Jake 2.0, the only decent show on UPN's schedule, being cancelled to make way for repeats of America's Next Top Anorexic? Yeah. Yeah, that angries up my fucking blood.

Something that has been making my blood boil lately is the new law in France that says Muslim girls are not allowed to wear headscarves to school anymore. Not only do i find it incredibly racist, but also embarassing. They don't wear those things for decoration, but as a symbol of their religion. They are making a huge issue around it, the news is filled with the opinions of Chirac or someone high up the food chain in France, the common man in the street... But no one thinks about asking the opinion of the girls who can't wear their scarves anymore. Seriously, the only form of opinion was a protest outside the Brussels Justice Palace last Saturday. Ghaa, we don't tell Western women to stop wearing jeans, so we shouldn't meddle with what Arabian women wear.

Totally agree, bella. The head scarf is more than a symbol of their religion. I know that a lot of western thought is "oh, but the Muslim women are not free, they need to be freed." But some of them are free to make a choice, and wearing the scarf is their choice. For them to be without it is much worse than telling Western women to not wear jeans, it's like telling Western women that they can't wear shirts.

The point about the French ban is that they demand that their state schools should be free from religious bias. It's not about 'freeing' them from Islam, the point is less that they're Muslim, and more that they are at all religious.

I believe that there are also restrictions on other religions. This is from BBC news:



I'm not trying to defend the law itself, only point out that it is not only related to Islam.

Thanks blessures. :) I know it's not related to any specific religion. But, the thing is, for these women, it's so much worse than asking a Christian person not to wear a cross. For them it's literally like me telling you that you must go to school or to work in just your underwear. I'm not Muslim, so I can't speak officially for any aspect of that religion. But for my friends who are, their head-covering is a very important aspect of their modesty.

But, going into this is more religion/politics than television, so I'll stop right here. :)

Hey, at least they picked a perfect bitch to host it (Shannen Doherty).

I was just watching Models: The Real Skinny on A&E and gettting very, very angry at these girls' insecurity and bitching about the biz: You have to be thick skinned, they are always criticizing your body! Hell-o, someone forcing you to be a model? Think of how you make me feel????

So I heated myself up a huge plate of nachos and ate while watching. Take that.

Well, been a while since we've seen this baby, eh?

Topic: Why, oh why did I watch that History Channel special on the neo-Nazi movement? They had an interview with a man who was the getaway driver for the Order, a neo-Nazi group that murdered a confrontative Jewish radio show host with a specific animus towards anti-Semitism. At the end of the interview, the getaway driver said (loosely paraphased), "But hey, that Hebe isn't broadcasting his 'hate whitey' message anymore, is he?"

Yeah. Cathode ray tube, meet size 12 Timberlands.

There was a Dateline on the other night "Generation XL." It may have been a rerun. Anyway, the interviewer Stone Philips was incredibly insulting (OK maybe this is common nowadays, but it's still awful).

Stone to obese teenager: "So, do you think you'll be overweight your entire life?"

Stone to mom of obese kid: "Do you think it's your fault he's overweight or his? You moving out and never being around when he needed you?" (not exact quote)

Then they got the cameraman to focus mainly on fat people's rolls, particularly when they were at the beach, while the voiceover intones "Joe Schmoe weighs close to 300 pounds!"

my new angry up the blood moment? The minute I saw the commercial for NBC's "new original movie", Homeland Security, which makes me want to put my brand new motorcycle boots through my TV screen.

The VO is talking about how while America facing was facing its most horrible tragedy (cut to a shot of the WTC) , there was a story going on behind the scenes....

Sorry, but I had enough of my own stories going on behind the scenes that day: between the hours spent trying to confirm whether or not my brother was alive, losing dozens of colleagues and friends in both New York and DC, standing there on the Jersey side of the Hudson directly across from lower Manhattan completely helpless, and being amazed by some of the coincidences that kept some friends safe that day, I've got the "behind the scenes" covered. I don't need to see another TV movie about the events of 9/11.

That is all.

*ends furious ranting.*

The Homeland Security movie is taking advantage of a horrible tragedy, and seems more like pissing people off about our intelligence system than reporting the facts.. Since no one knows how much information was known prior to the attacks and we're still trying to suss out how much the president knew, doing a TV movie about national intelligence right now is ludicrous. I hate it when they come out with TV movies like this just reeks of misinformation with some random writer giving their view of what happened, which will no doubt be skewed, makng one party the bad guy. And does Tom Skerritt have to be in every freakin TV movie?!?

