http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YI7Oq8y-jXA including the "the sign that the Emily Mortimer character held up at the back of the room." scenes and camera shots dear Bhairitu /noozguru so eloquently wrote about.Following the full dialogue without camera shot description(apologies in advance for typos)enjoy : Hi. My name is Jenny.I'm a sophomore,and this is for all three of you. - Can you say in one sentence or less... - ( Laughter )
Um, you know what I mean. Can you say why America is the greatest country in the world? Diversity and opportunity. Moderator: Freedom and freedom. So let's keep it that way. Will. - The New York Jets. - ( Laughter ) No, I'm gonna hold you to an answer on that. What makes America the greatest country in the world? Well, Lewis and Sharon said it--diversity and opportunity and freedom and freedom. laughter - - Moderator: I'm not letting you go back to the airport without answering the question. Well, our Constitution is a masterpiece. James Madison was a genius. The Declaration of Independence is, for me, the single greatest piece of American writing. You don't look satisfied. One's a set of laws and the other's a declaration of war. I want a human moment from you. What about the people? Why is America-- It's not the greatest country in the world, Professor. That's my answer. - You're saying-- - Yes. - Let's talk about-- - Fine. Sharon, the NEA(?) is a loser. Yeah, it accounts for a penny out of our paycheck, but he gets to hit you with it any time he wants. It doesn't cost money, it costs votes. It costs airtime and column inches. You know why people don't like liberals? Because they lose. If liberals are so fuckin' smart,how come they lose so goddamn always? - Hey-- - And with a straight face you're gonna tell students that America is so star-spangled awesome that we're the only ones in the world who have freedom? Canada has freedom. Japan has freedom. The U.K., France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Australia. Belgium has freedom! sovereign states in the world,like 180 of them have freedom. - All right-- - And, yeah, you, sorority girl. Just in case you accidentally wander into a voting booth one day,there are some things you should know,and one of them is there is absolutely no evidence to support the statement that we're the greatest country in the world. We're seventh in literacy, 27th in math,22nd in science,49th in life expectancy,178th in infant mortality,third in median household income,number four in labor force,and number four in exports. We lead the world in only three categories: Number of incarcerated citizens per capita,number of adults who believe angels are real,and defense spending where we spend more than the next 26 countries combined,25 of whom are allies. Now, none of this is the fault of a 20-year-old college student,but you nonetheless are without a doubt a member of the worst period generation period ever period. So when you ask what makes us the greatest country in the world, I don't know what the fuck you're talking about. Yosemite? We sure used to be. We stood up for what was right. We fought for moral reasons. We passed laws,struck down laws for moral reasons. We waged wars on poverty, not poor people. We sacrificed.We cared about our neighbors. We put our money where our mouths were and we never beat our chest. We built great big things,made ungodly technological advances, explored the universe, cured diseases,and we cultivated the world's greatest artists and the world's greatest economy. We reached for the stars, acted like men. We aspired to intelligence. We didn't belittle it. It didn't make us feel inferior. We didn't identify ourselves by who we voted for in the last election and we didn't-- we didn't scare so easy. Huh. Ahem, we were able to be all these things and do all these things because we were informed.By great men,men who were revered. The first step in solving any problem is recognizing there is one. America is not the greatest country in the world anymore. Enough? ( reporters clamoring ) - Are you out of your mind? That was a kid. I'm sorry! I'm taking medicine for vertigo and I think it works because I've got it. You're in trouble, man. You can't talk to me like that. - Do you need a doctor? - Jesus Christ. Listen, listen! What did I say out there? --theme music playing-- For What It's Worth http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gp5JCrSXkJY&feature=related --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Share Long <sharelong60@...