Last Week Tonight with John Oliver: Juries

August 17, 2020 10:43 PM - Season 7, Episode 21

This week, from the void: Biden picks Kamala Harris as running mate, prompting the usual stupid attacks from right-wing media and President Trump. Marjorie Green may well become the first QAnon-believing member of Congress, making the world even dumber. And Now: Larry King, Master Salesman. Main story: Juries, and how the system is stacked against black jurors despite it being technically illegal to do so. YouTube (21m) And Now: Jim Cramer's Fun-Time Quarantine Activity Makes You Sad.

For more on QAnon, a group that could be honestly described a more batshit than Lyndon LaRouche, I suggest checking out the RationalWiki page on them. Here's a copy of that insanity map of Q beliefs that they showed, which I encourage you to look closely at, seeing as it contains Steven Jackson's Illuminati Card Game, "D.U.M.B.s", which stands for Deep Underground Military Base, the "Galactic Federation of Light," and CERN with the subtitle "Portal to Hell," among many other things that would be marvelously entertaining if folks didn't actually believe it.

The Website of Greg (Content warning: homophobia, extreme wrongness)

"Jury Pool Underrepresentation in the Modern Era: Evidence from Federal Courts." Mary R. Rose, Raul S. Casarez, Carmen M. Gutierrez. 28 March 2018. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/jels.12182

F.37 "Postus Mortem," USPS

posted by JHarris (9 comments total)

I'm always looking forward to each week's episode but I wonder if John isn't burning out a bit. The segments are mostly sad now. I mean, they've always been mostly sad but John still seemed to be enjoying his jokes.
I hope he's doing okay and that we'll see some of his mischievous spirit return at some point.
He's one of my favorite people in the Never Actually Met Them category.
posted by M. at 10:01 AM on August 18, 2020

The combination of having to telecommute with his staff, presumably doing all his tech support and the sheer weight of all the terrible stuff going on with Trump and the rest of the Republicans has to be weighing on him. I was sad that they didn't do anything more with Marble League on the show, despite their introducing "John Rolliver" in the games this year.
posted by JHarris at 2:55 PM on August 18, 2020

I think everything these days is depressing.

I would have liked to have heard his thoughts on trying to have jury duty during coronavirus.
posted by jenfullmoon at 4:26 PM on August 18, 2020 [1 favorite]

The combination of having to telecommute with his staff, presumably doing all his tech support and the sheer weight of all the terrible stuff going on with Trump and the rest of the Republicans has to be weighing on him.

So say we all.
posted by StarkRoads at 7:18 PM on August 18, 2020 [3 favorites]

I would have liked to have heard his thoughts on trying to have jury duty during coronavirus.

Me too. I got a summons to go in August that I pushed to January. Previously I've gone to jury every time I've been asked, usually like clockwork around November. Any other time I would go but with the virus and juggling childcare it feels like an unnecessary risk.

It wasn't stated at all in the summons I got but apparently they're allowing the first step (questionnaire) to be completed online

Once the trial is underway jurors are sitting 6 feet away, everyone masked, with witnesses in "cloth masks that were mostly transparent" in addition to other precautions:

I get the feeling it's hard to put together a jury pool in the best of times but covid's bound to add another distorting effect. What are the demographics of people who show up vs postpone?

With trials taking longer to set up, defendants might be pressured even harder to do a plea, or what, sue the [jurisdiction] for not being able to provide a speedy trial?

It's not top-of-mind for most people, but these issues affect lives in a major way.
posted by tjgrathwell at 9:55 PM on August 18, 2020 [2 favorites]

Oh, I'm terrified of jury duty. I got sent an eligibility questionnaire for a court that's still closed (WHEW) but others are opening. I normally like jury duty, but I don't want to die in agony on a ventilator because the law forced me to be around people and some idiot committed crimes and needs a "speedy" trial. How's that going to look when people are legally forced to get the virus by being around others?

What happens when, not if, the entire jury comes down with coronavirus? How's that going to work for jury trials, eh? You can't have double the number of alternate jurors just in case because everyone will get it. Every time I hear someone say "we can't do jury trials on Zoom" I want to hit them. Zoom (or some similar equivalent) is the only way you are going to be able to have jury trials. Provide people who don't have a computer/Internet with some option, get everyone on Zoom, and keep everyone alive. Period.
posted by jenfullmoon at 7:57 AM on August 19, 2020

Danbury's mayor is not amused. He's named the town's sewage plant after Oliver because "it's full of crap like you, John".
posted by Paul Slade at 4:02 AM on August 24, 2020

Danbury's mayor is not amused.

Please - my CT hometown was once notoriously nicknamed "Herointown" in a piece that got picked up by 60 Minutes, and I would bet you a lunch that people in Danbury were pointing and laughing about it back then so the mayor of Danbury can get over himself.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 1:12 PM on August 24, 2020 [2 favorites]

Quick turnaround on that petty response to a comedian saying comedy things.
posted by JHarris at 5:37 AM on August 25, 2020