Update on gerrymandering in North Carolina

Republicans will pay for trying to be greedy.

North Carolina Supreme Court rejects redistricting map as unconstitutional https://t.co/TYcEV8ECgV
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) February 5, 2022

In a big decision, NC's Supreme Court just struck down the GOP gerrymander, 4-3.

Had Dems not won the 2018 Supreme Court race, this would have gone the other way.

2018 is the year that… the GOP tried to rig the election, only to have it spectacularly backfire. Let's recap.
— Taniel (@Taniel) February 5, 2022

NC could easily have drawn a 9-5 map and no one would have said anything, but they got greedy and tried to go for a 11-3-1.

Now they are risking a 8-6 or even a 7-7
— u〽️ichvoter 🌴🏳️‍🌈 (@umichvoter) February 5, 2022

in love with North Carolina Republicans having the chance to draw a bulletproof 9-5 gerrymander similar to the 8-5 one the state Supreme Court approved in 2020 and instead drawing a hilariously blatant 10-4-1 map that immediately got struck down
— seinfeld empath (@NickTagliaferro) February 5, 2022

And there it is: the NC Supreme Court, in a 4-3 ruling along party lines, strikes down the GOP congressional map that might have led to an 11R-3D split, orders NC's General Assembly to submit new maps by Feb. 18th. https://t.co/aYO2e88Jny pic.twitter.com/8fG3aAqgmx
— Dave Wasserman (@Redistrict) February 4, 2022

Heading into today's NC ruling, I had assumed that a pro-Democratic ruling would probably add two Democratic-leaning CDs–one in Greensboro, the other in the rural northeastern part of the state.
But based on this decision, the Democrats have more upside
— Nate Cohn (@Nate_Cohn) February 4, 2022

Chief Justice Paul Newby accused the court’s majority of “seizing the opportunity to advance its agenda.” | Editorial https://t.co/451nEHSNqJ
— The Charlotte Observer (@theobserver) February 5, 2022

i hate to report that conservative election twitter is having a normal one. https://t.co/gfp22sYZxI pic.twitter.com/3Ahs5m2ByG
— Tyler Dinucci!! (@TylerDinucci) February 5, 2022

The two new proposed NC congressional maps today won't earn rave reviews from redistricting art critics, but they would have a very real chance to pass legal muster by typical partisan fairness measures.
— Nate Cohn (@Nate_Cohn) February 16, 2022

Jeff Zucker did more harm than good

Great column by Margaret Sullivan. Zucker had a major role in creating Trump’s image.

Any good Zucker did at CNN is far outweighed by the harm he did to the country by promoting Trump. https://t.co/RpdzZD4mWW
— Harris Levy (@HarrisL585) February 5, 2022

This is extremely embarrassing, not just for Don, but for all the professional journalists at CNN. https://t.co/jPG2CeraM0
— Soledad O'Brien (@soledadobrien) February 5, 2022

To you, Zucker was a great leader (and I have no doubt he was). To me, he did great harm to the country by boosting Trump. You mentioned it briefly but it's the most significant part of his career.https://t.co/UVZRUm5S7D
— Harris Levy (@HarrisL585) February 6, 2022

The huge gap between what matters to Beltway media elites and their toxic impact on America was never greater than CNN's bizarre emotional wailing for Jeff Zucker — whose quest for ratings and entertainment helped foist Trump on America

My new column https://t.co/CnTt4Eu1C0
— Will Bunch (@Will_Bunch) February 8, 2022

Media: @brianstelter @oliverdarcy @ReliableSources: "Huge disconnect between critical external coverage – blaming #Zucker for boosting #Trump…and the internal impression that he was a heat shield and big-hearted leader and best producer at the network." https://t.co/1AALjuvInQ pic.twitter.com/ke8pbx1xVj
— Porter Anderson (@Porter_Anderson) February 4, 2022

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Great New Yorker weather cartoon by Rox Chast

I call The Weather Channel “weather porn” because they put their correspondents out in the snow, wind, and rain to look miserable when they could show the same stuff just with a camera and someone doing a voice-over from a safer spot.

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Miklos Jancso films coming to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber

This is great news. Jancso’s films have been hard to find here. UK company Second Run has Blu-rays of Silence and Cry and Electra, My Love. It appears that the version of Electra coming from Kino will be a 4K upgrade. Of the six films to be released, I think only The Red and the White was ever in a US edition (Kino Lorber DVD).

The listing on the Kino Lorber site. I ordered mine today.

Kino: New 4K Restorations of Six Miklós Jancso Films Coming Soon to Blu-ray

Rare screening: Winter Wind, from 1969, in which Miklós Jancsó presses his elaborate and exquisite political choreography into confines that heighten both intimacy and paranoia; it's at @MovingImageNYC at 2 (scroll down:https://t.co/mUVNZPXks9
— Richard Brody (@tnyfrontrow) October 20, 2024

The French Dispatch

I liked The French Dispatch but it is clever more than it is deep. It has an all-star cast and Wes Anderson uses a wide variety of styles and color schemes. It’s like his The Great Budapest Hotel – style over substance. In that way, it reminds me of late von Sternberg/Dietrich films like The Scarlet Empress.

Here’s a link to Letterboxd

boxd.it/jLP8

Covers: Apeman

“Apeman” is a 1970 Kinks song that was the follow-up (and less successful) single to “Lola”.

Covers: You Make My Dreams

“You Make My Dreams” was a 1981 hit for Hall & Oates. The Lake Street Dive cover is a very amusing video. Even Kermit the Frog covered it.

Covers: I Will Survive

I am posting about “I Will Survive” because it was in The Addams Family 2 which I watched yesterday. It was a huge hit for Gloria Gaynor in 1978/1979.

just an incredible lede here from @kitty_donaldson https://t.co/8hOACzAjjy pic.twitter.com/9AlcepaRug
— Eli Yokley (@eyokley) February 8, 2022

Blobfest 2022 will be in person

I hope the COVID situation has improved enough that they can do this. I also hope they continue to offer an online version including getting merchandise by mail. It’s a great event and I look forward to going again.

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The Addams Family 2 is not good

“The Addams Family 2” is not a good film. The animation and voice work are excellent but the plot is dumb and predictable. If you’re not familiar with them, look at the Charles Addams cartoons that are the basis for the TV show and films. You can buy prints of the cartoons here.