A year after his Western Stars album, Bruce Springsteen returned last month to announce he was reuniting with his famed E Street Band to release their new album, Letter To You. As a part of its rollout, Springsteen launched a new radio show with Apple music entitled A Letter To You Radio, and for its most recent episode the Boss welcomed Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder and Foo Fighters’ Dave Grohl. Throughout their chat, the trio reflected on key moments in their career and the big breaks that came along the way.
Springsteen led the conversation by admitting that, while he felt he and the E Street Band’s early success was completely unexpected, he viewed Pearl Jam’s success as inevitable. “You had the kind of band that simply was a big, powerful band with a reach that wanted to extend to a sizable audience. I mean, it was just in the nature of your music,” he said. “I don’t know if you feel like that or not, but that’s how it looked from my vantage point from the outside.” In response, Vedder spoke about the pressure his band faced after the success of their first album.
“Really, there was a lot of attention just from the first one and we hadn’t even made the second one yet. I just wanted to make the next record and have the next record be better,” Vedder said. “I was like, ‘If you like this, then I think we got even more that we can better that one.’ Yeah. I just wanted to make more records.”
Dave Grohl chimed in, looking back at the moment he knew he could be a rock star. “I saw this Chicago punk rock band, and then I had that Ramones moment, where a lot of people saw the Ramones, and they were like, ‘Oh my God, it’s three chords, man,” Grohl said in the interview. “And the songs are two and a half minutes long.’ It’s like, this is not ELO. This is not Genesis.”
The full A Letter To You Radio episode can be heard on Apple Music here.
Letter To You is out 10/23 via Columbia Records. Pre-order it here.
Although Netflix definitely has the superior selection of Horror choices, Hulu has got you covered on some unique titles too. The streaming service built its reputation with its TV offerings, but it’s quietly turned into a fine place to watch movies. We didn’t have to look too hard to find some scary must-sees, from bona fide classics to cult favorites. So here are the 10 best horror movies on Hulu.
Chris Hemsworth stars in this Whedon creation directed by Drew Goddard that’ll make you wary of ever going on a mountain retreat again. Hemsworth plays one of a group of five friends who head to the woods for some R&R. The remote cabin they stay at quickly becomes a hellish prison they struggle to escape from.
Rob Zombie’s cult classic still manages to scare the ever-living sh*t out of us, even if its main villains are a group of backwater clowns. The film follows two young couples with a murder kink who go on a trip to try to uncover some true crime legends. That whole “be careful what you wish for” saying comes into play when they’re taken hostage and terrorized by a family of inbred circus people who find increasingly inventive, gruesome ways to hurt them. You know, because it’s fun.
Two friends, McKayla and Sadie, run a blog called “Tragedy Girls” and are desperate for new followers. So desperate that they’ll do anything to become more popular — yes, this includes murder. As their actions continue to drive their small town into a frenzy, the two friends relish in the fact that they’re becoming real-life horror icons in the process.
Clive Barker became one of the leading voices of horror in the 1980s thanks to the graphic, bloody, sexually frank stories found in his Books of Blood collections. For his directorial debut, Barker turned to his novella The Hellbound Heart, the story of a mysterious puzzle box and the demonic creature it unleashes. It remains an effective combination of scares and kinkiness, filled with creepy images and the unforgettable Cenobites, the strangely reasonable-sounding monsters who’ve lost any distinction between pain and pleasure.
The found footage genre certainly seems done to death, but the first Paranormal Activity is still a lot of fun and fright. Although it certainly spawned some not as great sequels and inspired plenty of copy cats, the original should be on anyone’s Halloween horror list. The jump scare-galore film focuses on a married couple’s attempt to figure out and put an end to the supernatural occurrences happening in their home.
#BongHive rejoice! Hulu’s giving us even more reasons to tap into the director’s eclectic collection of genre films with this monster-run-amock movie, which was first inspired by reports of a fish with an S-shaped spine being caught in the Han River. For The Host, Bong Joon-Ho made the creature significantly more menacing, as it eventually emerges from the Han River and causes immense havoc. Local snack bar vendor Park Gang-du (Song Kang-ho) tries to escape with his daughter, before realizing he’s escaped with the wrong girl. Soon, the U.S. military arrives and quarantines all those who’ve come into contact with the creature, making Park Gang-du’s attempts to rescuing his daughter from the creature’s lair significantly more difficult. It’s thrilling and imaginative and the perfect post-Parasite watch.