I saw the promo for the Homeland Security movie, and it looks to be about the most tasteless thing ever. And this from someone who watched not one, but two JonBennet made-for-TV movies. Is this really the story to use to show off nifty special effects that blow things up? I think not. And who wants to bet that they liberally use real footage as well? It's just sickening and disgusting and I cann't believe anyone would choose to watch this movie for "entertainment." Gah!

I couldn't watch the Homeland Security movie. It was just too tasteless. Keep in mind, I watch The Swan and I freely admit it in public. For me to find something tasteless is pretty special.

My two newest angry up the blood moments come from Bravo. One was on Showbiz Moms and Dads where a mother forces her 4 year old to get a fake spray on tan for her pageant. It was so uncomfortable watching. The whole thing pisses me off. The mother keeps claiming the reason why she's doing this is so that her daughter won't be as shy and awkward as she was. If that's the case then why does it have to be pageants? Why can't she just enroll her in dance lessons, singing lessons and community theater? Well, because she's a wackjob for one.

The other Bravo moment wasn't really a moment. It was a movie I saw before I went to work one morning. It was called Damage and had Jeremy Irons and Juliette Binoche in it. It was about a man who enters into an affair with his son's fiance. I honestly spent the rest of the day pissed off. I hated everybody in the movie and by the time I had to leave, I wanted to see two characters die messily. I didn't even get the see the end of the movie because I had to go to work. So, now I'm left with the problem of never finding out what happened in the last ten minutes of the movie or going out and renting a movie that pissed me off just to see the last ten minutes. I'm worried that if I cave and rent it, I'll get just as pissed off as I was before. I went so far as too try to find out a recap online but didn't have any luck.

Another angry up the blood moment for me was when Jennifer Hudson was eliminated from American Idol. She was my favorite and the only one who didn't bore me. She had a great performance that night and there was a contestant who was noticably worse than everybody else.

I never saw the movie of "Damage", but if it followed the book, this is what happens:

The son discovers his father and fiancee in flagrante, as they say, and runs off, falling down the stairs and breaking his neck. He dies. The father is destroyed in every way. His marriage breaks up, his career is over, he can't even go to his daughter's wedding. He moves to France, takes an apartment and lives a monastic life. He later runs into someone who knew the fiancee who tells him that she is 'healed' now because of what happened. He still wants her but knows he can never have her. He is haunted by her and although he has reason to feel 'used' by her he still carries her in his mind and heart. He feels that he has earned his isolation and devastation and that it was, in fact, worth it, to be annihilated by this woman. He acknowledges that he was warned that she was damaged and that 'damaged people know how to survive.' He waits for death.

Aren't you glad you asked?

IcyLuna, I can't even watch the ads for Showbiz Moms and Dads without getting angry. I see those poor little girls all ho'ed out for baby beauty pagents and want to throw things at the tv. The show comes on before Queer Eye, and it's infuriating even with the mute button on.

edited because I make really egregious typos when I'm inadequately caffeinated

The "Who Wants to Adopt This Baby" gameshow that 20/20 has concocted makes me sick. I thought TV could sink no lower than "The Swan," and then Barbara Walters goes and proves me wrong.

Television screen? Meet Doctor Marten.

I totaly agree with the 20/20 disgust. I was watching Extreme Makeover:HE with my daughters when that promo came on. They weren't paying attention to it, but I saw it. I said out loud how repulsive and disgusting that was. They wanted to know what I was talking about, I just could find the words to explain. Just revolting.

Do I even want to know what that's about?

SusannahDean: According to the Boston Herald, five couples will "compete" for the right to adopt a 16-year-old's baby, and the program will show the interviews and the birthmother's elimination of various couples (ala "The Bachelor"). The newspaper was so appalled that it put the story on the front page, with two inch headlines (using the word "outrage"). Put it this way, the Celtics getting a new coach was NOT the front page story.

Who'd have thought Barbara Walters would get to the point of licking the bottom of the barrel?

Oh. My. God.

What is going on these days that everything is turned into a reality show? And not only that but a contest. I wonder how how far away we are from Series 7 or Running Man type shows.

This really sounds vile. At least four couples are going to be hurt. I don't know what to say about the girl since she probably doesn't understand how distasteful this is, but why would grown-ups sign up for something like this. Can you imagine the kid asking where he came from and mom and dad going, "Oh, we won you in a contest." Chee!

