Danswers 15: Sadantha Kaldan Returns!

As an outsider, I find the whole pledge thing and America's ultra patriotism super creepy.

@anonymous_jesse: Yeah I'm essentially the same.

it's clear we're going to have different views on the matter, so i'll leave most of it at "i respectfully disagree."

i will say, however, that when i was growing up they had us saying it from as early as kindergarten. no child at that developmental stage can comprehend what they're saying and conscientiously object- and that's to say nothing of peer pressure and wanting to be part of the in-group.

it reeks of McCarthyism to me. but i'm glad you've found some positivity in it.

GOTY 2015 discussions.

I guess you blindly love Pixar with rose-tinted glasses then.

Don't feel bad, as an insider (is that a thing? I guess so...) I find it pretty creepy also.

Also, WTF with that opening discussion.....holy crap lol

Dan, Danny, Samantha all discussing the American Pledge of Allegiance was probably my favourite part.

I'm appreciative of the things my country provides for me (because I live in Canada, where the government actually provides services instead of pissing away all the taxpayer money on fighter jets), but I cannot conceive of what it is like to have Dan's levels of patriotism. It's just a country, man.

@amyggen said:

@robaota said:

Dan calling it whack-off stuff repeatedly is absolutely slaying me.

Also totally relevant to "Free DP" ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Every time Danny said "vices" I thought he was saying biceps. I was really confused on why the guy said his biceps were the cause of issues

I, for one, don't give a shit about Pixar.
Inside Out was a fine movie.

Great episode! As always, Samantha is awesome.

Few things:

• Samantha is great as always. Thank you for sharing your perspective and personal feelings when you didn't have to.
• Not sure why people find the Pledge of Allegiance "creepy"
• Ryckert continues to find ways to top himself. Within minutes of starting the show this time.

I gave up cheese for years for someone who couldn't be around it! Was totally worth it at the time. Now.....I cant imagine doing it again. Cheese is everything.

@ac_shredder: It stems from the USA being a young country with a society made up of over 100+ cultures. There's a need to assert your allegiance with being here, otherwise GTFO!

The return of Samantha! This pleases me.

Growing up in Phoenix Arizona, we didnt only have the pledge of allegiance in Elementary school, but we also had to listen to the *whole* National Anthem

"Aw damn, Alex isn't in this epis-SAMANTHA'S BACK!"

This has been: My Inner-Monologue While Downloading This Podcast. A play in one act.

@mister_snig said:

Technically it's Dan "Normal Guy Cum" Ryckert.

I wouldn't use the word "creepy", but i feel similar. The other thing I've found strange on the same lines that i've seen only while visiting the USA is the amount of flags outside houses

edit: also Sadantha K! nice to have her back (extralife is coming...just mentioning it, for no reason whatsoever... ;D)

I love you Samantha!!! That was great episode.It always puts a smile on my face whenever I see you featured on Giant Bomb. Thank you for putting yourself out there and giving us your perspective on what its like to be trans on my favorite site.

Danny DeVito is in both Twins and Junior.

Samantha is the best. I wish she had her own podcast!

Also, as a kid, the pledge of allegiance was always weird to me. By the time I was around 10 years old, I was already becoming an atheist. The idea of pledging to a nation under God felt very invasive to me even then.

On top of reciting the US pledge everyday, we were expected to do the Texas state pledge directly afterward. It's short, includes "one state under God", and rather than keeping your hand on your heart you have to do this weird open palm thing, like serving food from a platter. Many teachers would chastise you for refusing to do the Texas pledge. I chose to sit down most of the time.

"You stand there, hand on the hearts... Only you and the Roman Empire have ever done that so be very careful" 

- Eddie Izzard

@cagliostro88: yeah, creepy probably isn't the right word for how I feel about it personally, but there's definitely something off about it.

Stick the D. Yeah!!

PUSH SADANTHA KALDAN

UM JAMMER SAMMY

(I love all y'all peeps. Keep being rad.)

A really good episode that was way more relevant to my life than even I expected. Keep up the good work, folks! <3

Great episode with a variety of topics, which is always nice!

I call bullshit on the "one glass of wine a day is healthy" though. Alcohol is a reason why people get cancer and I've seen studies that say that even one glass a day is bad for you. Of course at the same time there are studies that say that it is healthy. I feel like you shouldn't base your life around some study or the latest trend. To me at least one glass a day sounds excessive but everyone is different.

I also find it a bit weird to challenge a person for not wanting to date someone who is transgender. You can help what you're into, you shouldn't challenge someone to date someone they don't want to. I do agree that that girl did sound like a bitch though!

