We take a look at Stars And Strife, a new Starz documentary by David Smick (“macroeconomic advisor to a select group of prominent global investment funds”). It’s a documentary cautioning against the dangers of populist extremism, featuring the sober, reasonable analysis of James Baker, Leon Panetta, Rahm Emanuel, Alan Greenspan and Larry Summers, among others, and is honestly just as wild and deranged as You Me Madness. This completes a kind of inadvertent trilogy of films exploring inside the dream world from the POV of the middle class (Can’t Get You Out of My Head), the wealthy cultural elites (You Me Madness) and now, economic-political elite (Stars and Strife)
I saw Will Menaker at a bodega in New York yesterday. I told him how cool it was to meet him in person, but I didn’t want to be a douche and bother him and ask him for photos or anything.
He said, “Oh, like you’re doing now?”
I was taken aback, and all I could say was “Huh?” but he kept cutting me off and going “huh? huh? huh?” and closing his hand shut in front of my face. I walked away and continued with my shopping, and I heard him chuckle as I walked off. When I came to pay for my stuff up front I saw him trying to walk out the doors with like fifteen Milky Ways in his hands without paying.
The girl at the counter was very nice about it and professional, and was like “Sir, you need to pay for those first.” At first he kept pretending to be tired and not hear her, but eventually turned back around and brought them to the counter.
When she took one of the bars and started scanning it multiple times, he stopped her and told her to scan them each individually “to prevent any electrical infetterence,” and then turned around and winked at me. I don’t even think that’s a word. After she scanned each bar and put them in a bag and started to say the price, he kept interrupting her by yawning really loudly.