Based on the short story by Stephen King, Children Of The Corn is set in the fictitious town of Gatlin, Nebraska, where children are drawn to ritualistically murder both the local adults and hapless passers-by to ensure a plentiful corn harvest. They act on the whims of “He who walks behind the rows,” a mysterious, bloodthirsty deity. The film’s become something of a cult classic, spawning eight sequels, as well as a TV remake in 2009 that more closely followed King’s original story.
This Stephen King adaptation isn’t as terrifying as its predecessor but it is bolstered by some good performances. If you’ve seen the original flick, not much has changed story-wise. Jason Clarke plays Dr. Louis Creed, a family man who relocates to rural Maine with his wife and young child (a girl named Ellie this time). They discover their new home is right next to an ancient burial ground and all hell breaks loose soon after. Clarke and John Lithgow make this thing watchable, even when the scares lose their jump-factor.
For a great tale of bullying and revenge that would pair well with Carrie, look no further than this Swedish film from director Tomas Alfredson in which a picked-on boy meets a new friend who’s not exactly who she appears to be. There have been so many vampire stories over the years it’s easy to think that all the possibilities have been wrung from the concept. Yet this sweet, bloody, and ultimately unsettling story finds a new twist.
Wyatt Russell stars in this adventure horror flick about a group of American soldiers who uncover a horrible secret behind enemy lines on D-Day. There’s gore, there’s ridiculousness, there’s a surprisingly good cast. It’s really all you can ask for in a scary movie.
Oscar-winner Lupita Nyong’o stars in this darkly comedic zombie flick, playing a plucky schoolteacher charged with keeping her class safe amidst a surprise zombie outbreak. Josh Gad joins her as Teddy, an obnoxious television personality who hosts the class on the field trip gone wrong and, with the help of a washed-up musician, the three try to fight off the undead — and not kill each other in the process. It’s a nice change of pace to see Nyong’o flexing her comedy muscles and there’s enough gore and thrills to keep horror fans on the edge of their seats.
After almost sixteen years of marriage, two children, and one divorce, Phil Collins and Orianne Cevey ended their second marriage back in August, and the aftermath has been rather dramatic. Now there’s been an even more shocking turn of events. According to Miami Dade County court documents, which were shared by The Miami Herald, Cevey has allegedly seized control of Collins’ $33 million dollar Miami mansion with the help of her new husband, a 31-year old musician, as well as four armed guards. The Miami Herald also reports that Cevey and her team “changed the security codes for the alarms, blocked surveillance cameras and barred real estate agents from showing the house.”
According to the documents, Cevey also requested “a preposterous amount of money based on an oral agreement that does not exist.” It also says that Cevey and her new husband are “threatening, implicitly and explicitly, to prolong their unlawful occupation of the property through force.” Despite his ex-wife’s attempts to gain control of the mansion, Collins says Cevey has no right to take it over as he “100 percent” owns it.
In a statement to The Miami Herald, Collins’ attorney Jeffrey Fisher said, “Mrs. Bates, as she is now known, is trying to shake down Phil Collins for money, and as his attorney and former federal prosecutor, I have zero tolerance for that type of behavior. I’m going to use every legal remedy to get her out of the house.”
It’s been nearly 20 years since a mostly modest summer movie about criminal street racers called The Fast and the Furious first hit theaters. Who back then could have imagined this little car picture, mostly confined to Los Angeles and the American southwest, would spawn a franchise that would span the globe, and may even wind up in outer space? Well, all good things come to an end, and as per Deadline, the franchise is coming to an end — eventually.
Deadline reports that there will only be two more films, and then the story of Dominic Toretto and his makeshift family will come to an end. Mind you, that doesn’t count F9, the most recent installment, which was supposed to hit this year but had to be bumped to next May due to the little pandemic American can’t get under control. So, really, you have three Fast & Furious movies to look forward to.
That also doesn’t even account for any potential spin-offs, such as last year’s Hobbs & Shaw, which could conceivably live on after the F&F main slate has ended. It’s not 100% clear if stars Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham are permanently banished from the Toretto wing of the franchise, but it is known that both of the last films will be helmed by Justin Lin, who came aboard on Fast Five and helped rescue a flailing franchise, mostly by making it increasingly, if you will, ludicrous.