@havochq: now that you've been in a quicklook we need to get you on an episode of Danswers. From videogames to life advice. That's how Giant Bomb works, right?

Always such a pleasure to hear Samantha. I never want these podcasts to end. I have so much I want to ask but talking to her directly isn't an option really, and having a discussion in the comments seems like a bad idea.

I also don't like the pledge of allegiance thing, but I am not a fan of patriotism in general. More nuanced, larger conversation, blah blah blah.

The "One nation under god" part was added during the red scare because Christian conservatives were shitting their pants hearing about the godless communists etc.

The original pledge was secular as fuck.

Well... I couldn't listen to this one... to much... wack off stuff...

Samantha is the best, anyone who ever says otherwise is objectively wrong.

PS: Sam please do your own podcast some day, tia

I've kind of fallen off Danswers lately, but when the People's Champion returns, so shall I.

I got a little weirded out by Danny's implication that buying someone a drink is bad. I don't think that's a bad gesture, wtf.

@alistercat: Haha, I'd actually love that! I'm not sure I have that much advice to give, though. Maybe one day! ^^

@hurtfulmadmax: Since I'm no American citizen, it's not really my place to critique your customs. All I want to say is: Imagine my country would have a pledge of allegiance every morning for school children. Imagine German children standing there, hand on heart, pledging allegiance to the German country and German values. That would turn a lot of uneducated heads. Wouldn't it?

Super stoked that Samantha is back!

I appreciate how direct she was with the question about "polly", and how open she is to sharing her experiences as a trans woman, because I feel like the audience of Giant Bomb (Which I would guess skews young and male) needs exposure to these ideas more than most people. If you're not comfortable dating a trans person (and not all trans or non-binary people physically transition, this is not the be all end all of gender legitimacy) then don't date them thinking you're doing them some kind of favour when secretly you don't view their gender identity as legitimate.

Pumped for the new episode of Danswers and the return of Sadantha. Now we just need Drew Danlon to make an appearance, and then I can rest in peace.

I think saying "If you're not willing to try something new..." in relation to the Polly question is extremely unfair. This show has been good about talking about boundaries in dating, and respecting them. In the past they've always gone with "If a person isn't comfortable doing something, they shouldn't be pressured." But this was the completely opposite direction. Implying that the person who is uncomfortable is the one with the problem. It's a perfectly legitimate issue to be worked out. One that should be talked about with respect for both party's feelings. Yes, opening up sexually as a trans person must be incredibly difficult, but that does not mean that the other person in the relationship loses their agency and feelings about physical intimacy.

But I agree with Samantha said that neither party should lead the other on. I would say that if the relationship isn't in a position that physical intimacy can be discussed calmly and respectfully, perhaps the actual physical intimacy shouldn't occur.

"I'm dating this girl, I have some serious legitimate concerns with our relationship that I can't discuss with her. How do I take it to the next level physically?"

"Invisibilia - The power of categories" was that npr episode on gender identity switching

As an American, I think it's really creepy, especially since it encourages extreme patriotism in many people. It sometimes makes it difficult to criticize or question aspects of our society without being called "un-American" or a commie.

The first thing I had to do in kindergarten was memorize the pledge of allegiance. Looking back at it, that's a little messed up.

Once I discovered I didn't have to do the pledge of allegiance I stopped doing all together, but that was also post-911 and a lot of fellow classmates weren't exactly pleased with the USA's war.

One of the best episodes yet, many thanks to Samantha for returning. Always a pleasure when she visits Giant Bomb.

I realized when I was a couple years away from graduating that I didn't actually have to stand for the pledge, and man, what a liberating feeling. It happened in home room and I was always reading a book anyway, I just tuned out the announcements and continued reading. Too bad it took me so long to find the courage to stop mindlessly conforming.

While that may be the spirit of the ritual, it's not necessarily the reality. Without attributing malice to it, there are a host of sociological and psychological pitfalls that make the "not compulsory" nature of the Pledge totally and actually compulsory. Peer pressure, not-perfect unbiased classroom instructors, being entirely to young to even understand what you're doing.

Group-think/tribalism/peer-pressure is some ephemeral and pervasive stuff. Especially when you've been trained since you were 6 in this ritual.

@hurtfulmadmax said:

My god that beach story is fantastic.

And Samantha's been a fantastic guest--as always! Enjoyed this one a bunch.

I already respected Samantha from the few times I've heard her on Giant Bomb, but now I know she's transgender, she's going up from respect to role model. Hearing about her experiences with transitioning and such gives me a better idea what to expect.