becoming a 'hard core' offender
Today I saw a headline about Martha Stewart's stay in prison and subsequent house arrest (or whatever it is called). Apparently it's horrible. Still though she seems to be doing ok because in the fall she will have her own version of "the apprentice" on tv. However she says it won't be at all like Donald Trump's because she will not be discourteous. Martha would never say "you're fired" to anyone, she explained. But then this curious line:
"We are trying to come up with other ways to say it," she says. "For instance, if someone is from Idaho, I could say, `You're back in Boise for apple-picking time.'"
How excrutiating is that? Only one generation removed from a long line of Idahoians, this strikes me as vastly more nettlesome than the straight forwardly laconic "you're fired."
Maybe this bodes ill for the forthcoming tv program. But it could still be salvaged. For instance I think the best possible motif would be for Martha to goad her aspiring acolytes into questionable business practices, and be explicit--in her own patronizing way--that those who aren't conniving enough might not be around too long. For an extra dynamic, there could also be a team of amatuer sleuths out to expose the business acolytes. When the business people win, they would get a few seconds of free tv time to flaunt their superiority over normal people in annoyingly saccarine language. But if the sleuths win, the acolytes not only get "fired," but also have radio-transmitter ankle bracelets fitted for the next episode. This has the makings of a white-collar-reality synthesis of The Apprentice with Law and Order. I think there's potential.
Of course, no one would really be told they are fired. Instead, New Yorkers might be told they'll be back home in less time than it takes three experts to dismantle a car in NYC. Georgians might be told their march back to atlanta will be quicker than Sherman's record setting pace. Etc.
Final note: there are no apples in Boise. Potatoes, maybe.
"We are trying to come up with other ways to say it," she says. "For instance, if someone is from Idaho, I could say, `You're back in Boise for apple-picking time.'"
How excrutiating is that? Only one generation removed from a long line of Idahoians, this strikes me as vastly more nettlesome than the straight forwardly laconic "you're fired."
Maybe this bodes ill for the forthcoming tv program. But it could still be salvaged. For instance I think the best possible motif would be for Martha to goad her aspiring acolytes into questionable business practices, and be explicit--in her own patronizing way--that those who aren't conniving enough might not be around too long. For an extra dynamic, there could also be a team of amatuer sleuths out to expose the business acolytes. When the business people win, they would get a few seconds of free tv time to flaunt their superiority over normal people in annoyingly saccarine language. But if the sleuths win, the acolytes not only get "fired," but also have radio-transmitter ankle bracelets fitted for the next episode. This has the makings of a white-collar-reality synthesis of The Apprentice with Law and Order. I think there's potential.
Of course, no one would really be told they are fired. Instead, New Yorkers might be told they'll be back home in less time than it takes three experts to dismantle a car in NYC. Georgians might be told their march back to atlanta will be quicker than Sherman's record setting pace. Etc.
Final note: there are no apples in Boise. Potatoes, maybe.