In any case, don’t fret now. After all, you won’t see the last of Dom and crew for many years from now. But maybe you should start saying your long goodbyes right now.
The wait continues for Kendrick Lamar’s upcoming fifth album, but according to Top Dawg Entertainment’s president, it won’t last much longer. On Tuesday, Punch took to Twitter to ask fans how they were doing. One cut to the chase, simply asking, “when’s Kendrick dropping?” In response, Punch gave an optimistic answer: “pretty soon.” Another chimed in, asking, “As in……. this year soon????” Punch wasn’t willing to put an exact date on it, saying only, “soon soon.” A third entered the conversation to push for a more specific date asking, “As in .mOnDaY soon or soon soon?” But Punch held his ground, writing only, “Leaning towards soon soon.”
TDE Label President Punch says that Kendrick Lamar is dropping his album “SOON SOON” pic.twitter.com/J5Aezy9No5
The interaction occurred after Kendrick, in a recent interview alongside Baby Keem for i-D, revealed why fans have to wait “so long” between albums. After Keem said his Die For My B*tch mixtape offered him the chance to experiment with new sounds and “open up the lane to grow in confidence,” Kendrick said, “That’s what will take me so long to do albums. I spend the whole year just thinking about how I’m gonna execute a new sound, I can’t do the same thing over and over.” He added, “I need something to get me excited. I see you get frustrated sometimes because you want some new sh*t.”
Kendrick was also seen in Los Angeles earlier this year reportedly shooting a music video, presumably for one of his news songs.
Vodka is one of the best selling spirits on the market. It’s also one of the most misunderstood. Foremost among these misconceptions is that vodka is viewed as flavorless. That’s just wrong. It can be briny, peppery, or vegetal; it can conjure citrus, caviar, or the earth itself. Another blank spot in the consumer knowledge of this spirit is just how popular it is. Vodka alone makes up an entire third of all spirits sold. That means whiskey, rum, tequila, brandy, and all the others share the other two-thirds.
That’s a lot of people drinking one hell of a lot of vodka. So what makes one bottle “the best?”
As with other spirits, there are a lot of factors at play when it comes to making a quality bottle of the clear stuff. First, you have the mash bill. Potatoes, rye, and wheat are the cornerstones of most vodka expressions. There are also some distillers out there using corn, grapes, beets, and even quinoa. You can make vodka from most plant, at the end of the day. Next, there’s the distilling and filtering process. Most vodkas are distilled several times. As for the filtration, the short of it is the more filtering that goes into the vodka, the more refined (and expensive) it’ll be. As with bourbon or rum or any other spirit, the combination of these factors — ingredients, processes, and craft techniques — inform how tasty the juice in the glass is.
With all of this in mind, we’re highlighting the ten vodkas below. Are these the best vodkas on earth? That’s tough to say. New expressions are emerging daily. For right now, these are our favorites at their particular price points from $10-100. Check them out and see just how wrong your “all vodkas taste the same”-friends actually are.
ABV: 40% Distillery: Smirnoff Vodka, Illinois (Diageo) Average Price:$9
The Vodka:
America’s signature vodka (by way of Russia) is shockingly drinkable for a bottle that comes in a plastic bottle. The juice is made with non-GMO corn. It’s then charcoal filtered and cut with mineral water to bring it down to proof.
Tasting Notes:
Clean is the word that’s most associated with Smirnoff. The nose has a slight corn edge. That note turns mildly sweet as a bit of alcohol pops in with a faint hint of spice. The end is very neutral, to the point of being almost too easy to drink.
Bottom Line:
This Ted Danson-approved vodka is the perfect cocktail base. Do yourself a favor and grab a bottle.
PRO TRICK: Grate a thumb of fresh ginger into your Smirnoff. Reseal and let sit on the shelf for 24-hours. Strain the ginger out of the vodka and pour that clean juice back into the bottle. Store the vodka in the freezer. Then, the next time you make a Moscow Mule, use this ginger-infused vodka as the base.
You can thank us later.
$20 — Tito’s Handmade Vodka
Tito
ABV: 40% Distillery: Fifth Generation, Austin, TX Average Price:$22
The Vodka:
Austin’s Tito’s Vodka is a pretty solid bottle of vodka at a very affordable price point. The vodka is distilled from yellow corn and goes through six distillations.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a slight must on the nose of this vodka that leads towards a hint of that yellow corn. The taste is very neutral at first. Then, as the sip warms, notes of vegetal peppers and mildly sweet corn arrives. The end is swift and very svelte.
