#Block Trump

Dear Mr. Simmons,

You’ve talked with various people about how handle the Trump presidency.  Most of us have taken the tact of gawking at his comments and actions and then loudly joking or complaining about it.  It is a natural way to cope, but I don’t think it is accomplishing anything.  If anything, it seems to be making things worse.  

Maybe we should start thinking outside the box a little bit.  As is always best when overwhelmed with the size of a problem or the volume of problems, sometimes it makes the most sense to break the issue down into segments and focus on one piece at a time.  If we can knock out one or two things, suddenly the sum total of the issues becomes a little more manageable.  I’m not sure there’s a better case to apply this strategy to than the s-storm nightmare that is the Trump administration.  If we all hone in on one area of the pungent sewage cesspool, maybe we can make a little progress to clear a little of the stink rather than spinning our wheels  trying to drive through it and spraying you know what everywhere.

Here’s where I think we start: Trump’s Twitter account.  It’s a steaming pile of garbage wafting over the whole planet.  Insensitive, ignorant, bigoted, false, sometimes all of the above, what if everyone just blocks Trump on Twitter?   Block Trump, take a screen shot then then tweet it out to the world.   #Block Trump (or whatever I have no idea how hash tags work).    It’s all incomprehensible BS anyway.  Intentionally or unintentionally, it has turned into a perpetual diversion that constantly hijacks the news cycle preventing him from ever seeing consequences for any one action.  It’s like he borrows money from a new bank every day to pay for the loan from yesterday.

 

Just pretend his Twitter account doesn’t exist.  If a Trump tweets in the woods does it make a sound? It is pretty clear at this point nothing he tweets will have any value, negative or positive. Nothing will hurt him politically. Nothing will cause a meaningful backlash.  Nothing will be helpful.  Nothing will inspire anyone. Then why read it? Why report it?  Whatever he puts out there is just going to be replaced the next day by something more corrosive and outrageous.  

I know, he has plenty of followers that will never leave, but maybe we could make a dent.   Hundreds of thousands of people subtly speak out, “You’re fake news!  You’re not worth the time it takes to read a 100 character tweet”.  Is there anything that would make him angrier? 

More and more it’s clear, Trump must be treated like a child.  When he acts out, don’t react to it.  That just gives him what he wants. Take the Block Trump pledge!  It could take the world by storm like that thing where everyone dumped cold water on their heads.  Let's make it happen.  The next time you hear someone ask about Trumps latest tweet, the proper response, “What tweet?”

As always, long live Bill Simmons, 
-a fan

Be Kind to Ned

Dear Mr. Simmons, 

Binge Mode is a hit!  I’ve been ravenously scarfing down every episode.  Mallory Rubin nimbly guides us through the highs and lows of each episode in a Cliffs Notes sort of way.  Jason Concepcion chimes in with all of the intricate details while his impressions really push the whole thing over the top as an entertaining recap of everything we might have missed, forgotten, or wanted to relive about Game of Thrones.  I’ve been enjoying every minute...well, almost every minute.  Here’s my one beef... 

What the #$%^ did Ned Stark ever do to them?  They pounce relentlessly on Ned every chance they get.  It started with the season one recaps.  Ok fine.  I thought they were a little harsh on the guy, but considering the end result of his actions, I get the criticism.  If he had climbed down off his horse and sparred in the mud just a little bit maybe he’d be sitting on his throne up North to this day laughing with Rob and Arya as the Lannisters futilely tried to bust through Moat Cailin. Still, relax a little.  Ned had some redeeming qualities. Not the least of which being he was a good dude. Heaven forbid we cheer for that. 

Then, to throw a little salt in the wound, your crew specifically designed a feature in the show to honor the fallen characters.  Freaking Viserys Targaryen had the solemn bell chime to mark his death.  The whole time Rubin and Concepcion were thrashing Ned throughout the season one recaps I sat gritting my teeth, but I took a small amount of solace knowing episode S1E9 was coming and poor Ned could finally rest in peace.   Once last moment of healing closure for Eddard Stark.  All I wanted was that stupid little sound bite.  Low and behold, we came to it.  I relived Ice slicing through poor Ned’s neck and what did I get?  Silence!  C’mon, really?  Even freaking Ros got the bell to dong. Ok, no problem.  Easy mistake I guess.  Well at least the slandering was finished.  Nope! The Rubin and Concepcion bus kept right on rolling through season’s 2 and 3.  “Look Mallory, there’s Ned’s body!”  Forward! Reverse!  Forward!  Reverse! “Oh look what Rob did.  He wasn’t stupid like Ned.”  “Oops, Rob blew it.  Just like Ned.”  “Tyrion is so smart, unlike Ned.”  ALRIGHT ALREADY!   In the wise words of Nicholas Cage, why don’t you cut him SOME FREAKING SLACK!  “Oh Ned, after the war he just buried his head in the sand and hid up north and left Robert by himself.”  Okay, Maester Aemon was praised for taking himself off the chess board for personal reasons.  Yet Ned withdraws to the North to run his homeland with pride and dignity after fighting a war to overthrow the entire kingdom to avenge his family that had just been murdered and somehow he’s a coward?  Yes, he allows his sense of duty/loyalty to drag his family back into the snakepit that cost them all so dearly, but let’s think a little more about why he did what he did rather than continuously spitting on his grave. “He’s an honorable fool!”  Settle down Rubin, just listen for a minute!

Ned tells Cersei he knew about her imbred offspring when she still had time to react.  He could have ruthlessly waited to spring it on her at the most opportune time.  Instead he played his cards early and he got himself killed.  On the surface it was a dunderheaded blunder.  The assertion laid out by Rubin and Concepcion was that Ned’s lack of intelligence cost him his life.  His rigid ideals blinded him from seeing his impending doom.   It was Ned’s fatal flaw.  But to channel Tyrion to some extent, what is flaw and what is strength?  What would Ned have gained from being ruthless? A longer life? Less pain? Less suffering?  More land?   Titles, titles, titles?  Familial longevity?  Honor can sometimes be confused with arrogance when at its roots it is about what’s right and good.  If Ned had played the game he might have lived longer.  He could have lived that day.  Or he could have died the next day while sitting on a toilet with crossbow bolts in his gut.  Or he could have lived for decades.  What is the difference next to a weirwood tree that will live on centuries later?  Would it be better if they wrote songs about him?  Would it be better if they wrote books about him?  What are the views of living men in Westeros to a dead man?  Ned Stark prays to the haunted faces of ancient trees. 

Only the ladder is real.  The climb is all there is.  Ned disagrees.  How you climb is all there is.  Legacy is not tied up in the perceptions of those who live on.  All we have are the things we do. Adhering to that principal to the bitter end may be perilous, but it is a risk well worth the gamble.  Care about the rest and you’re just kidding yourself.  The trees see everything.  That is what Ned believes.  That is who he is.  He deserves at least a nod for what he did and how he did it.  So let’s hear a bell toll for Ned Stark.  RIP Ned.  You have been missed.  

That's all for now.  Long live Bill Simmons,

-a fan