> wrote: > > Would it be possible to say what the question was? You can email me directly if it would be a spoiler for others. I don't have HBO. thanks > > > > ________________________________ > From: Bhairitu noozguru@... > To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com > Sent: Monday, June 25, 2012 11:10 AM > Subject: Re: [FairfieldLife] TV review: "The Newsroom" > > >  > On 06/25/2012 02:27 AM, turquoiseb wrote: > > Yeah, it speechifies. There are more words in the first eight minutes of > > this series than in half an hour of most. There is also more truth about > > America and its issues spoken in these eight minutes than in all of the > > real network news broadcasts combined, for a month. Maybe a year. > > > > I stand by some of the intuitions I wrote about this show before seeing > > it. Jeff Daniels is a *perfect* choice. In these first eight minutes you > > can *feel* his inner pain. He is a man who has sold out on his own > > principles, and become somewhat successful as a result. He makes > > millions of dollars a year. He has become almost the perfect Maharishi's > > "speak only the sweet truth" bland irrelevancy. But for some reason > > something in him snaps, and for once in his life he speaks his mind. And > > not only does his world change, he begins to inspire actions in others > > that may change the world. > > > > THIS is what I think those who have mounted a "Let's kill this show with > > criticism" campaign are afraid of. The thing they fear most is NOT a > > fiery liberal like the woman to Daniels' right onstage in the opening > > sequence; nobody listens to them because they're strident and fanatical. > > The thing they fear is NOT a rabid neo-conservative like the guy to > > Daniels' left onstage; nobody listens to them because they're so > > strident and fanatical, and fueled by hatred. What the establishment is > > afraid of -- nay, terrified of -- is a normal, everyday, quiet kinda guy > > finally having had it up to here and saying, "I'm mad as hell and I'm > > not going to take this any more." They're terrified of millions of > > Americans doing that in the voting booth, or worse, on the streets, > > Occupying the country that has been taken from them. > > > > Yes, there are cliched elements to this show. Yes, there are cliched > > characters. There is *also* some damned fine writing, some damned fine > > actors, snappy dialogue, and more truth than the American public has had > > aimed at them by its real television news anchors since Edward R. > > Murrow. > > > > The first eight minutes of the show are to some extent fantasy. Will > > McAvoy (Daniels' character) has a kind of breakdown, and in public. The > > next ten minutes of the show are more reality-based, showing exactly > > what would happen if some real-life news anchor actually did this. He'd > > be out of a job quicker than shit through a goose. And everyone around > > him would shun and avoid him faster than Catholics would shun a Bishop > > who questioned the virgin birth of Christ. > > > > But this is fiction, so Will's one friend sticks by him and assigns him > > a new Executive Producer who takes his on-air breakdown and runs with > > it, reminding him of potential and turning him into a slightly more > > benevolent Howard Beale. "The West Wing" was fiction, too. In real life, > > as we've seen over the last four years, no President -- no matter how > > full of hope and change he might be -- can really change the juggernaut > > that is America's lemming run to oblivion. Similarly, if a real-life > > news anchor went postal like this, he'd be toast. > > > > But in fiction writers can deal with what might be, if the world only > > worked the way we hoped it would. "The Newsroom" is a fictional > > representation of what might happen if humans were a bit more human, and > > actually lived up to their potential instead of pissing it all away > > living down to what is expected of them. > > > > I'm going to give this series a chance, because even though I may come > > across as a cynic, I'm really not. It's just that I don't believe what > > anyone SAYS about what they believe and how they want to change the > > world for the better. I believe only in what they DO. > > > > And I sincerely believe that there is a value in presenting images to > > the public of people DOING SOMETHING instead of just talk, talk, talking > > about it. We're essentially all still monkeys, emulating the behaviors > > we see around us. If all we see on TV is people pursuing the status quo > > and doing the same old same old, they're going to do that themselves. So > > call me crazy, but I'll root for any characters -- no matter how flawed > > or cliched they may be in some ways -- who actually walk the walk. We > > need more monkeys like that on our televisions. If we had enough of > > them, more of us might walk the walk, too. > > The show played more like a first hour of a movie than a TV series. I > hope they can keep that up as it is a pleasant departure from the usual > "formula" of a TV series. Contrasts well with the soap operaish "True > Blood" that precedes it though that is not a bad show either. > > The thought I had when the young woman student asked the question was > exactly what was on the sign that the Emily Mortimer character held up > at the back of the room. I've said the same thing many a time here > myself. Only difference is that I would have asked the young woman how > many different countries has she visited to even make such a statement. > > Now, I'll go see what the rest of the viewers think about the show as > well as the press now that it has premiered. BTW, I didn't care much > for Sorkin's "Too Big to Fail" as it seemed a bit of a white wash. >