Bottom Line:
This is an all-around drinker. You can shoot it, mix it, and throw it in a highball with some fizzy water. Dealer’s choice.
$30 — Chopin Potato Vodka
Chopin Vodka
ABV: 40% Distillery: Polmos, Siedlce, Poland Average Price:$30
The Vodka:
This Polish vodka feels like a classic but it only goes back to the early 1990s. The distillery sources their potatoes from the fields around the distillery within a 25-mile radius. The potatoes are cooked in their skins before fermentation. The wash is then copper pot distilled and highly refined.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a natural minerality to the nose that leads towards an almost wet grass note. The palate is very soft with a hint of bitter behind a real earthen taste. A note of black pepper spice arrives late as the continued softness brings about a pleasant end.
Bottom Line:
This certainly works as a sipper with a drop or two of bitters (in a very ice-cold glass). Also, give this vodka as try as part of a Hilde — that’s a shot of Champagne chased with a shot of vodka in quick succession.
$40 — Absolut Elyx
Absolut
ABV: 43% Distillery: Absolut Distillery, Åhus, Sweden (Pernod Ricard) Average Price:$42
The Vodka:
Absolut Elyx is Absolut’s answer to the high-end vodka market. The vodka is made from winter wheat grown on a single farm estate from the middle ages in Southern Sweden. The vodka is made in Absolut’s all antique-fitted out Åhus Distillery, right on the waterfront of the small village.
It’s a super-refined vodka that lives up to the hype.
Tasting Notes:
The sip opens with a wheat field after a rainstorm. There’s a fresh-baked bread with a buttery edge next to a fatty nuttiness. A mild spice comes in late with a nutmeg feel to it. The end is slightly long, full of that bready nature, and very satisfying.
Bottom Line:
You can easily sip this vodka with a rock or two. It’s also a very solid cocktail base with that slightly higher-ABV.
$50 — Nikka Coffey Vodka
Nikka
ABV: 40% Distillery: Nikka Whisky Distilling, Tokyo, Japan (Asahi Group) Average Price:$52
The Vodka:
There’s a refinement and uniqueness to this vodka that helps it really stand out. The mash is a blend of corn and malted barley. The distillate is then filtered with white birch charcoal and then cut down to proof with soft local spring water.
Tasting Notes:
This is the perfect balance of neutral and flavorful. The nose brings about a hint of the sweeter malts with a flutter of orchard fruit. The palate delivers on those notes while leaning into an almost stonefruit sweetness, with a grain underbelly. The end is warming with a velvety texture that’ll leave a smile on your face.
Bottom Line:
This is so smooth and drinkable that’ll be hard not to just sip it neat or with a single rock.
$60 — Crystal Head Vodka Aurora
Crystal Head
ABV: 40% Distillery: Globefill Inc., Newfoundland, Canada Average Price:$60
The Vodka:
Dan Akroyd’s Canadian vodka is a solid entry in the vodka pantheon. This expression utilizes English wheat in the mash. The distillate is then filtered seven times through Herkimer diamonds (quartz, really). The bottle is certainly a gimmick here but it is kind of cool, especially with the Aurora Borealis coloring to the skull.
At the very least, this one is a conversation starter.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a clear sense of the wheat up top with a note of vanilla beans. The taste carries on in that direction and adds in a flourish of mint next to a mild spice. The end is short, warm, and slightly sweet with another touch of that vanilla.
Bottom Line:
This is just good enough to justify the price. The addition of mint and vanilla adds a nice change up to the usual neutrality of vodka, especially when you add some ice.
$70 — Stolichnaya Elit
Stolichnaya
ABV: 40% Distillery: SPI Group, Riga, Latvia Average Price:$73
The Vodka:
There’s a lot that goes into making Stoli a great vodka, even more so for Elit. The juice is made from a majority of special winter wheat grown in a very isolated part of Russia that’s cut with a small percentage of rye (also grown in a very rural area). Then there’s the spring water, quartz sand filtration, charcoal filtration, and another round of quartz sand filtration that the distillate goes through to make it pop.
Tasting Notes:
You’re greeted by freshly cut green bell pepper, a bit of vanilla, a touch of fresh mint, a dusting of white pepper, and a nice hit of bright citrus. The palate leans into those notes and adds a light toffee sweetness with a super clean body.
