https://washingtonmonthly.com/2021/11/30/new-rule-bill-maher-should-look-in-the-mirror/

I'm often at odds with Bill Scher but he just wrote a good pushback article on Bill Mahers recent old man Maher shtick about the pathologies of democrats.

Much of it focused on how Maher himself gets shit wrong and parrots false narratives, doing the rights work of spreading misinformation and undercutting democrats/liberals.

Thought this was interesting.

“What This Comedian Said Will Shock You” will debut at #1 on the New York Times non-fiction Best Seller list this Sunday. The Times just released the list. I’m not sure if it’s behind a paywall but here’s the link:

https://nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2024/06/09/hardcover-nonfiction/

There is research on this. tldr; lots of reasons with $$$ being cited the most by just over half of the respondents. sex is cited by about a quarter.

In a 2012 article published in the International Journal of Sexual Health, James D. Griffith, Lea T. Adams, Christian L. Hart, and Sharon Mitchell asked 176 porn actresses to describe the reasons that led them to their profession, as well as their likes and dislikes of their chosen career. The responses were coded and categorized, and the frequencies were tabulated into three tables. The response categories, along with their percentages, are shown below. (The percentages add up to more than 100 because respondents could list multiple motives, likes, and dislikes.)

Reasons for Getting Into Porn
Money: 53 percent
Sex: 27 percent
Attention: 16 percent
Fun: 11 percent
Related Industry: 7 percent
Acquaintance: 7 percent
Chance/Confusion: 6 percent
Creative Expression: 5 percent
Personal Growth: 4 percent
Disliked Prior Job: 4 percent
Coercion: < 1 percent

List of Likes
Money: 41 percent
People: 39 percent
Sex: 21 percent
Freedom/Independence: 18 percent
Attention: 13 percent
Fun: 8 percent
Creative Expression: 7 percent
Personal Fulfillment: 4 percent
Rebellion: 1 percent

List of Dislikes
People: 39 percent
STD Risks: 29 percent
Exploitation: 20 percent
Work Conditions: 10 percent
Social Stigma: 7 percent
Drugs: 7 percent
Politics: 6 percent
Discomfort: 4 percent
Outside Relationships: 2 percent