From what I read today, it's not actually a "contest", and Barbara apologized for 20/20 using the word in their advertisements. It's still freaky though.

This sounds like a SNL parody. How sad that it is true. To boldy steal and paraphrase Jon Stewart's take on the sleazefest: Barbara Walters doesn't have smooth skin because of a facelift or botox injections, it's because of the G-forces hitting her face as she falls into the abyss.

They used to have a new Twilight Zone program and one of the episodes had a kid kidnapped on a reality TV show, and the mom had only a few hours to get him back. At the time I thought it was too extreme a premise, now I no longer do.

Good lord, the whole country gets riled up over a piece of flesh being exposed for a couple of seconds but stuff like this is okay? I just don't know to say.

As long as we don't see the baby's nipple.

Five couples want the same thing. Only one will get it. Four will not. That's a contest, Babs, no matter what hardline, news-journalist euphemism you want to use.

Stuff like that makes you want to just give up on television. Yet, it seems we never do...odd.

I watched 20/20 and it wasn't that bad. The girl who was putting the baby up for adoption got to decide who should adopt her baby. Barbara Walters made it sound sleazier on the promos than it was. Everybody got a baby from somewhere, and the whole thing was a setup that had been filmed before, unless they were doing reeanactments. Weird anyway you look at it.

More so than certain political ads playing on the event for the personal advantage of the politician? Every time I see them I want to throw something heavy at the TV, but I always miss because I'm puking too heavily....

What angries up this viewer's blood is those so-called "in-depth" pieces by Dateline or Entertainment Tonight usually, which ask "Why are so many young girls ruining their lives and their health by having eating disorders?" It's not bad enough that these poor youngsters are suffering mentally and physiclaly, they get interviewed by a scrawny bleach blonde (not Mary Hart, that other freak with the scary cheekbones), or a smug Stone Phillips, who is actually looking like he could use some Botox these days. The jerk interviewing them is enough alone to further the young girl's anorexia or bulima.

I want to see more women the size of Whoopi Goldberg, Tyne Daley, Countess Vaughn, or Queen Latifah on my TV. Yes, even Camryn Mannheim. I don't always admire their shows or their acting, but their body size and projected self confidence is much more beautiful than someone with a skeletal boob area and no hips.

I wonder, when they do these stories on dateline (setting aside ET because no one takes it seriously), what commercials do they show? Cosmetics? Fitness facilities? Beer?

Jenny Craig.

Or the "Stripper Special": skinny and straight as a stick with 2 cantaloupes implanted in the chest. 'Cause yeah, that's a natural body type.

Oh damn, I forgot about the Stripper Special. I'm going to have bad dreams tonight.

I couldn't decide if this should go in this thread or the scarred for life thread. I guess my anger won out.

I just wondered if any of you saw Dateline last night. It was about this religious cult called The Body. It was won of those insanely radical cults that shunned everything worldly (education, government, medical care, etc.).

One leader in the cult had this baby and supposedly another member received a message from God that this 10 month old child should not be fed solid foods anymore. It was only allowed to have breast milk and water. The baby's mother was not producing much milk because she was pregnant. The mother was ordered to try to nurse him every hour for 20 minutes. The baby died after 51 days.

The dad is in prison for life. The mother was acquitted because the jury decided she was a victim too. The idiot who founded the whole thing is still running the cult in Massachusetts.

It just pisses me off to no end that anyone could let that happen to a child.

Man, these ads piss me off six ways to Sunday. I see them, and it makes me want to throw my TV out the window.

.



Testify! Why, oh why, can't they just let people look NORMAL, instead of some bizarre plastic surgery experiment gone wrong (yes, I'm looking at you, Pamela Anderson) or death in a dress (and you too, Debra Messing)?

As Edina and Patsy put it in an episode of Absolutely Fabulous, the women who go for the stick straight with cantaloupes look will finally achieve their ideal body two weeks after death.

I admit, I watched it. I have to say that as sad as it is that that child died, I felt for the mother. That "thousand yard stare" she had when arrested as opposed to her horror after a few months after her arrest? I actually felt for her despite the fact that her baby was allowed to starve to death. I think her diet (almond milk that was making her sick, let alone as nutrient for her nursing and unborn twins) and sleep deprivation made me feel for the mother. I was so sad the baby died, but really, I felt the mother didn't have many options.

Am I wrong? Why do I feel this mother had less blame for allowing her baby to die?