Bottom Line:
This is one of those “I get it now” vodkas. It works as an easy sipper with a rock or two or as a fantastic martini base.
$80 — Carbonadi
Carbonadi
ABV: 40% Distillery: Carbonadi Distillery, Piedmont, Italy Average Price:$80
The Vodka:
Ricky Miller’s Carbonadi is a high-end vodka for the 2020s. The Italian juice is made from winter wheat and handled by northern Italian artisans through each step of the process, leading to a black diamond filtration process and a micro-oxygenation (a process used to soften wines).
Tasting Notes:
Carbonadi hits the “high-end” vodka notes square on the head. There’s a bit of vanilla next to the wheat. Then comes a note of toasted coconut with a note of fresh mint and a touch of spice. It’s enticing.
Bottom Line:
The complexity of this sip makes it an easy sipper and pairing vodka, especially with Goan curries or any spice-laden dishes.
$90 — Grey Goose VX
Grey Goose
ABV: 40% Distillery: Grey Goose Disitllery, La Vallee de l’Oise, France (Bacardi) Average Price:$90
The Vodka:
France’s Grey Goose is specifically engineered for the U.S. market. This very high-end expression from the Maison leans into the refinement of cognac via vodka crafting. The juice is winter wheat-based and cut with local spring water to create the easiest of vodka drinking experiences. The vodka is then cut with a bit (five percent) of cognac. That technically makes this a “spirit” instead of a “vodka.” But that’s really splitting hairs.
Tasting Notes:
This sip is equal measures floral and fruity. Ripe stone fruits mingle with wildflowers and honey sweetness. A rush of bright citrus arrives late to counterpoint the more floral and fruity sweet edges and helps bring about a real smoothness to the overall sip.
Bottom Line:
This is crafted as a sipping vodka. Maybe add a rock if you need to, but try it neat first.
$100 — Beluga Gold Line
Beluga Vodka
ABV: 40% Distillery: Mariinsk Distillery, Mariinsk, Russia Average Price:$100
The Vodka:
This vodka was born from far off in the forested Siberian depths of Russia. The brand’s Gold Line takes its very solid base and adds more layers of filtration and amps the distillation process by adding milk thistle, oat, and rice extracts. After the multiple quartz filtration, the vodka then rests for three months before bottling, adding an extra nuance to this drink.
Tasting Notes:
There’s a wildflower herbal nature on the nose and taste that draws you in. The graininess of the vodka is subtle, while a creamy nature takes over. The grassiness, florals, and sweet edges all balance each other perfectly as the sip fills your senses with each note.
Bottom Line:
This is a great pairing vodka, especially with seafood. It might sound cliché, but it’s great with caviar. If that’s too rich for your blood, try cold smoked salmon, oysters, and crab.
Neymar became the latest member of the Puma family earlier this year when the PSG and Brazil star made the jump from Nike. Now, on the day of PSG’s first match in the 2020-21 Champions League, the company announced a new line of apparel inspired by the talismanic forward.
While Neymar did not play in the Parisians’ tilt against Manchester United — the English side came out on top, 2-1, on a late strike by Marcus Rashford — following his return to the side from the recent international break, Puma dropped a signature version of their Puma King boot that prominently features his NJR logo. Additionally, the collection will include a t-shirt, a track jacket, track pants, and a hoodie for children. The standout, though, is the sleek black boot, which uniquely uses Neymar’s logo throughout Puma’s formstrip.
Puma
The boots will retail for $200 starting on Oct. 21, with everything else in the collection ranging between $30 and $60. As for Neymar, while he did not make his way onto the pitch on Tuesday, PSG has a packed slate of fixtures on the horizon — the clubs will play host to Dijon on Saturday before traveling to Turkey on Wednesday next week for a Champions League match against Istanbul Basaksehir.
Like so many of us who follow wrestling, I spend plenty of time thinking — and talking — about the creative decisions that don’t work for me. Even today, I could write paragraph after paragraph about why Retribution’s still not working, why breaking up the IIconics was a bone-headed decision, and how WWE desperately needs to give up on “Lana tries really hard but she’s just not very good” as an angle. But instead of all that, I’d like to talk about something that does work for me, and how I’d like to see it develop.
