase the "little guy" and how much it's hurting them.

Wait, so are you saying strikes DON'T hurt "little" guys? Saying something is "bad" because it sounds sorta like something else you don't like is not an argument.

SineSwiper wrote: It's a necessary evil when things really go sour on the contract front.

Let's go through your list, anyway:

Construction, Make Up, Caterers - Can easily seek other jobs elsewhere temporarily
Costume people - Might have some other jobs elsewhere with Broadway and the like; not sure
Actors - Most fully support the strike and are due to get the same time of negotiations in June
Writer - Can't really go anywhere during the strike, except back to waiter positions

Don't doubt how much money the moguls are losing from this strike, either. It will be in the billions when this is all over. Granted, there won't be any individual loss, like you would expect from the other careers, but there would be a definite business impact that would eventually force their hand. The WGA wouldn't be doing this otherwise.

It's weird. You completely missed my point, while somehow stumbling over exactly what I was trying to say -- if you don't have a job that pays enough, get another job! What'd the construction guy in your list do when he lost his job due to the WGA? He got another job! Same for all the other people. Why should we hold the writers on some kind of pedestal?

Ishamael wrote:It's weird. You completely missed my point, while somehow stumbling over exactly what I was trying to say -- if you don't have a job that pays enough, get another job! What'd the construction guy in your list do when he lost his job due to the WGA? He got another job! Same for all the other people. Why should we hold the writers on some kind of pedestal?

It sounds like you're arguing against unions in general, which is a topic so heated that it wouldn't be worth spending 100 posts on this thread.

Black Lotus wrote:I did. And they were.

Are you guys oogling over the Olivia chick from Attack of the Show? She's cute but not insanely hot or anything. I mean, she's not Beil-in-Chuck-and-Larry hot.....

Zeus wrote:

Black Lotus wrote:I did. And they were.

Are you guys oogling over the Olivia chick from Attack of the Show? She's cute but not insanely hot or anything. I mean, she's not Beil-in-Chuck-and-Larry hot.....

No, she's not That hot-- but she is pretty hot, often funny, and always wearing a low cut top. Winning combo right there.

Tessian wrote:

Zeus wrote:

Black Lotus wrote:I did. And they were.

Are you guys oogling over the Olivia chick from Attack of the Show? She's cute but not insanely hot or anything. I mean, she's not Beil-in-Chuck-and-Larry hot.....

No, she's not That hot-- but she is pretty hot, often funny, and always wearing a low cut top. Winning combo right there.

She's cute and makes a decent show a little easier to watch, but nothing to say "FUCK she was hot in xxx".

SineSwiper wrote:

Ishamael wrote:It's weird. You completely missed my point, while somehow stumbling over exactly what I was trying to say -- if you don't have a job that pays enough, get another job! What'd the construction guy in your list do when he lost his job due to the WGA? He got another job! Same for all the other people. Why should we hold the writers on some kind of pedestal?

It sounds like you're arguing against unions in general, which is a topic so heated that it wouldn't be worth spending 100 posts on this thread.

Not arguing against unions per se. If they get you more money, I say use them! I'm just trying to figure out why you think it's OK for everyone else to go out and get another job during hard times, while writers alone deserve some sort of special treatment because they are only qualified to serve coffee and take orders at restaurants. My attitude to that is, "well that's too bad; go get some other skills so that you can't be so easily screwed!"

Zeus wrote:

Tessian wrote:

Zeus wrote: Are you guys oogling over the Olivia chick from Attack of the Show? She's cute but not insanely hot or anything. I mean, she's not Beil-in-Chuck-and-Larry hot.....

No, she's not That hot-- but she is pretty hot, often funny, and always wearing a low cut top. Winning combo right there.

She's cute and makes a decent show a little easier to watch, but nothing to say "FUCK she was hot in xxx".

8.5 - 9.0 out of 10 (when dolled up as geek fantasy). Definitely ooglable.