Despite all, it angried up the blood even more because the father, who took a lot of blame at the trial, now is deprogramming [from the cult his father leads, BTW] and seems to feel some guilt too. But there were so many adults in the fray that could have intervened. And yet no one did. The blood, she angries.

No, Beelzebubba. I don't think you are wrong at all for sympathizing with the mother. My husband and I did too. I realize that in that kind of circumstance you can't just get up and walk out with your child. I would think the sleep deprivation alone would have messed up all of her logical thinking.

I've expressed my hate for The Cosby Show before, but I watched the finale last night on "Nick at Nite" to see if I was overreacting. And then they played the scene that angried me up in the first place.

They flashback to the first episode, in which Dr. Huxtable is giving Theo a lecture on what "regular people" earn, using Monopoly money as an example (Theo has expressed a desire to not go to college). He begins to deduct amounts of money from the budget for taxes, food, clothing, etc. At the end of it, Theo is left with nothing in his hand.

This scene infuriates me. I'm not a college graduate. I work in a call center (or worked, I'm looking for another job now). And yet despite my not having a degree in my hand, I manage to live in a decent apartment. I eat regularly. I wear decent if inexpensive clothing. And I have enough money left over at the end of every month to be able to afford nearly every channel in existence, cable internet, and sock a little away for a rainy day.

I don't mind the idea of a child being motivated to pursue an education. However, this was a slap in the face to "regular people" everywhere who somehow manage to live decent and comfortable lives without having the higher-paying jobs.

On the other hand, I do have a college degree yet I'm taking home less than $700 a month American. I live in a nice apartment, but it's funded by City housing. I struggle to keep gas in my car. A degree doesn't necessarily entitle one to a higher paying job. I work hard, and get turned down for new jobs because interviewwers think I should be looking elsewhere for more pay. It's that attitude from The Cosby Show that angries up this viewer's blood.

Can't really identify it, but a couple of years back, after channel surfing, I found a Korean sitcom (with no subtitles), where a mother, daughter, and father were arguing over something. The father disagreed with whatever the daughter was saying, and the mother was defending the daughter. In the next scene, both mother and daughter are in bed, face down, and there's a close up of their shins, which look like they were hit with something, and had a red, maybe bloody line across them. And there's a laughtrack. Didn't really see the humor.

Nevermind.

Yeah, their coverage of Paul Wellstone's death was not their shining moment. Then again, they don't really have too many shining moments these days...

Animal Planet again proved itself a champion of responsible pet ownership today with "An Adoption Story." It was all about this small theater group in Hollywood who adopted a beagle to star in their play. This is one of those independent shows with a run of about a month, and they saw nothing wrong with picking this dog up and saying, "Oh, I'm sure we'll find a home for him after the play's over." One of the couples in the group did end up giving the dog a permanent home, but they clearly hadn't even considered the aftermath before adopting this poor dog. And to top it all off, the woman who'd signed the papers and was considered the dog's legal guardian lived in an apartment building with a no pets, no exceptions rule, and she knew this. One of the big dramatic moments of the show was everyone having to reshuffle so they could all take the dog a few days a week after this woman's landlord put his foot down and said "You've been keeping this dog in your apartment and flaunting it for four days; I can't look the other way anymore." I know you people are actors; it shouldn't be that hard to pretend you've got half a brain between you.

I watched Oprah with my mom and I saw the story of the poor twelve year old boy who hung himself. The school turned a completely blind eye to the fact he was constantly bullied, he wasn't hygenic, and defeacated on himself in class! The school gets a fourth of my extreme anger, but the other 3/4s go to the fucktard that was his mother. She was prosecuted and charged rightfully with endangering a child and may be going to jail for it AND SHE HAS THE NERVE TO GO ON TV AND SAY SHE WAS CHARGED UNFAIRLY?! People, her house was cluttered, she let her kids stay up half the freakin' night (and 12 year old and a 15 year old!) and she KNEW about her son's hygenic state and she said "I can't make him bathe himself!" BITCH. She WORKED IN THE SAME SCHOOL THE BOY ATTENDED and she said she didn't know about the bullying. Oprah absolutely NAILED her and my respect for her went up tenfold.

That felt good.

Nevermind.

What's Kevin Garnet make per year? Probably well over $10 million. He plays a sport for a living. You don't need a college education for that. He can buy his very own professor when he retires.

MegaJ, I think I saw this same story covered on 60 Minutes, and remember thinking the exact. same. thing. Go Oprah!!!