As expected, the pre-draft hints of Alexa Bliss being influenced by the Fiend have paid off now that they’re both on Raw, with a gothy Alexa joining the Fiend in the ring, and a pigtailed, sweater-wearing Alexa joining Bray on Firefly Fun House. We’ll see where it all goes, but for right now, I have to say, I’m here for it.
First of all, this new character seems to align with Alexa’s real-life interests, possibly the most of any character so far. Because Alexa is conventionally gorgeous, her WWE character tends to revolve around being gorgeous and conventionally feminine. There’s nothing wrong with that, but Alexa has always had a weirder side — she literally has a podcast about being a nerdy loser in high school. Fans may also remember that she was cosplaying Freddy Krueger way back in NXT, and she’s experimented with various Harley Quinn-inspired looks since arriving on the main roster four years ago.
Now Alexa gets to play a horror character who’s also a variation on Harley Quinn, and it looks like she’s having a lot of fun doing it. It can be a huge benefit to the Fiend as well, having a manager-esque figure who’s unmasked and can talk. That way he can spend less time with another version of himself on the jumbotron while he’s in the ring (or hiding underneath it).
We already know that Alexa can play a more conventional cocky heel better than just about anybody, because we’ve seen her do a lot of that. We’ve also seen her as a confident, friend-supporting babyface, and she’s great at that, too. This is her opportunity to try a third thing that she’ll probably also be great at.
My only hope is that the new Alexa Bliss gets to stay involved in the women’s division, rather than just being a part of Bray’s storylines. Becoming a new character with a radically different personality than she’s ever had as a face or a heel means that Alexa can have fresh feuds even with people she’s fought before. It’s certainly easy to imagine her going after Asuka’s Raw Women’s Championship for the glory of the Fiend.
First though, she needs to wrap things up with Nikki Cross. Alexa’s former best friend and tag team partner is still trying to understand how their friendship abruptly ended, and has yet to even deal with the prospect of a fully corrupted Alexa. Surely WWE can give Alexa and Nikki some time to tell that story while Alexa still appears in the Fiend’s segments as well.
It’s hard to know right now how long this will go on, and how much they’ll do with it. As of right now, I think bringing in Alexa has potentially revitalized the Fiend gimmick and given it more longevity. As for Alexa herself, she’ll spin gold out of just about anything that she’s given. We’ll see as this goes on how much gold WWE wants from her.
President Donald Trump is in the final two weeks of his re-election campaign, making the case that he’s the only one who can calmly steer America out of months of mismanaged turmoil. So far, he hasn’t been particularly reassuring. Between recording deranged videos on the White House lawn, getting into a feud with the most trusted person involved in the COVID task force, and dancing weirdly to The Village People, he may have only succeeded in driving away any sensible people still unsure how they’re voting. If you had “storms out of a 60 Minutes interview” on your Trump Bingo card, guess what? You made a pretty good guess.
As per CNN, the sitting president of the United States lasted all of 45 minutes in a one-on-one with Lesley Stahl, one of the calmest and most old-school reporters on the longtime infotainment show. The news was broken by CNN’s White House reporter, Kaitlan Collins, who did not provide specifics on what drove Trump from the chat.
Biden and Harris were also interviewed by 60 Minutes & all are scheduled to appear in the same program. While Biden and Harris taped their interviews separately, Trump and Pence were scheduled to appear on camera together. They ultimately did not and Pence taped his separately.
“Apparently there was some drama while President Trump was taping his 60 Minutes interview today. He abruptly ended his solo interview after around 45 minutes & did not return for a scheduled walk & talk he was supposed to tape with Pence,” Collins tweeted. She pointed out that Pence and his running mate were supposed to do another, joint interview with Stahl, which wound up not happening. Pence taped his separately, as did their rivals Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, as part of the same segment.
Again, details on what happened have not been revealed, but it wasn’t hard to social media sleuths to come up with their own possible solutions. One wild theory? It did not go well.
Safe bet- Trump had another tantrum and stormed out of the 60 Minutes interview. This stuff will be a daily occurrence now. Lesley Stahl must have pierced the delusion bubble of his dementia fantasy world and sent him over the edge. https://t.co/mhXbLCv8Yy
You know your campaign is going really well when your final two weeks messaging is “Lesley Stahl didn’t wear a mask during this 5-second clip.” https://t.co/c7f9ck5H49
Perhaps it happened because Trump does not tend to do well outside of his own protective bubble.
he probably got super mad when her first question wasn’t “mister president how do you deal with being so strong and smart and handsome” like Hannity’s always is https://t.co/VcfZf7Khs2
If you’re throwing tantrums during an interview with 60 Minutes and then pout in your room rather than do the joint segment with your VP, you might be worried you’re about to lose.
Whatever the case, attacking trusted sources like Stahl and Dr. Anthony Fauci are curious ways to wind down a campaign.
So did Trump book 60 Minutes to show he could get better ratings than Fauci on it? And Stahl asked real questions and now he’ll whine about it preemptively?
That said, Trump was quick to spin the incident on social media, tweeting out a very brief video of Stahl not wearing a mask, which he also does not enjoy doing. He also threatened that there was “much more to come.”
Lesley Stahl of 60 Minutes not wearing a mask in the White House after her interview with me. Much more to come. pic.twitter.com/0plZG6a4fH
You know your campaign is going really well when your final two weeks messaging is “Lesley Stahl didn’t wear a mask during this 5-second clip.” https://t.co/c7f9ck5H49
In any case, if you, too, find this kind of stuff exhausting and would like it to be replaced by an administration far more boring, make sure you’re ready to vote on November 3. If you need some help figuring out the rules to your state, the cast of Succession’s may be able to help.
Eight months into the pandemic, you’d think people would have the basics figured out. Sure, there was some confusion in the beginning as to whether or not masks were going to help, but that was months ago (which might as well be years in pandemic time). Plenty of studies have shown that face masks are an effective way to limit the spread of the virus and public health officials say universal masking is one of the keys to being able to safely resume some normal activities.
Normal activities include things like getting a coffee at Starbucks, but a viral video of a barista’s encounter with an anti-masker shows why the U.S. will likely be living in the worst of both worlds—massive spread and economic woe—for the foreseeable future.
Alex Beckom works at a Starbucks in Santee, California and shared a video taken after a woman pulled down her “Trump 2020” mask to ask the 19-year-old barista a question, pulled it back up when the barista asked her to, then pulled it down again.
Welcome to my day at work🥰 #starbucks #karen @Starbucks https://t.co/six8s4qCAx
All Beckom did was inform the woman that she needed to keep her mask on, and the scene turned into the woman throwing a fit. She claimed that she didn’t have to listen to the barista because “this is America.” She said the virus (or the pandemic, or the mask order—it’s not clear) is “a hoax.” And she berated Black Lives Matter, which had nothing whatsoever to do with the exchange, other than Beckom existing in front of her in her Black skin.
Beckom remained completely professional and friendly throughout the bizarre interchange, even after the woman accused her of discriminating against her for being a Trump supporter, and even after the woman said “F*ck Black Lives Matter,” and then yelled the same thing again as she left the store.
“If she thinks she’s being discriminated against, that’s on her,” Beckom told 10 News, San Diego’s ABC affiliate. “I never brought up anything about her politics … I wasn’t even angry. I was just like, ‘Why is this happening?'”
Beckom had every right to ask the woman to keep her mask on, both due to company policy and the state of California mandate. And no one would blame Beckom if she’d had a more emotional or forceful response considering this woman’s rude and inappropriate behavior, but the contrast of her calm reaction beautifully highlighted how off-the-rails the woman’s own response was.
The video has had more than 4 million views since Beckom shared it on Sunday, and people have praised the dignity and grace with which the barista handled the situation.
“I think it’s important to show this type of behavior shouldn’t be normalized and shouldn’t be acceptable …” Beckom told 10 News. “As this behavior continues, the cycle continues, and we need to get this cycle to stop.”
Indeed, we do need to get this cycle to stop. People like this woman are partially why the U.S. is in the dismal state that we’re in with the coronavirus pandemic. Calling it a hoax, refusing to keep her mask on, berating a lovely young woman who is just doing her job—these kinds of videos are so old, but so indicative of where we are.
But Beckom’s response is also an indicator that there is hope to be had in all of this madness. To have such presence of mind and maturity at 19 years old is impressive, and the more we see people doing the right thing, the better. Beckom represents the millions of Americans who work with the public and have to put up with people’s nonsense. It’s heartening to see someone so young handling it so well.
Keep up the great work, Alex. (And hey Starbucks, maybe give that woman a raise. In the meantime, here’s a GoFundMe if you want to give her a tip for her excellent customer service.)
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